Time Share Ownership Advice

[cman]

Nope, far, far from it. The TS is probably, definitely, our most lavish expense. I just don’t get hung up on trying to figure out if I’m going to recoup my investment. My happiness isn’t dependent on that. I will recoup my investment if we enjoy the TS vacations.

Sounds to me like you're in agreement with OP's follow-up post;

Based on the “pro” ownership side of the equation I guess it could be summarized as people simply enjoying it, and for a variety of reasons vs the alternative “con” side of the equation where it’s not a great financial investment nor practical decision.

You own because it meets your needs, and he rents because that's whats meets his needs.

 

[uaremymuse]

Simple answer. If I can afford it, if I and/or family members can use it, if it makes us happy spending vacation weeks together in nice condos instead of hotel rooms, it makes financial sense to me. It doesn’t matter to me if it makes financial sense ro you.

There’s always one who feels a need to cross the line of cordiality. You win the award tonight. Hope you feel good and sleep well tonight.


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[Rolltydr]

There’s always one who feels a need to cross the line of cordiality. You win the award tonight. Hope you feel good and sleep well tonight.


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I thought your original post suggested anyone would be nuts to purchase a timeshare. That crossed the line of cordiality to me. If that that wasn’t your intent, I apologize for taking it the wrong way.

The point of my response is that everyone’s situation is different and they have to make their own decision based on that. You can’t say that a timeshare makes sense for everyone, or conversely, that it doesn't make sense for anyone.

 

[uaremymuse]

I thought your original post suggested anyone would be nuts to purchase a timeshare. That crossed the line of cordiality to me. If that that wasn’t your intent, I apologize for taking it the wrong way.

The point of my response is that everyone’s situation is different and they have to make their own decision based on that. You can’t say that a timeshare makes sense for everyone, or conversely, that it doesn't make sense for anyone.

Where did I say it would be nuts for anyone to buy a TS?


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[Rolltydr]

Where did I say it would be nuts for anyone to buy a TS?


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“Can anyone explain to me how it makes financial sense to own a timeshare?”

In my reading of your question, there is an implication that it doesn’t make any sense to you. I get that tone when I read the question. Again, if that wasn’t your implication. I apologize.

In your subsequent post about the pro side and con side, which I had not read when I responded to your initial post, you make clear there are two points of view that are valid depending on each person’s situation. That is all I was trying to say in my response. Each person has to make the decision based on their own financial situation and what is important to them.

 

[uaremymuse]

“Can anyone explain to me how it makes financial sense to own a timeshare?”

In my reading of your question, there is an implication that it doesn’t make any sense to you. I get that tone when I read the question. Again, if that wasn’t your implication. I apologize.

In your subsequent post about the pro side and con side, which I had not read when I responded to your initial post, you make clear there are two points of view that are valid depending on each person’s situation. That is all I was trying to say in my response. Each person has to make the decision based on their own financial situation and what is important to them.

Interesting that you’re the only one who responded who could interpret a tone from my question that implied something more than just an honest question. Regardless, I accept your apology.


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[Jan M.]

I agree with sue1947. The sad part of both uaremynuse and Carta's posts is that they are basing their opinions on their clearly limited experience and not very good information. Uaremymuse, you may be a finance guy but that doesn't make you knowledgeable about all timeshares. It appears that you are looking for validations of your opinions rather than gaining useful informaiton. I go back to my first line of my post "If you learn and make good choices it makes excellent financial sense." Not all of us made great choices at first but we learned and readjusted our portfolios. I've been very upfront in saying that some of our timeshare purchases that I've made have been pure dumb luck rather than well informed choices. However I learned from from the not smart choices, the smart choices and the dumb luck choices. TUG helped me build on what I learned.

The first rule of buying a timeshare is that you NEVER purchase a timeshare as a financial investment! In our budgets vacations come under expenses so if you are taking vacations you have expenses. A timeshare is an expense. But it should be an expense that allows you to take vacations at a price you wouldn't otherwise get.

My second rule is understanding your needs. Some people need to own when and where they want to go. That is likely to cost them more but if it gets them what they want and need then it can be a good choice for them. Other people, like us before we retired, have the luxury of being able to be more flexible with scheduling and taking vacation time. That makes owning a points based timeshare perfect for us and other people like us.

You want numbers? We have two 122,000 point weeks at Grandview Las Vegas with 2020 maintenance fees of $835. No increase from 2019. Btw I got these weeks on TUG. On one the other person paid the closing costs and transfer fee. We only paid the RCI fee of $98 to have it transferred to our RCI points account. For the second 122,000 point week I paid the closing costs of $215, the reosrt transfer fee of $250 and the $98 RCI fee. That makes our total purchase cost for the two 122,000 point weeks $661. I pay our RCI annual dues and also for the RCI platinum benefits for the maximum number of years, 5, to get the larges discounts on them. At the current rates it comes to just a little under $164 so we will use that figure.

To get my cost per point for either the year, 2019 or 2020, I would add the maintenance fees for both weeks 2 x $835 plus the $164 for the RCI annual dues and platinum benefits. $1834 divided by 244,000 points = $0.0075 per point.

So how did I use those points and what was my cost per week including the $239 RCI exchange fee? These are some put not all of our stays from April 2019 to this week. Some of these resorts we stayed at more than once or longer than just one week.

Reunion 3BR/3 Bath, Star Island, 2BR/2 Bath, Bonnet Creek 2 BR/2 Bath, Silver Lake Resort 2BR/2 Bath, all in Orlando. On Sanibel Island, FL, the Lighthouse Resort 3 BR/2 Bath and Shell Island Resort 2BR/2 Bath. All of them 7500 points, cost per week $295.25
Vacation Village at Parkway 2 BR/2 Bath, 4900 points, cost per week $275.75
Austin 1 BR/1 Bath, 6000 points, cost $284
Caloosa Cove resort in Islamorada, Florida Keys the larger 1BR/2 Bath that sleeps 6, 9000 points, cost $306.50. We are staying here this week.

I typically book one week a year at full points and for this year I used a lot more points than I've ever used to get something I really wanted but it is so worth it to me. In March I have a week at Disney's Animal Kingdom Kidani Village in a savanna view unit. It is a 1BR/2 Bath that sleeps 5. Our son and both granddaughters will be with us.
71,000 points, cost includes the $190 fee we will pay at check in. $961.50. That is over three times the cost of what I typically spend on a week but it helps when I check the Disney World website and see that the current price for our week in the same accommodations is $7230.40

We could easily live out of our timeshares year round for no more than $17,000-$20,000 for the year and that is without doing a single rental to offset our costs. Those numbers include all our maintenance fees on everything we own, the RCI dues and paying the $239 exchange fees for some of the weeks.

While renting does work best for some people due to their finances and needs it isn't for everyone nor is it cheaper.

 

[paxsarah]

Based on the “pro” ownership side of the equation I guess it could be summarized as people simply enjoying it, and for a variety of reasons vs the alternative “con” side of the equation where it’s not a great financial investment nor practical decision.

There were also several people on the “pro” side of the equation who offered practical reasons for owning timeshares. I find it interesting that you’re not accounting for them in this summary.

I also didn’t see anyone touting a timeshare as a financial investment, but if one purchases them on the resale market for a pittance, why would that even come into the conversation? (I bought my most recent timeshare and my most recent road bike both used from eBay. The bicycle actually cost a few hundred dollars more than the timeshare, and it would seem silly if I bought it as an investment. I bought it to use it, just like the timeshare.)

 

[travelhacker]

As far as the independent resorts go:

There are a ton of stinkers, and there a number of diamonds in the rough...places that are very pleasant, nice accommodations that have maintenance fees at a decent discount off of what you would pay to stay to rent in an equivalent unit.

The negatives to timeshare ownership are:
1) Less flexibility...timeshares just don't have the number of options that hotels and vacation rentals have.
2) Annual maintenance fees, which must be paid whether you use the unit or not. They will always be there and typically go up 2-8% annually.
3) They almost always depreciate in value. Buying resale is the way to go, but even at the best resorts often go down in value.

Where I think a lot of TUGgers have found tremendous value is by purchasing into a particular system and learning the ins and outs of it and using that knowledge to either:

1) Book a "more valuable" stay. For example, if you own in Westin Kierland your maintenance fees are about $1900 for a platinum 2 bedroom. If you use star options, you could book a week in Kaanapali using those star options. The "rack" rate for the stay in Kaanapali could be upwards of $5-$7000. If you paid $10,000 (resale) for that Westin Kierland week, you'd only have to do that a handful of times for it to pay off...more so considering that Westin Kierland holds its value well.

2) Book a "more comfortable" stay. Traveling with a larger group becomes much easier if you can book a 2 or 3 bedroom unit. Yes, you can use AirBNB for these larger units, but they typically don't have the amenities that a resort provides (i.e. great pool, activities, etc). You could always book multiple hotel rooms, but it's just not the same.

Some TUGgers are fantastic at exchanging to get a trade that provides tremendous value to them. Admittedly, I'm not great at it. However, I used 430 Hyatt points to book a week at Marriott Ko'olina for my parents in December. They absolutely loved it and I looked like an amazing son. My cost for the maintenance fee and exchange was only about $500.00. The rack rate was around $400 per night!

I have seen people split a single unit (maintenance fees of about $1000), and use those units to exchange into 2 separate weeks in units that would rent for $4-5000 per week.

Others TUGgers absolutely love to use just their deeded weeks, because they love the resort and their units. For example, many TUGgers like to post pictures of the view from their. Many timeshares have units that simply aren't available on the rental market.

Prior to purchasing a timeshare, I spent about 30-40 nights a year on hotel stays at a cost of about $4000-5000 per year (I stayed in cheap places). I now stay in much, much nicer accommodations that are significantly larger. We have actually spent less than we did previously and have stayed far more nights. What's been really nice is that we've been able to travel with others and have gotten quality time with both sets of grandparents (to our children), several cousins, and some friends. It's also been really nice to be able to cook in these units as eating out gets old really fast to us, and we save money.

Timeshares are NOT for everyone. I think they can provide tremendous value, but it does typically require some upfront money, to buy the contract, a long-term commitment in terms of paying a maintenance fee, and a time investment to learn how to best use it, and a time commitment to use that knowledge and book what you'd like.

 

[uaremymuse]

I agree with sue1947. The sad part of both uaremynuse and Carta's posts is that they are basing their opinions on their clearly limited experience and not very good information. Uaremymuse, you may be a finance guy but that doesn't make you knowledgeable about all timeshares. It appears that you are looking for validations of your opinions rather than gaining useful informaiton. I go back to my first line of my post "If you learn and make good choices it makes excellent financial sense." Not all of us made great choices at first but we learned and readjusted our portfolios. I've been very upfront in saying that some of our timeshare purchases that I've made have been pure dumb luck rather than well informed choices. However I learned from from the not smart choices, the smart choices and the dumb luck choices. TUG helped me build on what I learned.

The first rule of buying a timeshare is that you NEVER purchase a timeshare as a financial investment! In our budgets vacations come under expenses so if you are taking vacations you have expenses. A timeshare is an expense. But it should be an expense that allows you to take vacations at a price you wouldn't otherwise get.

My second rule is understanding your needs. Some people need to own when and where they want to go. That is likely to cost them more but if it gets them what they want and need then it can be a good choice for them. Other people, like us before we retired, have the luxury of being able to be more flexible with scheduling and taking vacation time. That makes owning a points based timeshare perfect for us and other people like us.

You want numbers? We have a 122,000 point week at Grandview Las Vegas with 2020 maintenance fees of $835. No increase from 2019. Btw I got this week on TUG and the other person paid the closing costs and transfer fee. We only paid the RCI fee of $98 to have it transferred to our RCI points account. We also have a second 122,000 point week that I paid the closing costs of $215, the reosrt transfer fee of $250 and the $98 RCI fee. That makes our total purchase cost for the two 122,000 point weeks $661. I pay our RCI annual dues and also for the RCI platinum benefits for the maximum number of years, 5, to get the larges discounts on them. At the current rates it comes to just a little under $164 so we will use that figure.

To get my cost per point for either the year, 2019 or 2020, I would add the maintenance fees for both weeks 2 x $835 plus the $164 for the RCI annual dues and platinum benefits. $1834 divided by 244,000 points = $0.0075 per point.

So how did I use those points and what was my cost per week including the $239 RCI exchange fee? These are some put not all of our stays from April 2019 to this week. Some of these resorts we stayed at more than once or longer than just one week.

Reunion 3BR/3 Bath, Star Island, 2BR/2 Bath, Bonnet Creek 2 BR/2 Bath, Silver Lake Resort 2BR/2 Bath, all in Orlando. On Sanibel Island, FL, the Lighthouse Resort 3 BR/2 Bath and Shell Island Resort 2BR/2 Bath. All of them 7500 points, cost per week $295.25
Vacation Village at Parkway 2 BR/2 Bath, 4900 points, cost per week $275.75
Austin 1 BR/1 Bath, 6000 points, cost $284
Caloosa Cove resort in Islamorada, Florida Keys the larger 1BR/2 Bath that sleeps 6, 9000 points, cost $306.50. We are staying here this week.

I typically book one week a year at full points and for this year I used a lot more points than I've ever used to get something I really wanted but it is so worth it to me. In March I have a week at Disney's Animal Kingdom Kidani Village in a savanna view unit. It is a 1BR/2 Bath that sleeps 5. Our son and both granddaughters will be with us.
71,000 points, cost includes the $190 fee we will pay at check in. $961.50. That is over three times the cost of what I typically spend on a week but it helps when I check the Disney World website and see that the current price for our week in the same accommodations is $7230.40

We could easily live out of our timeshares year round for no more than $17,000-$20,000 for the year and that is without doing a single rental to offset our costs. Those numbers include all our maintenance fees on everything we own, the RCI dues and paying the $239 exchange fees for some of the weeks.

While renting does work best for some people due to their finances and needs it isn't for everyone nor is it cheaper.

Although your assumptions about my inquiry are incorrect, I’ll not bother responding in detail. With respect to your numbers, it obviously works to your satisfaction which is all that’s important, which is what I stated in one of my comments. However, I will take exception to one of your statements and that is that vacations are necessarily an expense vice an investment. My vacation club is an investment and in the end pays for all of my weeks of vacations during each and every year because of its ROI. I’ll admit that my club is not for everyone but neither is TS ownership. With my experience, owning a TS was an exhausting and frustrating experience that took up way to much of my time. I also soon discovered that the only ones making out financially are the corporate owners. Who else would pay millions for a condo (52 weeks x the weekly purchase price and annual maintenance cost in Disney or elsewhere unless they just don’t care about the value of a dollar. Would most people pay $1-2 million for a condo that Disney provides? Or even think it’s with that price in any real estate market, regardless of where you live? I like to think that people are smart about their money but in the end it’s all relative isn’t it. Some just have to have that $200 A5 Grade Wagyu rib eye where others are content with a McDonalds burger. In the end, most people care about the cost and it’s a relative factor to everyone based on one’s financial status in life. Even your ownership cost may seem ridiculous to some whereas to others it may seem reasonable or inexpensive. In the end it only matters to you. My initial question was rhetorical in nature. Nothing more, nothing less. I’m happy for everyone who enjoys their TS ownership but it’s clearly not for me and no one, not even you, convinced me that it makes financial sense. There’s just too much availability on the open market and the internet has allowed that transparency to diminish the TS markets intrinsic financial value for me to buy into it. That’s my opinion and I clearly get that you love your TS experience. That’s all that’s important at the end of the day. Thank you for taking the time to provide your thoughtful response for everyone here.


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[uaremymuse]

There were also several people on the “pro” side of the equation who offered practical reasons for owning timeshares. I find it interesting that you’re not accounting for them in this summary.

I also didn’t see anyone touting a timeshare as a financial investment, but if one purchases them on the resale market for a pittance, why would that even come into the conversation? (I bought my most recent timeshare and my most recent road bike both used from eBay. The bicycle actually cost a few hundred dollars more than the timeshare, and it would seem silly if I bought it as an investment. I bought it to use it, just like the timeshare.)

I guess you didn’t read what I said or didn’t understand it. The words, “simply enjoyable” covered those people.
As for the bike analogy, you’re exactly right. People buy things that they find enjoyable regardless of the cost, which is really what this discussion boils down to.


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[LannyPC]

Can anyone explain to me how it makes financial sense to own a time share?

A timeshare sales person could.

 

[uaremymuse]

A timeshare sales person could.

Touché


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[Chrispee]

Ok, I'll bite. Timesharing makes financial sense to me because I bought resale and predominantly vacation in the Hawaiian islands where hotel/condo rentals are expensive. I have Marriott and VSE trading units that allow my family to stay in excellent quality Hawaiian resorts at a fraction of what I was paying in the past through VRBO, AirBNB, Redweek, and Priceline.

 

[Jan M.]

Although your assumptions about my inquiry are incorrect, I’ll not bother responding in detail. With respect to your numbers, it obviously works to your satisfaction which is all that’s important, which is what I stated in one of my comments. However, I will take exception to one of your statements and that is that vacations are necessarily an expense vice an investment. My vacation club is an investment and in the end pays for all of my weeks of vacations during each and every year because of its ROI. I’ll admit that my club is not for everyone but neither is TS ownership. With my experience, owning a TS was an exhausting and frustrating experience that took up way to much of my time. I also soon discovered that the only ones making out financially are the corporate owners. Who else would pay millions for a condo (52 weeks x the weekly purchase price and annual maintenance cost in Disney or elsewhere unless they just don’t care about the value of a dollar. Would most people pay $1-2 million for a condo that Disney provides? Or even think it’s with that price in any real estate market, regardless of where you live? I like to think that people are smart about their money but in the end it’s all relative isn’t it. Some just have to have that $200 A5 Grade Wagyu rib eye where others are content with a McDonalds burger. In the end, most people care about the cost and it’s a relative factor to everyone based on one’s financial status in life. Even your ownership cost may seem ridiculous to some whereas to others it may seem reasonable or inexpensive. In the end it only matters to you. My initial question was rhetorical in nature. Nothing more, nothing less. I’m happy for everyone who enjoys their TS ownership but it’s clearly not for me and no one, not even you, convinced me that it makes financial sense. There’s just too much availability on the open market and the internet has allowed that transparency to diminish the TS markets intrinsic financial value for me to buy into it. That’s my opinion and I clearly get that you love your TS experience. That’s all that’s important at the end of the day. Thank you for taking the time to provide your thoughtful response for everyone here.


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Owing a timeshare isn't right for some people that's for sure!

I've read too many posts both here on TUG and in the Wyndham Facebook groups not to understand and feel bad for the people who bought developer and learned a very expensive lesson. And I can add our names to the list. I've made the valid excuse that when we first bought there wasn't the amount of information available online back then and there were still far too many pitfalls with buying resale for us to have been willing to risk it with how little we knew. However there is so much information out there now that it is surprising how often people are still doing it and regretting it.

As a financial person you will appreciate this. Yesterday on one of the Wyndham Facebook groups I'm in a woman posted about how they've paid for months but what they owe has gone down very little. From her picture she appeared to be younger, no more than in her 30's. Apparently she has very little concept of financing and interest rates. Even after the first couple of people responded she still posted a comment that she planned to call Wyndham and have them account for how Wyndham is ripping them off. Her post has now been deleted. I'd guess the comments got out of hand and one or more people called her an idiot. It seemed to be heading that way less than an hour into her post. So many people have posted under all the different forums here on TUG that no one should ever buy at timeshare at a higher interest rate. Some feel that if you have to use financing at all you shouldn't buy. The exception being if you can put it on a credit card with zero interest and pay it off while you have that zero interest rate.

On the Facebook groups and to a more limited extent on TUG, day after day there are posts from people saying they paid Wyndham $16,000-$22,000 for 84,000-105,000 points and are upset because they've discovered that they don't have nearly enough points to be able to take the fabulous vacations they envisioned when they bought. And on TUG there are similar posts with the other timeshare companies. Then there are the people who have owned for several years, never used their points, and know nothing about how use the website or about booking stays. In both situations they often they want out because they are just wasting their money.

Seeing all the posts from people in those situations is just sad. It drives home how knowledge is definitely essential when it comes to buying and using timeshares.

Now to come from the completely opposite side of the coin about buying developer. There are people who have purchased developer because doing so gave them daily use benefits at that resort. Those people usually live within a close enough distance to be able to take advantage of that benefit often enough without having to stay at the resort to justify their purchase. Resorts that offer ski lift passes or water park passes and use of the resort facilities are the two most popular ones I've seen.

In case anyone missed this part of what I've said in my responses I want to make sure I add a caution. Even when we were still working we didn't have to put in for vacation time at the beginning of the year and both had some flexibility in setting our own work schedules.. I may make what we've done sound enticing however not everyone has enough vacation time or enough flexibility with their jobs to make being able to use the points the way we did even before retirement an option for them. Timeshares are one of the things people seem not to be particularly realistic about. That is why salespeople are able to sell timeshares at developer prices. They are selling a dream and we are all vulnerable to getting pulled in by dream.

I do believe that us demonstrating why we've chosen what we have is of benefit to other people who may be reading our posts. Knowing your options is always a good thing.

 

[uaremymuse]

Ok, I'll bite. Timesharing makes financial sense to me because I bought resale and predominantly vacation in the Hawaiian islands where hotel/condo rentals are expensive. I have Marriott and VSE trading units that allow my family to stay in excellent quality Hawaiian resorts at a fraction of what I was paying in the past through VRBO, AirBNB, Redweek, and Priceline.

It only has to make sense to the person who buys them so it’s great that yours makes sense to you. But your example is made with certain assumptions, right? For example, the cost for a place in Hawaii depends on the time of year that you want to vacation, if you bought a specific week, points needed, the maintenance fees, II and or RCI fees, aviation and car rental costs depending on the time of year, etc. Some people can travel anytime they wish whereas others are confined to taking vacation when everyone else is vacationing, ie Christmas, etc. So your statement, although reflective of your situation, is made in your vacuum of relativity.


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[Rolltydr]

It only has to make sense to the person who buys them so it’s great that yours makes sense to you. But your example is made with certain assumptions, right? For example, the cost for a place in Hawaii depends on the time of year that you want to vacation, if you bought a specific week, points needed, the maintenance fees, II and or RCI fees, aviation and car rental costs depending on the time of year, etc. Some people can travel anytime they wish whereas others are confined to taking vacation when everyone else is vacationing, ie Christmas, etc. So your statement, although reflective of your situation, is made in your vacuum of relativity.


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Ok, I’ve had some sleep and I promise I will be more civil.
Good morning. My main question now is what was the purpose of your initial post? What did you want/expect to get from it? You tell @Chrispee that his/her example ”comes with assumptions”. Doesn’t your initial question also come with assumptions? To me, you are saying that owning a TS doesn’t make financial sense to you. Does anyone disagree? Then, when several very experienced people on this forum explain in detail how it can make financial sense, you basically disregard it by saying something like, well it works for you but that’s only because of your unique situation and priorities. It doesn’t work for me. And, that’s fine that you feel that way. You definitely are not alone in believing that. But, what was the point of your question? Did you truly believe someone could convince you otherwise? Did you simply want to have the conversation to see how many were pro and con?

 

[Carta]

Everyone that agrees with timesharing forgets the $20-30 thousand dollars they paid upfront...And then pay MF's on top of that....Not a Bargain...

And no one stays young forever...How about illness, death, etc .....Still gotta pay fees..

 

[uaremymuse]

Ok, I’ve had some sleep and I promise I will be more civil.
Good morning. My main question now is what was the purpose of your initial post? What did you want/expect to get from it? You tell @Chrispee that his/her example ”comes with assumptions”. Doesn’t your initial question also come with assumptions? To me, you are saying that owning a TS doesn’t make financial sense to you. Does anyone disagree? Then, when several very experienced people on this forum explain in detail how it can make financial sense, you basically disregard it by saying something like, well it works for you but that’s only because of your unique situation and priorities. It doesn’t work for me. And, that’s fine that you feel that way. You definitely are not alone in believing that. But, what was the point of your question? Did you truly believe someone could convince you otherwise? Did you simply want to have the conversation to see how many were pro and con?

Bingo


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[Rolltydr]

Everyone that agrees with timesharing forgets the $20-30 thousand dollars they paid upfront...And then pay MF's on top of that....Not a Bargain...

And no one stays young forever...How about illness, death, etc .....Still gotta pay fees..

Are you aware of purchasing resale contract/deeds? Many, if not most, TUGgers purchased resale for a few bucks and many for free. If you do that and only have the mf’s to pay, it is a bargain as long as you use it or rent it out.

 

[goaliedave]

Like buying a pair of jeans, there are many styles and stores. Currently staying 3 months in Florida TS for $2000 worth of MF, much cheaper than hotels. Soon i'll be moving to western USA to finish up winter for same cost. TS life is great.

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[sue1947]

Everyone that agrees with timesharing forgets the $20-30 thousand dollars they paid upfront...And then pay MF's on top of that....Not a Bargain...

And no one stays young forever...How about illness, death, etc .....Still gotta pay fees..

How can you have been a member of tug since 2005 and make a statement like that? Surely, you would have seen all the posts about buying resale or free? I purchased resale 5 times plus another for free and the small initial costs have long ago been amortized via savings over motels or renting. Currently, my travel costs are primarily maintenance fees. Yes, we know the fees are ongoing, but my costs average $50/night for a whole lot more than I can get elsewhere. To me, that is a bargain. Does it cost more than not traveling? Sure. But I choose to spend some of my money for travel and I choose to put the work into it to learn how best to use my systems. The key is learning how to make the most of whatever system you buy into. A large part of my ability to travel this cheaply is from listening and learning from others.

 

[bluehende]

Everyone that agrees with timesharing forgets the $20-30 thousand dollars they paid upfront...And then pay MF's on top of that....Not a Bargain...

And no one stays young forever...How about illness, death, etc .....Still gotta pay fees..

my total cost for my two timeshares was about 200 dollars. You need to change that "everyone".

 

[paxsarah]

Bingo

So then was the meaning behind your original question, "Can anyone explain to me how it makes financial sense for me to own a time share?" Because the answer to that is definitely not, not if you've already decided it doesn't work for you. And that's fine. Since we each speak from our own experience, we've explained how it makes financial sense to own a timeshare ourselves, or in some cases how we know it may not make financial sense but we're okay with it. The reasons we say it makes financial sense for us are right for us, and the reasons you say it doesn't make financial sense for you are right for you. Neither are going to be applicable across the board.

 

[Chrispee]

It only has to make sense to the person who buys them so it’s great that yours makes sense to you. But your example is made with certain assumptions, right? For example, the cost for a place in Hawaii depends on the time of year that you want to vacation, if you bought a specific week, points needed, the maintenance fees, II and or RCI fees, aviation and car rental costs depending on the time of year, etc. Some people can travel anytime they wish whereas others are confined to taking vacation when everyone else is vacationing, ie Christmas, etc. So your statement, although reflective of your situation, is made in your vacuum of relativity.

You are correct. I posted my financial justifications of timeshare ownership as a counterpoint to yours (and others’) timeshare ownership vacuums of reality.

For the benefit of those actually using this thread for research; I paid $500 or less resale for each of my units (thank you TUG), travel predominantly to Hawaii, and I am indeed bound to the school calendar peak travel times.