Original Message:
Re: want to buy a Marriott timeshare: advice needed (by John B.):
For credibility, I own dozens of timeshares, mostly Marriotts. The first two were bought front Marriott (big mistake). We then bought dozens of weeks during the depth of the recession at fire sale prices. All my weeks are in Maui or ski resorts.
Don't buy anything. Rent weeks on redweek.com or other similar sites when you what to vacation. You'll save money and time.
Figure the cost of purchasing and the yearly maintenance fee. Then look at the cost of renting. You will see that most often you can rent for not much more than the maintenance fees. So why own?
If you are looking a premium resorts the spread between the maintenance fee and the rental can be substantial. However, in these resorts you will find that the cost of purchase is high. How many years will it take for you to save enough for a purchase to make sense.
Here is the math. What is the difference between the yearly maintenance fee and the rental cost? Let's call this difference the "Owning Advantage". If the maintenance fee is $1500 and renting costs $2,000, the "Owning Advantage" is $500 a year.
How much does it cost to purchase the week? Let's say it costs $15,000. With these numbers it will take 30 years of using the timeshare for you to BREAK EVEN.
Take into consideration that most people never figure out all the ins and outs of trading their week for the week they want someplace else. If you are willing to trade down (getting something less desirable than what you are giving up), it isn't to difficult. If you are trying to get a fair trade, that is a real challenge and you'll have to pay a bunch of fees. If you think you are going to trade up...use your luck winning the lottery.