So, sort of idly thinking about buying into timeshare condo scene.
Any experiences here people want to share?
Timeshare experiences?
By Vicente Follow Fri, 17 Feb 2012, 2:47pm 3,117 views 34 comments
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Half Moon Bay, CA
My sister bought a timeshare. She used it maybe 4 times in 20 years.
The people who collect commissions on buying/selling timeshares are the only ones making money.
Timeshares are a rip-off.
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Santa Cruz, CA
wherever it is, there is probably someone in that location who would love to rent a place to you.
I would run into the comical situations in cabo with people selling timeshares. I was staying with my mexican friend who lives there and we'd be accosted by the salespeople everywhere. they even lurked in stores and other types of businesses.
I would never want one.
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Madison, WI
One way to compare is to look at the costs of using a motel, or renting a lodge vs. timeshare. I have heard they can be hard to re-sale, unless it is a desirable timeshare, which some I am sure are quite so.
Still, one time me and the girlfriend went to a time-share selling thing because we got free food, free his/her watches. The selling point was you can also trade your time-share for another one somewhere else, we hear that does not work out as great as they make it sound.
That's really about all I know.
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Los Angeles, CA
Ive only heard bad things.
It appears they scam people in these ways:
1. when buying (cost to much, high fees, cant get outta contract)
2. when owning (high fees, maint fees go up)
3. when selling(its worth 10% of what you 'bought' it for, now get screwed paying up front fee to a SellUrTimeshareDotCom fly by night)
I would suggest instead of timeshare you plan a new fun vacation in a DIFFERENT part of the world every year and save money by traveling off season, or during the week.
I would rather even pimp out my wife to save money rather than buy a timeshare but that is me!
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San Jose, CA
Absolutely best investment to lose money.
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REpro says
True. It is a RE anyways!
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It's probably the worst real estate investment except for a manufactured home in a trailer park. Terrible resale. My philosophy is why buy when you can lease or rent? I'd rather use VRBO around the world to stay at owner homes.
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Well, I am that sucker so I don't want to hear it. I know how stupid I was to get a timeshare.
Put 15K down cash and bought a timeshare (paid in full) about 4 years ago. Sounded great at the time because we could "Trade" our timeshare.
No matter what you pay here are the costs for my place in Cali that never go away.
-1K roughly a year in taxes and maintenance fees.
-I get 2 one week time slots on odd years and 4 one week time slots on even years.
-I pay nothing more if I want to vacation in Escondido California. I live on the East now. Stupid! Location, Location, Location.
-I have to pay around 140 dollars to transfer my timeshare to a company and swap with someone else.
-I also have to pay the timeshare company a 60 dollar annual membership fee. (I can't remember the exact amount)
-If I want to rent my timeshare to someone else so they can sign for it and use it. Then that is another 140 dollars transfer fee.
-So, if you want to swap your timeshare get ready to plan at least 14 to 18 months out. The good locations near even the most remote beaches book in about 2 hours once the damn reservations open up. Forget about Hawaii.
So, within the last four years. I also got married and had two kids. No time for the timeshare.
I am working with a resale agent in Escondido to sell this thing for 3500. That was about 4 months ago. Not even one call back since the market is saturated with used timeshares.
That was my one of my biggest financial mistakes.
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I had about the worst experience I can remember involving a timeshare. I'm not sure why I did this, but abut 5 years ago I got a phone call to show up on a Saturday and we would get free breakfast and a free gift just for talking to someone about a timeshare. I only went because my Grandmother went to something like this years ago and actually got a free Microwave. So I figured what the hell? So I went, and sure enough got free breakfast. Then we were ushered into an office where each of us were paired up with a salesperson and their job was to try and sell us a timeshare. I felt really bad about it because the poor sales guy was clearly really, really wanting to sell me this thing. The cost was $10k for what had seriously been an old hotel converted into small condos ( height of the boom).
I told the guy I was really, really sorry for wasting his time and that there was no way I was paying 10k for the privilege of buying something I'd maybe spend 2 weeks a year at. I left and didn't even take the gift.
I don't know much about timeshares. I'm not exactly interested myself or how they work.
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Half Moon Bay, CA
edvard2 says
What!? You took the free breakfast and didn't give them 10k for it?
I agree, what a terrible experience.
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I've had a couple of FANTASTIC Timeshare Experiences. Best travel values we've had. We sublet someone else's timeshare one June, right on Waikiki beach, with an ocean view and parking garage underneath. It was a 3 BR 2 BA unit with kitchen, washer & drier, and more sq ft than the sh*tbox I reside at in the Bay Area. It costed a little bit more per night than a medium priced hotel room that would've been across the street from the beach. A different time, another such Timeshare Experience at a timeshare resort during a late March in Key Largo. But I don't "own" a Timeshare. Those were just one-off deals I got subletting someone else's "time".
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Santa Cruz, CA
Buying a timeshare because they give you breakfast is like marrying a girl because you did her.
The long term financial effects may be similar in both cases :)
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Dunedin, FL
I own a hilton grand vacation club timeshare. Main thing about buying timeshares is do not buy from the developer. There are plently of resales for timeshares.
GO to tugbbs.com (timeshare user group) and learn about all the timeshare systems before buying. Then buy from a resale timeshare agent (or ebay if your really cheap). Again do not buy from a developer. You will overpay for something you may not be able to give away. Using a timeshare is not like a hotel there are alot of twists and turns. You have to be a planner very far in advance and not care for housekeeping (its more like renting a condo mostly).
Alot of timeshares are not worth $1, their maintenance fees are more than you can rent them for. They are good to get involved in IF you like to plan your vacations far in advance and/or are flexible on WHEN you go and WHERE you go. If your not going to go to your home resort year after year trading can be tricky and cost money, but it can work to your advantage if you learn the system(s). You can get bigger accomodations than you could ever get/afford (2 bedroom suites are the norm for timeshares) vs a hotel. You give up housekeeping mostly (and restaurants at alot of them). No room service, no daily housekeeping, no onsite restaurants typically.
Baron
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If someone is offering you gifts to sell you something, that is not a good sign. South Park had a funny episode about timeshares where the adults were locked in a room with them until they caved and bought it just so they could leave.
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Baltimore, MD
My GF's parents one on in Ocean City, MD. At one time, before we discovered Atlantic City, NJ (which is way better than Ocean City, MD), the condo was usable to us, but it actually costs more to do a timeshare switch with someone in Atlantic City than it does to get a hotel room on Atlantic City (unless we were staying a week).
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Vicente, The best way to view timeshares is as a prepaid vacation club. You WILL go on vacation, and better plan ahead. To repeat what barond said: DO NOT BUY from the developer. Deals abound in the secondary market, but make sure you've got a desirable location that others will want to visit. Can you give us a general location? I bet we could crowdsource this sucker to find you a deal.
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Sacramento, CA
vicente,
timeshares are albatrosses. the carrying costs of owning a timeshare are ridiculous.
clark howard, my main man, is not a fan of them.
http://www.clarkhoward.com/news/clarkhoward/travel/paying-just-1-time-share-may-still-be-too-much/nD2RJ/
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Davis, CA
Well I had been toying with the idea of South Lake Tahoe, specifically the Marriott Vacation Club complex in Heavenly Village. It's only a couple of hours from me so you know it'd be someplace we could get away to once or twice in the winter and ski Heavenly etc. I stayed in one of their Studios recently and liked it, had a pretty decent compact kitchen and a supermarket right across the street which is useful if you have kids.
The passing thought of it, is becoming increasingly more passing with each negative comment.
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Sacramento, CA
yeah, heavenly village - nice area. right in the heart of SLT.
just use your money to rent a nearby cabin or something comparable, but don't get roped into a timeshare. the carrying costs just might erode your sanity, dude.
some people are donating their timeshares to charities because they're sick of em. and why are they donating their timeshares and not selling them, you ask? because no right-minded person wants to deal with a timeshare.
i went skiing two days ago at sierra-at-tahoe! boo ya!
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AdamCarollaFan says
Probably, when they donate it to charity, it's not "marked to market" on their 1040 Schedule-A. What do you think?
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Vicente says
Ah ha! So you too have discovered that you can enjoy someone else's timeshare without the commitment of owning it. So now that you know that, why on earth would you buy the silly thing?
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If Realtors® are arsonists who have run out of gasoline, time share brokers are child rapists who live in a neighborhood where the grammar school closed.
A more legit investment may be a meth lab.
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Victorville, CA
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Vicente says
Do not listen to these naysayers. I have a time share in this area and have never regretted it. Also in beautiful JAcksonville Florida. I love it.
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APOCALYPSEFUCK is Tony Manero says
You said it. Good Morning, AF.
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Sacramento, CA
B.A.C.A.H. says
you got it. there's a lot of concern over the efficacy and abuses of mark-to-market accounting. many say it's contributed to all this mess.
here's a good article on M2MA:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/97845-mark-to-market-accounting-kill-it-before-it-eats-us-alive
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JodyChunder says
Just curious,have you ever failed in any of business deals,ever? I have never heard of anybody that successful(Bill Gates,Warren Buffet etc. are exceptions)
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Well I had been toying with the idea of South Lake Tahoe, specifically the Marriott Vacation Club complex in Heavenly Village. It's only a couple of hours from me so you know it'd be someplace we could get away to once or twice in the winter and ski Heavenly etc. I stayed in one of their Studios recently and liked it, had a pretty decent compact kitchen and a supermarket right across the street which is useful if you have kids.
Best resale price I could find on a studio was $25k. The yearly maintenance fee is $3,677. But these are fractionals, so you get 13 weeks a year (only $283 a week). Use what you need and rent the rest at a discount to patnetters.
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Victorville, CA
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bubblesitter says
My last two marriages!
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JodyChunder says
Haha!
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Dunedin, FL
If its marriott (or any timeshare). Go to the timeshare user group forum.
http://tugbbs.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=29 (marriott specific board).
They have every detail information usually provided already in their boards for your reading pleasure on all the major timeshare vacation clubs.
Disney
Hilton/HGVC
Mariott
Wyndham
Starwood
Most people buy a timeshare and then never learn how to use it. They are tricky. Every system is different, have different mini systems and trading platforms. You can use timeshares to your advantage but it requires alot of learning about the system. Whats the value (if its worth anything). Whats the maintenance fees. flexibility to trade etc...
You can rent timeshares and if you go to the timeshare user group members they can teach you how to rent (some, not all) at a really good rate. Where to go to look for rentals of timeshares (besides tug who has rentals as well as resale ads people post).
I personally own a small ownership, but I can rent from HGVC open season and RCI through my account. Timeshares require either alot of flexibility or you want to either go to the same place every year or rent it yourself. If I bought again I would still buy the same one I own (I just would of bought resale instead of developer) and got 75% off :)
Baron
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San Francisco, CA
StoutFiles says
It would be fun to write in detail my grueling experience of being pitched a timeshare while on vacation in Puerto Villarta with a girlfriend about fifteen years ago. What hell!!! I felt so angry! I'll limit the fun with a short summary.
They told me it would take 45 minutes, promised me a free outing/activity and proceeded to trap me, almost physically for almost FOUR HOURS! I was so pissed. I demanded they upgrade my "free" activity to one four times more "expensive" and at least got to do some amazing snorkeling and a long boat trip at no additional cost.
It all started when the beautiful, American saleswoman showed us the timeshare....and ended with a very aggressive native telling ME what I could afford in an attempt to close the deal.
Any sale that involves that kind of torture must be a bad deal for the buyer with a lot on the line for the seller. An absolute horror.
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Right, they want to have a local screaming at you to put you in fear of you and your GF's lives. If you bought it, likely, you would have been frequented every night during your stay by the same guy shoving a local prostitute in his employ at you and demanding you pay for security service fees associated with the timeshare ownership.
Same as dealing with any Realtor®
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San Francisco, CA
JodyChunder says
Okay, now I know you're using this forum for a comedic outlet. I lived in Jacksonville and that is some seriously hilarious shit! Brilliant.
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San Francisco, CA
AdamCarollaFan says
Absolutely agree! I rent a place or two there most years. For a thousand bucks you can rent a HUGE cabin in a great location for almost a week. If you end up not going at all for a year, that's FREE. And in this case, "FREE" means free.