eBay surge not to be found

[gblotter]

This is the first year that I have monitored eBay for Marriott timeshare resales. (I mainly track Hawaii and Park City.) I was expecting to see an end-of-year surge of listings from sellers offering bargains to avoid paying the 2012 maintenance fees. I didn't seem to notice any more/less listings at year-end, and only a few bargains being offered for less-desirable views and seasons. Prices for Marriott 2BR Ocean View weeks in Hawaii seem to be holding steady - definitely not a fire sale.

Did others notice the same thing? Were my expectations set incorrectly, or was this an unusual year for eBay resale listings? Is this a sign that the Marriott resale market has bottomed-out?

One recent observation: I have noticed that Marriott Park City "mud weeks" are now sometimes going unsold even at $1 with low/no closing costs.

Another observation: I did see a dramatic increase of eBay listings and decrease in selling price for the Four Season Aviara timeshare in Carlsbad, California. That is the most luxurious timeshare I can imagine, and it can now be had for a bargain (if you are willing to pay the $2250 annual maintenance fees).

 

[billymach4]

Ebay mostly has the PCC's listing

Unless you have clear and hard metrics it is only speculation. Ebay can be daunting for the everyday layperson. On Ebay I tend to see the same reseller's over and over again. Most of them are PCC's.

There are many other places to list your timeshare for sale other than the hassle of Ebay. Redweek, myresortnetwork, Professional Brokers.

 

[chkvtzn]

This recent auction seems to be close to rock bottom:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/110769291151?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

 

[larryallen]

This is the first year that I have monitored eBay for Marriott timeshare resales. (I mainly track Hawaii and Park City.) I was expecting to see an end-of-year surge of listings from sellers offering bargains to avoid paying the 2012 maintenance fees. I didn't seem to notice any more/less listings at year-end, and only a few bargains being offered for less-desirable views and seasons. Prices for Marriott 2BR Ocean View weeks in Hawaii seem to be holding steady - definitely not a fire sale.

Did others notice the same thing? Were my expectations set incorrectly, or was this an unusual year for eBay resale listings? Is this a sign that the Marriott resale market has bottomed-out?

One recent observation: I have noticed that Marriott Park City "mud weeks" are now sometimes going unsold even at $1 with low/no closing costs.

Another observation: I did see a dramatic increase of eBay listings and decrease in selling price for the Four Season Aviara timeshare in Carlsbad, California. That is the most luxurious timeshare I can imagine, and it can now be had for a bargain (if you are willing to pay the $2250 annual maintenance fees).

I have always thought that theory was a bit of an overstatement but I don't follow that closely to back up my feeling with any facts. Sure there might be a few people getting rid of it at year end to avoid paying the MFs but how many really!? Like I said I have no facts just my feeling that the year end theory is not that significant.

As for Aviara I have followed it and did the sales presentation when they first started building. I got a Tiffany candy dish AND $200 to spend at Four Seasons (used for a nice meal AND a Tommy Bahama shirt). In terms of the FS prices dropping.... For one FS did not build as many timeshares as they planned and thus the ability to trade became much less than planned. On top of that I think the prices have fallen more lately since the hotel next door switched to a Hyatt. I believe the rights to the hotel are supposed to be grandfathered in but.... Anyway, my recollection is when new they were around $85k a week for a decent (but not the best) week and now they are around $5k. Yikes!!!!

 

[dioxide45]

I have always seen a surge in past years, usually about 30-50% more. Of course that was when I was still looking at Ebay for timeshares. Perhaps with this year the market is already so flooded, that there really isn't much more saturation to happen?

 

[gblotter]

This recent auction seems to be close to rock bottom:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/110769291151?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

It should be.

An EOY 1BR Mountain View unit represents the cheapest possible way to buy at Maui Ocean Club.

$1276 is indeed very cheap, but there are other similar EOY 1BR Mountain View units at Maui Ocean Club that have sold for less this year (believe it or not).

There have been 7 EOY 1BR units that have sold for less than $1500 on eBay this year.

 

[gblotter]

As for Aviara I have followed it and did the sales presentation when they first started building. I got a Tiffany candy dish AND $200 to spend at Four Seasons (used for a nice meal AND a Tommy Bahama shirt). In terms of the FS prices dropping.... For one FS did not build as many timeshares as they planned and thus the ability to trade became much less than planned. On top of that I think the prices have fallen more lately since the hotel next door switched to a Hyatt. I believe the rights to the hotel are supposed to be grandfathered in but.... Anyway, my recollection is when new they were around $85k a week for a decent (but not the best) week and now they are around $5k. Yikes!!!!

We spent a week at Aviara this past June and it was as nice as ever. We noticed no change in service or amenities related to the new hotel management.

On eBay this year, the cheapest Platinum Season (summer) week sold for $7450. The cheapest Gold Season (non-summer) week sold for just $621! Yikes indeed!!

 

[ada903]

Last year at Xmas there were over 3,000 listings under real estate - timeshares. This year barely 1,000, even less than during the summer. This is a significant difference.

 

[sparty]

Marriott's take on HHI firesales from earlier this year

Ed Kinney, vice president of corporate affairs for Marriott Vacation Club International, said Hilton Head attracts relatively affluent buyers who are less likely than some to wind up in financial distress.

Those owners are usually satisfied with their purchases, he said, in part because many of the island's time-share properties have been built and maintained by established companies.

Marriott's eight time-share resorts account for about half of Hilton Head's approximately 2,000 time-share units. Before Marriott switched to a points-based ownership system in June, the company's weekly units sold for an average of about $29,000, Kinney said.

About 2 percent of the company's units are available for resale at a given time, and that number hasn't noticeably escalated during the recession, Kinney said.

"It's not as epidemic as some of the other companies in our industry," Kinney said. "The brand names have a much lower propensity for people to just bail out of their stuff."

He warned deal-hunters that the benefits of Marriott's rewards program transfer only if a new owner buys from the company's in-house resale program.

 

[Love2TS]

Actually we bought the FSA platinum for cheaper than what you quoted above.

 

[gblotter]

Actually we bought the FSA platinum for cheaper than what you quoted above.

From eBay or another source?

 

[Love2TS]

From eBay or another source?

Bought it on Ebay

 

[gblotter]

Bought it on Ebay

I've been tracking eBay sales of Aviara this year. I must have missed that one. Congrats on getting a great price at a beautiful resort.

I keep toying with the idea of purchasing an Aviara week, but we always seem to be able to rent or trade when we want to go there.