Original Message:
Re: We are thinking about a Timeshare Purchase, whats your honest opinion??? (by Dennis C.):
Good advice so far. We got into timeshare back in the early 1980's and have several 'ownerships' they're all very different. As others have said the industry has changed over the years. Our first one was a fixed week and fixed unit, with relatively stable annual maintenance. But those deals are not found anywhere any more. The new business models have flex, floating, registered, fair trade or a bunch of different terms that all mean that you have NO GUARANTEE that you can actually GET IN when and where you want (lots of overselling going on these days). Some outfits require you to make reservations 9-12 months in advance (and pay fees at time of making the reservation)... and the fees are no longer stable.... especially since 2008 crash in the real estate and hospitality (and timeshare) industry...as well as the general economy. Best advice is to check sites like Redweek, TUG and others to see what OWNER RENTALS are available at the times/places that you want to go. Many of (us) old-timer owners don't want to go any more, and are more than willing to rent our places at cost or maybe just a few bucks over. (just to not have the burden of paying the maintenance fee). You might also find some owners who are desperate to sell for a song & dance.... again, just to jettison the burden.