Do you save money buying a timeshare???

I just got back from Vegas and went thru their whole sales pitch and am wondering if it is all worth it??? I was hoping to hear from some owners whether they think it saves money buying a time share. Here is how I see it:

1. I go on a week vacation every year with my family to a different location.

2. Lets say I spend $15,000 for the timeshare. Lets say I use it for the next 30 years ( I am 46 ) that is $500 a year plus interest.

3. Lets say maintenance fees/taxes/whatever else they tack on are $1,000 a year.

So far I am spending $1,500 a year for a resort room when I spend about that much for a nice hotel room wherever I go for a week. Am I missing something??? When I went thru the presentation, the used car sales man made it sound like I would be saving so much money but I can't find it. Can someone explain it to me???

Thanks,

Don

P.S. I really would like to buy one if I can justify how I am saving money.

Welcome to TUG!

Do you save money buying retail? - NO!

But you can buy the same TS for less than 50% (probably much less than 50%) on the resale market and that can be a very good deal.

Look at these ebay auctions for LV Timeshares.

If you want to go to a different location every year, I wouldn't buy in LV which doesn't have the strongest trading power due to more supply than demand.

So far I am spending $1,500 a year for a resort room when I spend about that much for a nice hotel room wherever I go for a week.

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But you can't compare a TS to a nice hotel room - a nice TS has much more space, a complete kitchen, often a washer and dryer, living room, etc.

Here's a good place to start doing your research - TUG TS Advice

Hilton has a great product, but there are many other options - you owe it to yourself to consider all your options.

Saving Money???

I am not trying to compare nice hotel rooms and time shares, I am trying to justify whether it is saving money like the salesperson said it does. So I ask again, does it save money???

BTW I was not talking about buying retail because the 7000 point room was going for over $30K and I found it for $15K online. And also you CAN campare a nice hotel room with a timeshare. They both have good points and bad points to compare.

Don

So I ask again, does it save money???

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Did you look at the ebay link I posted? $15k is still top dollar - you can find nice timeshares for a lot less. I would not base any decision on what the salesperson said. Look at the prices, do the math, and see if it works for you.

What I was trying to say is that hotel rooms and timeshares are very different. Some people would rather have a nice hotel room, and some people would rather have all the space and amenities of a timeshare for the same or less money. I'd suggest that you look at the links I posted above and maybe rent a timeshare and try it out.

Good luck!

Do you save money???

This is a great question that everyone asks me when I tell them I own a timeshare.

The simple answer is- No, but still worth it.

Don't buy a timeshare if you want to save $$$. Buy a timeshare if you enjoy staying at 4 star resorts that have all the amenities of home. Most hotels don't give laundry facilities, full kitchens and bedrooms for napping or privacy. We purchased resale in Vegas and feel we get more than our monies worth every time we go to Hawaii, Vegas or Florida. Hilton may be limited on locations, but they have great customer service in all the locations they have.

Purchasing a timeshare forced us to take family time every year and relax. We didn't make vacationing a priority until we bought our timeshare. We love the flexibility of HGVC and still look forward to planning trips each year. Good luck if you do decide to buy.

p.s. Thanks Seth Nock for recommending HGVC.

DeniseM said:

If you want to go to a different location every year, I wouldn't buy in LV which doesn't have the strongest trading power due to more supply than demand.

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I don't agree with this, especially within the HGVC system (this is the HGVC forum, right... isn't that what we're discussing here?) What's great about HGVC is it is point based, so it does not matter where you own... you can book any HGVC resort location with your points. Your points are worth the same as anyone else's, there is no "trading power" to be concerned with.

The only difference comes if you want a particular resort, in the same particular high demand time each year. You can book your "home" resort three months earlier than the rest of the HGVC membership.

I own in Las Vegas because the M&F are cheaper. I almost never go there!

Hi Jonathan - the OP did not ask specifically about Hilton, although he did post on the Hilton forum. I always recommend that newbies look at all their options before settling on one system. Hilton has a great product, but there are lower cost options and he was asking about cost. When trading with II or RCI - LV doesn't have the highest trading power.

DeniseM said:

Hi Jonathan - the OP did not ask specifically about Hilton, although he did post on the Hilton forum. I always recommend that newbies look at all their options before settling on one system. Hilton has a great product, but there are lower cost options and he was asking about cost. When trading with II or RCI - LV doesn't have the highest trading power.

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Yeah I figured that's what you meant... but your post wasn't clear (as this is the HGVC forum and what the OP posted about--some might be confused). Just wanted to clarify.

Here's how the HGVC folks calculate the savings

DonDee said:

When I went thru the presentation, the used car sales man made it sound like I would be saving so much money but I can't find it. Can someone explain it to me???

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The HGVC sales folks don't add the maintenance fee in their calculation.

I still have the paperwork that the sales guy used during my 2000 sales presentation. They have a page titled "Projected Lodging Costs" based on room rate per night. This page shows how much you would spend after 10, 20, 30 and 40 vacations. For example, the per night rate of $150 for 7 nights after 40 vacations was listed as $126,840 (includes inflation rate:5% per annum, room tax 8%). This is the figure that the salesman would point to compare their purchase price. There was no mention of maintenance fees.

It looks like they still use this method - see their value calculator http://www.hiltongrandvacations.com/timeshare-vacation-savings.php which I found at the HGVC website under "Learn about ownership"

Hilton Grand Vacation Club

Thanks for all the reply's, even though I did not mention HGVC that is where I went for my presentation and where I based my calculations. For every good point mentioned here towards buying a timeshare I think of so many bad points and I want to make sure that I am making the right decision. The main point at the presentation was that buying a timeshare saves money but I disagree. I do agree that the facilities are better at the hilton and I see the advantages of owning a timeshare but I also see the disadvantages like the yearly maintenance fees and being stuck with a particular location ( I know trading is allowed with RCI, but even that has it's limitations ). When I go on vacation, the only time I am at the resort is at night when we go to sleep, so facilities are not a big factor in my decision.

Don

hotlds said:

This is a great question that everyone asks me when I tell them I own a timeshare.

The simple answer is- No, but still worth it.

Don't buy a timeshare if you want to save money.

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I have to disagree somewhat. For me, owning a ts definitely saves me money vs. staying in a hotel. Here is my analysis for our very favorite vacation - Hawaii:
Hotel room in Waikiki for a very average hotel $150/night

ts cost at the Hilton Hawaiian Village studio, which in my opinion is comparable to a hotel room (the studio is still better) is about $80/night.
My cost of $80/night includes a "return", or interest if you prefer of 5% annually, plus maintenance fees.

My wife & I would never be able to stay at a place of the quality of the Hilton if we did not own a timeshare. We get to stay at way nicer places for way less cost. How is this not saving money??

pacman

Do you save money?

You can if you choose. For HGVC members, it depends on how you use your points. The smaller the accommodations the more you can stretch your points for more stays. But some members choose to take advantage of the larger accomodations so they're getting more space for their dollars (two bedroom vs a hotel room). Every family situation is different.

For example with 7,000 HGVC points you can do the following (excluding the resort under the new point structure: W57, Grand Waikikian and Kingsland):

During Platinum Season stay
- 22 nights in a studio
- 10 nights in a one bedroom
- 7 nights in a two bedroom
- 3 nights in a three bedroom

During Gold Season stay
- 30 nights in a studio
- 14 nights in a one bedroom
- 9 nights in a two bedroom
- 8 nights in a three bedroom

DonDee said:

Thanks for all the reply's, even though I did not mention HGVC that is where I went for my presentation and where I based my calculations. For every good point mentioned here towards buying a timeshare I think of so many bad points and I want to make sure that I am making the right decision. The main point at the presentation was that buying a timeshare saves money but I disagree. I do agree that the facilities are better at the hilton and I see the advantages of owning a timeshare but I also see the disadvantages like the yearly maintenance fees and being stuck with a particular location ( I know trading is allowed with RCI, but even that has it's limitations ). When I go on vacation, the only time I am at the resort is at night when we go to sleep, so facilities are not a big factor in my decision.

Don

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Timesharing isn't for everyone.

If you're really not interested in vacationing in Orlando, Vegas, Oahu and/or the Big Island perhaps HGVC isn't for you.

When you get a chance read TUG's Timeshare 101 - http://www.tug2.net/advice/TimeShare-101.htm

If you decide to buy a timeshare, don't put all of your future vacation dollars into timesharing. This will give you the flexibility in the future to choose the best way to visit your desired destinations. There might not be a timeshare at the location that you want to visit or if there is a timeshare it may be very hard to get an exchange. You may also want to visit a destination in an entirely different way via a cruise, hotel/resort stay, special discounted travel package, tour company, etc....

Good luck

In today's economy, you can practically steal a timeshare. People are desperately selling as they lose their jobs and homes. Trust me - I'm not happy we can buy them cheap for that reason.

If you like to vacation in apartment like settings - having breakfast (and other meals) in your room - you will save money if you are smart about your purchase. If you're a last minute person who wants to go somewhere for a few days at a drop of the hat - it's not for you.

Many of us visit TUG on a regular basis and really know what were doing here.
Good luck! No matter what, try renting one at any point - here on tug or redweek.com

pacman said:

I have to disagree somewhat. For me, owning a ts definitely saves me money vs. staying in a hotel. Here is my analysis for our very favorite vacation - Hawaii:
Hotel room in Waikiki for a very average hotel $150/night
ts cost at the Hilton Hawaiian Village studio, which in my opinion is comparable to a hotel room (the studio is still better) is about $80/night.
My cost of $80/night includes a "return", or interest if you prefer of 5% annually, plus maintenance fees.
My wife & I would never be able to stay at a place of the quality of the Hilton if we did not own a timeshare. We get to stay at way nicer places for way less cost. How is this not saving money??

pacman

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After owning for about 3 years, (and I bought from the developer), I have saved money, and am now ahead. We had to use a bunch of "Open Season" to do it, but it has certainly paid off. Like pacman, to calculate it, I used comparable room rates for hotels in the same location, (which BTW in the case of HHV is way more than $150 / night). I only own 1 week, and so far, with my owned weeks, original "bonus" points and open season, we have used 94 nights, with 69 of them in Hawaii. Even if we stay in a 2BR suite, I only use a standard hotel room rate for the cost analysis.
The only thing I don't use in my calculations anymore, is "opportunity cost". I stopped doing that when I would have lost 25-30% in the stock market on my original capital over the past year, and it was skewing the numbers even more favorably towards T/S.

In better economic times...

... Timeshares can make more "saving money" sense. In times like this, however, you are generally better off renting. For instance, I inherited a timeshare that I absolutely love. But it requires almost $600 a year in maintenance fees, and can always go up in cost -- and it binds me to a particular place each year unless I exchange it (which carries further costs).

With Interval International, you can find a getaway week at that same location for almost half that maintenance cost -- there's just no demand during a recession. So in a sense I'd be better off not having the burden (and added cost, effectively) of ownership right now. But in good times, those rental deals would be harder to find.

So I don't think you are missing anything in the sales pitch -- those salesmen just sounded more believable in the flush 1990s when retirees with money to spend thought the purchase prices would hold some intrinsic value in the marketplace. That was never the case, as TUG explains in their very helpful introductory Timeshare 101 posts. And it's why you can pick up many fine timeshares right now for $1 (just like you can buy a home in Detroit or parts of Florida for a few hundred dollars these days).

Keep in mind that such ownership then gives you the opportunity to join Interval or RCI where you can get further "rental" deals. There's a certain pride of ownership and sense of community that develops with timeshares as well. There's a time and place in one's life for owning a timeshare, much like owning a house -- and other times when renting simply makes the most economic sense.

15k is still top end for a 7k package. You can get almost any HGVC 7k points package for 11,500 right now. You can call judy kozlowski with remax, I have seen them for this price on her website. Call her if you like 1800 541-5666 ex. 622.

As for saving money, I really think that you will, as long as you travel. I was like you and just purchased my first one yesterday after evaluating so many things.

I went to Hiltons website and tried to book a vacation club on a date in September. As a non member going to the public hilton site I could book 7 nights at a HGVC in Hawaii for 439.00 a night US. WOW. Then I checked flights from Toronto. 800 a person Canadian return from Toronto, a little cheaper if I fly out of Buffalo.

Ok then I went to a couple of vacation websites and looked for packages. 2700 Canadian per person for 1 week.

Now if you take your week at say 1000 us for the same week in hawaii for your MF as a member of HGVC you get the one week included. So now you add the flight to this.

For my family of 4 I was looking at option 1 about 2200 Canadian after taxes and all that, option 2 was 2700 per person and option 3 with my HGVC membership about 1200 per person.

Also remember you have access to great sell offs with hilton and RCI. And then you really start saving. We travel 3 to 4 times a year, and I am already thinking of purchasing a second unit fore more points.

Good luck keep learning, you will learn the advantages as you go.

I own 4 weeks of TS a year. We use 3 week ourselves and give one week to my adult kids.

We bought most of our weeks resale, the last 2 was $400 for an annual TS in Whistler BC on labor day week and $1500 for a SoCal 2 bd TS floating 1-52 across the street from a ocean front state park. We have use each of these weeks ourselves but also have traded them for TSs which would have cost >$8000 to buy resale ( even now!).

Have we saved money? Not over staying at home. But these TSs mean we are always looking forward to our next trip.

Upcoming Trips
2 1/2 week in Italy & France ( every night on hotel reward points)
1 week in Sept at Newport Coast, SoCal
2 weeks at the winter Olympics!!

DonDee said:

the only time I am at the resort is at night when we go to sleep, so facilities are not a big factor in my decision.

Don

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If that's your vacationing style, then HGVC is not the answer. We started timesharing with HGVC in 2000. Even thought our 1st purchase was direct from HGVC (paid full price), I figured that we're already recovered the entire cost of all our HGVC purchases with the rooms we've stayed in. Like Pacman, I love Hawaii and every year we've been to Waikiki, we're taken family members or friends along. Last June, we had 20 peoples in three 2-bedrooms and three studios for seven nights. I'm guessing the comparable cost was a conservative $19000 ($800/night for ocean front 2-bds, $600/night for ocean view 2-bds and $200 night for studios). One year, we had two 3-bedroom penthouses, a 2-bedroom ocean view and two studios. I would go into cardiac arrest if I had to pay rack prices for these. In fact, I already told my wife that if we can't go to Hawaii again, the one week where we stayed in the ocean front penthouse, Diamond Head side was worth every penny I paid for all the HGVC units we have.

PS. The attached picture doesn't do the view justice. You just have to be there.

If unit and grounds are of no concern to you, then, no, it probably will not save you money to own, depending on where you like to go and the level of quality you seek. Motel 6, Holiday Inn, you can find cheaper per night lodgings.

wmmmmm said:

PS. The attached picture doesn't do the view justice. You just have to be there.

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I love it! Beautiful penthouse in Hawaii with great views, and the kids are glued to the TV. :hysterical: Kids are the same everywhere, aren't they?

Kurt

I think it is difficult to really weigh the options. In the beginning I was looking at it strictly from a financial point of view. However, over the course of a few weeks, I was able to see the financial piece will save us money, but only if you USE the timeshare(s). Here are my calculations:

This past year my fiancé and I took several trips. I listed each place and the amount of money we spent for the 2 of us just staying at the hotels (which by the way were not at the quality of Hilton)

Cancun, Mexico -7days - $800
New Orleans, LA - 5days - $700
Cape Code, MA - 5 days - $500 **this was a very good rate from a friend of ours - so naturally it would have been much more
Hershey, PA - 2 days - $150
Costa Rica, Central America - 6 days - $1200

Total: $3350

With 12,000 points (2 HGVC) I can easily take all of these trips.

If I goes by these numbers(which I'm sure we will take more trips that are in excess of the amounts listed above) - it will only take me 10 years to recoup the cost of buying the timeshares. Bare in mind, I bought both of them resale, using cash - I would never take a loan out to do this. Both of them totaled $16,700.

$3350(total cost of 2008 trips) -$1700(maintenance fees) = $1650

$1650 ($ I would have spent minus maintenance fees) *10(years) = $16,500)

I'm 29 and I plan on traveling the world until my last breath so I can see the potiential to save thousands of dollars.

Example - if I can travel until I am 80 - that is 51 years (subtract the 10 to pay back the purchase price).

This leaves 41 years * $1650 (which I think is a liberal number - I'm sure the price of accomdations will go up and the exotic places we want to visit will cost more)

savings over the years = $84,150.

Keep in mind this does not include the extra cost we would have traveling with children. And the places we stayed were no where near hilton quailty!!

Hope this helps!

When people ask me if we save money by having timeshares, my response is that we do not; however, I am quick to point out that we stay in far better accommodations. We spend about the same amount but stay in better facilities. We enjoy that higher level, and we also like having the flexibility of eating meals in our place, which saves money.

Angie,
You forgot to include the RCI exchange fees here.

Cancun: $69.00
New Orleans : $150.00
Cape Cod: $150.00
Hershy Park: $60.00
Costa Rica : $169.00

That is about ~600.00 in fees.....

Good point! Exchange fees should be added! I was trying to make it as simple as possible - but natarajanv is correct - those should be considered.