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Maintenance Fees Question

shea26

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First off, I just want to say thank you to this board. I'm new at this, and browsing this board has already saved me from making some bad decisions. One of which was buying access points instead of points at a specific property. For my purposes, I think finding a property with low maintenance fees is definitely the way to go.

So, my question is this - is there a way to predict how quickly fees at a particular resort will rise? For example, I've seen several places like Grand Desert, National Harbor and Old Town Alexandria that appear to be a good deal on the resale market. 150k-200k points, paying anywhere from $0 to $500 upfront, with maintenance fees ranging between $750-1000. Another place was Shawnee Village, but the spreadsheet here doesn't even list fees there for the past few years. Does that mean something? Any particular places I should stay away from?

The way I am looking at it is this is - I am likely going to take a couple vacations with my family every year. Normally between 3 and 5 nights, but occasionally a full week for that special trip. I generally stay between $100-200 a night when it comes to hotel stays, so I figure for now I'd be spending less in maintenance fees, and potentially stay at nicer places than I would have in the first place. A discount for prepaying essentially. But for how long? Are these fees going to increase 50% over the next 5-10 years?

Thanks for the help.
 

dgalati

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Have you stayed at a Wyndham Resort already? If you have not I personally would recommend renting from another owner to see if you like the resorts. Renting gives you the flexibility to book places other than Wyndham Resorts without the burden of paying maintenance fees. If you are flexible with your travel plans and can book within the 60-day discount window find a VIP owner that passes along the 50% discounts and possible free room upgrades. Last minute rentals is a great place to find bargains at less then $115 a night.
 

r4rab

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Assume MFs will increase 2-5% annually and you will be in the ballpark.
 

shea26

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Thanks for the tips, guys. Much appreciated.
 

andymul

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Thanks for the tips, guys. Much appreciated.

I'm new at this too and have not made a purchase yet, but also remember that hotel rates will rise as well. I'd guess at the same or higher rate compared to MFs.
 

shea26

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I'm new at this too and have not made a purchase yet, but also remember that hotel rates will rise as well. I'd guess at the same or higher rate compared to MFs.
Good point. So what's holding you back? I need some worst case scenarios here. Say I buy 150k points with $900 in MFs. If I already know I am going to spend more than that in hotel rates in a year, why shouldn't I just go ahead and do it?
 

hjsweet2002

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There is no comparison between a Wyndham Resort stay and an hotel stay. Wyndham units have everything you need: full kitchen, dishwasher, laundry room, bedroom and living room and a bathroom some with a jacuzzi tub. The amenities at least contain a pool and hot tub. We estimate it costs us bewtween 80-125 per night at a Wyndham resort depending on time of year and location. We estimate most 2 bedroom units costs about 154000 to 175000 depending upon time of year and location. Personally we prefer not to rent versus making our own reservation. Sometimes rentals are not available when you want them. We always book 13 months out at our home resort and 10 months out at others. We usually cook all our meals at the resort to save money that helps to pay maintenance fees. Everyone has their opinion. They key is what is best for your personal situation
 

55plus

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With all this government spending and paying people not to work you can expect inflation increase and increase in hourly wages to get people to work. Because of this maintenance fees could rise 5-7%. Inflation will decrease a little over time, but hourly wages won't. So not only did your tax dollars pay people not to work, the unintended consequences of it is increase in wages to get them back to work.
 

bogey21

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So not only did your tax dollars pay people not to work, the unintended consequences of it is increase in wages to get them back to work.

So true. And once wages are increased not only are the increases with us forever but small increases in years to come will add onto the higher new wages...

George
 

markb53

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So true. And once wages are increased not only are the increases with us forever but small increases in years to come will add onto the higher new wages...

George
I for one am willing to pay a higher MF it’s it means the staff can be paid a living wage.
 

55plus

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Some jobs are not designed to have a living wage. High school kids do not need a living wage during summer months. It drives up costs and hurts the bottom line of small businesses. Why should a towel person receive a ‘living wage’ for standing there handing out towels? If a towel person supports a family then that person needs to find a career job, not a low paying job.
 

markb53

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From what I’ve seen the housekeeping staff are not high school kids.
 

andymul

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Good point. So what's holding you back? I need some worst case scenarios here. Say I buy 150k points with $900 in MFs. If I already know I am going to spend more than that in hotel rates in a year, why shouldn't I just go ahead and do it?

The only thing holding us back is that we have a 1 and 3 year old who make it very hard to plan for things! Also, we like to travel with another couple so I want to make sure we are able to continue doing that and need to figure out the right mix of weeks/points and make sure I buy into the right system for where we like to go.
 

chapjim

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[Deleted]

My point was made earlier.
 

jules54

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Andy and Shea please take your time looking. Go for lower maintenance fees. Most of the older resorts have higher fees. Consider also where you might want to return to each year. With Wyndham that is less of an issue than stand alone resorts. Unfortunately once you get started buying timeshare you might get the bug and look out. It has happened to a lot of TUGGERS.
The suggestion about renting for Wyndham owners is always a good idea. As mentioned you can get great resorts for less than your maintenance fees would be. Once you find an owner you like to working with you can return to them for discounted resorts you hv a desire to visit.
 

dgalati

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Andy and Shea please take your time looking. Go for lower maintenance fees. Most of the older resorts have higher fees. Consider also where you might want to return to each year. With Wyndham that is less of an issue than stand alone resorts. Unfortunately once you get started buying timeshare you might get the bug and look out. It has happened to a lot of TUGGERS.
The suggestion about renting for Wyndham owners is always a good idea. As mentioned you can get great resorts for less than your maintenance fees would be. Once you find an owner you like to working with you can return to them for discounted resorts you hv a desire to visit.
@shea26 @jules54 has given you some sound advice on lower maintenance fees and the rental option. Owning is not always the most cost effective way to travel. You may find renting to be less expensive depending on your travel needs or where and what time of year you like to vacation. I own all resale but find it is cheaper to rent from a VIP in the 60 day discount window. Renting gives you the option of traveling outside of the Wyndham system without the burden of being tied to monthly maintenance fees.
 

dgalati

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There is no comparison between a Wyndham Resort stay and an hotel stay. Wyndham units have everything you need: full kitchen, dishwasher, laundry room, bedroom and living room and a bathroom some with a jacuzzi tub. The amenities at least contain a pool and hot tub. We estimate it costs us bewtween 80-125 per night at a Wyndham resort depending on time of year and location. We estimate most 2 bedroom units costs about 154000 to 175000 depending upon time of year and location. Personally we prefer not to rent versus making our own reservation. Sometimes rentals are not available when you want them. We always book 13 months out at our home resort and 10 months out at others. We usually cook all our meals at the resort to save money that helps to pay maintenance fees. Everyone has their opinion. They key is what is best for your personal situation
@hjsweet2002 Yes 1 bedroom no comparison to a small hotel room especially when my spouse likes to sleep in and I am usually up at 5am. Bottom line learn the system and make it work for your personal situation or travel needs.
 

kaljor

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If the OP is still looking here for replies, I hope he reads this one, because I bought into Wyndham when I had the same concerns he did. The banc concept with Wyndham is this:

Maintenance fees seem to increase at a similar rate at all resorts. There can be exceptions, but I don't think they're predictable.

For someone like you described, your goal should be to buy a contract with enough points for the annual vacations you anticipate, The issue of the Maintenance Fees only becomes important when you are considering buying a whole lot of points. If you want 200 or 300 or even 400k points, the difference in MF's among various resorts can be significant, but not deal killing.

There is a lot more information you need, so if you are seriously considering a Wyndham purchase, you will never go wrong by lurking here, and asking relevant questions. You're asking all the right questions, bu there may be a lot more questions that haven't occurred to you yet, but may become
apparent after participating in this forum long before you buy.
 

chapjim

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From what I’ve seen the housekeeping staff are not high school kids.

They are probably not the only wage earner in the household either.
 

Ty1on

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With 4-5 night stays, you should add into your calculus $159 for a housekeeping fee once per year. You may or may not end up paying it depending on the points you own and how many trips you cut them into, but shorter stays can generally lead to that fee. So whether you'll end up paying it or not, adding it to your decision info will make you more informed.
 

Ty1on

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Good point. So what's holding you back? I need some worst case scenarios here. Say I buy 150k points with $900 in MFs. If I already know I am going to spend more than that in hotel rates in a year, why shouldn't I just go ahead and do it?

There are some important additional qualifying questions. Somewhere in this beautiful masterpiece of a forum is a checklist of considerations for those considering buying. Things like "Can you plan your vacations 10 to 13 months in advance?" ( I think it says a year in advance but 10 and 13 months are significant in World Wyndham). I think it's in the New to Timesharing forum.

Also, understand that resorts levy special assessments on owners in case of a disaster or major repair need that reserves can't cover. This can run into a couple thousand spread over two years, and they are quite infrequent...Wyndham does a fair job with reserves management, but there have been a couple in different resorts over the last few years.

My MF are higher than average, and I don't really care because the way I look at it, I pay a bit every month and when vacation plans come around, it's sunk money with no immediate outlay while we are paying for airfare and all the other ridiculous costs when you want to get out of the house.
 
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