Is there any benefit for me to ever buy a timeshare?

[brianfox]

I would say TS is of no benefit to the OP at this point in his life.

For me, it became useful when I had a wife and kids, and a hotel room was just too crowded.
Only then does the idea of a full kitchen and washer/dryer become a necessity during a vacation.

Even at that point, though, the question simply shifts to: Should I own or rent?
We are content to go to the same place every year and could afford to buy, so that was the best option for us.

 

[brianfox]

Prove me wrong but I just can't imagine a scenario where you can amass 10+ years of fees, adjust for opportunity cost, time/value of money adjustments and arrive at something resembling a good financial decision. You may have pulled it off, but you're in the minority. Post what your acquisition dates, costs and fees were and I'll run the numbers for you. I'm just trying to be straight up with people thinking of jumping on the timeshare wagon. They should know that there will be no positive return on their investment. They should know that renting is a much more affordable option. They should also know that the level of accommodations that they get by going the timeshare route will far exceed what they can get from a hotel. However, we should be honest with them and let them know that they can get the exact same timeshare accommodation by renting and not taking on the lifelong burden of ownership. Let's be honest. It's hard to give these things away. Most of the hardcore owners on this board would jump at the chance to give some weeks away for a dollar. It sucks, but it's true.

This is most definitely not a true statement for us. We are net positive - only slightly - adjusting for everything. We stay at the same place every year (Marriott Waiohai) for three weeks at a shot. Even though Redweek has abundant listings, trying to rent three contiguous weeks in the summer for a good price is very difficult. You may get two of the weeks for a song, and then wildly overpay for the third because you are backed into a corner. Ownership is a far better option, with MF quite a bit less than rentals of contiguous weeks. We were fortunate to have purchased when the weeks were at their lowest (Marriott now exercises ROFR for the price at which we purchased). Of course, we never purchased with a positive return in mind. But ownership has "forced us" to take a family vacation every year, And I think that is the only honest positive selling point ever mentioned in a timeshare pitch.

We bought (resale) with a plan in mind, stayed true to that plan, and are very happy with it.