Tips needed from Marriott owners

[CarolA]

Another thing I would like your opinions about - is this a good investment for investment sake? They said that with the resort selling out soon and no more timeshares being able to be built on Maui that the cost is going to skyrocket so resales would be extremely high a few years down the road if we wanted to use it for a while then sell it. They also said you could make really good money renting it out when you don't use it. Any thoughts?

Most financial advisors will tell you that NO a timeshare is NOT a good invstement for investment sake. Maybe if you are 100% sure that no new timeshares will ever be sold on Maui, but... I wouldn't take the salesmans word on that! As a general rule... timeshares are like cars, they depreciate as soon as you sign the contract.

 

[barb45]

Thanks everyone for your input. I have carefully considered what you had to say and have signed and sent the cancellation of contract notice to Marriott. I don't think this would be a good fit for us right now. I am so happy with my DVC that I thought that this would be just as good so I bought it without doing my usual number crunching for a week. Thanks again. Barb

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by barb45
I have carefully considered what you had to say and have signed and sent the cancellation of contract notice to Marriott. I don't think this would be a good fit for us right now. I am so happy with my DVC that I thought that this would be just as good so I bought it without doing my usual number crunching for a week.

I think it was smart to cancel the very expensive EOY week at Marriott timeshare in Maui.

However, I hope nothing in this thread has come across as a fundemantal attack on Marriott Vacation Club.

Marriott has a great portfolio of timeshare properties. For DVC members with enough vacation time and the financial resources -- and a desire to visit destinations beyond Walt Disney World -- Marriott Vacation Club ownership complements DVC membership nicely. The quality of the resorts is outstanding.

But it's best to buy only after doing some real research and planning, including:
-- Projecting your anticipated vacation needs over the next 10-20 years
-- Determing whether your goal is to stay at the same property fairly often or primarily to trade;
-- Understanding which properties can easily be obtained through trades and which are best to own if you really want to stay there;
-- Comparing developer prices (and incentives) to resale prices.

 

[JimC]

We stayed at the Marriott Maui Ocean Club in September. We had a one bedroom ocean front. We used Marriott points to stay. While we were there we took the tour and got points for doing so. Kind of like a points rebate on our vacation We enjoyed the resort and the location. The beach walk is a great way to connect the resorts, shopping and dining. The staff was very good.

We were interested in the MVC, but this property is a hotel conversion and it lacked some amenities -- no whirlpool, no in room laundry, no full kitchen. The one bedroom units are two hotel rooms converted (so you have two full baths). We were concerned about the funding of the capital reserves since this is an established property being turned into a MVC. We did not buy as we felt that if we wanted the property we would look at resales.

When we returned we got some great advice from Dean and others regarding timeshares, MVC and the Maui property specifically and decided to pass. Like the OP, we would not go to Maui but once a decade. The trip is just too long to enjoy for a week visit as a regular event.

So we are researching other Marriott options. I like MVC and Marriott generally and I use them as my primary hotel for business travel.

 

[barb45]

Oh - I am in no way knocking Marriott - we really liked it or we wouldn't have purchased it there. Like JimC, I will do further research and then make an informed decision. The cc points for Canadians would have been nice too - maybe someday they will let us do it.

 

[MinnieInMI]

Coming in as a DVC and MVC owner. We own 400 points at DVC VB and 2 weeks at Marriott Ocean Pointe in Palm Beach Shores, FL (which can be locked off and made into 4 weeks during platinum season). We love both vacation ownerships, and are looking forward to our retirement years when we can combine the VB points and Palm Beach weeks to have close to 3 months each winter in Florida.

We have been successful doing II trades with both DVC and MVC. Keep in mind, you need to do your homework on the resorts you wish to visit, and it also helps to plan a year ahead.

 

[Diznut84]

Originally posted by barb45
Thanks everyone for your input. I have carefully considered what you had to say and have signed and sent the cancellation of contract notice to Marriott. I don't think this would be a good fit for us right now. I am so happy with my DVC that I thought that this would be just as good so I bought it without doing my usual number crunching for a week. Thanks again. Barb

Very good choice. If you become interested in timesharing, I would strongly recommend that you join TUG and post many questions on the Marriott board prior to buying. Marriott exchanges into Hawaii can be difficult, but if you are flexible and have a strong Marriott trader, they can be had. If you would have bought this unit, you would have a) lost a lot of money when the unit becomes available via resale and you want to resell, b) lost money every time you exchanged. Like DVC, there are very few if any "equivalent" exchanges for this Marriott property. The only good time to buy from Marriott is a) your resort is too new to have a significant number of resales, b) you plan to use the unit each year, AND c) you care about Marriott reward points (which in general are not a good deal for most people).

JMHO!

 

[barb45]

There were a couple of suggestions to check out the Marriott board on tug2.net but I can't seem to find the Marriott section. Can you help me please? Thanks

 

[MinnieInMI]

To access the Marriott Board at the TUG site, once at the site, select the BBS login at the top, and then enter your user name and password. You can obtain a password as a guest, you don't need to be a member. The Marriott Board is toward the end of the list.

Hope this helps!