February 2014 Moms
TessyMessy
member
Timeshare/Vacation Clubs.. anyone?
TessyMessy
member
Do you have one? Know someone that has one?
DH and I are curious about timeshares. We usually take 1 vacation every year. We have friends that use theirs every year and love it. I also know someone that claims its more of a PIA and never uses it. There are tons of deeded timeshares available on Ebay right now. There is one for a resort close to our house that is only $500 with $700/year in maintenance fees. I like the idea of being within driving distance because we could use the amenities whenever we want or go for an overnight get away. This is a points version so we would use the points for a vacation..
I'm just looking for feedback and thoughts..
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Re: Timeshare/Vacation Clubs.. anyone?
His week is at a resort in Florida, but we've never been there.
We trade it out. So far, the week has been used to visit:
London, Mexico, Portugal, Disney (twice), the Dominican Republic, San Diego, etc.
I think it's a pretty good deal. There are maintence fees and then we pay a nominal exhange fee to stay in some really beautiful resorts.
We also haven't been limited to one specific week. We've traveled throughout the year.
If you can't travel one year, that week is "banked" and you can go twice the next year. You can keep a few years in your bank before you start to lose them.
Would you be able to trade yours out? His timeshare is serviced through RCI, but I know there are other companies.
I also like it because it kind of forces you to travel. Life can get busy and if you know you have a week available, you will slow down and spend some time together!
I'll admit I don't know everything about it, but if you have any other questions, I can try and answer
We priced it out and it would cost over $20K to purchase so $500 is a good deal. I just question why so many people are selling them. Is it the economy and they need to get rid of expenses or is it a bad deal to get on to?
I think we live close-ish. I guess it's not outside the realm of possibility...
I have nothing helpful to add. (In case you didn't realize that already.)
I have no complaints about RCI. For $500, I think I would do it. If you price out what it would cost to stay at a resort....Even with the fees that you pay with the timeshare, you are saving money.
The hotel we just stayed in outside of Disney (2 bed, 2 bath condo) goes for $220/night regularly. With all the fees, we paid $1,000 for the week. Without hotel taxes factored it, it's almost a $600 savings on just that week alone.
I can't even imagine what our other vacation rooms went for.
We honeymooned on an adults-only, all inclusive, room on the ocean resort in Mexico. Def more than $1,000 for the week.
If you rate going to vacation anyway....I can't see any downside.
@nebraska84 & @katybriggs thank you for your feedback! The one we were looking at is through Wyndham as well. Instead of paying the ridiculous $20K+ for the vacation club we would buy the deeded points for $500. Does that change your outlook on Wyndham?
I'm curious what else was terrible about it other than the financial burden of the monthly payments... which I totally get. Also, I am struggling with the idea of condo-living vs. a hotel. I don't want to cook during all of our vacations.. is that really a vacation?
I think kitchens are great. Doing 3 meals a day in restaurants with 3 kids? So.much.work. And so much money.
We saved a ton of money in Disney because we were able up eat breakfast before and bring our lunch into the park. No one says you have to cook every night, but it's an amenity we've learned to really appreciate.
Same with a washer and dryer. I like coming home with all clean clothes. Nothing worse than having days worth of laundry to do after a vacation.
I'll agree the sales pitches get old. But, just say no. We don't even go to the sales stuff.
ETA: I also wanted to add that we've never had a problem getting a hotel during the weeks we've wanted one. Our two weeks in Disney were during school vacation weeks.
@TessyMessy we had purchases credits also, and each hotel or condo had a credit amount. We had it for about 3.5 years and were only able to use it twice. The cost never increased and the dues stayed the same but we were never able to book a place. The credits do carry over to a point...
Looking back it was my DH and I regret it but I know people who LOVE LOVE LOVE it, and are super planners and sell their unused credits to others. It just wasn't good for our family...