Why buy timeshare?

[FlyKaesan]

Ok. I am newly married and love going on travel. Last time, I went to WDW.
I went to Disney and spent $100 for lodging since they told we have to do timeshare presentation. I do not mind so I paid $100 and they also give me 2 disney tickets. I sold that ticket for $120. So at the end I received $20 and stayed free at one of the nice Condo resort.

Another instance. I went to Las Vegas and it was free hotel for 3 nights from Disney timeshare tour. Nice hotel and nice vacation. Went on a timeshare and they gave us tickets to show. I sold it for $60 and used that money to stay at another strip hotel for 2 more nights. paid $20 extra but not too bad.

I am sure if I wanted to goto Hawaii, I should pay more than MF since it's kind of expensive in Hawaii. I did pay $300 for a whole week and I felt I paid too much. But after driving around Hawaii for a whole week, I thought $300 wasn't too bad. Stayed in studio with small kitchen at Waikiki but not too bad.

I am thinking if I can pay less than the MF and stay at a ok studio or hotel, I think that is better than owning a timeshare. OR am I missing something?
I am new so please advise me nicely.

 

[rickandcindy23]

There is another thread on Buying, Selling, Renting that might interest you about this very topic.

There is no reason to buy timeshare, but I would not be without it. We can stay at the Marriott Grande Vista in a full one bedroom on a Getaway through II for about $300, including taxes. That is a little better than you did, if you think about it. While we are there, they will offer us some deal for a timeshare tour, because our deal does not require a tour, and we can consider their free gifts and either take them or say "no thanks."

We can also go to RCI and grab a one bedroom on Last Call right now at a Gold Crown resort for $202 for a week. Great deal, very cheap for a week. I can stay there way cheaper than owning.

We always stay in Orlando TWO WEEKS at once. It would be difficult to do that the way you are working the system now, I would think. Eventually you are going to pay a lot for your motel rooms that are not covered within your plan.

I would personally never buy a timeshare in Orlando (even resale) and would never buy any timeshare from a developer. That is a big no no here on TUG. There are deals you can find that will get you multiple weeks for one maintenance fee. Of course, you always have to pay that darned exchange fee for every week, which is now $164.

Rick and I are so spoiled on timeshare that we cannot stay in average hotels anymore. We have owned timeshare for 25 years and keep buying more. We are sick, very sick. Spence said that earlier in another thread and it just fits as to a "T."

If you do decide to buy something, this is the best place to ask questions and get advice.

 

[Steamboat Bill]

You seem to be able to book bargains on your own....perhaps you should continue this and avoid purchasing any TS.

 

[SOS8260456]

Timesharing is not for everyone, that is why the best advice is to do your research and decide what is best for your needs.

We got into timesharing when we were planning a trip to Orlando. We were a family of 5 plus a grandmother and planned on staying in one of the "family" suites that would cost us approx $200 a night. It was either that or get 2 hotel rooms. I was not looking forward to the trip and I was really afraid that someone would be committed (either to jail or the loony bin) by the end of the trip. We ended up purchasing our first timeshare from ebay for $1200 and using it for that trip. It was a 2 bedroom 2 bath unit. Much much nicer than the suite we would have had with 1 tv and a mini kitchen. We were sold on timesharing from that point on. For the same amount of money that we would spend for long weekends at the Jersey shore in a cramped hotel unit, we could spend a whole week near Disney in beautiful condos. Being able to cook on vacation helps us save even more. And the washer and dryer in the units allow us to be able to pack really light.

Since some of our traveling is to Myrtle Beach during prime season, I know that it would be very very difficult to get 2 bedroom units for less than we pay in maintenance fees.

Timesharing has been very good to my family and has allowed us to create some awesome memories.

Lisa

 

[geekette]

If you don't mind spending vacation time taking tours to get the deals, then maybe purchasing isn't a good deal for you. I like to spend my precious days off doing exactly what I want to do (which may actually turn out to be Doing Nothing). In many cases, I value the time more than I value the money.

I also like to plan ahead to see if maybe my brother can go skiing with me a year from next January or if my sister can bring her kids to the beach spring break after next. Who wants to go where for Christmas 08? For me, the best way to be able to lock something down is by owning. I can book or trade and have the reservation in hand well before the flight schedule is posted. And honestly, part of the fun is the trading game.

My best advice to you is to determine what your priorities are. Only then can you decide whether timeshare ownership Fits You.

 

[sfwilshire]

Why buy a car when it's cheaper to ride a bus, bum a ride with friends, or walk? It costs a fortune to own and maintain an automobile. Yet most of us (at least here in the South) do it. Why? Convenience, ease of use, because we love our cars, you pick a reason.

Same with timeshares. Sure, many people can find lots of ways to travel on the cheap, particularly if they can travel last minute or off-season. Others of us are willing to commit some money to be assured we can get quality vacations, usually when and where we want them.

YMMV. By all means, do what makes most sense for you.

Sheila

 

[moonlightgraham]

Philosophy

Your philosophy on travel/vacations seems akin to my brother's. He measures the benefits/success of a vacation by how little he managed to spend on the trip. While I don't enjoy spending money needlessly, I won't sacrifice my vacation time and enjoyment by being forced to schlep thru some timeshare tour or spend my nights in some less-than-desirable condo/hotel in order to save a little money. Thru timeshare ownership I've managed to stay in several very, very nice places that would have been out of reach in the traditional channels of travel. I don't take that many vacations in the span of a year so when I do, I like to be comfortable, feel like it's a treat and feel a bit pampered. If your goal or objective is to minimize your vacation expense above all else then no, don't buy timeshare. I guess it all boils down to what one really values in life!
Tom

 

[GreenMum]

For those with families

My husband & I might be able to manage the same type of nice vacations that our TS provides on our own, but add all the little ones & there is no other way to afford the vacations.

My little sister got married before our ts we spent $650 for three nights crammed into a total dive. After ts (when little sister #2 got married) we spent 3k wm credits & an exchange fee for 6 day 5 nights for a nice place & one of my kids brought a friend. I prefer the TS experience.

 

[talkamotta]

You are on a site that is for timeshare owners, so there will be a lot of pros for timesharing.

I have a certain amount of money for vacations, this includes maintenance fees, activities, car rental and air. If I use that money wisely, I can take 5 vacations each year. Some will be close and some I will have to fly to. My co worker takes that same amount of money plus $2K. He stays 10 days at the Princeville Hotel in Kawaii. Wonderful hotel, but it is a hotel room.

This year, I spent 2 weeks in Hawaii 2 bedroom condos, one right on the beach in Maui. One week in the Grand Canyon area. One week in Florida (2 timeshares) treating my whole family. Gave a present of a week to one of my children. Spent 1 week in Park City and one week at Snowbird, UT. Wasnt required to spend any time in a presentation (arent you getting tired of gong to them). My co worker will spend more money but we are both happy and feel good about our vacation dollar. Timesharing takes time, effort and education and a commitment to vacationing.

The people on this site are a whole lot better at using thier timeshares than I am, but Im still learning.

The long and the short of it is: Do whatever makes you feel good. But know and understand your options.

 

[FlyKaesan]

how did you do it?

talkamotta:

thank you for your comment. Can you tell me exactly how you got
"I spent 2 weeks in Hawaii 2 bedroom condos, one right on the beach in Maui. One week in the Grand Canyon area. One week in Florida (2 timeshares) treating my whole family. Gave a present of a week to one of my children. Spent 1 week in Park City and one week at Snowbird, UT."????

Do you have RCI points? I have access to RCI. I did search and couldn't find good 2 weeks in Hawaii 2 bedroom right on the beach. Celebrity Resort I found but don't want to go there since I have been there and it's not as good as hotels. Is this TS something you own or trade? One week in Florida, I could find but not at the resort I want to go like Disney resorts. trading seems like you need to know what you are doing. By the time I learn all the tricks, I think I would need to retire.

can you tell me total MF and exchange fees including exchange company fees?

 

[talkamotta]

I am so not a pro on this trading thing. There are so many out there that are better than me.

But this is how I did it.

I bought a Maui timeshare in 2005, the person gave me her 2005 week, I deposited into SFX and got an exchange. So the 2 weeks in Hawaii cost me my 1 mf + 1 trade fee. The maintenance fees for Maui was $800 but that has now gone up because of taxes on Maui. The timeshare cost me $5K.

There are certain times of the year in each location that you can get great trades from low traders and yet they are perfect times. I was able to get Fairfield Flagstaff with my Myrtle Beach, so that is $450 mf + trade fee and one of the resorts in Utah was an ac $200. I did that again with another one of my Florida weeks $500 mf + trade fee and that they gave me a ac for the other week. The 2 condos for Thanksgiving was my 2006 and 2007 weeks for Westgate. MF's were $1300 for both weeks. I have II, RCI and I tried SFX for the first time. Im thinking I will get rid of either II or RCI.

If you feel comfortable in purchasing a timeshare, you should always start small. Learn how to use it wisely and then you may find a need to purchase more or not. I probably have too many at this time of my life but my kids find uses for them. I will be retiring in 4 years so my needs will change.

Everything changes. Right now the rental market is pretty good especially if you are flexible. Just like other parts of life, the timeshare market changes constantly. Ive made my share of mistakes as many others have but mine have not been very costly. My priorities are different than yours, too begin with I am a single mother of 5 grown adults. Even though the Disney properties are wonderful and perfect, I dont need to stay on Disney property. When I go to Orlando, its not just for Disney. I also want good value for my money, thats not always the cheapest way to go.

The cost of vacationing is not only the cost of the timeshare but also air, car and activities. So keep the total in mind. This takes time....you may well be old enough to retire. Ive been timeshareing for 10 years, others a lot longer, but in this case its the journey.

Good luck and keep reading.

 

[trice01]

Buying Resale and Trading Up

That was one of the major reasons I got into timeshare.
One of my first purchases was a $3000 Southern Cal beach timeshare. Maint at that time was about $300. My first exchange with it was a prime midsummer week here in Minnesota. Those prime weeks cost around $6-10,000 resale. The place rents for $300 per night in July. So the way I figure it, I traded a $3000 resort for a $10,000 resort, or spent $300 for a $2100 week if I had rented. From that standpoint, I got a great bargain.
The big issue for me now is the value of the timeshare. I don't care how much you pay- if the timeshare is worth zero when you go to resell, you have to include your purchase price divided by the number of years you owned it and add that to the cost of use. I hear people around here saying now that you have to assume the property is zero value after 5-7 years. I never heard that being proposed before.
If I had it to do over, I would do the same as I did on my first couple of purchases- buy a small, well run resort in a high quality area with few timeshares in the area. Never ever buy a timeshare in an area with a lot of them, because your resort will quickly lose its appeal and its value if it is competing with lots of hotels, motels, and new resorts being built every week. In addition, resorts in overbuilt areas have lower exchange value, and I suspect that people who visit the area are quite sick of timeshare sales pitches being thrown at them every day and are quite put off by the whole concept.

 

[talkamotta]

I am so not a pro on this trading thing. There are so many out there that are better than me.

But this is how I did it.

I bought a Maui timeshare in 2005, the person gave me her 2005 week, I deposited into SFX and got an exchange. So the 2 weeks in Hawaii cost me my 1 mf + 1 trade fee. The maintenance fees for Maui was $800 but that has now gone up because of taxes on Maui. The timeshare cost me $5K.

There are certain times of the year in each location that you can get great trades from low traders and yet they are perfect times. I was able to get Fairfield Flagstaff with my Myrtle Beach, so that is $450 mf + trade fee and one of the resorts in Utah was an ac $200. I did that again with another one of my Florida weeks $500 mf + trade fee and that they gave me a ac for the other week. The 2 condos for Thanksgiving was my 2006 and 2007 weeks for Westgate. MF's were $1300 for both weeks. I have II, RCI and I tried SFX for the first time. Im thinking I will get rid of either II or RCI.

If you feel comfortable in purchasing a timeshare, you should always start small. Learn how to use it wisely and then you may find a need to purchase more or not. I probably have too many at this time of my life but my kids find uses for them. I will be retiring in 4 years so my needs will change.

Everything changes. Right now the rental market is pretty good especially if you are flexible. Just like other parts of life, the timeshare market changes constantly. Ive made my share of mistakes as many others have but mine have not been very costly. My priorities are different than yours, too begin with I am a single mother of 5 grown adults. Even though the Disney properties are wonderful and perfect, I dont need to stay on Disney property. When I go to Orlando, its not just for Disney. I also want good value for my money, thats not always the cheapest way to go.

The cost of vacationing is not only the cost of the timeshare but also air, car and activities. So keep the total in mind. This takes time....you may well be old enough to retire. Ive been timeshareing for 10 years, others a lot longer, but in this case its the journey.

Good luck and keep reading

 

[sully4]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned here:
When all's said and done, you walk away with nothing...I have a deed.
We've been timesharing successfully for about 10 years now. By successfully, I mean all were bought resale for good prices, all (but the one we use every year) have low maintenance fees, and all are easy to rent, and good traders.
My two boys, ages 17 and 19, were brought up staying in timeshare resorts.
Just mention a hotel room and they both sneer and jeer. And frankly, the thought of spending an entire week in a hotel room with both of them, no matter the destination, wouldn't be much of a vacation for any of us. One bathroom, one television, no privacy, no refrigerator or microwave handy,...
All of my weeks, except one, are at resorts that are long out of development.
I know we won't timeshare forever, and our traveling may well slow down as we age. But guess what! At least one of my kids (hopefully) will have a family of his own by then.
Most of my home resorts have been around awhile-some over 20 years. But they're in good repair, in good demand, and financially stable. I have no reason to believe they won't be around at least a few more years. Believe it or not, each of my kids has "dibs" on certain weeks, (the one's they know about, anyway ). And besides, if one of my home resorts dissolves, I'll have long since depreciated the cost.
You can ask every timeshare owner why he/she owns a timeshare and they'll all have different reasons. It's certainly not for everyone, but it's certainly worked for us!

 

[FlyKaesan]

maintenance fees

you have mentioned low maintenance fees. How much would you say is low?

where do you have that you can trade well? is it fixed or flex week?

can you trade for busy weeks in Hawaii with your trade?

I was thinking paying more than $400 for a week of accomodation is too much.

thanks!

 

[trice01]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned here:
When all's said and done, you walk away with nothing...I have a deed.
QUOTE]

Which is a two edged sword. I agree, we have equity in our timeshares. But as you can see by reading the "resorts refusing turnbacks" and "timeshare values collapsing" threads in the "Buying" section, that can be a blessing or a curse. A blessing, if you can find someone to buy it when you no longer need it. An obligation and a curse, if you can't unload something that sends you a bill every year even when you don't want it. Sometimes having something is worse than having nothing. Buy carefully, something you want to keep long term. It is not a market you can jump in and out of easily.

 

[geekette]

I was thinking paying more than $400 for a week of accomodation is too much.

Then you should probably stick with your promotional deals and hope they continue and not restrict your access to them.

Everyone has their own priorities and mine include being able to plan way ahead, be able to select the right resort for us and lock things down without having to spend time with sales weasels. If cost is your prime objective, that's fine, continue on without buying - nothing wrong with that.

 

[FlyKaesan]

Got a DEAL!!!!

[Message deleted. Duplicate posts are not permitted on these forums. Please decide where to post a message and then post it only once. Dave M, BBS Administrator]

 

[dboy1]

It seems to me that your first priority for vacation is how cheap you can get it. As a rule of thumb cheap usually means you are dancing to someone elses tune since you will have to follow their rules to score the really cheap accomodations.We go on holidays to relax and do what WE want anytime with no restrictions. Timeshare allows us to do this at a reasonable cost --NOT the cheapest cost--Not a big fan of motel8 or timeshare tours(they cut into OUR time).

 

[dboy1]

Forgot to mention--we own in Hawaii and our M.F. is $315 per week

 

[trice01]

Yes, Be Real

$400 a week is not a realistic figure for accomodations on a regular basis. That works out to about $56 per night, and you won't likely see that even at a Super 8 with a discount.
Staying in your own timeshare can be a great discount in itself, and often even cheaper than an exchange, where you have to add the exchange fee onto your maint fee to determine the true cost.
Most well maintained timeshares are comparable to a good "cash" resort or hotel room, at a lower cost per night. When you add on the ability to store food and cook for yourself, sleep anywhere from 4-8 people comfortably, often have free laundry available, and numerous free onsite activities and amenities, it can be a huge bargain. If you're clever enough to buy a good trading resort with low maint fees and trade up to a better, overpriced resort through the exchange system, the deal gets even better. The key is to buy smart in the first place. Take your time, and do it right.

 

[bogey21]

Another Perspective

I own 6 Weeks now at total cost of about $5,000 and average MF of about $400. These are in places I like to go. Two are beachfront (Deerfield Beach, FL and Myrtle Beach, SC). One is to trade via ORE (Park City, UT); Others are by casinos and/or race tracks (Biloxi, MS and Ruidoso, NM). But note that except for the Park City Week, I use them all.

My Son likes skiing and snowboarding so I just bought him a two bedroom Week 9 in Dillon, CO for $1,000 with MF about $400. Same theory. Buy where you want to go, when you want to go. Trade only when your own travel plans get messed up for one reason or another.

No these are not Marriotts, Hiltons, etc. but they are decent resorts with location, location, location

GEORGE

 

[FlyKaesan]

Learning

Well, this is the thing.

I love going to Las Vegas, Orlando. Would I want to buy timeshare there? Probably not.
For example, I am going to Vegas next week. I thought about buying TS but one of the hotel emailed me for free nights. I got 3 nights at Flamigo suite that facing Bellagio. I am kind of looking forward to it.
I went to Orlando last year and it was free 3 nights with tickets. I liked the TS place but when I got the price. They were asking close to $15000. Ok, I will never buy it from developers but from resale but does the MF change? No, I don't think so. If they gave it to me for free, I would still not have taken it since the MF was close to $800.
Now, do I want goto Hawaii or some other places? Yes but I don't think I will get the chance to go every year for vacation. I guess I spend less than $500 total including air fare when I vacation. I still haven't found a place that is worth MF fees.(less than $400). If you have a good TS with low MF, let me know where I can go find the resale with good price. If I wanted to buy it for just one place that I want to go every year, I would rather move there and live.

thanks!

 

[m61376]

We are newbies to this so I can tell you why we decided to buy: we stayed in a timeshare that we won at an auction (only the stay...unfortunately not the timeshare ) and my hubbie's comment halfway through the trip was, "why would you ever want to stay anyplace else?"

We have travelled quite a bit over the last 15 years, while the kids were growing up. We like to get value for our dollar and although we have spent a lot travelling, we generally stay in nice but not necessarily luxurious places. We generally travel with the folks and, at this point, at least one of our daughters. Having a 2 BR versus a couple of hotel rooms just made a tremendous difference. Everyone had their own space. Having a cup of tea/coffee in the morning on the balcony while others were getting their acts together rather than waiting impatiently really enhanced our trip. Not having to worry about where to go for breakfast, because we had a fridge and could just grab a muffin or cereal or whatever at our leisure was such an easy way to start the day. Having a freezer to freeze drinks to take with us and have nice cold drinks all day was both convenient and a big savings. Mellowing out at night and watching a DVD as a family gave us some nice quality family time together. For the first time in all our travels I actually enjoyed relaxing- something my family NEVER thought they'd hear the family "tour guide" say !

That said, I think if you have the patience and are willing to spend vacation time listening to presentations (my husband is not) and aren't at a point in life where staying in nicer places matters that much (hey- my older daughter travels and stays in hostels all over the world...I think she's crazy), then buying probably is not the best thing for you. You are getting cheap trips that you are enjoying and obviously are playing the rental and presentation market to your advantage, getting to where you like to go and in accomodations you are content with. For now, that seems right for you. In a few years, if you have a family, your needs or outlook may change. There will always be opportunities to purchase. In the interim, maybe you will go somewhere that, while not practical to move there because of work or family, may be someplace you want to go visit over and over. Then will be the right time to buy.

 

[djs]

I should qualify this by mentioning that my timeshare was free. My SIL gave it to me as they didn't have the paitence to deal with it (this was about 3 days before II opened up their website). In any event, I think timeshares can be a great value. Of course, this depends on what you value while on vacation. Personally, I like having the space that a timeshare offers (compared to a hotel room), it's great to have a kitchen even though I probably only cook 1/2 my meals in the unit. I tell people who ask that there is a lot of "nickle-n-diming" when it comes to timeshares (MF, fees to join II or RCI, fees to complete the actual exchange) but in the end it really can come out in our favor. The key here is that you have to use it. Gyms make a lot of money off of clients who sign up, but don't actually use the gym; timeshares aren't really much different (and clearly the same can be said for II and RCI).

Timeshares also aren't for everybody; you have to be willing to have some flexibility and sense of adventure. As long as you do, you will be happy. Of course, you do need to make sure you buy at a resort/time period that has reasonable demand......a fixed week on Cape Cod during Thanksgiving week just isn't going to cut it.