Original Message:
Wyndham's new "Ovation" program offers exit solutions for their owners... interested? (by Lee K.):
I am a Shell owner which in the last couple of years was purchased by Wyndham. I have know that down the road I will have to exit from ownership due to age or health. Now that Wyndham I see no improvements, they want you to pay more for services. Shell would tell us to sell go to a reseller, but in the same breath they would say now if you go to a reseller and buy points, they would not be treated like Shell sold points, i.e. can not be used to obtain any elite status.
Wyndham, Shell, Hilton and all the rest are leaving a fortune on the table with no satisfactory exit plan cause it encourage the bad taste people get in their mouth when they say the word, timeshare.
I would propose that they have a simple plan that helps both seller, buyer and Timeshare brand. If you want to sell, come up with a set percentage discount off the original purchase price the seller purchased the points or weeks for. They are then turned over to the "Brand", Wyndham/Hilton/whoever to sell. The Brand/Resort is much better equipped to sell them in a quicker period of time then a reseller would be. The seller could still use the points till sold. Once sold the resort will have new cash in it's pocket, a happier seller cause they feel that they were treated well and the new owner would start ownership knowing that they do have a out clause when the time comes.
Example you own $20,000 in points, you know that when you want to sell you'll get 30% back. Maybe that not a great return on dollars,( think of it like a car, it's value will be less when you go to buy another new one, but we still go buy that new one.) but hopefully you had a great many vacations were you've thousands not going to hotels. So the resort now sells the points for the new current price which is $28,000. (Shell always tells me at updates that points cost to add on are always higher then what I purchased them for.) So The timeshare company just made an additional $22,000 and they still get to charge their yearly fees.
TimeShare companies want everything their way, they say sell at resellers, but then they say Don't buy from resellers, they can't have it both ways. If they just give us a fair deal, we'll all be happy and they will get richer faster.
People always say we're fools for buying a timeshare, okay resorts, lets prove them wrong!