jacksonelliott

Hey everyone, my wife and I have been enjoying the skiing in Aspen for so many winters now that we're thinking it would make just as much sense to buy into a timeshare there as it would to continue renting rooms every winter. We just thought we'd get some feedback here, though: has anyone had any experiences with timeshares? good, bad? any investment potential? Thanks for any and all feedback.

Jackson

DebitNM

We just went through this process while in Hawaii.

We were thinking it would make for a relatively inexpensive way to stay for week. But by the time you add in other costs it wasn't looking so good any more. The interest you pay [most of these places won't qualify for a mortgage since the aren't really homes that are owned thus you either have to take a home equity loan or pay cash] may or may not be tax deductible Marriott offered financing at an outrageous rate [13.75%] but fully expected folks to refinance -- you had to make minimum of 3 months payments to them. Add in association fees which may or maynot include homeowner's insurance; the cost to belong to any timeshare group the places uses for swapping; cost of lost interest income if you pay cash and principle that will in effect be lost.

There is virtually no resale value for these things. They are deeded, so they can be willed, but forget them as an investment.

Also, if the place doesn't belong to a swap group {RCI or ICC I think are 2 most popular} you will have to take your vacation in exactly the same place every year and you may get tired of it.

Also, not knowing how old you are -- will you stop skiing soon? If you are a young couple -- Will you be having children soon and will there be enough room in your timeshare unit for them?

Is the week you get set in place or does it float? What if you get a job where you can't take the set week? How are the weeks assigned? Do owners how have been there longer get priority?

If you are considering doing this, are you buying from a current owner or from the hotel/company? If you are looking to do this, check out resales -- you probably can save a lot.

When you do the math, it should be clear.

If you want examples with #'s, let me know. But a place that sells for $20,000 for 1 week a year will cost you close to $3000 per week per year [average use of 20 years} and that is of course subject to location, fees etc.

As you can probably gather, we did not buy a timeshare but it sure seemed like a good idea during the pitch and even for a little while after!

Hope this helps...
Debi

wow

You shd go to www.tug2.net

You will pay Annual Maintenance Fees & that can run you about $1000 per week annually.

If you have the ability to book far in advance(12-13 months) T/S works. If not, you will not get the weeks that you want. Everybody wants the "prime weeks". The only practical advice that I can give you, as a T/S owner, is to book early & buy where you want to stay. Also, I like Marriott.

happytourist

See if you can buy a fixed week timeshare on the resale market. As noted above, make sure the TS is a member of a trading association, either RCI or II, and check out the annual maintenance fees. And definitely don't buy this on time--if you have to finance it you probably shouldn't buy it. It is a luxury buy.

yourbelinda

I've actually heard about people getting stuck in timeshare traps that are a lot worse financially than even DebitNM talks about. Among all the myriad fees and taxes you're talking about the most expensive vacation you'll ever take -- and you'll take it over and over again (assuming that you get the week you want -- not a safe assumption). People who want out of their timeshares the quickest way often end up going to TimeShare Relief to get them off their hands once and for all. It's either that or spend possibly years, still paying fees and taxes the whole time, while you list it or try to auction it, usually without any takers. In short, avoid these things. It's possible you could rent someone else's week every once in a while. Or you could just be content with hotel rooms.

gail

Do some math to see if it still seems like a good idea. Take cost of timeshare. Add likely annual maintenance costs, allowing for a lot of inflation and multiply by 10. I choose 10 because I believe that is really the longest time anyone could reasonably project what their vacation wishes might be.

Now take that total number, add in any other related costs, and divide by 10 to get a cost per week. Is that figure really less than you would spend on renting rooms/condos, etc for a week. Often it is not.

Then the sales points of being able to trade, resell, use it as an investment, etc. These all make it sound really good, but have heard enough horror stories about how these often do not happen the way they are described at the sale pitch.

The thing that scares me the most about timeshares is that they can raise the annual fee at will, and you can not get out from under it, since virtually no one wants to buy a timeshare on the secondary market - that is why they are so cheap there, and, as stated above, where I might start if you still want to buy one.

I know several people who are happy with their timeshares, but many more who stopped using them after several years and just continue to pay because they have no other options.

mamajo

Do your homework before you buy and buy RESALE. Go to the Timeshare Users Group website (new address) WWW.TUGBBS.COM/FORUMS and talk to the experts and read what TUG has to say. You can also check out Timeshare Forums @ WWW.TIMESHAREFORUMS.COM for another good place to learn.
But do NOT buy from the developer...save yourself a bundle and timesharing can be wonderful. We've owned one for 23 years, and two more in other areas, and have had some great vacations all over.

amwosu

There are two sorta kinda "timeshares" in Aspen. They are actually called fractional ownership because of the state or local laws. You must own at least three weeks.

One is Shadow Mtn. where my parents have "owned" for 20 years which is located on Hyman a few blocks from downtown and across from the skate rink. The other is the Prospector which is pretty close to the popcorn wagon and the Wheeler Opera House.

My parents bought for $16,000 all those years ago for three weeks at Shadow Mtn and its still worth about the same for three weeks 20 years later. They pay $1000/yr in upkeep. I found out too late that I could have bought a three week ownership directly from another owner last year for $8,000 because she'd been trying to get it sold for 2 yrs after her husband died.

The Prospector is more like $40,000 for the same (good) three weeks my parents have. If you google the property I think you can find sales info.

In recent years "timeshares" for the wealthy have popped up in the form of the Ritz Carlton Club at Aspen Highlands, Sardy House in Aspen and a couple of new ones in town associated with some top hotels in Aspen. They run upwards of $400,000/ 1/4 share of a hotel room or condo.

I don't think tax benefits for timeshares exist anymore so I'm not sure that "owning" one is such a benefit. It locks you into a specific place at a specific time. Most people consider it a prepaid vacation rather than an ownership.

happytourist

There really aren't any tax benefits for most people. If your contract is an actual deed to property and you borrow money to buy it, it may qualify as a mortgage so that you can deduct the interest. You can also deduct the few dollars in property taxes. In some properties, however, you don't get an actual deed but are considered a "right-to-use" owner. The TS development is owned by the developer. Then there are no tax benefits at all. In no way should a TS be considered an investment.

jacksonelliott wants to be able to ski at his timeshare. If he buys a floating week, there's a strong chance he won't get a ski week, because everyone wants those few weeks. That's why I recommend a fixed week on the resale market. He would probably want weeks 1-10 and 47-52. Also make sure that the resort is affiliated with a trading company.

"A floating week is determined differently at every resort and you need to make sure if the week is floating the entire year or if there are seasons that it is available. Floating allows you the option of calling to schedule your week without paying a fee. It is still based on availability. If you are not using it at your home resort then you will need to schedule a week with the resort and deposit the week with the exchange company."

We've owned a TS for 12 years and have had some very enjoyable vacations. We've gone some places we might never have seen because we had a week to use and couldn't get into our first choice (I was on an academic schedule which limited our choices until we retired). We've never had a bad experience, but some resorts are clearly better than others. So...do your research. Just don't buy new!

NeoPatrick

After something like 20 years, a very nice timeshare here in Naples, Florida recently underwent a multi-million dollar "restoration". While the owner annual fees had been rising sharply for years, each one week owner was assessed more than the original price of their units for the updates. Many just walked away from them as they'd had enough. So now the developers are totally reselling weeks of units that had originally been sold at a tiny fraction of what they're being resold at. So much for the idea that you "own it for life".

artlover

We have a timeshare that we bought as a resale and it's been good for us. I always deposit it in Interval International and usually get good results. As wow suggested--check out tug2.net and you'll get great information there as well as classified ads where you can purchase resales.

xrae

Just remember -- if you buy a timeshare, you own it for life (or close to it). Some timeshares are impossible to resell, so you're stuck with them and their annual maintenance fees. And you can't do a thing about those fees. You just have to pay them.

localgal

You can RENT just about any timeshare unit in most areas for the cost of the owners maintanance fee!
Check out www.redweek.com
I stayed at a gorgeous 2 bedroom unit at the Grand Hyatt in Seaworld for $100 a night!
Shop early for the best choice

ajcolorado

We have friends who have a studio timeshare in Beaver Creek, Colorado and they've been trying to sell it for over 5 years. If you buy one, get a resale - look at www.redweek.com or www.gmacinternational.com to get an idea of resale prices.