daddyd
daddyd wrote:< I see many listed here at redweek with the unit described as "TBA" ! Is this a giveaway that that unit has been exchanged?
It is very common to see TBA in an ad from a legitimate owner. It is nothing to be suspicious or worried about.
Some people own a "fixed" deeded week meaning that they own one particular unit for the same week every year (or every other year). If they are renting their fixed week, they should be able to prove ownership by supplying you with a copy of their deed. Or the current maintenance fee bill which will usually list the Week # and Unit #. If the owner gives permission, the resort will generally verify the owner's name and address for you by phone and confirm that all fees (e.g. maintenance, taxes, Special Assessments) are paid.
But many people own "floating weeks" or Points. They need to make a reservation for whatever time they want to use. In many instances the dates they want are confirmed but they may not be assigned a particular unit until they check in. That is usually because many resorts have a combination of "fixed" weeks owners and "floating" or Points owners. They will not know which units will be available on some future date for a variety of reasons including how many "fixed" weeks owners are going to relinguish their weeks that year, how many VIP level members will be coming that week, as they are usually entitled to a unit upgrade, or preference is given to their special requests for a particular building, floor, view, etc...When I reserve a floating week, I may ask them to note some special requests on my reservation if there is a particular unit or building I like. I usually receive it but there is no obligation on the resort's part to honor my request.
It's a good idea to speak with the person running the ad by phone. You will usually get a feel for their level of rental experience, maturity, and honesty etc...
Although the overwhelming majority of the ads on RedWeek.com are posted by actual owners, some people who own only one week and seldom exchange it through RCI or I.I. honestly do not know that they are not allowed to rent a week they receive via exchange. They think that because they gave the exchange company their own week, and paid an exchange fee for the week they received, that they can do the same things with it that they are able to do with their own week.
But as jayjay pointed out, if the renter states that they will be obtaining a guest certificate in your name, this means that they are most likely planning to tell RCI or II that you are a personal friend or family member and that you will be using the unit as their guest. I suppose if neither of you say otherwise, the rental would go through without a problem. But if the exchange company finds out that it is a rental, they will cancel the reservation, impose penalties upon the member, and the unit will not be available if you show up to check in.
There is one exception to the above "rule". RCI has gone on record as stating that they would allow a member to rent out the exchanged week if they are unable to use it but they may not charge more than the price of the maintenance fees they paid for the unit they deposited, plus the exchange fee and the guest certificate fee. But RCI is notorious for changing rules so one would need to contact RCI and see if this policy still exists before proceeding with such a rental. They have (or had) this policy to assist people with an unforseen problem. But they wanted to make sure that the owner just recoups their expenses and has no ability to make a profit.
It's ironic that RCI stands accused (via a pending class action lawsuit) of renting deposited weeks to the general public for profit. But that's a whole 'nother story.
If you have any insecurity about renting a week, or do not want to be "bothered" doing "homework", you are 100% protected if you use RedWeek's escrow service.
