frugal underground

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If you’ve decided that you’re interested in attending a Trendwest presentation, you can sign up online to go. (You can also get an attending friend to refer you, or sign up for one of their drawings—in my area, there are almost always car giveaways in the mall sponsored by Trendwest.)

Here are some tips for attending the presentation.

• Negotiate on your incentive. We didn’t really know you could do this, but the last time we were invited, Daniel told the scheduler that we just weren’t interested in the standard “vacation package” they were offering. (We have heard horror stories about the vacation from friends… suffice it to say, you’re NOT staying at a Trendwest resort…)

  Then Daniel asked if they were offering any gift certificates to local businesses instead (we’d been offered that on a previous visit). Turns out, they were willing to give us a $50 gift certificate to Home Depot, and $20 at Tony Roma’s. Of course, no guarantees, but you’ll never know if you don’t ask, and you could get something significantly more useful than their initial offer.

• Do your homework. Ask yourself the questions about Trendwest’s value to you personally. Have a good idea before you go in about what you actually spend on lodging yearly. This will give you the information you need to evaluate the offer that will be made to you.
• Be prepared for high-pressure tactics. Though every sales person is different, in my experience, Trendwest sales associates play hardball. They won’t hesitate to constantly put down your values if they get in the way of a sale. They have suggested financing a Trendwest purchase by rolling it into our mortgage. They told my husband he deserved a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. They tell you that you only get one chance at the deal (clearly not true since we’ve been four times, each time at their invitation). They will do everything they can to make you decide right then and there, and not give you a chance to think it through. This is why it’s so important to come prepared.
• Consider alternative options. Take a look at what Trendwest points are going for on eBay. In general, it’s about half the price per point, compared to what they offer at the presentations. If you buy via eBay, you miss out on some of the perks that go with points sold directly from Trendwest. If you bring it up, your salesperson will certainly tell you what you’ll miss. Typically, these perks are things like Bonus Time and classes. Be cautious, though… they don’t usually react well to bringing up the eBay alternative. We’ve been told it’s not safe, despite the fact that the sellers are reputable and provide mountains of documentation, which suggests more about the salesperson’s fear than anything else.

  The point is, though, that you should know how the market values Trendwest points. You’ll have to decide first if Trendwest makes sense for your family, and then whether the perks are worth the extra money. Due diligence is key.

• Bring a list of contacts who won’t mind being called by Trendwest. As you’re getting ready to leave (you think!), a salesperson will give you a sheet of paper and ask you to fill it with the names and contact info for people you know. Usually they will offer a modest incentive (like an entry in a drawing) if you provide ten names or more. The attitude I’ve felt here is clearly, “You are a waste of my time but I may forgive you if you provide me with leads.” I find this extremely irritating, but this is the point at which you can get your friends invited if they want to partake of the attendance incentives. Be aware, though, that typically only couples with $35k+ incomes will actually be invited.

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Now that you know what Trendwest is all about, the value question logically follows. Does it make sense to buy in?

Like most of these questions, the answer is a potentially unhelpful “it depends.” However, in the interest of helpfulness, I’m going to elaborate and tell you some of the things it depends on.

The number one, most important question is: how much do you vacation? I’d say your answer to this question is about 70% of the “big picture.” That’s because the value of Trendwest ownership is greatest if you’re already spending money on vacations. You can take the money that you’re already spending, put some of it into Trendwest, and pay for future vacations as well as the current one.

For me, this is about where the value question stops. That’s because the kind of vacations we take usually involve tents, and our annual vacation expenditures are typically less than Trendwest’s maintenance fee. However, that’s obviously not going to be the case for everyone. For instance, we don’t have kids, and that saves us a bundle in addition to being able to take vacations that would bore kids silly.

The starting point for answering this question is figuring out how much you spend on your vacations annually. If you can, break it down by type of spending: you want to know how much your lodging is costing you, because that’s where the opportunity to save with Trendwest comes in. Armed with that number, you can look at the points cost and the annual maintenance fee, and do an accurate comparison of your long- and short-term costs.

Next question: would you vacation more if it cost less? The Trendwest folks will really push this question, though they’ll treat it as rhetorical. Prepare by coming to your own conclusion (outside of the high-pressure sales environment). If you have more time than money, this might be a good opportunity.

The main thing is to be realistic when answering the question. Frankly, I have a hard time taking time off for the short trips we take, and I can’t imagine telling my clients that I’m going to be gone for two weeks. I am very happy with our weekend camping breaks, and any increase in vacation time based on savings would be minimal… for me. But this is something you’ll need to figure out for yourself, one way or the other.

What kind of vacations do you take? Where you go on vacation and for how long will really impact the relative value Trendwest holds for you. This is because they are all about lodging, but vacations include costs for travel, food, attractions, etc.

If you like to travel in your area, say, for a weekend getaway just a few hours away by car, Trendwest will almost certainly make this more affordable (provided you are vacationing often). However, if your vacations typically involve air travel, or other expensive non-lodging costs, the value goes down.

Another reality check: food. Most of the Trendwest properties boast kitchenettes, which can be a fantastic money-saver… if you’ll use them. But don’t sell yourself on a fantasy of saving money if you really prefer the convenience of dining out. Remember, this doesn’t make you a good or bad person; you just need to be aware of what you’ll really choose when it comes down to it, and make the decision based on accurate info.

Hopefully these questions help you figure out what your accommodations are worth to you. Up next, some tips for actually attending a Trendwest presentation.

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Ever since I posted a quick blurb about going to a Trendwest presentation, I’ve been getting comments, emails, and searches about Trendwest. It’s clear that people are looking for info, so I’m going to do a short series on Trendwest and you.

This first post is kind of an overview designed to help you understand what Trendwest does.

Trendwest is basically an improved timeshare program. In a traditional timeshare setup, you buy partial ownership in a property, and then are guaranteed a certain amount of time each year to use the property (a week is common). Typically, you have the same week each year at the same property. It’s much cheaper than owning a vacation home, but provides many of the same benefits.

Timeshares were really big in the sixties and seventies because of their affordability and convenience. After a while, though, some of the owners decided they wanted to mix it up a little, and started trading their weeks (”my week in Arizona for your week in Florida?”). This made the timeshare idea a bit more flexible.

Trendwest has effectively formalized the trading system and abstracted it from the “my week” concept. With Trendwest, you buy points, not time at a specific place at a specific time. Your points can then be spent for time at any of the Trendwest locations (of which there are many). This improves on the timeshare idea because you have more flexibility with less hassle.

When you buy Trendwest points, you’re buying them permanently. For instance, if you buy 12,000 points, you get 12,000 points each and every year for your one-time cost (plus an annual maintenance fee). Trendwest emphasizes this (as they should) because of the long-term value. They like to point out that you can even leave your Trendwest ownership to your kids. The comparison is “owning vs. renting”, and it mostly holds up.

In addition to their core program, Trendwest also offers some other associated perks. The one that interests me the most is something they call Bonus Time, which allows you to pay cash (instead of points) at a drastically reduced rate. You can also save up points over time and borrow ahead, both of which are convenient options for longer trips at more exotic locations.

The bottom line is, Trendwest is very convenient. In the next post, I’m going to help you consider the value they offer, and whether it might be a bargain for you.

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A very short post to tell you that I’m going to a Trendwest sales presentation on Wednesday, and if you’d like to go to one, email me at bookchiq@gmail.com with “TrendWest” in the subject and your address and phone number in the message.

What is Trendwest? A timeshare-esque company that wants you to buy into their program.

Why would you want to go? They give you free stuff. The standard offer is a trip, but we didn’t want the trip (based on the unlikeliness of our actually taking it) so we asked about gift certificates—turns out they negotiate: we will be receiving a $50 gift certificate to the Home Depot and $20 at Olive Garden.

I’m going to try out a couple of strategies for dealing with the high-pressure sales tactics (we’ve been three times already, and flat out told the scheduler that we’re not interested in buying in, but they still want us, so what the heck, we’ll take their incentives…). I’ll report back and tell you which strategies were most effective later this week. In the meantime, email me if you want me to “refer” you.

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