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[kcsc1291 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close kcsc1291]

Best timeshare company?

Hi, new as well and looking to purchase a timeshare resale points deed. I have only visited a Bluegreen presentation, but want to know which company(ies) have the best bang for the points? For instance, will 10,000 points at a different club put in you in better resorts during prime time than Bluegreen? Which companies have the highest RCI tradevalues? Do they all have rollover or borrowing from from future years like Bluegreen? Thanks

[Hobbitess Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Hobbitess]

Sorry, there is no "best Timeshare company." There's only the best TS company for you (assuming points systems are for you in the first place).

For instance, will 10,000 points at a different club put in you in better resorts during prime time than Bluegreen?

You can't compare points straight across like that. A week in a nice resort 2BR in Orlando that costs 11,000 Bluegreen points would cost 245 DVC points or 100,000 Wyndham points (I'm making up the numbers, but trying to show that every points system measures things very differently). You'll do better comparing cost per night or cost per week in the resorts that most interest you, which has to be calculated individually for each system. You also have to remember to track down whether there are extra housekeeping fees for short stays, and whether you pay a flat yearly fee for registration and the like or a separate fee every time you call in.

When I crunched the numbers, Bluegreen was average to below average in terms of per-night or per-week costs. Bluegreen is also a lot easier to calculate, because there are very few extra fees, at only a few resorts, and some of them are so small as to be negligible ($5-$10/day -- a few parking fees go up to $20/day some seasons, but you only have to pay them if you bring a car).

And whether you'd think the three Orlando resorts equal depends on what you value. DVC resorts are close to WDW and brilliantly themed, but also smaller, their dining room tables don't seat six and their kitchens are poorly supplied compared to the other two. You can get larger units at the BG resort, and it has a natural lake large enough for paddleboats and canoes, but it's further from WDW and has no theme I could make out, while the Wyndham chain has a rep for slightly more upscale units than BG and their resort closest to WDW is closer to the parks than some DVC units, well themed, and has two lazy rivers. Also depends on what size unit you're most likely to stay in -- while their 2 BRs tend small, I have heard that DVC 1 BRs and studios tend to be good sized compared to the average Orlando resort (they also may be easier to get -- some Orlando resorts don't even offer 1 BRs or studios, or have a hundred fewer those sizes than they do 2BR).

Then there's the fact that Wyndham has a gazillion resorts, BG has fewer resorts and not many available west of the Mississippi, and DVC is only worth owning if you're likely to visit Disneyland or WDW on nearly a yearly basis. Then there's ease of use -- personally, I much prefer being able to check availability on the 'net, and while that may be possible in all points systems now (I really have no idea), some systems are a lot more user friendly than others.

Cost is not the only factor you should consider by a long shot.

Which companies have the highest RCI tradevalues?

These are constantly changing so I would not weigh that factor too heavily. BG used to have terrific trade values if you knew how to work it; however most people were not happy with it because they couldn't figure out how to get the deals. Now it's a lot less easy to "stretch" your points on RCI, but it's way easier for the average BG owner to get what they want. A lot of the other points systems have also gone through major changes in trade values as RCI rearranges things. The only constant here is change.

Do they all have rollover or borrowing from from future years like Bluegreen?

Some do, some don't. Also, some have a "home resort advantage," where you can reserve at your home resort months earlier than people owning elsewhere, and some have a "points is points" approach. Bluegreen's only "home court advantage" is that you can reserve the unit(s) you own before anyone else, but if you don't do that before 11 months out, your odds of getting that unit are the same as anyone's. A lot of systems offer benefits to people who own a gazillion points, and most offer added benefits to those who buy direct from the developer (although whether those benefits are worth that much more money is debatable).

All of which is why no one can tell you the best timeshare company. Even if they're in the best timeshare company for them (and can tell you why), they can't tell you which one would be best for you. Personally, I love Bluegreen. After hubby retires, I suspect I will want to stay DVC a lot more than I do now, and, depending on how easy DVC is to get into at that point, I might decide to scrap BG and go with DVC.

I doubt it, because not only would my love for Disney have to remain high, but hubby would have to start sniffing the pixie dust, which doesn't look likely , but it's certainly possible. I've seen a lot of people who loved DVC when their kids were younger who ended up dumping it and switching to another system ten years later because DVC wasn't getting them where they wanted to go. So I'd say, either don't commit much cash up front (in case you decide not too much later you'll want to sell), or consider whatever you do commit "lost money," where what you spend is worth it to you even if you only get five or ten years' worth of vacations out of it before you decide another points system is a better fit.

Mind you, a lot more people around here end up getting addicted to Timesharing, and just buying more points in another system (and then another system, and then a week somewhere...) instead of dumping the first and switching. You've been warned!

[jameskingama Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close jameskingama]

I'm new here. I joined here because I'm just curious what forum is!..

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

Good catch,
Philippines LINK SPAMMER, should be tossed out if he tries again.

[Ostory Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Ostory]

Introduction

Hello,

My name is Orville, and my wife is Constance. We are timeshare owners with Bluegreen. Most of our trips have been Mountain Loft in Gatlingburg, which we love. We have been real happy with the points system, eventhough we over paid for them. I found this forum yesterday while I was doing research on purchasing Bluegreen points at resale. If any one has any questions about Mountain Loft, or Gatlingburg feel free to ask. I have made over 20 trips up there over the years.

[Hobbitess Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Hobbitess]

My name is Orville, and my wife is Constance. We are timeshare owners with Bluegreen.

Be sure and check out the Bluegreen sub-board here. Mountainloft is one of our favorites, too.

[Kym & Joe Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Kym & Joe]

Hello all! New to Time Shares!

Hello all! My hubby and I received a free 1 week stay at the Holiday Inn Vacation Club at Orange Lake for Thanksgiving. There was no requirement to listen to the Time Share sales talk, but they did offer us discount park tickets if we did. We went in thinking that we were not going to do it, but by the end of the tour we decide to buy. We paid a little over $15K and got 96K points. This begins in 2012.

We are work-a-holics (well I am anyways ) and I'm hoping this will make me take vacation. Both my hubby and I get 4 weeks vacation a year but never do anything, in fact we usually use them just for long weekends here and there. We are actually only about an hour from the Myrtle Beach Resort so I am hoping that we can use this to take long weekends.

I also like the Holiday Inn name. I travel a lot for business so I was already a platnium member with priority rewards. I always try to book Holiday Inn when I travel.

I hope this turns out to be a good venture for us!

[queensandra68 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close queensandra68]

New and looking to give away points

I have spent the past couple of hours perusing this site and love it! I wish I had found it years ago! My husband and I own points with Diamond Resorts, but because of financial hardship, we are trying to find a way to donate or give them away. Any advice? Any takers? Let me know!

My introduction to timeshares was through my grandparents in Snowbird, Ut back in the 70's. Still love to visit the Ironblossom Lodge! Someday, I hope to own a piece of that property!

[Craigvince Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Craigvince]

Hi there!

I've been "lurking" on here for almost a year, educating myself about timeshares. We bought at the HGVC Flamingo a few years ago, before we knew we could buy resale (oops). But we've gotten a lot of use out of it, maximizing our points, staying off season and using the "Open Season" options for cheap stays on short notice. This is probably the best benefit of owning HGVC, as there's almost always something available in Vegas.

In the past couple months, I've bought two additional timeshares through Wyndham (resale, of course). Well, "bought" is a relative term. I paid $101 for one of them and nothing for the other, except fees/costs. One is in Orlando, the other in New Orleans. I also just received a week in Lake Tahoe (II affiliate) from a friend for free.

All in all, I now have 4 weeks (or more, since 2 of them are larger units and we only need 1br) for about $3k in maintenance fees between the different systems. I'm sure I could've ended up with the same amount of points for half the MF had I planned ahead, but I kind of like the idea of belonging to 4 different exchanges, HGVC, Wyndham, II and RCI (2nd Wyndham is converted).

Now I just need to figure out how to get away from the office long enough to use them.

[rikkis_playpen Diamond Club Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close rikkis_playpen]

A warm welcome to all the new members.. Thanks for being part of the Forums!

[VolsknoxvllTN Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close VolsknoxvllTN]

Hey all, new to this site and new to the whole timeshare 'thing'. It seems pretty complicated and even when I try to read info, I still find myself lost..lol, which isn't hard to do! I do know I'd like to take a vacation to Hawaii this yr! I also sat down with a resort rep where I stayed a few months ago and was half way explained timeshares and pretty much asked for $20,000! I found the more questions I asked, the more they made it sound like I'd be 'crazy' to pass it up etc.. I ended walking out, head spinning! If I ask pretty lame questions, please don't flame me to bad...I'll try to read as much as I can before asking something. Thx.

Shauna

[Presley Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Presley]

Hi Shauna, welcome to the site! I am still learning new stuff all the time. One thing that I've learned is that you should only buy where you will be happy staying. Sure you can trade it, but there are no guarantees that way. Ask lots of questions and when you do decide on a resort to purchase, do lots of comparison shopping via resales.

[VolsknoxvllTN Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close VolsknoxvllTN]

Hi Shauna, welcome to the site! I am still learning new stuff all the time. One thing that I've learned is that you should only buy where you will be happy staying. Sure you can trade it, but there are no guarantees that way. Ask lots of questions and when you do decide on a resort to purchase, do lots of comparison shopping via resales.

Thank you Presley! I have already learned a little just from using the search bar on this site!!

[tonik Member Find all posts View Profile Close tonik]

Welcome Shauna

Hey all, new to this site and new to the whole timeshare 'thing'. It seems pretty complicated and even when I try to read info, I still find myself lost..lol, which isn't hard to do! I do know I'd like to take a vacation to Hawaii this yr! I also sat down with a resort rep where I stayed a few months ago and was half way explained timeshares and pretty much asked for $20,000! I found the more questions I asked, the more they made it sound like I'd be 'crazy' to pass it up etc.. I ended walking out, head spinning! If I ask pretty lame questions, please don't flame me to bad...I'll try to read as much as I can before asking something. Thx.

Shauna

You were smart to walk away. You can buy resales for almost nothing. The annual maintenance fee is what cost $$ so choose your resort carefully.

Welcome to the board!

[VolsknoxvllTN Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close VolsknoxvllTN]

You were smart to walk away. You can buy resales for almost nothing. The annual maintenance fee is what cost $$ so choose your resort carefully.

Welcome to the board!

Thanks Tonik, glad to be here I'm already starting to see that 'owning' a timeshare might not break the bank like I once thought.