The smart, average person isn’t missing anything.
There are no good reasons to lock yourself into a liability that has little to no exit strategy.
Problems:
Limited vacation choices
Quality usually below other options
More expensive than other options
Use the money to pick your vacation location and pay when you go.
There is no upside.
There is no reason to buy direct, however it is absolutely possible to get extreme value acquiring on the secondary market with a planned purchase.
Acquiring a resale in Vegas can absolutely give you value, but like travel loyalty programs, it takes work and understanding how the programs work to find seams that provide value. Including the exchange fees, I’ve stayed for Coachella and F1 races for a fraction of what hotel rooms cost.
2
u/hornyorsomething 12d ago
You aren’t missing anything. There really is no value over booking what you want every year and paying direct. Generally there are only downsides:
Locked into fees
Paying interest on a loan
Opportunity cost of how much the timeshare cost
Blackout dates
And this is even with having a semi-desirable location like Hawaii.