Newbie needs advice

[Chemnole]

Hi all,

I have been around the boards for the last month or so trying to do my background research in this interesting area of timeshares. I was very impressed with everyone's willingness to provide help and candid advice. (I even went ahead and became a member). I was hoping to ask some folks now for some of that advice.

A little background:

Last year we were given a gift from my parents to go to a resort. All we had to do is sit thru a timeshare speil. I have heard about these timeshare talks but wasn't worried that we would give in since my wife and I are pretty frugal people. We stayed in Orlando at a place called Summer Bay Resorts. It was a nice place and my family (we have 4 kids as well) enjoyed it thoroughly. We thought it was such a good place for our family I decided to research the topic. I also decided to wait about 9 months before I got serious about it so that I don't do something out of impulse. It has now been over 9 months and I have been looking over all the FAQs to see about purchasing a timeshare.

Some more details:
We (my wife and 4 kids) currently live in WA. We will be here with my job for about another 2-3 years. Our family lives in Jacksonville and Miami. We like to get down there every year to visit them. After my stint is up here I will most likely going back to the east coast. My job is pretty flexible and we homeschool our kids which means we are not restricted to the school calendar. Given these facts I am trying to figure out what strategy would be best to buy a timeshare. I was thinking about buying a RED week timeshare somewhere so that I can possibly get good trading value for it (since we are able to vacation in non-prime seasons). Though I didn't know if buying a timeshare just for trading purposes is a good idea. Then I was trying to figure out where would be a good place to buy. Although we have family in Florida we would probably only go there once a year given the long journey it usually is. Virginia is the place we would most likely be settling down in so it may make sense to get something there. Again I don't know if this is a good strategy if we are thinking of going the trading route.

Another thing is the whole points vs weeks issue that I keep on reading about. Will points give me more flexibility or does the established RCI/II exchange programs sufficient for my purposes? Then comes the whole where to buy issue. I have looked at ebay and have found the following sellers which tend to have high positive ratings: sumday_vacations, tttimeshare, cybernaut303, shares300. From what I have read it looks like they get their inventory from charitable donations to other organizations (e.g. Florida Veterans Assistance Association) but don't know what type of condition these units are usually in.

OK.. sorry to inundate everyone but just wanted to tell my story and see if I can get some pointers.

Thanks in advance!

c.

 

[aliikai2]

You have lots more questions to answer before

you are ready to purchase.

There are many schools of thought, some will advise buying something like WorldMark, ( which will work great for drive to destinations while your out here in the west) that will trade very well with II or RCI.

A 6000 started package can be had now for under $3000 with annual costs in the $500 range.

Others will say buy where you want to travel, Myrtle Beach, Virginia Beach, etc.


Then there are the floating weeks vs fixed weeks, points vs weeks, mini-systems ( Blue Green, DRI, ORE, VI, WM etc)

You really need to think out when and where you would like to stay, then fill in the blanks with the best 1st time purchase.

fwiw,

Greg

 

[Chemnole]

Greg,

Thanks for some more things to think about. I did not hear too much about the WorldMark system but will look into it a little more.

I guess given our flexible schedule we would like something equally as flexible. The fixed vs floating ties into my earlier question concerning if a points system vice weeks system would be better for our family since we are able to vacation in the white or blue season. Since we are in the west currently and have various places to visit in the east coast when we get there I'm thinking we probably would like to not be tied down to just one resort. (Another reason why I was thinking about looking into things with good trading value).

I was just wondering how many people here primarily buy timeshares for just the trading value and if it was a good idea for a 1st time purchase.

Thanks!

 

[HudsHut]

Given that you live in WA, WorldMark is the system for you. You'll have many "drive-to" resorts in the Pacific Northwest. just look here at the number of resorts in WA & OR.
https://www.worldmarktheclub.com/resorts/

WorldMark is a points system. The number of points is determined by the resort, season, and size of unit. You are not locked into a single week, a single season, or a single size of unit.

When you want to go to other parts of the country, you can use WorldMark to exchange.

To learn more,
http://www.wmowners.com/forum/

 

[JudyS]

.....
Another thing is the whole points vs weeks issue that I keep on reading about. Will points give me more flexibility or does the established RCI/II exchange programs sufficient for my purposes? Then comes the whole where to buy issue. I have looked at ebay and have found the following sellers which tend to have high positive ratings: sumday_vacations, tttimeshare, cybernaut303, shares300. From what I have read it looks like they get their inventory from charitable donations to other organizations (e.g. Florida Veterans Assistance Association) but don't know what type of condition these units are usually in....

Hi, and welcome to TUG!

I don't have time to address all of your points, but let me say a few things.

A lot of people here will tell you "buy where you want to stay." However, I have been very, very happy with inexpensive timeshares that I use for trading. I do think, though, that you should always have a "back-up plan" for using your timeshares in case your original plan doesn't work out. For example, I wouldn't suggest buying something just to trade in RCI, because RCI could change their rules and you might no longer be happy. If, on the other hand, your timeshare trades well in both II and RCI, then you have a "back-up plan" if RCI doesn't work out, and are much less likely to be stuck with something you can't use.

In terms of what system you should buy, that depends on a lot of things. How much are you willing to spend? How luxurious a place do you want to stay in? Are you talking about using a timeshare for one week a year, several weeks a year, or maybe several long weekends?

As for eBay sellers, my idea of good feedback on eBay is hundreds of positives with no negatives. I don't think any of the companies you mention have feedback that good. I think most of them are what are known here as "postcard companies" -- they send out postcards to timeshare owners, telling them to come to a seminar where they will "make an offer on their timeshare." When owners get there, the postcard company tries to scare the timeshare owner and make them think their timeshare is a liability, then offers to take the timeshare off their hands if the owner will pay them (the postcard company) several thousand dollars. The postcard company then turns around and sells this supposedly "less than worthless" timeshare on eBay, sometimes for considerable money.

Does this mean you shouldn't buy from the postcard companies? Well, I've bought from them myself. But, they often have no real idea what they are selling, so you really need to know a lot about the resort before you buy. Also, closing can be very slow because the postcard company often doesn't own the timeshare in the first place -- the postcard company leaves it in the original owner's name until they are sure they can sell it. (That way, if the timeshare really is a liability, the original owner is still stuck with it!) Plus of course, a lot of people here don't want to buy from postcard companies because of their questionable ethics.

 

[charlesjoseph]

I find lots of sites for timeshare rentals, purchasing and Exchange Redweek is best on them.

 

[geekette]

Do look into Bluegreen since you will be moving back east. They have a large presence in the SouthEast. bluegreenonline.com will show you where the resorts are.

With this points system, you don't have to use an entire week - reserve the nights you want with points or Bonus Time (cash, not much of it - must buy from authorized reseller to get this benefit). Since you have family in FL you can easily "gift" them stays convenient for getaways (no charge to put someone elses name on a points reservation). You could also book several units for a long weekend and invite family to join you, where they get their own units. There are nice possibilities with this system given your flexibility and the relatively nearby family.

What I like most about BG is the flexibility. Say you want to go somewhere not "in-network." You decide how much trading power you need and book for deposit a week that fits the bill. This allows you to really manage your points and use enuf for the high-value trades or cheap out on the easy-to-get exchanges. Bluegreen allows you to deposit to any exchange company, you just have to let the reservationist know that you are booking for deposit. Easy. Reservationists are great - they are really very helpful in learning the system.

You could attempt to purchase the underlying week you Really Want as you have priority on that week up until 12 months out. For us, that doesn't matter, but maybe it does for you. If it does matter, it could be a challenge to find a unit large enuf to fit your large family, but they certainly do exist.

Good luck!