Did a TUGger get this Harbor Ridge week?

[#1 Cowboys Fan]

An ebay Harbor Ridge week sold for $3750 (minus 1 cent)

Was a TUGger the 'winner'?

I was watching it with some interest----though that was about twice what I would have signed off at.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=390207452515&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNA:US:1123

Pat

 

[dmbrand]

I was wondering the same thing.

 

[LLW]

Is there a special reason why the MF is only $445, relatively low? (No, I did not get it.)

 

[dmbrand]

We also own a week at Harbor Ridge. We will actually use our interval in July for the first time; will give me a better feel as an owner. Being smaller, and owner controlled helps contribute to the lower fees.

We will check out the furnishings; I am guessing that they will be quite comfortable, but not upscale. I don't think we will be spending much time in the unit, though; we are pretty active vacationers.

 

[bccash63]

I bid on it but my limit was $1200. I don't really need another timeshare and never would have gone that high with all the good deals out there right now. Dawn

 

[#1 Cowboys Fan]

I already own there---but this was a bigger, more attractive week.

With about 6 hours to go, it was in my price range....but I know ebay well enough to know that didn't mean much.

I still thought it might go for less than 2K.

Still, it's a nice week........

Pat

 

[Rent_Share]

What would make this one worth 375,000 times more than 1000's that can't sell for a penny

 

[Steve]

What would make this one worth 375,000 times more than 1000's that can't sell for a penny

Supply and demand.

First Demand: Harbor Ridge is located on Mt. Desert Island near Acadia National Park on the coast of Maine. Week 29 is a prime late July week. This is a wonderful...and very popular...place to vacation. School is out and it is peak vacation time.

Then Supply: There are very few timeshares on the Maine coast. There is a limited warm season due to the northern climate. There are tens of millions of people within a day's drive.

Demand is far greater than supply. Thus, this timeshare still has a lot of value. (I was watching the week as I love Maine.)

Steve

 

[sjuhawk_jd]

What would make this one worth 375,000 times more than 1000's that can't sell for a penny

Same thing that makes houses in California sells for much more than houses in Dallas

 

[theo]

Some thoughts...

Is there a special reason why the MF is only $445, relatively low?

In addition to the entirely correct observations above, this resort is also one which identifies and charges property tax amounts which vary according to the "demand" period of the individual week(s) owned. This seems to be an uncommon (yet seemingly very fair) approach. I don't at all like or endorse the idea of "lesser" weeks paying "lesser" maintenance fees one bit, since standardized facility costs should all be shared equally (imho), but I certainly do like and accept the "graded" property tax concept. Seems quite fair to me.

I did bid on this listing, but did not win (...which greatly surprised me, to be honest). I had submitted an automatic bid which I figured was a thousand dollars higher than what I figured the highest bid would be (but an amount that I would still have been willing to pay, albeit reluctantly). I thought I had provided a big enough cushion to win easily. Obviously, someone else did the exact same thing --- but with an even higher pain threshold on their maximum bid. Their automatic bid "maximum" is of course unknown, but the system awarded the buyer the win at exactly $50 (the minimum increase) above my own automatic bid maximum.

I was disappointed, but certainly not heartbroken; nearly $4k was PLENTY to pay for that week.

 

[dmbrand]

I am disappointed that you were outbid; it would have been fun to at least meet another TUG member. We own that same week.

 

[#1 Cowboys Fan]

I am disappointed that you were outbid; it would have been fun to at least meet another TUG member. We own that same week.

So, were you surprised at how much it sold for?

Pat

 

[Patri]

In addition to the entirely correct observations above, this resort is also one which identifies and charges property tax amounts which vary according to the "demand" period of the individual week(s) owned. This seems to be an uncommon (yet seemingly very fair) approach. I don't at all like or endorse the idea of "lesser" weeks paying "lesser" maintenance fees one bit, since standardized facility costs should all be shared equally (imho), but I certainly do like and accept the "graded" property tax concept. Seems quite fair to me.

I would see the reverse as more true. Maintenance fees could be lower off season, as if less occupancy, then housekeeping would be lower too. Also some yard duties are not necessary in the fall and spring - mowing, watering, etc. And snow shoveling should be down.
As for the value of the property itself, that is on a yearly basis. Just as a home doesn't drop in value in the muddy spring, so doesn't a resort. Anyone who would purchase the entire resort would pay the same no matter when bought. The individual units are irrelevant. Ultimately the resort is one huge piece of property on the tax rolls. And since the value of weeks can change at the whim of an exchange company, who is the tax office to assign that value?

 

[dmbrand]

So, were you surprised at how much it sold for?

Pat

I think I was a little surprised that it sold for that amount on ebay. It wouldn't surprise me to see it sell for that price if it was a private party resale.

 

[theo]

I don't think that's how it works...

...who is the tax office to assign that value?

I doubt that the tax office actually has anything at all to do with the matter, since (to the best of my knowledge, anyhow) the resort pays one single property tax bill --- and the resort bills out individual owners. (Yes, I know that California does it very differently, but Maine is not California ). In short, I believe that it is the resort which actually "differentiates" the individual owner property tax bills, based on week demand.

I guess we see this a bit differently (...and that's of course fine). I just personally happen to like the idea of equal maintenance fees for all owners, and see no harm in "weak weeks" paying lower taxes than "prime" weeks. Just my personal opinion.

 

[#1 Cowboys Fan]

I think I was a little surprised that it sold for that amount on ebay. It wouldn't surprise me to see it sell for that price if it was a private party resale.

How long ago did you buy---did you buy on ebay, too?

I 'won' on ebay last year, a 1BR EOY, week 24, for just over 1K including closing costs

Pat

 

[Patri]

I guess we see this a bit differently (...and that's of course fine). I just personally happen to like the idea of equal maintenance fees for all owners, and see no harm in "weak weeks" paying lower taxes than "prime" weeks. Just my personal opinion.

Aww, your personal opinion is fine. Come to think of it, the cost either way probably washes out the same for the owners, if either fee is unequal. The owners of pink weeks would likely fuss the most, wanting the benefit of white but maybe getting red.

 

[dmbrand]

I bought in spring, 2009, from a private party via craigslist. Agreed on price was 2K.

Did you see the current auction....http://cgi.ebay.com/Summer-RED-Week-MAINE-New-England-BEACH-Timeshare-DEED-/300440614628?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Timeshares&hash=item45f3a7f6e4#ht_3105wt_911?

Not Harbor Ridge, but looks like a nice place. Will be interesting to see how many bids this one gets.

Have you used your wk 24 yet?

 

[theo]

Maine apples vs. Maine oranges...

Did you see the current auction....http://cgi.ebay.com/Summer-RED-Week-MAINE-New-England-BEACH-Timeshare-DEED-/300440614628?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Timeshares&hash=item45f3a7f6e4#ht_3105wt_911?

Not Harbor Ridge, but looks like a nice place. Will be interesting to see how many bids this one gets.

Inn Seasons is not exactly noted for "good management" around these here Yankee parts...
In fact, Inn Seasons has very recently forfeited their resort management rights over to to VRI at several other New England facilities (although most eBay bidders will be unlikely to know that). This Ogunquit facility is strategically located practically on U.S. Route 1 --- and the spring week is actually before Memorial Day (i.e., not very good for any family with kids still in school).

While both are located within the same great state of Maine, these two weeks have little else in common.
I'd be willing to bet (...but certainly not by bidding) that the above auction will end at well under $1,000 --- or about 1/4 of the price of the much better Harbor Ridge week on which I recently got outbid.

 

[dmbrand]

You say that it is poorly managed; yet, would it still be acceptable as an exchange, rather than own? I see these online, occasionally, in II. I am guessing it would still have very favorable exchange power, as well.

 

[theo]

Input from the admittedly unqualified...

You say that it is poorly managed; yet, would it still be acceptable as an exchange, rather than own? I see these online, occasionally, in II. I am guessing it would still have very favorable exchange power, as well.

I own to use and I don't "exchange", so I am clearly not qualified to intelligently address "trading power".
Inn Seasons has a local reputation for poor management, so I presume that their well publicized management problems might likely include this place as well. In outward appearance, the Ogunquit facility certainly seems nice enough. However, the eBay listing labelling a May week in coastal Maine as "summer" is certainly a very optimistic stretch --- at best.

That said, I would be inclined to believe that pre-Memorial Day coastal Maine weeks would have somewhat limited demand and, as result, less than stellar trading power. Those with far more knowledge and experience in the "exchange" arena might well have different views or experiences...

 

[#1 Cowboys Fan]

I bought in spring, 2009, from a private party via craigslist. Agreed on price was 2K.

Have you used your wk 24 yet?

No, it is an EOY (odd) and I did not use it when I bought it last year.

I expect to trade it most of the time.

Ironically, I most likely would use it someday if I moved away (retirement?)----I live about an hour away from Harbor Ridge.

Pat