[Sheraton Vistana Resort] timeshare purchase - good or bad?

[WinniWoman]

That's not how it works. Individual owner's deeds don't have termination dates - the whole resort has a termination date. Either the whole resort goes on as a timeshare or it does not. It's not owner by owner.

Oh, I see. Thanks for clarifying.

 

[theo]

The "sunset" date is plainly identified within underlying Declaration / Condominium Covenants & Restrictions (CC&R's), prepared and officially recorded when the property was first built. It's usually identified and found within a section entitled "Termination". A properly prepared deed should make specific reference to the location of those Declaration / CC&R documents (i.e., the book & pages in County records), but deed will not otherwise actually identify any content of those underlying CC&R's.

The decision for all owners to collectively either extend or terminate the entire property (not just individual ownerships) as a timeshare requires a majority vote; the minimum required voting percentage is generally also specified within the Termination section of the aforementioned Declaration / CC&R's.

Most "extensions" are for 20 years; some are once every 10 years in the future after the original "sunset" year, at least in my own limited experience. I have never seen or ever heard of any extension that identifies a period of 50 or 100 years (as was stated upstream within this thread). Although I suppose that's possible, it's highly unliklely. After all, how many properties (probably already nearly 40 years old when first voting for "termination extension" in the first place) would even still be standing in another 50 (never mind 100) years?

 

[njjacqui21]

closing questions

1. My closing costs are about $1,300 for a timeshare i am looking into buying. this seems high when most people on this site state closing costs are about $150-$200.

2. When closing on a timeshare are you supposed to get title insurance? (i thought this would be a fee included in my closing costs but it appears that the title search is included but it does not appear that there is any title insurance)

3. The box for Deed is checked off, however there is a box for perpetuity and that is not checked off yet that is a term i have heard frequently when it comes to timeshare, so i am confused why that checkbox would not be checked off?

 

[theo]

Not enough information...

1. My closing costs are about $1,300 for a timeshare i am looking into buying. this seems high when most people on this site state closing costs are about $150-$200.

2. When closing on a timeshare are you supposed to get title insurance? (i thought this would be a fee included in my closing costs but it appears that the title search is included but it does not appear that there is any title insurance)

3. The box for Deed is checked off, however there is a box for perpetuity and that is not checked off yet that is a term i have heard frequently when it comes to timeshare, so i am confused why that checkbox would not be checked off?

$1,3000 is a very big figure for closing costs, but you don't provide pertinent details or itemization of the charges.

The $150 -- $200 figure you've seen and cited above is essentially a rock bottom base price, specifically with LT Transfers. While accurate, that base figure is essentially just for new deed preparation. Recording fees, document stamps and postage are all additional, as is any fee charged for the escrow of purchase funds. The $150 -- $200 base cited also does not include any mandatory transfer fee imposed by the resort / chain or management company (which is currently $299 for Wyndham, more than twice that amount for Hyatt, generally about $100 for smaller "independents").

Title insurance is IMnsHO a waste of money for inexpensive resale timeshares, particularly since policy coverage will max out at the purchase price figure anyhow.

"Deed" reference merely distinguishes between a right to use contract (RTU) and a deeded ownership. While a deed does not "expire", per se, the resort as a timeshare facility might "terminate" (in or around 2020 -- 2022 is common), unless renewed (something usually accomplished well ahead of time by majority vote). The sunset date is identified in underlying condo documents, but will not generally be found or referenced anywhere within deeds.

Hope this helps. If not, I'll provide a full, 100% refund of what you've paid me for the above info.

 

[njjacqui21]

which is better?

which exchange is better? RCI or II? my husband and i are trying to figure this one out

 

[Saintsfanfl]

First American Title charges these types of fees and more. They charge the same for timeshares as they would a house. They won't do closings in some states so they add $1,000 due to outsourcing to an in-state attorney. I believe First American is a built in option on Redweek. There is no reason to ever use First American for a timeshare. It is a complete ripoff for something that has relatively little value. I had a buyer on Redweek one time that wanted to use First American. Fine by me but they would have to pay for it. They immediately changed their mind when they realized the cost.

I doubt there is any such thing as a perpetual timeshare. In reality it's impossible anyway. I thought the HOA docs always state an end date which is then renewed but maybe it depends on the state. The ownership of the property itself can be indefinite but you can't use 1/52 of a space without the timeshare arrangement.

 

[SmithOp]

Its a personal choice, I have both. If you want to trade into Disney or Hilton, they are in RCI. If you prefer Marriott, Hyatt, Starwood/Westin they are in Interval.


Sent from my iPad Mini 4 using Tapatalk

 

[tschwa2]

$1300 sounds like you are buying from SMTN (sell my timeshare now) or one of their affiliates. They usually aren't very negotiable on that price. What you can do when the closing costs are so high is keep it in mind when you make an all in offer. Basically sites like that skrew owners by charging an advertising cost that is very high and then force the transaction through their closing agents who charge much higher than average. The prices sited on TUG are on the low side of average which is probably closer to $499-$599 but the reason that places like LT transfers are recommended is that they are inexpensive and they do a good job. Sellers at SMTN may benefit from their advertising by being able to get a slightly higher price but not enough to offset the advertising fee and the closing costs associated with that site.

 

[njjacqui21]

thank you!

 

[vacationhopeful]

If you are TRADING this unit verses using it ... just remember, rules and demand indexes CHANGE all the time with the exchange companies. I own at a VRI managed resort ... never heard of them?

Well, you can PICK which exchange company you want your member to be with ... as you are generally paying the exchange company membership fee ... like either RCI or II or both.

VRI is a management which manages MANY resorts and if you buy a unit converted to RCI points, you get a priority booking window for other VRI units plus your HOME RESORT early booking window.

The resort I own at has 1bdr units or 2bdr lockoff units for sale ... both privately deals or or a licensed HOA contracted real estate company (cost more). South Florida beachblock; oceanview or intercoastal view units; 18 story highrise.

1bdr units sleep 6; small lockoffs sleep 2. Trade the 1bdr side of the 2/2 lockoff unit thru II and the studio thru RCI (and combine 2 years worth of TPUs), would get you 3 weeks of vacationing using 2 years worth of deposits. MFs for a 2/2 lockoff, around $860 per year.

Yes, I have stayed at Marriott resort via exchanging this unit thru II. And I have used RCI points exchanges, to exchange back into this as my Home Resort (12 months out and $50 exchange fee).

You really need to READ more to understand there are a lot of options ... take your time. It took me a while to 'get it' but I first decided the area I wanted to vacation at 75+% of the time, then thought about the actual location-type I want to be in and then, looked at the resorts with the associated resort chains.

I brought too fast .. WEEK 17, but liked the resort and eventually, resold that week. Brought enough weeks to be there as a snowbird.

 

[presley]

You can look at their online resort directories to see which resorts each one has.

 

[njjacqui21]

http://tug2.com/ResortClassifieds.aspx?Sheraton+Vistana+Resort&ID=10745

weeks 50, 51 and 52 for sale right here on tug...all less than 1000 dollars asking price.

also appears to be a very common rental available, if you didnt actually want to own there forever.

thank you for the link. there were not any week 52 for sale less than $1,000. there were other weeks and also for rents, but not specifically week 52 for sale less than $1,000. I have also searched the bargain deals, marketplace, basement deals under $500, redweek, and ebay. i am confident i have not found week 52 for sale for under $1000.

unless there is another website i have missed? i have been researching through this website which has been great! i will not buy for $10,000 but i think it will maybe cost me a $2-4 thousand for week 52 in orland, gold crown rci timeshare.

 

[Panina]

I belong to both. I have found that each company can view your timeshares value very differently.

For example I own a southwest Florida week that interval gives me limited options but Rci gives me high Tpu value. On the flip I own another southwest Florida week that rci gives me low Tpu and with interval I get high end trades. Both these weeks are prime time and comparable but very different results from each company.

Being I owned multiple weeks I joined both to figure out which was better. My intent was to just be a member of one but ultimately it was beneficial to be a member of both.

Rci offers many more weeks, Interval overall has better quality, and interval has much better customer service. Just my opinion.

 

[Rascalsmom]

I own a week 52 lockoff at Vistana. It gives me a thrilling amount of RCI tpu's . Problem is I seldom find availability for anywhere I want to go in RCI. Particularly because you can't use it for Disney. YMMV.

I have had more success in trading it using Starwood preference in II but that seems to have changed. Still using it to trade for ski weeks and last-minute availability.

IMO 10K is way too much for this unit. If you want to go there week 52 you can rent for a little more than the maintenance fee and keep your 10k for something else.

 

[njjacqui21]

I own a week 52 lockoff at Vistana. It gives me a thrilling amount of RCI tpu's . Problem is I seldom find availability for anywhere I want to go in RCI. Particularly because you can't use it for Disney. YMMV.

I have had more success in trading it using Starwood preference in II but that seems to have changed. Still using it to trade for ski weeks and last-minute availability.

IMO 10K is way too much for this unit. If you want to go there week 52 you can rent for a little more than the maintenance fee and keep your 10k for something else.

why cant you use it for disney? i thought disney was in rci?

 

[njjacqui21]

I own a week 52 lockoff at Vistana. It gives me a thrilling amount of RCI tpu's . Problem is I seldom find availability for anywhere I want to go in RCI. Particularly because you can't use it for Disney. YMMV.

I have had more success in trading it using Starwood preference in II but that seems to have changed. Still using it to trade for ski weeks and last-minute availability.

IMO 10K is way too much for this unit. If you want to go there week 52 you can rent for a little more than the maintenance fee and keep your 10k for something else.

how many points do you get in rci for your week 52 vistana? i am looking at a 2 bedroom week 52 vistana

 

[Rascalsmom]

It's important for you to know about the Disney issue. If your timeshare is within a certain radius of Disney in Orlando you can't use those points to trade into the DVC resorts.

I owned another TS in Mexico that I used for Disney a few years ago, but I had to be careful to never ever ever combine a Mexico deposit with an Orlando deposit.

It doesn't matter what I get; it matters what you would get. If you want to PM me the Unit info, I can look it up in the RCI deposit calculator for you. It's Vistana, would need the unit number and the specific are it's in like Lakes, Courts, Spas,...

 

[Ty1on]

thank you for the link. there were not any week 52 for sale less than $1,000. there were other weeks and also for rents, but not specifically week 52 for sale less than $1,000. I have also searched the bargain deals, marketplace, basement deals under $500, redweek, and ebay. i am confident i have not found week 52 for sale for under $1000.

unless there is another website i have missed? i have been researching through this website which has been great! i will not buy for $10,000 but i think it will maybe cost me a $2-4 thousand for week 52 in orland, gold crown rci timeshare.

I'm confused.

You said you were goint to pay $10K for a week 52, and Denise told you it was only worth $1K. Then you say you can't find anything for Week 52. Brian gives you a link to sales offered. Now you complain that you can't find a Week 52 for less than $1K.

Also, if you are seeking a Week 52 just for the trading power, there may be better ways to get great trading power without buying at Orlando....You can trade into Orlando for virtually any time of year. If you want Week 52 because you'll actually use Week 52, then it makes sense.

It honestly sounds like you might want to spend time learning a lot more about timeshare and exchanging before you commit yourself to lifelong maintenance fees.

 

[Passepartout]

why cant you use it for disney? i thought disney was in rci?

You cannot exchange ANY timeshare in Orlando area for Disney. Period. Disney's rule.

I would also add that just because both entities are in RCI, it doesn't mean you can always make the exchange. Not only is there the Disney exemption, but MANY TSs only allow you to exchange into them once in every 3-4-or even 5 years.

 

[njjacqui21]

I'm confused.

You said you were goint to pay $10K for a week 52, and Denise told you it was only worth $1K. Then you say you can't find anything for Week 52. Brian gives you a link to sales offered. Now you complain that you can't find a Week 52 for less than $1K.

Also, if you are seeking a Week 52 just for the trading power, there may be better ways to get great trading power without buying at Orlando....You can trade into Orlando for virtually any time of year. If you want Week 52 because you'll actually use Week 52, then it makes sense.

It honestly sounds like you might want to spend time learning a lot more about timeshare and exchanging before you commit yourself to lifelong maintenance fees.

I have been vigorously researching timeshares and feel i have gained alot of knowledge in the past few days. I am very happy to not pay $10,000 for a vistana unit. after all of my research that would be incredibly high. if it is really only worth about $1,000 then i should be able to find that amount, no? the link that was given to me was also given with a statement that there are multiple listings for sale - all for less than $1,000. That is not actually an accurate statement. There are no vistana week 52 for $1,000 or less.

I am looking for week 52 because sometimes i would like to use that week and sometimes i will want to trade. when i want to trade i would like to have enough rci points to actually be able to trade.

And orlando, gold crown, week 52 is high trading power.

 

[vacationhopeful]

jacqui ....

Do not skimp on LEARNING before buying. It is fairly easy to buy; hard to sell and break even. Impossible to break even when you paid $10,000 for something that can be had for almost FREE.

You think all WEEK 52s are valuable? I have gotten at least 6 Week 52s for under $100 off eBay in the last 5 years; many for $1; another one was given to me FREE by the owner at the resort.

Wyndham Santa Barbara (Studio, slps 4), Wyndham Sea Gardens (studio slps 4), Wyndham Shawnee River Village 2 (2bdr/2ba sleeps 8). Wyndham Shawnee Ridgetop (2bdr/2ba), Ft Lauderdale Beach Resort (2bdr/2bath lockoff sleeps 8), another Ft Lauderdale Beach Resort (2bdr/bath), another Ft Lauderdale Beach Resort (1bdr/1.5 bath sleeps 6).

Both of the Shawnee Resort weeks were converted to Wyndham points... really good cost per 1K of points to MFs usage in the Wyndham system. The FLBR units rent nicely. The 2 studio units at the Wyndham in Pompano Beach --- one is directly on the ocean and the other has a great pool plus nice intercoastal waterway views (one is converted to points and the other is still a simple fixed week unit).

Take your time in buying a timeshare. Deals can be found ... if you work just a little bit at it.

 

[gmarine]

I have been vigorously researching timeshares and feel i have gained alot of knowledge in the past few days. I am very happy to not pay $10,000 for a vistana unit. after all of my research that would be incredibly high. if it is really only worth about $1,000 then i should be able to find that amount, no? the link that was given to me was also given with a statement that there are multiple listings for sale - all for less than $1,000. That is not actually an accurate statement. There are no vistana week 52 for $1,000 or less.

I am looking for week 52 because sometimes i would like to use that week and sometimes i will want to trade. when i want to trade i would like to have enough rci points to actually be able to trade.

And orlando, gold crown, week 52 is high trading power.

Completely disregard asking prices. They are generally greatly inflated and sellers will often take much less. Just because you dont see a week offered for $1000 doesnt mean someone asking more wont accept an offer of $1000. Many high season weeks in Orlando will be close to the same as week 52. Dont limit your thinking to only week 52.

 

[TUGBrian]

thank you for the link. there were not any week 52 for sale less than $1,000. there were other weeks and also for rents, but not specifically week 52 for sale less than $1,000. I have also searched the bargain deals, marketplace, basement deals under $500, redweek, and ebay. i am confident i have not found week 52 for sale for under $1000.

unless there is another website i have missed? i have been researching through this website which has been great! i will not buy for $10,000 but i think it will maybe cost me a $2-4 thousand for week 52 in orland, gold crown rci timeshare.

is a floating week right there on that link from 5-52...its $1000

is now a new one listed for 2700 (guess someone wants to cash in on this thread)

 

[TUGBrian]

what is the difference in your thinking from owning week 52, vs week 51 (or week 1 for that matter)

is that new years week a week you always want to travel on?

or are you just set on week 52 because you feel its the most valuable?

 

[DeniseM]

Brian - this resort has both fixed and floating weeks. Weeks 51 and 52 have significantly higher TPU than the floating weeks.

With the floating weeks, you get a generic deposit credit.

With the fixed weeks, Starwood must deposit your fixed week, so a strong date like 51/52 has much higher trading power than a floating week.