3 ms·

One reason is that you pay up front for access to annual slot. You really have to want to go every year at the same time to the same place. Second is that they

One reason is that you pay up front for access to annual slot. You really have to want to go every year at the same time to the same place. Second is that they charge maintenance fees. You have to pay ever increasing amount. Third is that you can’t cancel the contract. And they are impossible to sell. There is huge depreciation and buyers want desirable areas. The only good way to get one is buy used at big discount.

op00to 3y ago
For people with kids - yes many do want to go to the same place at the same time. There’s not a heck of a lot of flexibility when kids are in school. I don’t do the whole timeshare thing, but I have family who do and they seem happy.
- simonw 3y ago
  I wonder if they'll still be happy when the kids have grown up and they're still on the hook for those maintenance fees and can't sell the timeshare to someone else.
  - BeetleB 3y ago
    I suspect the inability to sell is in the minority. I know people who buy "used" timeshares happily. The owners really want to get rid of them so they sell at a low price. As long as the rules allow it, they use them as AirBnBs for those two weeks and make a killing. Those locations are premium, so they can charge a lot per night. And they don't have to do any work as the resort staff handle most of the cleaning, etc. Compared to buying a house/condo and putting it on AirBnB, the per dollar invested gain is much higher with timeshares.
    - slowmovintarget 3y ago
      Queue the "yo dawg" meme for rent-seeking.
yencabulator 3y ago
> One reason is that you pay up front for access to annual slot. You really have to want to go every year at the same time to the same place. Our neighbor's timeshare works by paying for X weeks/year, but then they reserve the weeks they want, reservations open a year ahead of time. The weeks are not fixed. (Absolutely not defending the world of products sold with high-pressure sales tactics.)

op00to 3y ago

For people with kids - yes many do want to go to the same place at the same time. There’s not a heck of a lot of flexibility when kids are in school. I don’t do the whole timeshare thing, but I have family who do and they seem happy.

simonw 3y ago
I wonder if they'll still be happy when the kids have grown up and they're still on the hook for those maintenance fees and can't sell the timeshare to someone else.
- BeetleB 3y ago
  I suspect the inability to sell is in the minority. I know people who buy "used" timeshares happily. The owners really want to get rid of them so they sell at a low price. As long as the rules allow it, they use them as AirBnBs for those two weeks and make a killing. Those locations are premium, so they can charge a lot per night. And they don't have to do any work as the resort staff handle most of the cleaning, etc. Compared to buying a house/condo and putting it on AirBnB, the per dollar invested gain is much higher with timeshares.
  - slowmovintarget 3y ago
    Queue the "yo dawg" meme for rent-seeking.

yencabulator 3y ago

> One reason is that you pay up front for access to annual slot. You really have to want to go every year at the same time to the same place. Our neighbor's timeshare works by paying for X weeks/year, but then they reserve the weeks they want, reservations open a year ahead of time. The weeks are not fixed. (Absolutely not defending the world of products sold with high-pressure sales tactics.)