Should We Or Shouldn't We?

[SimJim]

My mom recently passed. She left behind two timeshare properties paid in full. Because she had a living trust her estate is pretty immune from collection efforts. I am one of seven children. My siblings have no interest in the complexities of owning a timeshare. I'm still deciding.

The timeshares are in Myrtle Beach, SC and in Newport, RI. The SC timeshare is one week every three years. I'm going to let that one go.

The Newport timeshare is the one I am considering. The maintenance fee is about $1000/year. The timeshare is 2 bedrooms, sleeps 6 - queen bed, twin beds, and a sleeper sofa. We would have a week called Red Value. I believe it is called floating weeks. Basically weeks in the Spring and in the Fall. Summer is the prime time for Newport, but Fall and Spring are fairly desirable based on the research I've done.

My mom was enrolled in RCI. She has 40,000 points banked. She also had not exchanged or banked points for this year. The maintenance fee is paid. If I was to take ownership of her timeshare I would not be staying at the Newport timeshare. I would likely want to exchange or use points.

I am unable to figure out if what she has is considered a "week" or is it part of "points". Would we be able to exchange the Newport timeshare for another timeshare...perhaps in Florida? Could we rent it? Really I know next to nothing about timeshares except what I've been reading here and other places over the last week or so. A decision needs to be made pretty quickly so any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

 

[WinniWoman]

My mom recently passed. She left behind two timeshare properties paid in full. Because she had a living trust her estate is pretty immune from collection efforts. I am one of seven children. My siblings have no interest in the complexities of owning a timeshare. I'm still deciding.

The timeshares are in Myrtle Beach, SC and in Newport, RI. The SC timeshare is one week every three years. I'm going to let that one go.

The Newport timeshare is the one I am considering. The maintenance fee is about $1000/year. The timeshare is 2 bedrooms, sleeps 6 - queen bed, twin beds, and a sleeper sofa. We would have a week called Red Value. I believe it is called floating weeks. Basically weeks in the Spring and in the Fall. Summer is the prime time for Newport, but Fall and Spring are fairly desirable based on the research I've done.

My mom was enrolled in RCI. She has 40,000 points banked. She also had not exchanged or banked points for this year. The maintenance fee is paid. If I was to take ownership of her timeshare I would not be staying at the Newport timeshare. I would likely want to exchange or use points.

I am unable to figure out if what she has is considered a "week" or is it part of "points". Would we be able to exchange the Newport timeshare for another timeshare...perhaps in Florida? Could we rent it? Really I know next to nothing about timeshares except what I've been reading here and other places over the last week or so. A decision needs to be made pretty quickly so any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

You have stated that she has 40,000 points banked. I am assuming these are not TPUs? If it were a weeks' account she would have TPUs. I would think you could call RCI to ask or call the resort- owner services- to inquire about her ownership.

In either case, you can certainly try to rent it out- New England in the Fall would be desirable. Exchanging into Florida shouldn't be an issue since there are so many resorts in Florida, it is usually an easier exchange than to other places.

I think it might help if you would tell us what resort it is. As an inheritance you can certainly not accept it. If you think you would want to go to Florida mostly you might be better off acquiring a lower maintenance fee timeshare somewhere else or just renting a Florida timeshare from another owner without the yearly responsibility of the maintenance fee and/or trying to rent your unit out. Also- since it is an off season week, it might be harder for you to exchange to other places you really want to go outside of Florida. I for one think it is important to own a timeshare at a resort you wouldn't mind going to every year if you couldn't exchange it.

If you are looking for a timeshare solely to exchange there are probably much better ownership options.

 

[vacationhopeful]

Another vote for DECLINING.

The $1000 yearly MFs are very high for 20K of RCI Points yearly.

My Florida resort has MFs under $890 and I get 66,000 RCI points YEARLY.

Make sure of your type of points (call resort) ... and if correct, ask HOW the estate can "Give Back" this TS to them. They might ask for a fee (ask for supervisor) .. but pay nothing AND have the estate lawyer write ANY letters to the HOA stating "you all got the last funds from the deceased".

 

[Eric B]

As far as RCI points & MFs go, my week at Massanutten gets me 137,000 points for a $775/year MF. Iv got a couple others that aren't as efficient, but plan to adjust.

 

[SimJim]

You have stated that she has 40,000 points banked. I am assuming these are not TPUs? If it were a weeks' account she would have TPUs. I would think you could call RCI to ask or call the resort- owner services- to inquire about her ownership.

I think it might help if you would tell us what resort it is.

I am not familiar with the term TPUs. I know she owned the Newport timeshare since the 1990's. The resort is Wyndham Newport Long Wharf. There is another similarly named timeshare call Inn at Long Wharf. Her timeshare is simply Long Wharf.

I'm surprised the points she receives is so low as the weeks she has are during a time when hotel rooms are impossible to come by in Newport for less than $250 per night. Glad I inquired before taking it over and finding out it's not a good one for exchanging. Thank you!

 

[theo]

I am not familiar with the term TPUs. I know she owned the Newport timeshare since the 1990's. The resort is Wyndham Newport Long Wharf. There is another similarly named timeshare call Inn at Long Wharf. Her timeshare is simply Long Wharf.

I'm surprised the points she receives is so low as the weeks she has are during a time when hotel rooms are impossible to come by in Newport for less than $250 per night. Glad I inquired before taking it over and finding out it's not a good one for exchanging. Thank you!

First, I'll add my voice to the chorus recommending that you decline to inherit this ownership at all. The maintenance fees are high and if it's a "floating" week (which clearly seems to be the case) you may not actually be able to reserve a desirable week there for either occupancy or "exchange" use.
I would recommend disclaiming this prospective inheritance.

To address your question, TPU's are a sort of "artificial currency" invented by RCI a few years back, in order for RCI to be able to assign a specific numerical valuation for exchange purposes to all deeded unit / weeks (at RCI-affiliated resorts) not in RCI Points. Some people have occasionally referred to TPU's as "Points Lite". However, since you specifically mention the number 40,000, the week you reference is certainly in RCI Points, so TPU's are neither relevant nor applicable to that particular ownership anyhow (a very good TPU valuation would be 50 or higher, just as a point of reference. None of the RCI-affiliated weeks we own are are valued any higher than 40 or so TPU's, but we don't "exchange" anyhow so don't really care).

40,000 RCI Points won't get you much if you opt to use those RCI Points to book elsewhere and $1k maintenance fee is frankly very high for so few RCI Points. It's your decision to make of course, but I personally would not consider voluntarily "inheriting" this particular ownership. Good luck.

 

[SimJim]

First, I'll add my voice to the chorus recommending that you decline to inherit this ownership at all. The maintenance fees are high and if it's a "floating" week (which clearly seems to be the case) you may not actually be able to reserve a desirable week there for either occupancy or "exchange" use.
I would recommend disclaiming this prospective inheritance.

To address your question, TPU's are a sort of "artificial currency" invented by RCI a few years back, in order for RCI to be able to assign a specific numerical valuation for exchange purposes to all deeded unit / weeks (at RCI-affiliated resorts) not in RCI Points. Some people have occasionally referred to TPU's as "Points Lite". However, since you specifically mention the number 40,000, the week you reference is certainly in RCI Points, so TPU's are neither relevant nor applicable to that particular ownership anyhow (a very good TPU valuation would be 50 or higher, just as a point of reference. None of the RCI-affiliated weeks we own are are valued any higher than 40 or so TPU's, but we don't "exchange" anyhow so don't really care).

40,000 RCI Points won't get you much if you opt to use those RCI Points to book elsewhere and $1k maintenance fee is frankly very high for so few RCI Points. It's your decision to make of course, but I personally would not consider voluntarily "inheriting" this particular ownership. Good luck.

After getting all the excellent advice here, and deciding to walk away from my mom's timeshare, tonight I discovered my brother mixed up the user name and passwords for the two timeshare RCI accounts. The Newport Long Wharf timeshare is a weeks timeshare. Looking under the account "dashboard" it says the timeshare has "27 total trading power". Also says there are 3 weeks available to deposit. Don't know what any of this means, but the annual maintenance fee for the Newport timeshare is about $1000. Is "27 total trading power" worth $1000 per year?

 

[theo]

After getting all the excellent advice here, and deciding to walk away from my mom's timeshare, tonight I discovered my brother mixed up the user name and passwords for the two timeshare RCI accounts. The Newport Long Wharf timeshare is a weeks timeshare. Looking under the account "dashboard" it says the timeshare has "27 total trading power". Also says there are 3 weeks available to deposit. Don't know what any of this means, but the annual maintenance fee for the Newport timeshare is about $1000. Is "27 total trading power" worth $1000 per year?

Not in my opinion, no. I'd still offer essentially the same answer I offered previously; it's just too much money for too little value (IMO).
Keep in mind too that maintenance fees are not static and change in only one direction --- upward. Likewise for RCI exchange fees.

Trading power (often seen abbreviated as "TPU's" in these forums) generally has a seasonal variation, but perhaps this "low season" floating week ownership has the same TPU valuation for any week within the low season reservation range of this particular floating week ownership. Also, TPU value assigned by RCI for a "deposit" decreases as the usage date looms closer; the incremental decreases commence at "6 months out" from the actual usage date, iirc.

To give you a specific numerical frame of reference, we own a few prime (fixed, not "floating") winter weeks in a 2BR unit at an independent (non-"chain") resort in coastal SW Florida, in a geographic area where demand far exceeds the available supply in winter. MF currently under $700. TPU value is around 40, iirc (we don't exchange, so I don't really care or keep current). In general, a really good TPU valuation would be regarded by many as 50 or higher.

A fundamental issue to consider here is that if it's a floating week, then you must first go through the gyrations of actually reserving a week before you actually have anything to "deposit for exchange". Next, you have to search for and find availability in the unit size you need, with space available where and when you want to travel (...and can obtain for 27 TPU or less). Much more easily said than done, particularly in high demand areas or seasons (including school vacation periods). Additionally, bear in mind that RCI charges a fee per exchange ($229 per exchange, when last I knew, maybe it's even more now).

It's certainly your personal choice and decision, but the updated info you've provided frankly does not change my prior recommendation at all to decline inheriting this ownership if you have no interest in actually using the deeded Newport resort itself. Others may have different opinions or perspectives.

 

[WinniWoman]

Theo is right on.