Timeshares?

[RootDKJ]

What does everyone think of Timeshares? Specifically for use in skiing trips. My wife thinks they are a good idea, I think they are horrible.


She wants me to research the big 3 hotels (Sheritan, Hilton and Marriott). Her thinking is that the timeshare would offer lower cost opportunities for trips into Whistler and out West (I don't think so, but since I've never been out West, I really don't know).


I'm telling her our money will have a bigger return on investment by purchasing properity near Mt Snow or Stratton or maybe just North of Albany, which would increase average travel time but would add Hunter/Windham into the Day-Trip range (even if there are bigger up front costs with mortgages and closing costs).


I tell her that we can also probabily do better on packages through the mountains, personal recomendations (ie my fellow snow addicts here on AlpineZone.com :beer, and the good ol' internet.


What does everyone else think?

 

[Highway Star]

Get a divorce?

 

[RootDKJ]

Get a divorce?

Nah. Mrs Root rocks. This is not a major bone of contenation between us, as she trusts my judgement when it comes to financial matters.

Plus, she let's me take all the solo ski trips I want, w/o grief. I can't put a a price on that.

 

[RISkier]

We own one. It's a guest house at Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe. We did not buy it as an investment. We bought it because we really like the Guest Houses and we've really liked Stowe. We've stayed in it every year since we purchased it. We're not interested in selling it but in the current economy we couldn't sell it for what we purchased it for. This year we thought we might try to swap it for a week out west and ended up with a place in Vail. So we're going to Vail this year. I would definitely not buy one as an investment. Do some homework on up front costs, annual maintenance fees, and opportunities to trade the time share for properties at resorts you'd like to visit. It won't pay off economically in the short run but if you use it for vacations every year they can work well. It's worked well enough for us that I'd actually consider purchasing a second time share. We'll have a week in a condo in Vail for around $800 this year. I've seen almost nothing for less than $200 / night in the Vail/Beaver Creak area and most of the stuff I've looked at it considerably more. Indeed, I've never really looked much at Vail in the past because prices are so high. We've already found inexpensive plane tickets and are actually thinking about buying Epic season passes and returning to CO a second time.

 

[tarponhead]

We own one. We did not buy it as an investment. We bought it because we really like the Guest Houses and we've really liked Stowe.

That pretty much sums up timeshares. You get one because you love the area/location. Also, be realistic about swapping timeshares. No one out west is gonna trade vail/whistler swaps for a timeshare in the poconos (e.g. stowe gets vail, Blue does not ;-) ) . Timeshare swaps should be secondary, your love of the area is primary.

Also, factor in time shares are a planned financial extra expense. We got one in Manhatten. The only time I thought I had a chance of turning a coin was when NYC was in the running for the oly games. (upstate $#^@ heads screwed that up). Otherwise, we knew what was required and we had no qualms.

Finally, you have to consider if you enjoy an area so much to consider getting a timeshare (cheaper up front) maybe consider owning (more expensive but obviously more oportunity to make $ down the road).

It's all in what you want. Good luck.

PS awsome about solo trips. My Mrs does the same thing with my fishing trips.....

 

[severine]

Depends on the timeshare. My parents have one with a large company in Kissimmee. They can trade their time for any of the company's timeshares anywhere in the world. They liked it so much, they bought a second week and now spend the first 2 weeks of March in FL every year. I've tried to get a week out of them to use elsewhere (they have one in the N. Woodstock area of NH and I'd only have to pay $50 to use their week) but they won't budge. :lol:

Not something you want for an investment - do it because you love to go there.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

I think of timeshares as a really bad investment because you have to put all that money upfront for a single destination for a designated period each year....plus pay for maintenence. I feel like for the price of a timeshare you could just take a bunch of steezy trips..just my opinion.......

 

[BigK]

I think of timeshares as a really bad investment because you have to put all that money upfront for a single destination for a designated period each year....plus pay for maintenence. I feel like for the price of a timeshare you could just take a bunch of steezy trips..just my opinion.......

Wrong. You can trade your timeshares to go basically to any ski area in the world with other timeshares.(Along with tons of other travel destinations) Do your research bro!

Depends on the timeshare. My parents have one with a large company in Kissimmee. They can trade their time for any of the company's timeshares anywhere in the world. They liked it so much, they bought a second week and now spend the first 2 weeks of March in FL every year. I've tried to get a week out of them to use elsewhere (they have one in the N. Woodstock area of NH and I'd only have to pay $50 to use their week) but they won't budge. :lol:

Not something you want for an investment - do it because you love to go there.

 

[madskier6]

I personally think timeshares are not a great choice for skiing especially if you like to ski a lot. I'd rather spend the money on trips to various areas or if you know you love a certain ski area in the Northeast, look into a seasonal rental. Season rentals of condos give you the dependability of being able to ski the same place all season whenever you want but without the headaches & financial commitment of owning real estate.

In this market, however, you may be able to buy a nice condo real cheap. In that case, if you've got the capital & you're willing to commit to a specific area, pull the trigger on ownership. If that is not the case, I personally would just do seasonal rentals.

I owned a ski condo for 3.5 years and while it was great while it lasted, the headaches & financial commitment of ownership eventually got the best of me & I had to sell it. Special assessments by the condo association to upgrade long ignored maintenance items killed me.

Seasonal rentals also give you the flexibility of being able to try other areas of the Northeast from year to year without much trouble. Then once you've settled on a specific area, keep doing seasonals at that place.

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Wrong. You can trade your timeshares to go basically to any ski area in the world with other timeshares.(Along with tons of other travel destinations) Do your research bro!

Yeah I know even Shawnee PA has timeshares..I just never saw it as a good investment. I would take the money spent on the timeshare divided by your annual hotel stay and there you go..I feel like most of the money could be put in an interest bearing CD with that money used toward future vacations..

 

[GrilledSteezeSandwich]

Not something you want for an investment - do it because you love to go there.

times two

 

[JerseyJoey]

Wrong. You can trade your timeshares to go basically to any ski area in the world with other timeshares.(Along with tons of other travel destinations) Do your research bro!

Hey hey now. My long lost pal Big K. Where ya been bro yo?

 

[mondeo]

Does this thread remind anyone else of the Aspen South Park episode?

 

[drjeff]

We've got 2, one in Park City(through the Westgate Company) - we never trade that one, and bought it, because we really like it there! And one in Orlando (Vistana - Sheraton/Starwood hotel based company) - that we've only actually used twice in the almost 10 years we've owned it and have either traded or taken the points for the week to use for other Sheraton/Starwood properties. When we bought the Orlando one we figured that we'd use it like we have, occassionally go there, but usually trade it, and also figured that the demand for trades to the Orlando area is likely going to be solid given the theme parks there which makes our week a bit more tradeable than other locations. I will say though that the option to every other year take our week in Sheraton/Starwood points has been very nice and through some planning over the last couple of years, my wife and I will be going to Hawaii for 10 days 2 months from now and staying at the St. Regis Kauai and the Royal Hawaiian in Honolulu using just points from this years non use and another non use of our Orlando unit in 2007

 

[tjf67]

I looked into a couple of them cause of the cheap visits. What I came away from it with is that if I had the time for 6 weeks worth of vacation it would be something to consider. You buy two weeks worth of hotel stays but you also are allowed to go to other books and grab another 4 weeks woth of vaca to some nice spots for 400 bucks for the week.
If you are just going to be using the 2 weeks you purchase you are better off just looking for deals from the places you are looking to visit.

Look up around Gore and Willimgton /Jay area. reasonable prices. The hills are less crouded and the terrain rocks

 

[severine]

We've got 2, one in Park City(through the Westgate Company

That's the name of the company my parents went through! They seem pretty happy. They've had it for around a decade now.

 

[trtaylor]

This was really good thread. Thanks for starting it Root. We had the same question and the answers here really helped clarify things. For us it's a no-go, mainly due to my wife working in retail and not getting much vacation time.

 

[skibp]

I realize different people will look at this in different ways, but owning a ts resale has sold me on the concept. Why? It can be cheaper than buying or renting, and you can use the savings to invest if you wish.

Example (purchase of second home): price $360000 down payment of 60K, 2K/month mortgage and 6K/ year taxes. We won't even add in maintenance, etc. That's 30K per year for thirty years. That money (the 360 K) if invested instead would have earned over 21K in just year one if invested at a 6% return.

Example (timeshare): price $12000 (average for a week), $240/ year taxes, $350 maintenance per year, RCI membership optional at $89, and maybe an exchange fee of $164 also optional. That's maybe $1100 per year including paying the original purchase price over 20 years. Buy this and invest the difference you saved by not buying the 360K second home and your invested $248000 would bring in nearly 15K at 6% return just in the first year. Rental income from your timeshare would add some to your cash pile as well.

Example (renting slopeside): perhaps $3000/ week more or less depending on the resort and location, and number of family members.

Granted if you use your second home ALL the time that changes the numbers, as would be the case if your second home took off in value. Note both the WSJ and the NYT have written recently that home either are a low earning investment (1% above inflation long term, WSJ) or perhaps even less of a deal than renting (NYT). As they say your mileage may vary.

Hint: Timeshare resales are a much better value that those sold new by developers. Mine doubled in value after three years, which is never supposed to happen so don't count on that at all. Typically a timeshare will depreciate overtime, hence the value of the discounted (and true market value priced) resale...

Getting nice exchanges is a bonus, and has been an unanticipated source of enjoyment for us...very cool!

 

[playoutside]

I've owned one since 1993; I bought one that I use exclusively for trades. It has worked well for me, because I can be very flexible about when I travel. I've traded for places in US and Europe and only once been disappointed by the unit. Some things to consider.

• It is not real estate, will very rarely appreciate and can rarely be sold at anywhere near what you paid. (There are always new units built and people want the new ones)
• There are annual fees to cover taxes and maintenance. These vary based on the size of the unit and amenities at the resort. Like most fees, they do increase over the years.
• If you plan to trade, you will also have a annual membership fee (nominal) to cover the cost to join Interval International or RCI most likely. You also will pay a trade fee.
• If you plan to trade, the quality of the unit you own and the quality of the week you own will impact what units are available to you.
• If you plan to trade during school vacation weeks, you will need a lot of luck to get a popular location.

If you take one of the "free" tours they offer, bear in mind the salesmen are very persuasive, good at the game and reluctant to set you free. Go in with your eyes wide open and a lot of resolve.

 

[RootDKJ]

We've got 2, one in Park City(through the Westgate Company) - we never trade that one, and bought it, because we really like it there! And one in Orlando (Vistana - Sheraton/Starwood hotel based company) - that we've only actually used twice in the almost 10 years we've owned it and have either traded or taken the points for the week to use for other Sheraton/Starwood properties. When we bought the Orlando one we figured that we'd use it like we have, occassionally go there, but usually trade it, and also figured that the demand for trades to the Orlando area is likely going to be solid given the theme parks there which makes our week a bit more tradeable than other locations. I will say though that the option to every other year take our week in Sheraton/Starwood points has been very nice and through some planning over the last couple of years, my wife and I will be going to Hawaii for 10 days 2 months from now and staying at the St. Regis Kauai and the Royal Hawaiian in Honolulu using just points from this years non use and another non use of our Orlando unit in 2007

My wife bought Sheraton Vistana 10 years ago with her parents. That's where we're staying now. Because her parents names are on the deed 1st, they get all the benefits and crap. The whole points thing confuses me.

I realize different people will look at this in different ways, but owning a ts resale has sold me on the concept. Why? It can be cheaper than buying or renting, and you can use the savings to invest if you wish.

Example (purchase of second home): price $360000 down payment of 60K, 2K/month mortgage and 6K/ year taxes. We won't even add in maintenance, etc. That's 30K per year for thirty years. That money (the 360 K) if invested instead would have earned over 21K in just year one if invested at a 6% return.

Example (timeshare): price $12000 (average for a week), $240/ year taxes, $350 maintenance per year, RCI membership optional at $89, and maybe an exchange fee of $164 also optional. That's maybe $1100 per year including paying the original purchase price over 20 years. Buy this and invest the difference you saved by not buying the 360K second home and your invested $248000 would bring in nearly 15K at 6% return just in the first year. Rental income from your timeshare would add some to your cash pile as well.

Example (renting slopeside): perhaps $3000/ week more or less depending on the resort and location, and number of family members.

Granted if you use your second home ALL the time that changes the numbers, as would be the case if your second home took off in value. Note both the WSJ and the NYT have written recently that home either are a low earning investment (1% above inflation long term, WSJ) or perhaps even less of a deal than renting (NYT). As they say your mileage may vary.

Hint: Timeshare resales are a much better value that those sold new by developers. Mine doubled in value after three years, which is never supposed to happen so don't count on that at all. Typically a timeshare will depreciate overtime, hence the value of the discounted (and true market value priced) resale...

Getting nice exchanges is a bonus, and has been an unanticipated source of enjoyment for us...very cool!

WOW, great post. I need to re-read this when I'm not in a post-hangover state:blink:

This was really good thread. Thanks for starting it Root. We had the same question and the answers here really helped clarify things. For us it's a no-go, mainly due to my wife working in retail and not getting much vacation time.

Thanks. Mrs Root really wants to upgrade her TS here and have the ability to trade points to stay at other locations for ski trips. I think it would be better just to book trips over the internet, or maybe get a 2nd TS at a ski destination like DocJeff has.