Newbie Interested in buying resale at Harborside: I have a few questions

[Vlwilk]

Hi,
I think this is a great resource to learn about Timeshares and how to make an educated decision. I am in need of the knowlede of the seasoned timeshare owner.

I'm thinking of purchasing resale (I want to purchase at Starwoods's Harbrside ) and have a few questions:

Are there any tax benefits? Can you write of the interest from a mortgage or maintenance fee?

What can anyone tell me about Russell the "Harborside King"? Is he reputable?

I most likely am looking at an EOY purchase, are there any issues with "banking" my week?

Is there a downside to purchasing resale with Starwood outside of not getting Starpoints?

For anyone who purchased resale, would you reccommend getting your attorney invoved? I would think yes, but since i'm new to this i thought i should ask.


Thanks!!!

Looking to own soon!!! This is a milestone B'day gift to myself.

 

[calgarygary]

I will leave most of your questions for others who are more knowledgeable, but can answer a few:

There is no banking within the Starwood system. You must use your week or staroptions within the calendar year.

Starpoints are an especially poor use for most people as they are consistently devalued. This would be especially true for Harborside where your maintenance fees are among the highest within the Starwood system.

If Harborside is not where you intend to use your ts the large majority of times, buying there is ill advised.

By the way, maybe the mods could move this to the Starwood boards for the best responses.

 

[jerseygirl]

If buying phase one, be sure you buy a week that will work for you. Technically, they all float at 10 months -- but it can be very difficult to change weeks. Gold season is particularly long (weeks 18-34 and 47-49). It's easy to "float" to the May weeks, early June, late August (and I don't know about 47-49, but I would imagine Thanksgiving might be difficult). But, it can be difficult to float to any of the weeks between June 15 - August 15.

 

[Vlwilk]

Thanks for your response! I would definitely want to go to Harborside all the time but i would like to understand my options.

Thanks again!

 

[Vlwilk]

Thanks for responding this resale is for a the Gold season. No set week or phase was mentioned.

 

[jerseygirl]

...No set week or phase was mentioned.

That could be problematic -- make sure you fully understand before you buy. I don't think you'd want to own a week 48 or 49 in Phase One. The deeded week makes a BIG difference in Phase One as it's the only week you're guaranteed occupancy. All float privileges are "subject to availability."

Phase One is what's called fixed/float. You are entitled to your deeded week as long as you call and "hold it," anytime between 12 and 10 months in advance (they say 12 months, but they actually solicited a hold on my May 2009 week in February of 2008). At the 10-month mark, if you fail to call and "hold," your unit would be released to "float" to other gold week owners. At the 8-month mark, any SVN member with enough StarOptions can book any available week.

What does this mean? The weeks between June 15 - August 15 are worth far more than the other gold weeks. They also command large rental fees ... which means they rarely come up for float.

If you can travel in May, or are willing to risk traveling during hurricane season, the week isn't as important. If you have kids in school, the week is very important.

Phase Two is reported to be "pure float," which means the "early bird gets the worm." We don't have a lot of Phase 2 owners here on TUG, but someone did report in recently, and he/she had no problem getting a prime summer week by calling exactly twelve months in advance.

If I were buying again, and prices were similar, I'd buy Phase 2.

 

[Vlwilk]

Thanks, I just found out this unit is a Phase I. I inquired about the week, I'm waiting to hear back.

Thanks again! That bit of knowledge is helpful and can make the difference. From what I can gather, the week is in November.

 

[jerseygirl]

I think that guy has a lot of weeks listed on myresortnetwork, including some decently priced Phase Two units. He has a bad habit of not listing the week number (probably hopes you don't understand the info provided above!).

I'd hold out for a better week, unless you would actually prefer to travel in November (in my experience, the water is pretty chilly at that time of year -- the Bahamas are "Atlantic" islands, and as such don't enjoy the year-round water temperatures that you find deep in the Caribbean).

 

[Vlwilk]

I understand what you mean. Some listed the weeks some didn't.

The good news is that the week is not in Nov but August. The downside is...Isn't that hurricane season? Does anyone know how often hurricanes happen in the Bahamas?

 

[Hoc]

There are a very few situations where there is a tax benefit, but if you are buying in your name, for your use (even occasionally), you generally won't see any tax benefit from the purchase. The mortgage interest will not be deductible unless you take a second mortgage out on your home that would otherwise be deductible, and use that money to purchase the timeshare.

Look here for further details.

 

[DeniseM]

Welcome to TUG! For a good introduction to how the Starwood system works, see the Starwood FAQ at the top of the board.

 

[richardm]

Be careful when you buy from resale ads....

Some resellers may place ads that don't include specific property info simply as buyer bait.. Once they secure your deposit- they then attempt to locate the property.. Unfortunately- this is far too common in the resale market. If they can't give you the property info behind the ad- there may be a good reason!

The problem with this from a buyer's viewpoint- is that often they obtain the inventory from another reseller or broker- so that means you are actually paying two commissions.

If you are securing the broker to assist you with your purchase- you expect the search process to take place.. If you are simply responding to a specific ad- it can be frustrating!

 

[Westin5Star]

I would recommend that you type in Russell's full name on a search on TUG and see what you come up with. I did this at the suggestion of another agent when I purchased my HRA week and I am glad that I did. If it is the same person that I looked up last year, there were mixed reviews on him with very specific comments. Good luck with your decision.

 

[James1975NY]

One of the main reasons why you don't see the week and unit number on the ad for MRN is that he does not have the information readily available and my be working with another brokerage for the inventory.

If you contact an agent with questions and they are not able to answer these basic questions in a prompt manner, chances are they are in fact working with another brokerage.

Here is what your agent should know:
- Deeded week and unit (unless the propuct is truly a "pure" float) Almost all timeshares will have a week and unit deeded but if it is truly float, this information is not necessary.
- Phase of the ownership (especially with properties like Harborside)
- Estimated maintenance fees
- Closing costs


hopefully this will help you be aware of what to expect from an agent. It is not uncommon for real estate offices to cooperate on the resale market.

 

[richardm]

Blind ads and buying from a resale broker..

When this happens, they are called blind ads and are not legal. If you contact an agent with questions and they are not able to answer these basic questions in a prompt manner, chances are they do not actually have the inventory.....just fishing for buyers.

Actually- the term "blind ad" refers to a type of advertisement that does not identify the selling party as a licensed brokerage..

My recommendation to a buyer is simply ensure you perform your due diligence on every purchase- regardless of who is the selling party. If you don't know what questions to ask, secure a brokerage with a good reputation to help you..... Whether that broker has the inventory secured as a listing, or simply has the knowledge and connections to procure it for you- ultimately it doesn't make that much difference from a buyer's standpoint if the price and property meet your needs...

I personally am not a fan of "fishing for leads" with empty ads, but I'd hate to see someone get the impression that the majority of resale broker ads are without merit..

 

[lark]

Tagging on to the thread for a couple more Harborside questions.

Are most phase I units specific deeded units, or just view categories or "varied view."

I'm a bit confused -- can someone give a bit more detail on what happens to a fixed/float phase I owner who doesn't use the fixed week. I understand that at 8 months, you're stuck booking for floating weeks with all other SVN owners as competition. What I don't understand is what happens at the 10 month window. I've seen people describe it as "floating within your season." What exactly does this mean, and who is your competition? Suppose you knew you didn't want to use your fixed week a year out. What would your option be?

Finally, does anyone have a map of unit numbers for phase I? Owner resources has a great one above for phase II, but I can't see one for phase I. Thanks much.

 

[DeniseM]

Suppose you knew you didn't want to use your fixed week a year out. What would your option be?

i will let the harborside owners give you their expert help with your other questions, but i can answer this question.

here are your options ranked in order of value (in my opinion) - ymmv:

1. rent it for a profit
2. make a staroption exchange to another starwood resort at 8 mos.
3. deposit it with an exchange company (but very unlikely to get a resort of equal value in exchange)
4. convert to starpoints for airfare or hotel stay
5. give the week to a friend or family member to use
6. ignore it and lose the staroptions for the year

 

[beachdiva]

I have to agree with Denise's options list, except I'd leave off #6 and use #1-5.

I purchased a 2bdrm gold lockoff Ph 2 week @ Harborside when we were there earlier this month. (Made a conscious choice for developer over resale for various reasons). We had our four kids with us (ages 14 to 20) and we had an amazing family vacation. We can't wait to go back every year now. I changed my purchase 3x before we left, so it took until just yesterday to get my week off "pending" to reserve for next year. I had no problems yesterday reserving the 1st week of August, which is the week I wanted. It seems like Harborside owners have a little breathing room , even at closer to 11 mo out. They said that 4th of July week is extremely popular, so I'd try for that at 12 mo out.

I prefer the Ph 1 building locations better, but I like the pure float of Ph 2. We had (2) 1 bdrm premium units in Bldg 1. Our units overlooked the Atlantis marina and the Royal Towers. The view and location of those rooms was fabulous. It's such an amazing property (with access to Atlantis facilities) that I'd be happy with any unit. We didn't spend enough time in the room that we cared where it was. But it was a nice bonus to have our coffee or cocktails on the balcony and watch the boats in the marina.

 

[clsmit]

Hey JerseyGirl (and other Phase 1 owners) -- We were looking at Atlantis resales and noticed that Phase 1 resales are signficantly cheaper than Phase 2. The only real difference we note other than views and counter tops is this fixed/floating of phase 1 vs. the straight floating of phase 2. We understand the straight float, but on the fixed float, can we book a different week 12 months out using our staroptions or do we have to wait until 10 months out when the "fixed" option expires? Thanks!

 

[James1975NY]

Here is how HRAI and HRAII work...

Phase I - all ownerships were sold with the fixed week. At the minimum, all owners have a guarantee to their deeded week from 12 months prior to 10 months prior to the check-in of the deeded week. Technically, you are able to reserve another week in your season at 12 months in advance but the challenge here is that the rest of the owners have either confirmed their deeded week or have not decided. This is why many will tell you that your chances get another week are better at 10 months. While this may be true, I would not let this stop you from calling further out. Some other phase I ownerships were sold as premium weeks which are guaranteed to the day of check-in (i.e. Christmas week).

Phase II - The myth with this phase is that all ownerships are sold as true float. While a lot of the inventory is sold as true float, this does not pertain to all phase II ownerships. They have view categories where phase I does not and they also have fixed weeks.

 

[mariawolf]

Like any other type of investment--not that a TS is an investment--but a resale price is often tied to what you paid--that is why phase 1 tends to be cheaper, IMHO.
That being said phase 1 does guarantee your unit/view if you book the week you bought without any changes. When we bought in 2001 they didn't increase prices for floor but as time went on they charged more the higher up you were--so we are on the 4th floor marina view and when we go our regular week we always get the same unit. Also there are float weeks in phase 1 and later on they also charged more to have a fixed/float.
I also wonder whether the newer units command a higher price and so wonder whether with the renovations pricing will change.
I am happy to see no assessment for the renovations and personally hope they stick with the tropical decor!