What to buy (hicv owner, new to TUG)

[Jeremy Sleeper]

Preface: we discovered TUG after purchasing into HICV, the whole "pre-pay for vacation" sales pitch worked on us, it was logical and we've making the most of it after several years. We frugally use our points to best advantage, and now need more, but fortunately we've discovered TUG and the resale marketplace! We are in the market for another timeshare / more points with HICV, based upon our existing usage and planned vacation we are eyeing going from 45k points / year to 150k points per year to have an abundance, for our 2+ vacations a year.
Should we pull the trigger on more HICV points, or do you recommend considering another option based upon our questionnaire?

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?
A1: Continental US, warm locations preferable, we typically drive (< 20hrs one way from Michigan is our max). We want to give the kids some fun experiences.

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?
A2: probably not, we want variety and experience, we own at Orange lake and rarely visit because it's just too busy and commercialized. If "home" was HICV cape Canaveral we might say half our vacations are currently there, that's our go-to warm destination; it's drivable, not crazy busy, and has a beach.

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
A3: Pacific northwest, redwood forest, ?

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
A4: 4-8 (typically 4, just the family, but ~ half the time we add on close relatives for 8 (ish)

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
A5: School schedule, but the kids have the summer off.

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
A6: yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
A7: yes, in fact that's the typical method for my wife.

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
A8: 4 star (HICV orange lake, cape Canaveral, and Vegas all meet or exceed our expectations), we love having a laundry and being able to cook some of our own meals.

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
A9: 5k w/o financing, but we could do that for a few months in a row, so for a purchase we are willing to finance and spend up to 15k, but that doesn't seem necessary with hicv.

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?
A10: $1500

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
A11: generally yes, but when it comes to vacation we tend not to structure things, we typically only plan half of the days, the other days are for relaxation or allowances for changes in plan due to weather / other opportunities.

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?
A12: yes

Thanks in advance for your input!

 

[Bmatrose]

If your looking for more HICV points, purchase on the secondary market from Myrtle Beach, Gatlinburg or Lake Geneva. They are the only ones that stay points when resold. You can probably find 150,000 points for a couple of thousand and will probably raise your maintenance fees another $1000 or so.

 

[RNCollins]

Hi Jeremy,

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?
A1: Continental US, warm locations preferable, we typically drive (< 20hrs one way from Michigan is our max). We want to give the kids some fun experiences.

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?
A2: probably not, we want variety and experience, we own at Orange lake and rarely visit because it's just too busy and commercialized. If "home" was HICV cape Canaveral we might say half our vacations are currently there, that's our go-to warm destination; it's drivable, not crazy busy, and has a beach.

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
A3: Pacific northwest, redwood forest, ?


Bmatrose suggested buying HICV points on the resale market (at Myrtle Beach, Lake Geneva or Gatlinburg). That’s sounds like a good idea.
I hope others will chime in, but I was thinking you could take a look at Worldmark. They have several resorts up and down the Pacific coast, where you stated you would like to visit.