What do you think of timeshares?

[DawnM]

I would never buy one. We get the place for the week cheaper than those who have bought into the timeshare pay. I remember sitting at a property once where the people at the hot tub were lamenting even owning the timeshare and they told me they paid $800/year for maintenance fees.....while we sat there having paid $250 (with taxes and fees!) for the week. All of them wished they could sell. One had inherited it and said he was ready pay to get rid of it.

 

[Klayfish]

Well we didn't purchase ownership at this point. It's more of a rent to own sort of set up. But that's a bummer to hear.

Get out of it...ASAP. Otherwise, you just wasted a ton of money.

We got sweet talked into buying one in the Bahamas many years ago. Gorgeous place, but after a while we came to the realization that we were just throwing money away. It's far cheaper to just book a rental through places like AirBnB, VRBO or timeshare rental websites instead of actually being locked into one of your own. We ditched ours like it was on fire.

Don't do it.

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

Yep, get out of it. Doesn't matter if it's not fully purchased, or some kind of rent-to-own deal, figure out how to fully withdraw from whatever you've gotten into and do it immediately.

 

[cvjw]

I could sell our dvc for much more than we purchased the contracts for. Don’t think you would have the same luck with other timeshares.

 

[Dis703]

I have owned a fixed week Wyndham timeshare in Williamsburg, Va since 1985. I've also had an RCI membership that whole time, which allows me to trade my timeshare for other timeshares around the world. I have to say that it has been a blessing for my family. We've taken incredible vacations and stayed at some really amazing resorts for a fraction of what we'd pay if we didn't have the timeshare. Whenever I book something, I do a cost analysis to see if the portion of my maintenance fee used for the trade plus the RCI trade fee is higher or lower that renting on my own would be. So far, it's always been lower - substantially lower in most cases. And we usually get 2 or 3 week long vacations a year out of our one week maintenance fee because I own a lock-off unit.

I know how to maximize my timeshare and make it work for my family! Over the years we've been to all of these places using our timeshare - most of them multiple times: the Outer Banks, NC; Virginia Beach; mountains/lakes in Va and NC; the Poconos; Florida (Bonita Beach, North Miami Beach, Pompano Beach, Orlando); Hilton Head, Edisto Island and Mrytle Beach, SC; gorgeous resorts in Mexico 3 times; skiing in New Hampshire and Lake Tahoe; Sedona, AZ; New Orleans; and I'm planning a family trip to South Africa to tour Kruger Park as I type this.

The key is to research before you buy. Tugbbs is a great resource with lots of very knowledgeable folks who can help you with questions. If you do buy, buy resale (not from a developer or you'll pay waaaay too much). Purchase a resale property with low maintenance fees but high trading power. Properties like that are out there if you know what you are looking for.

Thanks. I know there have to be more people out there that enjoy it or it wouldn't continue to be a thing. I think how it's used likely makes a big difference. This one isn't a fixed week. Fixed definitely wouldn't work for me.

Williamsburg is one of the places we hope to go. From what I've figured out, I have 400,000 points (paid $3500 for) and 7 nights in Orlando will be about 85-112,000 (depending on resort) and Willamsburg for 7 nights will be about 87,000. When I looked at booking a room on my own at the Orlando resort I was looking at $200-250 a night. They have a resort in the Poconos for a pretty low amount of points that would make for a nice weekend getaway and still leave me with quite a few points. I feel like if planned well it's definitely a savings for our hotel/resort cost. We already travel mostly off season so those are the lower point times.

Whether I want to spend 50K to keep it forever though.....that's the part I'm really unsure about. I have another day to get out of it if I really decide even the Discovery program isn't for me, but I can see the plus side to it.

 

[east_coaster]

My parents bought one in the '90s for family vacations to Florida. They also had an RCI membership, which was used to take trips to different places. When they no longer wanted/needed it, they offered to to me (since I was the only one in the family who still used it!). We pay a yearly maintenance fee of about $1,000 US for two weeks, deposit it into RCI weeks, and trade it for trips mostly to Disney I think it depends on how you're going to use it. We don't like staying in hotels when we travel, and we're happy to stay at one place for a week at a time. I know when we travel to some places we could probably rent something for less then the maintenance and exchange fees. Would I go out and buy one? Probably not, but this does work for us and how we travel. We've stayed in a condo in Spain, Ontario (Canada), Vermont, DVC (Beach Club and Saratoga Springs), various others in Orlando, gifted weeks to family for Las Vegas, and Hawaii. With RCI we've been able to "bank" our points and splurge on nicer condos. For us and how we use it, it works.

 

[ziravan]

Thanks. I know there have to be more people out there that enjoy it or it wouldn't continue to be a thing. I think how it's used likely makes a big difference. This one isn't a fixed week. Fixed definitely wouldn't work for me.

Williamsburg is one of the places we hope to go. From what I've figured out, I have 400,000 points (paid $3500 for) and 7 nights in Orlando will be about 85-112,000 (depending on resort) and Willamsburg for 7 nights will be about 87,000. When I looked at booking a room on my own at the Orlando resort I was looking at $200-250 a night. They have a resort in the Poconos for a pretty low amount of points that would make for a nice weekend getaway and still leave me with quite a few points. I feel like if planned well it's definitely a savings for our hotel/resort cost. We already travel mostly off season so those are the lower point times.

Whether I want to spend 50K to keep it forever though.....that's the part I'm really unsure about. I have another day to get out of it if I really decide even the Discovery program isn't for me, but I can see the plus side to it.

I’m pretty sure it’s not as easy to get out of the discovery program as they suggested. Read the written contract very carefully.

I wouldn’t risk it since you’re still in your rescission period. Rescind and get away from the developer. There are plenty of really great deals to be had with Wyndham points and none of them come from the developer.

Once the rescission period ends, it’s gone forever. I think you might enjoy timeshares. But I think you’ll enjoy them much more if you end up paying 95% less for them than you’re about to pay.

 

[barkley]

we owned dvc at one point but we were lucky when we went to sell and got (with fees and such) close to what we paid for it. the only reason we bought was b/c at the time the trade outs were appealing to us so for the 8 or so years we owned it while we did some long (multiple weeks) wdw and disneyland trips a few times we primarily got it for cruising/trade outs to non disney locations. we did both disney cruise line as well as holland america. i don't think they do the trade outs with other cruise lines or as many other destinations anymore so i'm glad we sold when we did.

there are a couple of destinations that we usually spend at least one week per year at. both have timeshares local to them but every time i look at the numbers cost wise i know that i can rent the identical or better lodging w/o being locked into a financial obligation that will go up in price as the individual timeshare ages-be it due to maintenance and repair fees, increased property taxes or higher operating costs (when the minimum wage employees get a boost in their wages you can count on it being passed on to the timeshare owners). i just like being able to pick and choose when/where i travel (and not feeling obligated to b/c my points are about to expire).

 

[marcyleecorgan]

might as well buy a boat if you are going to throw money away like that... or more rental property... so said all my family members who got into the timeshare stuff.

 

[pigletto]

Timeshare is a great deal... for the people who rent the points off the people who can't afford it/don't want it anymore/can't use it. We love timeshare properties and having all the space, but I'll let someone else worry about the maintenance fees and being locked in to contracts.. renting is the way to go for us.

 

[neverlandsky]

Not for us. I personally avoid contracts & debt like the plague.

 

[3 MEN AND A BOAT]

Thanks. I know there have to be more people out there that enjoy it or it wouldn't continue to be a thing. I think how it's used likely makes a big difference. This one isn't a fixed week. Fixed definitely wouldn't work for me.

Williamsburg is one of the places we hope to go. From what I've figured out, I have 400,000 points (paid $3500 for) and 7 nights in Orlando will be about 85-112,000 (depending on resort) and Willamsburg for 7 nights will be about 87,000. When I looked at booking a room on my own at the Orlando resort I was looking at $200-250 a night. They have a resort in the Poconos for a pretty low amount of points that would make for a nice weekend getaway and still leave me with quite a few points. I feel like if planned well it's definitely a savings for our hotel/resort cost. We already travel mostly off season so those are the lower point times.

Whether I want to spend 50K to keep it forever though.....that's the part I'm really unsure about. I have another day to get out of it if I really decide even the Discovery program isn't for me, but I can see the plus side to it.

And on the other side, if it is such a great deal why do they have a contract that is next to impossible for a consumer to get out of. I look at things like this, if a seller of any product requires that I sign a binding contract for any period of time longer than the financing required to purchase it, Why?

 

[Micca]

We're DVC members and love it. Certainly it's not for everybody, but most DVC members (anecdotally) seem to be very pleased with their purchase. I think if you look at it pragmatically you can reasonably say it's not a money-saving tactic. With Disney there's an intangible aspect that comes into play. Buying a 50K car doesn't make much sense when you can buy one for 23k, but people do it because they like it.

 

[pxidst119]

Please do not spend 50K on this before doing some research on the tugbbs. There is also info on there for getting out of your current contract within the recision period. Like I said earlier, I do love my timeshare but I really think you need to do some research and find the one that will work for your vacation style. For example, some people buy at resorts they never go to only because it has a strong trading power and they like to trade a lot. Some resorts only trade on Interval such as (Marriott). Some on RCI (Disney). There are so many strategies. Please research so you can find one that works for you for way less than $50K. There will always be more buying opportunities after this one.

 

[nkereina]

Agree with PPs. FWIW, DVC is essentially a timeshare but their model operates differently than that of a typical timeshare. It's not a true comparison, but the value (or lack thereof) is still the same.

I'll also add that if you have to finance any portion of the timeshare cost, it is NOT a good deal. Timeshares are luxury items, not an investment, so to finance the cost is a bad financial decision. If you have the savings and disposable income to pay for it without financing, its less of a risk and the value of it evens out a bit.

 

[BadgerGirl84]

I'd like to own one someday.

I'd NEVER EVER buy direct from the developer, as you did. Resale is the way to go (with the exception of possibly DVC if the extra benefits are important to you.)

We like to travel and will need a 2+ bedroom place as we are a family of 5. I'd like to get a timeshare that is "free" (very easy to come by--many people just want to get rid of their timeshare) and has low maintenance fees and then have the ability to trace into Interval International or RCI. I think we could get very nice vacations for the price spent on the maintenance fees.

Extensively read the TUGGS boards before you proceed any further.

 

[Dznypal]

I have a friend that at one time owned 3 different timeshare contract

one was about 20 minutes from WDW

one in Las vegas and one at the Wi Dells which is about a 2 hr ride from where we live

they used the one in FL twice--LV once and the dells they only time they stayed there is when they bought into it


so money was getting tight--which is the main reason they didn't go any more--so they looked into companies to sell them for them

the first one you had to pay $400 upfront for them to sell the TS--they went out of business along with the $400--so my friend found another

place that didn't want any money upfront--shes getting all excited that they would get cash for the 3 places--she knew it wouldn't be a lot of

money but just the idea theyd get cash--well this place did sell them my friend thought theyd leave with a few $1000 in their pockets

instead this place "gives" you discounted vacations in place of your TS--my friend didn't use the TS how would they use discounted vacations

when it was all said and done they got discounted vacations which they never used--but got rid of the timeshares

we own a DVC and love it!! but like someone said theres no comparison between a standard timeshare and the vacation club--

they did at least learn their lesson and no more timeshares--so that's a plus

 

[GrnMtnMan]

A wordy and kinda brief history of timeshares…

From what I’ve found in my research, the first timeshare was in the French alps, when a group of people got together to buy a dwelling, and they made a contractual agreement that each of them could occupy the dwelling specific days each year.

That system evolved over time to what I call the ‘bad-old days’ of timeshares. The period that made timeshares the b u t t of jokes and gave them the whiff of sleaze.

The bad old days were the wild west. The salespeople were compelling liars (which continues to be a problem, outside of DVC, to this day). A property developer would make it up as he went. They’d oversell resorts, such that there was never a period for a unit to be repaired or maintained. They’d say you could stay at any resort in the world (but the fine print said that you had to reserve that other place only on February 29ths between 11:59 and 12).

They’d make a promise that your annual dues would never go up by more than 5% a year and they could only asses you for capital repairs once every five years, and at no more than 10% of your purchase price.

So guess what they did? The raised fees and made assessments to the max at every single opportunity. After all, the developer still owned the resort, and it was his management company, so he wanted to milk that cow for everything its worth. So long as he provided you with that promised week every year, there was nothing you could do. And even if you tried to just walk away, he’d sue you for unpaid dues.

Then there was an evolution to a slightly more honest ownership model. The ownership I mentioned above was club structure. The developer never turned over any ownership to you, he just promised to provide you housing for a week annually in perpetuity. Then a more honest developer decided to use a condominium structure.

With a condominium, the people who buy a week at the property become owners. They have the right to vote for a board of directors. The directors are obligated to act in the owners’ best interest, not the developers. The downside of there being no developer owner is that dues can fluctuate with the needs of the property, so there’s no promise of how high they can go.

This improved things slightly, but you were still stuck at the same resort the same week every year.

Then the hotels companies stepped in and said expecting people to vacation the same week every year is impractical. And they figured out how if they priced things right and built enough units at the resort, they could balance out demand throughout the year.

Then someone realized that people might not want to stay in a 40 year old apartment on vacation. So they started implementing sunset clauses into the condominium documents that dissolved the association in 50 years or something (this is why DVC resorts have expiration dates) .

Along the way, many places had local legislatures enact some basic laws for timeshares. In the bad old days, some developers would just walk away from the resort after all the units were sold. These developments became dysfunctional and fell into disrepair when none of the owners could operate the project. The laws said that the developer has to retain some permanent small/residual interest in the place and step-in to manage it if the boards of directors became dysfunctional.

So DVC is the culmination of this history. DVC figured out how to break the minimum 7 night stay. DVC has board of directors that look out for the interest of owners (though these directors are employed by Disney, they have a legal obligation to act in the owners’ best interest). Some might laugh at this notion, but it is a constraint they face. DVC has a sunset clause so people don’t have to continue paying to maintain an obsolete hotel room.

DVC has been rewarded by its decent policies and management with steady value. I don’t know of any other mass-market timeshare where owners’ shares of the resort has increased in value. Virtually all timeshares become nearly worthless the moment they are sold by the developer. DVC has been steadily holding its value.

I also own a timeshare at Harborside at Atlantis...it was financial mistake to buy from the developer, but i didn't know any better at the time (and the resort was new so there weren't really any re-sale units to buy at the time). But I've used my unit every year since buying, and because I bought an in-demand season/week, I could rent my unit for more than my annual dues. There are very few timeshare resorts out there where this is the case, so this could be a good rule-of-thumb for buying: what are the rental rates like compared to the annual dues.

 

[disneyfantotheend]

Don't do it. I work at one and could tell you horror stories from many many owners.

 

[North of Mouse]

Our motorhomes have been our 'time share' for many years and we go lots of places, Disney included, and we don't have to 'share' or reserve for a specific time and hope we can get it!!

Our dd did buy at Boardwalk very early - two weeks worth - don't know the points, and has loved it, so guess some work out depending on the situation. She now only uses one week, and rents the other in a fixed week in Oct. (has been a 'guaranteed' rental because of F&W).