just dodged a bullet, now what should i buy

I found this board at 1030pm on the last day of my rescinding period. After only reading this forum for about 10 minutes I realized I’d been taken. I jumped off the couch, shuffled through my packet found the rescinding instructions rushed out the door to fedex/kinkos and faxed in my copy and pasted letter I found here at 1130 p.m. The next day I sent a certified letter with the same info. This morning I received an email acknowledging the receipt of my letter/fax, and that the process to reverse had begun. I put down $10000 on a $20000 buy in with 200000 bonus points and 80000 points a year and $56 a month in maintenance fees, with “club wyndam” vacation I had second thoughts the moment I walked out. Man o man I just made it.

1) Where do you want your home resort to be?
I have no ideal. I live in northern California.
2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?
maybe
3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
West coast beaches, Hawaii, mexico, south/central America, maybe the Caribbean

4) How many people do you usually travel with?
4-6

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
Any time I get 9 weeks of vacation a year.

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
Sure, but I’d prefer not to.

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
Yes

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
Higher end 3.5 or better

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
6000

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
1200-2400 increase year? And I guess it depends on what I’m getting

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
I can be if needed

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
Just learned that a week ago


Thanks in advance for any and all the help and advice. I plan to dig deeper into the forums as time allows.

1) Where do you want your home resort to be?
I have no ideal. I live in northern California.
2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?
maybe
3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
West coast beaches, Hawaii, mexico, south/central America, maybe the Caribbean

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You need to be able to answer questions 1 & 2, because there are different strategies for using your home resort most of the time, or trading most of the time.

It's a good idea to have your home resort within driving distance, so you might consider the California Coast, or Tahoe, as a home resort.

*The right West Coast Beach resort would also give you a strong trader. Hawaii is too expensive to use as a trader, Mexico and South/Central America are weak traders. With your location, I would not want a home resort in the Caribbean.

A good place to start would be to browse the TUG resort reviews for California and Tahoe: RESORTS AND REVIEWS, in the red bar at the top of the page. That may help you answer these questions.

Especially if you want to trade most of the time, Wyndham may be perfect for you, but you will want to buy resale.

Worldmark Tahoe might also be a good match: http://www.worldmarkbywyndham.com/resorts/so/

grats on finding us in the nick of time and saving 20 grand!!!

take a look at Worldmark, They have several west coast beach locations.. No home resort with worldmark and those beach locations are really popular, so advance planning is needed"

If the "stars" are important dont buy Worldmark.. Its more of a "blue collar" club. I like it but its not for everyone

Walk before you run. Buy one Week to use this year. Buy at an Independent HOA Controlled Resort which has good reviews and is within driving distance. Hopefully you can visit before you buy. Purchase price should be less than $1,000 and Annual MF should be less than $750. Focus on location, location, location not luxury, luxury, luxury.

George

The OP is unlikely to find a 2 bdm. timeshare at a desirable resort on the West Coast, with a MF of $750, because he has 6 people, so he needs a 2 bdm.

Consider renting a week at a location that you might consider buying at. That way you can try it out without having a lifetime commitment. I would't be in a hurry to get a timeshare without knowing exactly where I wanted to vacation. Believe me, the deals are not going away any time soon!

egflyer said:

1) Where do you want your home resort to be?
I have no ideal. I live in northern California.
2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?
maybe
3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
West coast beaches, Hawaii, mexico, south/central America, maybe the Caribbean

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First, make sure you want a timeshare. If you get 9 weeks vacation per year and don't like to plan a year in advance, owning a timeshare might not be a good choice for you. You can get last minute rentals on the cheap.

If you are 100% sure you want a timeshare, I suggest one of the HGVC in Carlsbad. It will have dual benefits of owning in Grand Pacific Resorts and having Hilton points. Right now, GPR owners can book extra vacation weeks for 50% off. Most 2 bedroom beach resorts are costing $1500./week to rent from them. If you were an owner, right now you'd be able to book all 9 weeks of your vacation for only $750./week in places like California beaches, Hawaii, and Mexico. They also have locations near Lake Tahoe and Napa Valley.

When you don't want to book a full week, use the Hilton points to book shorter stays at the HGVC properties. You can also exchange in RCI for the places they don't have like the Caribbean.

I see you bought Wyndham. What was it about Wyndham that you liked?

presley said:

First, make sure you want a timeshare. If you get 9 weeks vacation per year and don't like to plan a year in advance, owning a timeshare might not be a good choice for you. You can get last minute rentals on the cheap.

If you are 100% sure you want a timeshare, I suggest one of the HGVC in Carlsbad. It will have dual benefits of owning in Grand Pacific Resorts and having Hilton points. Right now, GPR owners can book extra vacation weeks for 50% off. Most 2 bedroom beach resorts are costing $1500./week to rent from them. If you were an owner, right now you'd be able to book all 9 weeks of your vacation for only $750./week in places like California beaches, Hawaii, and Mexico. They also have locations near Lake Tahoe and Napa Valley.

When you don't want to book a full week, use the Hilton points to book shorter stays at the HGVC properties. You can also exchange in RCI for the places they don't have like the Caribbean.

I see you bought Wyndham. What was it about Wyndham that you liked?

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From what I can tell, what made him buy? The salesman. The lure and emotions of the moment.
The reason I say that is due to the price he paid. 80,000 point at $20,000 is the rack price,$250/1000.

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DeniseM said:

The OP is unlikely to find a 2 bdm. timeshare at a desirable resort on the West Coast, with a MF of $750, because he has 6 people, so he needs a 2 bdm.

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Then raise the targets based on that market. The principle is the same. Try to visit the Resort before you buy; pay as little as you can; and lock into as low a MF as you can.

George

ronparise said:

take a look at Worldmark, They have several west coast beach locations.. No home resort with worldmark and those beach locations are really popular, so advance planning is needed"

If the "stars" are important dont buy Worldmark.. Its more of a "blue collar" club. I like it but its not for everyone

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Great suggestion. I agree completely. MF's are about what you wanted to pay. The Hawaii resorts are just okay in WorldMark, but at least you don't have to count on exchange and can book Hawaii, which is great. I would use II and exchange to Hawaii, hoping to get something better.

If you have the cash, Hilton and Hyatt are great choices. The Hyatt in Monterrey/Carmel would be high on my list for a home resort. But getting Hyatt on Maui will still be tough, if not impossible. Hilton has resorts on Oahu and Big Island, and they are building in Kihei on Maui, which might raise the status of Kihei in the minds of people who always think Lahaina/Ka'anapali is the be-all-end-all of Maui.

Wyndham has my favorite resort on Kauai but nothing on Maui. Their resort on the Big Island is just okay, especially compared to the Hiltons.

Congratulations on finding TUG!

We, too, had made a retail purchase from Wyndham and rescinded. Now, for a fraction of the cost we own over 500k points!

Our contract was for 84k points at $14k price (financed, of course). We've not paid anywhere near that for what we have now!

Enjoy looking around here! There are many people with a lot of great experience. In the end you have to do what is best for you, not what someone says is best for you.

Blessings!

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Congrats for finding TUG - too many don't.

As you live in Elk Grove - and based on your location preferences and travel # - and flexibility - and were willing to drop $20K on a Timeshare.

Check out the Starwood - oops, I mean VSE forum.
I would consider buying Westin Kierland Villas (Scottsdale, AZ) - 2Bd Plat+ - resale
It will cost more, but MFs are low and can use to exchange into the locations mentioned, and can drive to as well - great resort - and bigger plus if you are into Baseball Spring Training (Go Giants!)

And has held its value for 10years - realizing that can change

This is my opinion - I bought into what is now known as the Westin Vacation Club within VSE. I like Westin as a Brand and love our timeshares - albeit costly relative to others.

anyway... happy vacations...

ronparise said:

take a look at Worldmark, They have several west coast beach locations.. No home resort with worldmark and those beach locations are really popular, so advance planning is needed"

If the "stars" are important dont buy Worldmark.. Its more of a "blue collar" club. I like it but its not for everyone

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Absolutely second Worldmark. I love lots of stars, and I also own lots of stars resorts, and I also own Worldmark. If I have to redo it and buy into only one, it will be Worldmark, winning hands down.

sptung said:

Absolutely second Worldmark. I love lots of stars, and I also own lots of stars resorts, and I also own Worldmark. If I have to redo it and buy into only one, it will be Worldmark, winning hands down.

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We have been very happy with Worldmark also.

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