New forum member and new to timeshares

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

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and new to timeshares.

I've spent a lot of time reading the Bluegreen threads and there is a lot of good info in here, so thanks everyone for that. I have a few questions though. I saw that I can sign up for one of these $99 weekends at Outdoor World to stay at a Bluegreen property. My wife and I live in the DC area and there seem to be a fe properties nearby so we're thinking of checking out the Atlantic City resort. I know when we go we'll get the high pressure sale to buy a timeshere then and there.

I've learned enough from reading this site to know that this isn't necessarily the best idea.

From what I've read, it also might not be the best idea to buy from ebay either. My first question is, what are my options when considering to buy a Bluegreen timeshare (i.e. points)? And, what are the pros / cons with those options?

The next thing I've been trying to find info on is the maintenance fees associated with Bluegreen timeshares. Is there a list somewhere of the maintenance fees per property?

I've also been reading how it's important to time the anniversary date to make sure I can book my vacation when I want. How does that work? Why do I need to do this?

I was wondering how is the availability? Is it a big deal for me to go online and book a last-minute weekend?

Is there anything else I should know going in to this? What do you wish you knew before you started?

Anyway, thanks again everyone for all the valuable info. And any tips, advice or insight would be welcomed.

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

Dear drumagoo,

There are 4 places to get points. 1) Bluegreen(@ $1-$2+ per point) which will give you premier benefits at a expensive price 2) Ebay or other non approved outlet which will not combine with any points you many already have, with no benefits of travelers plus etc. at cheap price 3) Pinnacle Vacation which will combine points with what you own and premier benefits 4) Boca Bum which will also combine to give you the premier benefits. You will find many recommend Boca Bum as would I. You can only get premier benefits from option 1, 3, or 4.

"list somewhere of the maintenance fees per property?" There are several different ways the points are calculated. It depends on which 'trust fund' the points you purchase are in. This you need to be careful with if you buy additional points as mixing trust funds greatly increases maintenance fees. The different 'trust funds' have different ways of calculating the maintenance fees. I believe Trust Fund E is a base fee(approx $300) plus 3.5 cents per point. The more points the less cost per point for maintenance fees but the more you pay per year for you maintenance fees. If you own 10000 points the maintenance fee would be around $650 dollars per year or 6.5 cents per point then if you owned 30000 points you would pay approximately $1350 in maintenance fees or 4.5 cents per point. You have more points but the cost per point is less. In other trust funds the assesment is calculated different.

"important to time the anniversary date to make sure I can book my vacation when I want" I would 1st say there are NO 100% guarentee you can book any vacation anytime you want. That said if you book at 11 months out you generally can get what ever you want. On the date you were assigned your points every year you get the same number of points issued again to you until the earth is destroyed or the second coming(if you pay your maintenance fees). These points are good for any season. If you did not use all your points from the previous year you get to keep them for 1 year are they are labeled "saved points" and have restrictions on when they may be used. At the beginning of the next year the saved points are lost and any points not used from the previous year become "saved."

"Is it a big deal for me to go online and book a last-minute weekend?" In June-August it is a big deal and next to impossible(sometimes you luck in) In what is an off season, termed white or blue season, it is certainly possible but again there is no absolute guarentee. The best option is ALWAYS book way in advance, plan early and be flexible to have more than one destination. Timesharing is not like booking a motel, but there are times you may be able treat it like that. PLAN AHEAD.

I am a platinium member. I wish I had known about Boca Bum when I started, I would have saved a ton of money. That said, I have enjoyed Bluegreen to have purchased about 6 times to get here. Also, spend time reading through all the postings. You can learn a ton of information about Bluegreen.

An aside, we keep a plactic tote with items that we may routinely need when we go to a resort. Sugar, tea bags, plastic forks, laundry soap, tea pitcher, napkins, potato peeler, tongs, etc. Many places provide most these things but not all. We enjoy the Bluegreen properties and continue to enjoy the quality and locations they provide.

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

To expand a bit on amoljac's post...

Is there a list somewhere of the maintenance fees per property?

I believe there's a chart for figuring points at the Yahoo Bluegreen Group.

I've also been reading how it's important to time the anniversary date to make sure I can book my vacation when I want. How does that work? Why do I need to do this?

Since your odds of getting the reservation you want in summer months or during spring break are best 11 months out, you want to have points to reserve at 11 months out. If your anniversary date is May, and you want to vacation in late June every year, you are going to have a hard time making reservations in anything above red (which is nearly everywhere in June except a couple of the older resorts). Even if you have all your points from last year, you can't make a reservation because they will have rolled over by the time you want to reserve. There is a fix for this that works tolerably well, but it's just easier to avoid the whole situation.

We love Bluegreen, and it works out very well for us. If you can plan your vacations ahead of time, then owning Bluegreen is the way to go. If you prefer to go at the last minute (and "the last minute" in TS terms can be three months out), you might be happier renting. OTOH, if you have authorized points, then Bluegreen does have a lot of last minute options for people who go at the last minute, and a lot of them are great deals. And even if you have unauthorized points, that usually gets you an RCI membership, where you can use "Last Call" options at the last minute.

Where you're situated, and assuming you're willing to drive a bit, I'm guessing you'd have have a fair number of last minute options most of the year as long as you're willing to go where the openings are. Meaning if you have your heart set on the beach, you might not be happy, but if you just want to get out of town and go somewhere pretty, there should be some options. Also, timeshares are more about getting out of the city than getting into one. Getting a timeshare in Williamsburg or Myrtle Beach or Orlando - easy. Getting a timeshare in New York or Washington, D.C. - much more difficult.

[beeper man Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close beeper man]

Outdoor world getaways

Just an FYI I have gone twice on these getaways. One purchased at Bass Pro and we went to Branson and One purchased at the Mills Mall for a trip to Wisconsin Dells. You don't get to stay at the Bluegreen resort. In Branson we were at the Radison and at the Dells it was some no name hotel. Both locations were OK for 99 dollars but definitely not resort accomidations. You then get a tour and hard sell. Maybe things have changed, but that is my experense.

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

Just an FYI I have gone twice on these getaways. One purchased at Bass Pro and we went to Branson and One purchased at the Mills Mall for a trip to Wisconsin Dells. You don't get to stay at the Bluegreen resort. In Branson we were at the Radison and at the Dells it was some no name hotel. Both locations were OK for 99 dollars but definitely not resort accomidations. You then get a tour and hard sell. Maybe things have changed, but that is my experense.

This is correct, usually at a local hotel. These are not a bad deal. It's a cheap vacation if you can stand the high-pressure sales pitch and are prepared to use about 4 hours for it.

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

You can look at Pinnacles' website and see what is listed for sale. Pinnacle is the ONLY authorized reseller of BG points.

Bocabum can assist you in buying from Pinnacle, but you must not contact Pinnacle at all, you must start with bocabum - (but you can run searches on Pinnacle's website to get an idea of what's available and the pricing).

Personally, I wish everyone would be 'some' points direct from BG, like a small package, say 6000 points. These are commonly called developer points. If everyone stopped buying them, I would assume BG wouldn't develop resorts, or wouldn't develop as much.

I traded a fixed week to get into the points system and bought 5000 points. They gave me 8000 points for the fixed week so I have 13,000 annual points. If you push back enough during a sales pitch they magically can come up with a smaller points package with a cheaper points price. You have to play poor, lol. Just make sure you still get the perks, bonus nights and Travelers Plus especially. Once in the system with these, you can add points from Pinnacle.

For reservations that fall past your earn date of next year's points, BG allows you to prepay next year's maint fees (at current amount) and begin using those points. This can be used, also, if you're wanting to make a reservation in the current year but don't have quite enough points left this year. In this case there are other options for getting a few more points for a reservation - like renting points.

You will pay the maint fees, plus the $129 club dues, every year. These are billed separately.

[canuck64 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close canuck64]

need to know about pinnacle?

I was thinking about purchasing BG points on ebay, however it is not through Pinnacle. The company on ebay is emidsouthinc, that state "Note: Our company is now approved to transfer Bluegreen properties! Your ownership will be transferred in as little as 30 to 45 days." Does this mean that if purchased through this company these points can be combined to get to the higher prefered levels. I'm new to all of this so any help would be appreciated..thanks

[vacation_family99 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vacation_family99]

I would contact Boca Bum Jim on this forum and work through him. He has some great deals and a wealth of Bluegreen knowledge.

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

Does this mean that if purchased through this company these points can be combined to get to the higher preferred levels.

I doubt it. The only way to get the preferred levels is to through Pinnacle, I suspect because when you buy through Pinnacle you are effectively paying for further development. When you buy from Bluegreen salespeople, you are paying for further development AND for the sales force, which is an enormous percentage of most TS purchases direct from the developer. If you buy on E-bay, all you get are the points and RCI. Your maintenance fees pay for the upkeep on the points, and your yearly membership fee pays for RCI (except for those rare ownerships that're old enough to have been sold initially before RCI was part of the deal).

I'd like to buy authorized points not because we'd likely use bonus points and the other benefits (pretty sure we wouldn't), but just because I want Bluegreen to keep developing; hubby says he's happy with what they have so he's paying for what interests him.

[vacation_family99 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vacation_family99]

I would recommend that you contact Boca Bum Jim -- he can help you get to premier levels without buying directly from BG.

[canuck64 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close canuck64]

Thanks all for the info....I took your advice and contacted Jim who helped me out within 15 minutes of contacting him!