What should I buy?

[KT0595]

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?

No not really rather be flexible throughout the year. Don’t want to be tied to one location.

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?

Really don’t want a home resort

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?

Florida
Caribbean
Hawaii
Europe
Northeast USA

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?

2-3

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?

Wife is a teacher so school schedule

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?

Yes I can

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?

Yes I can

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?

3 and up

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?

Depends on what it is

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?

Max maintenance fee I would want is $1200

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?

Yes very much so

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?

Yes I do understand. That’s why I prefer something with low maintenance fees or being able to buy points from owners with no strings attached to see how it works at first then decide on going all in with a resale contract

 

[DeniseM]

Since you want to trade all of the time, during high season, you are either looking for a large timeshare system with resorts all over the world, or a strong trader. Europe is the most difficult of the destinations that you listed.

You may not be able to achieve your goals with a maintenance fee of $1,200.

 

[KT0595]

Since you want to trade all of the time, during high season, you are either looking for a large timeshare system with resorts all over the world, or a strong trader. Europe is the most difficult of the destinations that you listed.

You may not be able to achieve your goals with a maintenance fee of $1,200.

What would be the best route for my situation in your opinion?

 

[rickandcindy23]

Lots of generic resorts with that maintenance fee. I got rid of all of my generic resorts. They have zero trade value compared to Marriott/Sheraton.

Wyndham is doable but $1,200 MF's doesn't get a lot of points. Less than 200,000 points for those MF's. Look at Point charts for Wyndham resorts. A simple Google search will get you to charts on the Wyndham site.

Others will chime in.

Your budget doesn't work all that well with timeshares. Hotels cost $150 and up everywhere, and it's just a hotel room. You need to up your budget.

1) Europe doesn't have much timeshare, 2) Caribbean is expensive to book in any system, 3) Hawaii for that maintenance fee would be difficult, 4) Florida can be easy, if you want Orlando, but the coastal areas require being in a system like Wyndham or Marriott. 5) Sparse accommodations in the NE.

I have seen bargains on Marriott resorts on eBay and bought one, my sister bought one just a few weeks ago that I urged her to buy.

 

[DeniseM]

We own some timeshares which are targeted locations we want to return to every year (Hawaii and Lake Tahoe.) We also have 2 timeshares that we just use for trading: Westin Kierland Villas & Sheraton Desert Oasis.

Westin Kierland Villas - we use it to trade in the Westin/Sheraton/Vistana system.
Sheraton Desert Oasis - we use it to trade in Interval International.

If I was going to pick one, to meet your goals, I would choose Sheraton Desert Oasis (resale) to trade in II, because it has a low purchase price, low maintenance fee and it is a strong trader.

However, there are lots of other systems, and you will want to review them as well.

 

[KT0595]

Lots of generic resorts with that maintenance fee. I got rid of all of my generic resorts. They have zero trade value compared to Marriott/Sheraton.

Wyndham is doable but $1,200 MF's doesn't get a lot of points. Less than 200,000 points for those MF's. Look at Point charts for Wyndham resorts. A simple Google search will get you to charts on the Wyndham site.

Others will chime in.

Your budget doesn't work all that well with timeshares. Hotels cost $150 and up everywhere, and it's just a hotel room. You need to up your budget.

1) Europe doesn't have much timeshare, 2) Caribbean is expensive to book in any system, 3) Hawaii for that maintenance fee would be difficult, 4) Florida can be easy, if you want Orlando, but the coastal areas require being in a system like Wyndham or Marriott. 5) Sparse accommodations in the NE.

I have seen bargains on Marriott resorts on eBay and bought one, my sister bought one just a few weeks ago that I urged her to buy.

Are all resorts set up on a point system?

 

[DeniseM]

No - it varies widely.

 

[KT0595]

We own some timeshares which are targeted locations we want to return to every year (Hawaii and Lake Tahoe.) We also have 2 timeshares that we just use for trading: Westin Kierland Villas & Sheraton Desert Oasis.

Westin Kierland Villas - we use it to trade in the Westin/Sheraton/Vistana system.
Sheraton Desert Oasis - we use it to trade in Interval International.

If I was going to pick one, to meet your goals, I would choose Sheraton Desert Oasis (resale) to trade in II, because it has a low purchase price, low maintenance fee and it is a strong trader.

However, there are lots of other systems, and you will want to review them as well.

Seems like this will take a lot of research and reading to decide what will fit our needs.

It’s a shame salespeople try to get you to sign at the spur of the moment knowing your not equipped with the proper knowledge.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Are all resorts set up on a point system?

You can buy a generic resort that will trade okay that isn't in a point system. As I said, I got rid of my generic resorts because they don't really get what a lockoff Marriott will get through exchange. Marriott is actually less expensive, when all is said and done.

If you joined TUG, maybe you already did, you can get a lot of information from the Sightings forum. If information can be classified as diamonds to quartz, the information in that forum is diamonds.

I don't own anything that trades in RCI exclusively anymore. I like Interval International. I am stuck using RCI with Wyndham, but that's okay because it works okay for some resorts. It's cheaper at times to book via exchange than it is to book directly with Wyndham. New York City is a great example. With Wyndham points, New York is expensive to book, but through RCI, it's 126,000 points to book a one bedroom, but RCI charges $300 trade fee. 126,000 points is cheaper, and RCI always has some inventory at 126,000 points. Same points, deposited into RCI.

Club Wyndham Midtown, New York City:

 

[rickandcindy23]

Marriott's lower-priced maintenance fees are Marriott's Grand Chateau (Vegas) and Marriott's Willow Ridge Lodge (Branson). Those would not be in a point system. Marriott has Abound, which is a point system. Resale is expensive for Abound. Weeks are where it's at right now. That could change at any time.

 

[KT0595]

You can buy a generic resort that will trade okay that isn't in a point system. As I said, I got rid of my generic resorts because they don't really get what a lockoff Marriott will get through exchange. Marriott is actually less expensive, when all is said and done.

If you joined TUG, maybe you already did, you can get a lot of information from the Sightings forum. If information can be classified as diamonds to quartz, the information in that forum is diamonds.

I don't own anything that trades in RCI exclusively anymore. I like Interval International. I am stuck using RCI with Wyndham, but that's okay because it works okay for some resorts. It's cheaper at times to book via exchange than it is to book directly with Wyndham. New York City is a great example. With Wyndham points, New York is expensive to book, but through RCI, it's 126,000 points to book a one bedroom, but RCI charges $300 trade fee. 126,000 points is cheaper, and RCI always has some inventory at 126,000 points. Same points, deposited into RCI.

Club Wyndham Midtown, New York City:
View attachment 127513

Would you recommend Wyndham?

 

[CO skier]

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?

Florida
Caribbean
Hawaii
Europe
Northeast USA

WorldMark is a points system with no home resort. A 10,000 credit ownership will get you a 1 or 2 bedroom week during summer (Red season) at Newport, RI or locations in Florida with no exchange fees. 2026 maintenance dues on 10,000 credits are $1,250. Credits are good for two years, so it is easy to skip a year, if needed, or borrow credits from the next year, if needed. A lot of flexibility.

For years when you do not book within the WorldMark system, join RCI or Interval International exchange systems. WorldMark has excellent trading power. Put in searches more than a year in advance and cast a wide net. Something is sure to match. This would be the way to go to Hawaii and the Caribbean.

This would keep you busy for 4-5 years. It is simple to add to your ownership, if things are working for you.

It is easy to purchase a 10,000 credit ownership for next to nothing.

Would you recommend Wyndham?

Club Wyndham has somewhat higher maintenance fees and is a slightly less flexible system. It would offer you more in-system resorts in the East.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Would you recommend Wyndham?

We own Wyndham, so I guess I would recommend it. The sales' department with Wyndham is the most disgusting of all of the systems; although, there are some bad reports of HGV and Marriott.

WorldMark doesn't have much of what you want. We own WorldMark and love it.

 

[StarSailer]

Would you recommend Wyndham?

You may have to pay a little up front to get a low maintenance fee Wyndham deed to fit enough points for a Caribbean Studio unit into your $1200 budget, but it is one of the better options if the Caribbean is ranked #2 on destinations. That said Wyndham doesn't have anything in Europe.

HGV is a good choice if Europe is a higher priority than the Caribbean or if Cancun counts. However again, you will probably need to spend cash up front to buy a low-MF deed to stay on budget.

Worldmark is a slightly more affordable choice for Florida/NorthEast/Hawaii and also easy to pick up free. However it is missing both Caribbean and Europe as destinations.

Trying to stack RCI/II exchange fees on top of point program club dues is likely to put you over budget. If you expect to make frequent exchanges to hit all 5 areas you may do better owning a week somewhere to use as an RCI/II trader from the start.

 

[Travelingman1]

@KT0595

YMMV (your Mileage May Vary)

This is my approach, or my and my wife's approach, it is what we felt after lots of research and going to multiple "free" or low cost 3-4 nights and after talking at length with a good friend who sold Marriott TS for about 15 years in HI and 5 years in Vegas.

I want to be very clear this works for us, we think. I am sharing it hoping the logic and thought process is useful.

I would recommend Wyndham for the right person, but I would start very cautiously and buy around your actual travel habits not EVER around what a salesperson says you might someday do.

My wife and I took a somewhat unconventional approach. I first acquired a very low-maintenance-fee Club Wyndham ownership at La Belle Maison for essentially no purchase price. My primary objective was access to the Club Wyndham–RCI ecosystem. We had stayed in Marriott, CW, and Hilton all at least twice, but we bought resale for again basically $0.

Over approximately the last five months, I have used roughly one RCI Last Call reservation per month. We have genuinely enjoyed the resorts, and even after allocating the annual maintenance fees across those stays, my effective lodging cost has been approximately $55 per night. (NOTE CW isn't true RCI and I am actually going to the TUG community myself for guidance on this)

That works for us because our circumstances are unusual. I work approximately 50% remotely, my wife is an author, our daughter recently graduated from high school, and we have a long history of traveling together. We also own a 40-foot sailboat, so our lifestyle is already structured around substantial geographic flexibility.

This was not an impulsive decision or an attempt to manufacture vacations merely because we owned a timeshare.

After confirming that we liked Wyndham and would actually use it, I acquired approximately 300,000 Hawaii points for no purchase price.

I selected Hawaii because it is somewhere we would otherwise pay to visit. When I divide the maintenance fees by the number of nights I reasonably expect to use there, the lodging cost is approximately $80 per night. That is a favorable result for us because it replaces travel spending we were already going to incur.

My general philosophy is: buy what you genuinely want to use, and determine your baseline annual travel spending before buying anything.

Ask yourself how many nights you already purchase each year, where you realistically want to stay, and what effective nightly cost you consider acceptable. Then buy into the location or system that serves that established pattern.

IMO, do not purchase an inexpensive ownership solely because it appears to trade well, and do not spend substantial money upfront unless there is a very specific reason. Marriott may be an exception for some buyers because even resale ownerships can require a meaningful acquisition cost, but that should still be a deliberate calculation.

I also believe every purchase should include an exit strategy. Ironically, when I retire, I expect to travel less or at least travel very differently.

I therefore selected ownerships that I believe should remain transferable without requiring me to pay someone thousands of dollars to take them. I own two Hawaii deeds and La Belle Maison, and based on their underlying utility and current marketability, I am reasonably comfortable with my eventual ability to exit. Of course, no future resale or transfer market is guaranteed. Worst case, I am pretty sure I can pay the M/F forever and gift free nights to friends and family and it won't be a detriment to my retirement, but again YMMV.

I also knowingly pay somewhat higher maintenance fees for UDI ownership because the 13-month Advance Reservation Priority window has value to me. Another owner may reasonably conclude that the additional cost is unnecessary. Utility matters more than simply identifying the lowest maintenance-fee ratio.

This is only my wife’s and my personal approach, and it is relatively new. Nevertheless, the results have been excellent so far. I would not tell everyone to buy Wyndham, but I would say that Wyndham can work very well when the acquisition cost is minimal, the maintenance fees are sustainable, the owner understands the booking rules, and the ownership fits travel that the person was already going to do.

I hope this helps.

 

[jp10558]

I think you should consider looking for low MF/pt Wyndham, and also consider a good Grandview in RCI points - be careful, there are both, and I think the Points are the better deal, you get more inventory (and this is also maybe the only place this is true). My Grandview MFs is $1050 right now for 98,000 RCI pts. This is mid, if you search and wait, you can get 122,000pts for the same MF.

Upside with Wyndham is you get second dibs on most places at 10 months, which means you often can book in their Club Wyndham system. They have locations all over the east cost, and probably the only "system" in the northeast at all. It's a reason I own there, though I use it more for New Orleans and Florida etc than the NE. Downside is slightly higher MFs, at least on what you can get for free or cheap.

Upside with RCI points is you can get RCI Platinum and you can try and book all the RCI locations, which are the most widely available. You can both look for deals, as well as run on going searches for places. If you only need a 1BR I am sure you could get 2 weeks a year with those points, maybe more depending on the demand levels. RCI Points also are pretty flexible, and you also get a resort cert each year which is like a cheaper last call. Oh, and you get potential Platinum discounts on all the cash stays via Extra Vacations. If you do that - IDK how much you want to travel - I wish our question list asked how often you want to travel for a week or in groups of weeks. Downside of RCI Points is the booking cost is $299. Also RCI has resort fees that Wyndham owners so far don't have to pay. For the Northeast there is a lot of ability to find summer weeks via extra vacations inland. Beaches not so much. So you don't have to use points for those, just cash.

Florida is also widely covered by Wyndham and RCI (and everyone to some extent). Caribbean has a lot of options in RCI and Wyndham, especially for studios. Hawaii the same, though the best locations are the more expensive Marriotts and HGVC I think, and RCI tends to be less desirable locations. Europe for any real coverage is going to be by exchange in most cases. RCI has better coverage here, but they're going to be 3* and they're going to mostly be on the beach or out in the countryside. If you want to go to the cities, that's hotels, or a special system called Hapimag which is Europe only and doesn't exchange AFAICT.

Given all of the above, I would suggest Wyndham and raising your MFs or RCI Points and paying higher booking fees and resort fees.

 

[bizaro86]

One system you could consider looking at is Hapimag. They are exclusively in Europe, but have locations in the big cities (London/Paris/Amsterdam etc) where Americans most often want to go, which is rare for timeshares. If you bought a single share that would likely be enough points for a trip every 3rd or 4th year, which is fine as the points last for 10 years.

Aside from that I'd recommend you get a Worldmark account. Good coverage in Hawaii and Florida, and a few choices in the NE/Carribean. It has relatively low fees which is a good fit for your listed budget, and trades well in both rci and ii.