Holiday Property Bond

ChrisM_2

Hi Goya

Your reply does not surprise me - we think HPB is wonderful but I doubt we would have considered it were it not that several friends were members. We would have assumed it was as much a pig-in-a-poke as other similar schemes.

One question I have - do staff members have any kind of 'perks' such as having early access to points-free holidays? I ask because we have just booked a points free at Rocha Brava, having watched the available properties dwindling as the points-free period approached. (We have no points left this year) In the last hours of the previous day, when points would still be needed, a couple of the remaining properties went, and I couldn't imagine why anyone would use their points when the next day they should be able to get it points-free! There was only one available apartment left on the day we wanted in the end, but thankfully we got it at 7.00am when online bookings went live. Just be interested to know, but I quite understand if you'd rather not reveal that kind of information.

Amarie

My parents invested in HPB around 20 years ago, so have never needed to pay any user charges. Over the years, we've enjoyed 2-3 family holidays each year. Now, with the added user charges, even recent investors we know, seem to be very happy customers and I personally wouldn't hesitate to recommend anyone else who could afford it.

This isn't a cheap/bargain option. The initial costs are substantial, but if the company were handing out weeks abroad for the price of a 3* all inclusive.. the properties would not stay 5* for long and the existing clients, who want to enjoy a relatively quiet, relaxing holiday would not exist for long.

Happy030458

HPB is managed with one aim , to make its directors money, think of it as a business plan, You are sold life insurance for a bulk investment for this investment you can use any one of many properties in europe or the Uk, properties that your upfront investment has brought, when you use these properties it will cost you on average each property will generate around £20k per yearin user charges, now each property will increase in value so the property portfolio has vastly increased over the years, so you cash in ... hey surprise you haven't even broke even, how can that happen over a twenty year period surely the bond unit price is linked to the property portfolio and I think that even in todays market you would be hard pushed to find a property that hasn't increased its value by 25% in twenty years, maybe its the huge bonuses paid to directors, who knows as for employees getting any kind of perk, well it probably depends who the employee is. I knew some one who was a manager there and he told me that when properties slumped a couple of years ago it was muted at a board meeting that it would be a good idea to get the bondholders to invest more money so that the "company could by more properties, this would be seperate from the bond and would not generate any extra benefits except for the company, gives you an insite into the way these insurance salesmen view their "punters" his words not mine.

Amarie

Happy030458 wrote: »

HPB is managed with one aim , to make its directors money, think of it as a business plan, You are sold life insurance for a bulk investment for this investment you can use any one of many properties in europe or the Uk, properties that your upfront investment has brought, when you use these properties it will cost you on average each property will generate around £20k per yearin user charges, now each property will increase in value so the property portfolio has vastly increased over the years, so you cash in ... hey surprise you haven't even broke even, how can that happen over a twenty year period surely the bond unit price is linked to the property portfolio and I think that even in todays market you would be hard pushed to find a property that hasn't increased its value by 25% in twenty years, maybe its the huge bonuses paid to directors, who knows as for employees getting any kind of perk, well it probably depends who the employee is. I knew some one who was a manager there and he told me that when properties slumped a couple of years ago it was muted at a board meeting that it would be a good idea to get the bondholders to invest more money so that the "company could by more properties, this would be seperate from the bond and would not generate any extra benefits except for the company, gives you an insite into the way these insurance salesmen view their "punters" his words not mine.

Amazing... Sounds like great business to me.. Happy customers... and filthy rich directors....All I know is I've loved my free holidays.. :T

dzug1

Well look at it this way -

Holiday Property Bond - you get a fair proportion of your money back if you cash it in

Standard time share - you probably have to pay someone to take it off your hands

Seronera

Happy030458 wrote: »

HPB is managed with one aim , to make its directors money, think of it as a business plan, You are sold life insurance for a bulk investment for this investment you can use any one of many properties in europe or the Uk, properties that your upfront investment has brought, when you use these properties it will cost you on average each property will generate around £20k per yearin user charges, now each property will increase in value so the property portfolio has vastly increased over the years, so you cash in ... hey surprise you haven't even broke even, how can that happen over a twenty year period surely the bond unit price is linked to the property portfolio and I think that even in todays market you would be hard pushed to find a property that hasn't increased its value by 25% in twenty years, maybe its the huge bonuses paid to directors, who knows as for employees getting any kind of perk, well it probably depends who the employee is. I knew some one who was a manager there and he told me that when properties slumped a couple of years ago it was muted at a board meeting that it would be a good idea to get the bondholders to invest more money so that the "company could by more properties, this would be seperate from the bond and would not generate any extra benefits except for the company, gives you an insite into the way these insurance salesmen view their "punters" his words not mine.

Spot the cynic..:D If it had all gone bust you would no doubt be posting how we had all been ripped off. You completely underestimate the financial risk the directors of the HPB took when they launched. I don't mind them being paid a decent return for doing a good job. I'd far rather they got the money than that Fred Goodwin bloke who got paid gazillions for guiding RBS into virtual bankruptcy which we have all had tp pay to bail out. You need to get your priorities sorted out mate.

I'd also commend their farsightedness. HPB spent about £8m restoring the tumbling down Trossachs Hotel into Tigh Mor Trossachs. I'm sure they got a few development grants along the way, but what the hell, its preserved one of the architectural icons of central Scotland from falling down. Nobody wanted the place until HPB stepped in. Ity now gets years round occupancy and must inject a goodly amount of cash into the economy of Callander and Perthshire as well as providing permanent employment.

You can say exactly the same for St Brides Castle stuck out on the periphery of Pembrokeshire. HPB spent a lot of money restoring it and they can be very proud of that as well.

Seronera

nigelgg

Troll Central!

smellypunks

If someone had some money to invest to help them get cheaper holidays but did not want to pay the high weekly "non profit fee" of HPB which pays for electric bill, maintenance of properties, pools, garden etc, house keeping, the managers wages, driver collection from/to airport, free internet and tv.

Is there any other option bar timeshare??????

Is there any good holiday investment for those that want good cheap holidays or is it just better to put the money in an ISA taking money to buy cheap internet holidays.

What’s the best investment for someone going into retirement who has some cash now and wants to take long holidays but a low cost. Investing now to have cheap holidays in the future but does not have enough money to buy full house.

ChrisM_2

The thing about HPB is not that it's cheap, but that it's better and you know what to expect. In order to get the most out of it you need to make a fairly substantial initial investment. The user charges are very reasonable, but not cheap.

The whole point is that the accommodation is better than most other self-catering properties out there unless you pay a fortune. The properties are suberbly maintained - and you know that the standard is guaranteed. After all, the bondholders own the properties, and they wouldn't stand for anything less. Any complaint to the management is listened to, noted, discussed, and if considered reasonable will be dealt with, and will be reported in the regular 'Bond' magazine to bondholders. There are staff on site available to deal with any queries or problems and provide you with information on the local area. Packs of walks of various lengths and levels of difficulty for all sites are available online or from reception as well as folders full of information on local restaurants and places to visit and the local history. Organised trips are available at some sites, but no pressure is put on you to join in because no-one's getting any commission for selling them! Just a bit different to your average self-catering holiday with a tour operator!

We have recently come back from a gorgeous week in Portugal, at Rocha Brava, which we booked online and 'points free' 56 days in advance. 4 of us in a delightful 3-bed, 2-bath 2-storey apartment with a huge 1st floor balcony and ground floor access to lawns. The user charge for 4 of us was £529. We were a few steps away from one of the private HPB pools, with access also to another private heated and covered HPB pool as well as the use of several other pools. A weekly HPB barbecue and quiz gives you the chance meet other bondholders and some of the staff.

This is a shared site on which HPB have 48 apartments, their own club house and the 2 pools. I had looked online at some of the private apartments and villas there offered via various holiday rental companies, mostly for a similar or much higher weekly charge, and with no guarantee of the standard of furnishing, decoration or equipment provided. It's a beautiful site, but walking round (being nosy!) while we were there it was clear that the standard of some of them left quite a lot to be desired when compared with our comfortable and very well-equipped apartment. What a disappointment when you arrived if you'd booked one online from the photos and description provided by the owner! The HPB maintenance is terrific - when a couple of light bulbs failed, they were replaced within an hour of our reporting it.

In 5 years we have stayed in HPB apartments in La Gomera, Majorca, Madeira, Portugal and an HPB tenancy in Crete, as well as several in the UK. Next year we're trying the new one in Almeria in Spain. Our kids have stayed in various UK ones with their families and loved them.

Our share in this very well-run operation is one of the most successful purchases we've made!

budgetflyer

dzug1 wrote: »

Well look at it this way -

Holiday Property Bond - you get a fair proportion of your money back if you cash it in

Standard time share - you probably have to pay someone to take it off your hands

I paid £700 for my timeshare, sold it for £800