NEWBIE - For the 1000th time I'm sure

[JonathanIT]

Congrats on finding TUG in time to get out of your developer deal. You are one of the fortunate ones... many find out too late!

Not only does this afford you the opportunity to get essentially the same thing that you were going to purchase at a fraction of the cost... but also now you are free to take the time to look around at some other options.

I am a happy HGVC owner and would urge you to check them out. You mentioned flexibility as important to you in your OP, I think HGVC is one of the most flexible systems out there. They are points based, not weeks, which I look at as a huge advantage. I checked out a Marriott presentation after I bought my HGVC and even though it was too late, I was happy to find that I think I made the right choice (for me).

If you are a confident person and have the will power... sign up for a HGVC presentation. They do a good job of explaining things and you have the experience of a Marriott presentation to compare. Just be aware, they employ some HIGH pressure sales tactics at the end... just be strong and say NO. They will eventually take no for an answer. lol And you will get a cheap weekend out of it as well! (there are offers for Hawaii/Vega$/Orlando)

So, take a look at what else is out there, you might just like what you see. Just a suggestion.

 

[ecwinch]

I also became a TUG member. SO...I'll start stalking the BBS, looking at the for sale properties, etc. etc.

Any advice on where to start first or what to do? We aren't in any real hurry to purchase anything, although this seems like a fabulous time to buy.

It is a fabulous time to buy, and resale prices are starting to trend up a little. I am not suggesting that you buy tomorrow, but while you are soaking in all the knowledge that is here on TUG, think about setting up some on-going searchs on e-bay. Start in the timeshare category (under Real Estate), with keywords Marriott and other brands you are interested in. That will give you enough results.

They work well, and you can have the results e-mailed to you each day. Then create a watchlist of the auctions that appeal to you. Then just monitor the general range that resorts are selling for.

First, it will reinforce what a good decision you made by rescinding. Then you do get ready to buy, you will be better able to ascertain the really good deal from the marginal.

 

[gjw007]

Hi folks,

I am BRAND NEW to the world of TSing, and would like some advice. My bride and I went to a Marriott Vacation Club in Orlando, and went to a very effective presentation of the Marriott program and we bought a Time Share in Orlando. We have two kids in college, and a 9 year old, and a live in Mother-in-law we'd like to take with us on vacation.

I am a total newb to time sharing, and I can see from these columns there are nuances and tricks you can do to really get the most out of your $$. I like the idea of exchanging, which is what really sold me on the whole deal anyway. We have a very flexible vacation schedule, and I think that's a good thing. I didn't see any negatives, but after looking at all the advice in these columns and other places, I'm wondering what I can do to make it better. We just signed Saturday, and I think we have 10 days to back out or re-do it if we can.

We bought in Horizon's in Orlando, for week 50 (the week before Christmas). I think that is a very low demand week. Is this bad? Should I demand a better week or site? Any advice for me?

Thanks in advance,

Cheese in Missouri

Like the others, I say rescind. Week 50 is a very, very low demand week in Orlando. Since you are interested in trading, week 51 or 52 would be the highest demand in Orlando. Since your primary goal is trading, you may wish to do a little more research and look for non-Orlando resorts that have high trading power. The advantage to this is in addition to the trading power, the cost will be less and so will, in general, the yearly maintenance fees.

I see that you have rescinded. This was a smart move. The smart move is to research, perhaps for six months, learning the ins and outs. Once done, you will make a much wiser decision rather than spur of the moment. As others say, look resale.

 

[jbiza]

Also, while researching what can work for you, perhaps you can still travel in the meantime to check out some ts locations. Maybe getting a last minute rental or a distressed sighting from the TUG boards, could be less than the mf's that you would have had to pay.

 

[m61376]

Congrats!! Now you can take a deep breath and take your time to find the right thing at the right price.

I laughed reading your impression about timeshares- not at you, but with you. I thought I was the only idiot; we happened to stumble upon timesharing a few years ago when we bid and won an auction for a stay at Ko'Olina at a fundraising auction at our daughter's law school. I also had the same misimpression about timeshares and therefore never looked into it. After a day or two my husband looked at me and said: "why would you ever want to travel any other way?"

Especially when traveling with 3 generations, the space and the availability of a kitchen, even just for breakfast and snacks, makes a huge difference in the quality and ease of a vacation. Of course, if you use the kitchen a bit more you can really save $$'s. Last trip my husband and I added up the savings for breakfasts, snacks/light lunches and the 2 dinners we grilled, bottles of water or drinks at the beach, etc. and figured we probably saved most of our MF for the year.

Keep in mind that, since you have a child in school, you will likely need school vacations, so make sure you buy a week that enables you to book when you'd like to travel. If you are going to need school vacations, Platinum weeks will be best at most resorts and give you stronger trading power to book similar time frames elsewhere, although Gold season may work better for you at some places. Timeshare salespeople try to sell lower cost weeks sometimes and convince you that you can always trade into a week you want and, while that is technically true, trades aren't as easy as they make them out to be and, if you need to trade into high demand weeks, you'll have better success if you own something similar.

And, yes, now is a fabulous time to buy. Since you mentioned Marriott- they have not been exercising ROFR lately because of the credit crunch, so those great deals that were formerly nabbed by Marriott are available to buy and there are many great deals out there. Make sure to read- and post questions- on the Marriott forum here to get a lot more info. At the top of that forum there are several stickies you should read first to get a general knowledge.

Good luck!