Explain Timeshare apartments like Vistana??

[kevin harrison]

I'm interested in finding out about these timeshare apartments like the Vistana and Hilton resorts.

How do they work? and what are the costs involved? Don't want to contact the resorts or they will never leave me alone!!

 

[paulh]

Basiclay timesshares are the same you buy weeks of the year and you go those weeks of the year each time.A lot have cottoned on to the DVC points system but from what i have seen there are not as flexable as dvc.If you do go to a sales pitch they start prices high $32000 then they keep dropping price when we got up to go they offered the price of $13000 we said no as we prefer disney.The sell at DVC is if you like it buy it if not fine no presure involved unlike some of the abuse you can get at outher timeshares sales.the only diferane fron dvc to outher timeshares is the room size disney tend to be smaller but we use it to go to sleep in not to stay in the room check out the dvc boards and you will find more info
Paulh

 

[eyoreaud]

Hi Kevin,

We bought a 2 bed lockoff condo at Sheraton Vistana Villages last year and have to say we are completely happy with it. It works on a points system and you get title deeds just like buying a normal house of condo, Not sure how actual timeshare/DVC works but with ours we can use it, bank our points or swap for a different place almost anywhere in the world (depending on availability of course) they are not just Sheratons but a lot of others as well, including Westin, Four Points by Sheraton,St.Regis.Luxury collection and W Hotels. Disneys Swan and Dolphin are owned by either Westin or Sheraton as well wich i'm sure is a good thing.

Because we bought the 2 bed lock off we can use one side for one week and the other side for another week either at the same time or split it up and have the other half the next year along with the next years use.

Theres a lot more to it than that but i have to say that Sheraton Vistana Villages (NOT Vistana Resort) are very nice. And the pools,spa,kids playarea, bar and landscaping around the resort are lovely.

Just my opinion and i'm sure others might dissagree. We did go and see DVC a couple of years back and although they were lovely as well (although v small) we still opted for the Sheraton insted.

Feel free to PM me if you want to know more

Luv Audrey,
xxxxxxxxxxx

 

[SammieG]

Hi -
we own two timeshares.. one is Hilton Grand Vacations on I Drive and one is in Lanzarote.. and we swap it for an apartment in Orlando each trip.

I have to disagree with Paul. When we bought our time shares, the price did not change at all. That was the price - take it or leave it. In fact I didnt notice any difference from the Hilton presentation and the Disney one in terms of style.
We have done several other presentations too, and the price didnt change for those either..
I also disagree that you buy weeks.. I dont think any one works on a week system still in time share. We have one week system and one point system - the one we bought last year was a point system and every presentation we have been to has been points only.. no weeks anymore.

The points systems all work on a similar way.. and exactly the same as Disney - i cant think of anything you could do at Disney that we cant do at Hilton Grand Vacations.. perhaps I am wrong.

We loved the DVC - but in comparison to what you will get off site it is expensive. We paid around £10,000 (I think!< dont quote me!) for 5000 points with Hilton Grand Vacations- This would give us for example 2 weeks in a one bed off peak, and one week in a two bed peak season. Its a little more complicated than that, but that gives you a basic idea.

In addition you have yearly maintenance charges. We pay about £200 - Disney charge a lot for their maintenance.

We would love to own at DVC but would have to pay 10's of thousands of pounds to get a two bed villa for two and a half weeks in peak season..unless we saved the points from year to year.

Dont get me wrong, if we had the money we would buy into DVC, although from the units that Ive seen, they are often not as spacious or well equiped as those off site.
However, they have amazing trading value.

Also, when looking for a time share.. look how long it is for. Disney are for 50 years which I am sure you will agree will be plenty to keep you going. Ours lasts forever.. no limit.. so if its still standing in 300 years (yeah, right!) my ancestors will still have use of it.

Hope that helps! It sounds more confusing than it actually is, but you kind of have to use it to understand it completely!!

 

[paulh]

if you want o go to disney every year i think dvc is best option if you want to go now and then outher timeshares are more flexable in that respect .As we tend to stay in a studio the cost of dvc for us was £7000 fot 200 points (now it would cost £10000) for that we get 2 weeks at any time of the year (using the banking borowing system )We love disney so thats where we bought
Paulh

 

[tony64]

We have bought this year at Sheraton Vistana on the points system but through resale, this is much cheaper than direct just look on e bay to get some idea of the savings.
we paid £3300 for a 1 week 3 bed Condo that sleeps 8. On the points system we can down grade to a 2 bed and get 2 weeks but not in high season or save 1 year to the next and have 2 weeks in the 3 bed.
hope this helps.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

Apologies to Kevin if I am changing the course of this thread but we go to Florida every year and have too looked at purchasing a re-sale at somewhere like the Vistana Villages (despite not receiving any reply to 2 e-mails asking if we could make an appointment to view)......we always stay in a villa as our son is Autistic and we prefer somewhere with cooking facilities etc

I just cannot get my head round why we would actually need to buy a timeshare though, after all the yearly maintanance costs are about the same as a 1 week villa rental, so why pay a few thousand pounds for one?
After all, you still have flights/spending money to consider so I cannot see the benefits.

 

[SammieG]

our annual maintenance costs are quite a bit less than a villa rental.. or even the time share rentals... which come out at about £100 per night approx..
we pay about £500 a year for our maintenance over our two time shares...

We really like the flexibility of time shares.. plus you get some very cheap "extra" deals regularly too.. (like bonus weeks... etc) I like the fact that we have bought in Orlando, but can basically go anywhere in the world

Plus, I find, and I am not sure what others think of this, but the quality of the time shares tends to be much higher than hotels/apartments. Plus the type of people that go there are similar to us, not groups of youths etc that you might get in a hotel complex.. Time share people tend to be couples with children, or older people.. so they tend to be quiet and have good facilities for kids..(this is a huge generalisation, as the quality of time shares does really vary! depending on what youve bought).

Because we have bought into two time shares very much in demand we have great trading value on our points/weeks..

So yes, you might think that its not worth it to pay £10000 extra.. and youre right. thats a LOT of villa rentals to make up the money..
but its partly about trust and quality.. and knowing what you are getting..

 

[Pootle]

For all you could ever want to know about timeshare, try www.tug2.net - there's a vast amount of free information there, including ratings on individual resorts (some information you have to pay a $10 - I think - annual fee to get access). You could try posting there too.

It is an American site (but Europeans do post) so much of the advice is geared to them. For instance people often caution about buying in Orlando because of the over-supply of timeshare there. The loudest advice they give though is do your research and buy resale because of the immediate dramatic loss of value if you buy from the developer. There are exceptions to this (including DVC so far ) but not many and they are knowledgeable and helpful over at tug.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[terrynewpack]

Apologies to Kevin if I am changing the course of this thread but we go to Florida every year and have too looked at purchasing a re-sale at somewhere like the Vistana Villages (despite not receiving any reply to 2 e-mails asking if we could make an appointment to view)......we always stay in a villa as our son is Autistic and we prefer somewhere with cooking facilities etc

I just cannot get my head round why we would actually need to buy a timeshare though, after all the yearly maintanance costs are about the same as a 1 week villa rental, so why pay a few thousand pounds for one?
After all, you still have flights/spending money to consider so I cannot see the benefits.

Well said. There is little or no point in buying a time share. Most of the cost of a time share is directly related to their marketing costs and not the building or the facilities. What is the point in spending thousands like some folk do and ending up with a studio flat when you could probably rent a superb 3 bed home with private pool for very much the same cost.

This opinion does not go down well with those who have already bought these things but you have only to see the resale values to realise what a pointless exercise it is to buy new.

Terry

 

[Pootle]

What is the point in spending thousands like some folk do and ending up with a studio flat when you could probably rent a superb 3 bed home with private pool for very much the same cost.

You make some valid points, but not everyone wants to trundle miles down 192 or route 27 to spend their holidays on an estate! It's the old 'horses for courses' thing.

Disney's Vacation Club is a timeshare and I could sell my points now for more than I paid for them and I get to stay on Disney property. I've stayed in (a very nice) house just off 192 and wouldn't do so again. But I do understand why people - and especially families - do.

Not all decisions people take are taken for financial reasons.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We stay normally in a villa just off the 192 for several reasons:

1. Privacy and the ability or able to relax in comfort whenever we choose.
2. A private pool.
3. Cooking facilities.
4. VCR/DVD equipment.
5. Good easy access to all attractions.
6. Restaurants/shops/supermarkets within easy reach.

In addition our boy (as stated earlier) is Autistic and sometimes can be restless during the night, particularly the first couple of nights while his sleeping pattern adjusts.
Thus it's better if we are in a villa so we do not have to worry about waking up the people in the room next door.

At the end of the day where we all stay is a personal choice - we have considered timeshare but as we really do not want to visit anywhere else than Florida at least until our son gets a little older it is simply not worth the money for us - we are much better off renting a villa.

 

[mickg7dyd]

Hi,
The reasons we bought our DVC points are location, location, location.!!
We can walk to EPCOT and the Studios ( even better is knowing after a long day it's a short walk or boat ride "home" ) And on an evening when we are not at the parks sitting on our balcony with a beer watching the fireworks is priceless. I'm under no illusion you can do Orlando cheaper but if you want to do "quality" cheaper imho it can't be bettered.

Mick.

 

[SammieG]

we stay in a time share.. as Moira says.. we can sell it again if we need to.. so the cost is relatively low as it is an asset.

In addition, we almost bought a house in Orlando.. but as we only have the one son, he was getting fed up being the only child around. A resort is MUCH better for us now he is a little older. Otherwise every single time he wanted a swim, guess who had to go with him!????

As we spend about 5 weeks a year at Disney, DVC is just out of the question for us.. plus although I LOVE the location.. and I do love the whole mouse thing (a lot!) staying on site is sometimes a bit too much. I remember last time we stayed on site, I thought if someone else wishes me a zipideedoodah day, I shall scream!!

However, I think its just jealousy.. I would LOVE to stay at the boardwalk villas in a 2 bed for 3 weeks.. (dream on!)

 

[kevin harrison]

SammieG - that is why I won't stay onsite at Disney, I love the place from beginning to end, but at the end of the day I want to go back to being a grumpy Englishman and away from incessant happiness, and back to something a bit more real. I think if i stayed onsite for a fortnight, Micky would end up in the lake near the entrance to the park.... ;-)

 

[terrynewpack]

I shall repeat what I said earlier and that is that there is little point in buying a timeshare. Those who have bought and think they have value for money are obviously happy with their present situation but common sense says that it is not value for money.
I regret to say that even the DVC points can be bought at less than the prices originally paid and that is fact unless you were first in and I am not too sure about that. Where is the value in that.
Yes I would agree that the Disney resorts are generally high quality places but so are many of the others. Just do the math as the Americans say. Buy a week for $20000 and you should really be buying a share of a $1 million apartment. Sorry but you would be lucky to get a 30/40% of that on the open market.
Timeshare and DVC are no good to me but if anyone is happy with it then they have made what is to them a good buy and good luck to them.

Just a guess but I would think probably 50% of what anyone pays for a timeshare goes towards paying the pyramid of salespeople. Just get yourselves into Cheers Bar on the 535 to see the celebrations whenever someone has sold one. They love it.

Terry

 

[seashoreCM]

Caution, with some timeshares you are personally liable for the annual maintenance fee and property taxes forever. You need to read the purchase agreement. Should you sell your timeshare week(s) or points and the next buyer fails to pay these fees, the timeshare associataion can come after you and/or any prior owner for any or all of the unpaid balance.

Some timeshare owners have been unable to sell "their timeshare" even for one dollar or one euro or one pound or one franc (and abandoning all they have invested).

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[Pootle]

I am not advocating timeshare for anyone. Many negative things said here may be true, and what has happened to Disney points in the past may not happen in the future - my crystal ball has gone missing today .

But ....... I took 9 months to consider my decision to buy in and it was never for financial reasons. I took a look at Old Key West - its standard of accommodation and gorgeous surroundings, then took a trip down to the DVC Vero Beach property and did the same and knew we would never pay for those unless we joined. Here I should add that by 1996 when I joined, my son was then 16 and we had done the parks to death from his being 8 to 16 and had an eye to the future when the parks were no longer important (did I just commit a sin on these boards? )

I regret to say that even the DVC points can be bought at less than the prices originally paid and that is fact unless you were first in and I am not too sure about that. Where is the value in that.

It was totally unexpected that the value of my points has gone up and I did not buy in at the beginning either! I cannot make you believe me, but I repeat, I could sell for more than I paid and I have my figures on a spreadsheet to show me that the cost of a studio (with great ocean view at Vero Beach) usually costs me less than £25 a night in annual maintenance.

DH is neutral on the parks to say the least - but we like central Florida and the coast - and these resorts are great places to stay - and that's where the value lies. Your 30% to 40% resale (for DVC at least) is way off the mark even for new DVC purchases - check out one of the Board's sponsors The Timeshare Store for confirmation. It may be true of other timeshares, but DVC is a timeshare and I felt compelled to correct the misinformation.

Buy a week for $20000 and you should really be buying a share of a $1 million apartment

Why? I assume you are talking about purchasing a place? Suppose you don't want to have any responsibility for maintenance, taxes, finding others to rent from you to ease the considerable financial burden (and owning a good place in central Florida and not renting it out costs big-time, believe me) and suppose too that you don't even want to visit every year. Then why would you make that sort of commitment?

Timeshare is certainly not for everyone and as I indicated earlier, research is the key. I'm no expert on Vistana or other Florida timeshare, but I do know they have a lot of happy owners out there, especially ones who have bought resale.

 

[Miffy2003]

I would repeat what Moira says above - but she has said it so well I won't even try

 

[tony64]

As i said early we bought resale and are very happy.
we would normally stay in a very budget motel on the 192 but for the cost of some free shares we got from our mortage endowment company a few years ago we will now be able to stay in accomadation we would not normally ever consider and we can pass this on to the children when the time comes that we get fed up with traveling (NEVER)