Hello! New member here

[Dorian]

I had not taken a vacation in my entire life until I was 40 years old. Since then, my wife and I have had the good fortune of going on three vacations with a good friend and his wife. We have visited Breckenridge twice Cabo San Lucas. The couple that we traveled with are HGVC/Fiesta Americana club members. Now my wife and I have traveling fever. This week I contacted HGVC directly and they wanted over $32,000 for the membership I was looking for. Money is tight as we have two kids in college and another headed there next year. So I started looking at "sellmytimesharenow" which had people selling the 7000 point HGVC package I was looking at for about $9500 instead of the $32,000 I was quoted by HGVC. Then I had a co-worker that said he bought his vacation club on eBay for not thousands but hundred of dollars. He then recommended I join TUG and converse with the well-seasoned travelers as I might find some good advice here.

So, thanks for reading all that.

What I am looking for is a vacation package that would be equivalent to an HGVC 7000 point package that allows me to hit the "30,000 plus resorts" that they boast about. I definitely want to be able to travel to Breckenridge and Cabo again among many other vacation spots.

Can somebody please point me in the right direction? I see on eBay all the RCI points that are going for pretty cheapo. Will RCI get me where I want to go? Any other club member "steals" out there? I am very new to this and am eager to go on my next vacation!

Thanks in advance!!!

Dorian

 

[Passepartout]

Welcome and Wow! It's not often I see a 1st time poster who has sprung the big bux to join. Boy- I'm humbled!

I really can't help you find the perfect TS right out of the gate. Only you can peruse the available offerings and decide what works for you. There are great bargains on eBay, the TUG marketplace- and bargain deals have some buys. Not all low priced TSs are worth their low price, but some are.

If you have your heart set on HGVC, there is a broker who is well thought of hereabouts. Hang for a while in the HGVC sub-forum and it will be obvious. I don't own Hilton, and find that the well-managed smaller places somehow more 'charming' than the big resorts, but to each their own. Another system to look into might be Wyndham. Lots of well located resorts, and access to RCI's universe if theirs isn't enough. Many here are happy with them. They also have their own sub-forum.

Obviously you have already found the magic of resale, so I will only reinforce that resale rocks. It's the ONLY way to buy a TS.

Welcome and good luck!

Dorian, Here are two brokers who specialize in HGVC resales. Judy K. ... See: http://judikoz.com/
Seth Nock ... See: http://www.sellingtimeshares.net/

They will guide you through the minefield of ROFR. At this stage I'm not sure even you know what you want or would work for you. I would seriously suggest that you rent TSs the first few vacations to get an idea what's available and what it value it might have to you.

Best wishes

Jim Ricks

 

[Dorian]

Thanks for the reply Jim! Much appreciated.

I will probably take at least a few weeks to get a better understanding of timeshare ownership and resales. There is lots to read on this website so I will just start by going through the topics/threads and learning all I can.

Thanks again -

 

[slip]

You'll have to ask yourself some questions to help you decide.

How much do you want to pay upfront for a timeshare?

How much do you want to pay for annual maintenance fees?They always go up.

Are you flexible in your vacation schedule?

Can you plan ahead? This is needed for exchanges and getting some prime units
or times at home resorts.

What type of resort do you want 3 star or 5 star with all the amenities?

Answer these to get you started. It sounds like you'll get good use and
enjoyment out of timeshares.

 

[Dorian]

You'll have to ask yourself some questions to help you decide.

How much do you want to pay upfront for a timeshare?

Looking at some of the ads on sellmytimesharenow it looks like I can find an HGVC membership with a decent amount of points to start with for about 5 or 6k. If I can do better, great.

How much do you want to pay for annual maintenance fees?They always go up.

Not terribly concerned about the maintenance costs. They look to be in the $800 to $1000 range and even if they rise a bit I am okay with that.

Are you flexible in your vacation schedule?

My vacation schedule would most likely be a late winter trip and a fall trip. Weeks in those timeframes are not set

Can you plan ahead? This is needed for exchanges and getting some prime units or times at home resorts.

I would prefer to plan ahead. The late winter trip for just the wife and I would have more flexibility

What type of resort do you want 3 star or 5 star with all the amenities?

The two resorts that I have visited were Valdoro in Breckenridge and Fiesta Americana in Cabo San Lucas. I really liked them and would like to return to them both again.

Answer these to get you started. It sounds like you'll get good use and
enjoyment out of timeshares.

Thank you very much. Your questions definitely give me something to think about.

 

[slip]

You may want to contact Judy and Seth and see what they have availible.
You're definitely on the right track for what you want. I think the maintenance
fees will be higher than what you listened but if that doesn't concern you much,
you'll be fine. Post more questions if you have them after talking to Seth and
Judy.

 

[Dorian]

Great, thank you Jeff! I appreciate you taking the time to respond.

 

[Remy]

If you want Breck, go with Jovan Realty. They have most of the listings.

 

[Dorian]

Thank you Remy! I will check them out.

 

[theo]

My $0.02 worth...

I will probably take at least a few weeks to get a better understanding of timeshare ownership and resales. There is lots to read on this website so I will just start by going through the topics/threads and learning all I can.

With all due respect, I'd strongly recommend making that learning curve period a few months, not just a few weeks, before considering any sort of purchase.

You're obviously a smart guy, as evidenced by doing your homework before making an uninformed (and expensive) mistake. Nonetheless, there are just so many very different "systems", each with its' own individual oddities and nuances (and assorted "points currencies") to decipher, none of them having any relationship at all to any other "points currencies". In the meantime, you certainly don't and won't lose anything by simply renting available advertised weeks where you want to go and when you want to go there.

Purchasing is always easy, selling is much more difficult --- and annual maintenance fees are forever.
Take your time. Read and study, then read and study more before even considering pulling out that checkbook for any timeshare purchase.

==============================================================================
P.S. Your initial inquiry was posted in the "Newbies Help" forum, where I thought I was responding, but your post (and the entire thread) was then moved by moderators over to the Hilton / HGVC forum instead.
For the record, I claim no personal knowledge about (or any personal experience with) the Hilton / HGVC system at all, but I still nonetheless stand by my reply, in its' entirety.

 

[ronparise]

With all due respect, I'd strongly recommend making that learning curve period a few months, not just a few weeks, before considering any sort of purchase.

Theo is right...this business of timesharing is like chess...You can learn the rules and start playing in an afternoon. But it will take much longer to get good at it.

I do think however that you do need to be playing the game to learn it. So thats the catch...our advice is; dont buy until you learn the system, but you cant learn the system until you buy.

Another danger is "paralysis by analysis" You can get so caught up in the study, that you cant make a decision....

So what do I advise? 1) Understand the timeshare concept including the concept of 'exchanging' and its benefits and its flaws as you see them 2) decide system vs single resorts 3) if you decide on a system; using your own criteria, reject systems until you get to your short list for study...4) if you reject them all start looking at individual resorts again and the exchange companies they associate with.

As much as I advice study, study, study. I didnt take my own advice. Once I decided that I was going to buy something, the decision to buy into the Wyndham system was easy for me. They are the only system that has multiple resorts near my home that I can get to in a few hours (Im a last minute kind of guy). And they also have a resort in San Francisco (where my daughter lives) and in Washington DC, (where my son lives)(they are the only timeshares near Washington) Once I knew these things, my study was over and I started bidding the next day..But like chess Im still learning to play the game...

Good luck

 

[vacationhopeful]

Let me tell you about the PINK resort I brought into. And its $1500 Special Assessment. And the resort was in bankruptcy.

I was in TEARS when I opened the condo's door and discovered everything in the place was PINK. The floor was mauve, the walls & ceiling pink, the kitchen cabinets were metal and 1950's PINK, the appliances only had some PINK, the bathroom sinks PINK, and the bedding & drapes were mismatched pieces from the last 35 years of plastic surfaces. Crying did NOT help.

Six months and a rental at that resort would have uncovered all these issues.

And there are worst things than PINK in the timeshare world. Mold. Nonpaying owners. Very bad management. Structure damaged. Closed.

 

[Passepartout]

Dorian, I have no desire to rain on your parade or scare you off, but just so you can see how TS ownership can go off the tracks, look through this thread: http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156651 No need to read the whole thing, a few will give you the idea and besides, it's ongoing.

I second the notion of study 3-6 months, maybe rent for the first few vacations. Try different systems.

I like having the first TS purchase be one I will use at least half the time, good trading power, and close enough to drive to in a day.

Happy studying.

Jim

 

[Dorian]

Thanks...

Theo, Ronparise, vacationhopeful, Passepartout -

Thanks for the info. I did decide last night after reading through many threads that this would have to take some time. There is much to learn.

 

[GregT]

Theo, Ronparise, vacationhopeful, Passepartout -

Thanks for the info. I did decide last night after reading through many threads that this would have to take some time. There is much to learn.

Dorian,

You're received excellent advice and your decision is a good one -- I found TUG in 2001 and was a sporadic reader, becoming more serious about buying a timeshare in 2004. It helped me greatly to have this community of happy timeshare owners (along with the many unhappy ones, to provide a balanced view) so I could make my own decision.

I bought my first one in 2005, and have bought one every year since then. Doing the research is fun too, and buying the first one is a little nerve wracking and then it gets easier as you become more confident and knowledgeable about what you want.

And Hilton is an absolutely fabulous system -- outstanding reservations systems and excellent properties. The primary rap on Hilton is that they are heavily concentrated in Orlando, Las Vegas and Hawaii. This suits me well however, because I purchased it primarily for access to Hawaii.

Good luck, and you're doing the right thing by researching and asking questions.

All the best,

Greg

 

[Dorian]

Thank you Greg! I appreciate the insight and the way you approached buying a timeshare(s).

 

[itradehilton]

OP those friends that own with HGVC, ask them how they like the system, what did they see as positives and negatives. Since you didn't travel before is time-sharing worth the commitment to you?

If yes, then I want to tell you how much fun we have had time-sharing with our friends. We learned we were travel compatible by going on a few short trips together and when they joined us as HGVC owners we now vacation a week together (in our own rooms)each year, traveling to HGVC resorts or affiliates. It has been a wonderful experience.

 

[Dorian]

itradehilton -

They love the program. They've been on several trips and have taken my wife and I on three of them. Haven't really heard them speak of the negatives other than they want to get more points, they have 5000 annual now.

I think timesharing will be worth the commitment as two of the three kids are off to college now and the third close behind so the wife and I are looking to do some exploring.

I've really appreciated everybody's advice. It's been very interesting researching how all the programs work and the pro's and con's.

 

[BillW]

Dorian,

Just wanted to share our experience. Couple years back we stayed w/ my Sister and her family for 3D 2 Nights on the Strip in Vegas. Liked it but our kids were still too young (bad experience w/ kids, not resort. Let's just say good thing it was a king bed). Began researching timeshares online and found TUG. Started reading the forums. Long story short - 2 years later (Spring 2010) we finally bought a HGVC International Drive in Orlando. When we started looking(2008) we were considering a 7000 point 2BR Platinum resale. We used Seth, bought ours sight unseen and got a 8300 Point 3BR Plat for the same $ as the 2BR.

Patience pays. Learning all you can helps. Obviously the economy was more in our favor with the delay, but by all appearances it still is a buyer's market. Two years may be more time than you need to make the decision, but take some time, rent a unit and stay. It still floors me that we bought a property in Orlando we'd never seen over the phone from a guy in New York whom we'd never met via a title company in Missouri we'd never heard of.

One other thing Dorian. Thank you. I have been reading and learning here off and on now for three and a half years. I have always said I am going to join because what I've learned is worth many times more than the small membership fee. Life is busy at times though, as we all know. When I read Passepartout's comment about you being a new member and having joined I realized that I was long overdue. Tip o' the hat to ya Dorian and best of luck on your search.

Bill