Marriott VC Owners Please Help - Resale? Trades? Do you Recommend?

I am hoping to purchase a week at the Marriott Vacation Club in St Thomas (Frenchman's Cove). I am working with a salesperson from the Marriott, but also am very interested in the resale market. Some questions:

- I've heard that if you buy on the resale market, you don't get to convert your property to points every other year. Is this true? Are there any other drawbacks? Can I trade just as easily with a resale as with one bought from Marriott?

- I'm also curious about trading. I would want to go in October, which happens to be Silver. If I buy silver, will I still be able to trade easily within the Marriott system? I've heard from the sales guy that because it is a 2 bedroom island property with ocean views, it should be easy to trade. Is this true?

- From reading the posts, it sounds like most people trade for the year on 1 day - the first day they are allowed. Is this necessary? When is this date? What if I go on a few months before I would like to travel - will I be out of luck for other high demand island properties?

- The current pre-construction pricing for a silver week is $20,500. If I buy on the resale market, I have heard about 35% off is what I can expect. Is this right? Most people are asking about $17K. Can I expect to get closer to $14K? For $17K I would probably just buy from Marriott, since I get the points, which I would likely use as an avid Marriott member.

Thank you so much for your time. I really hope to hear from all Marriott owners on this and the program in general.

Some answers follow questions: ( This is my opinion...others may differ)

davidm726 wrote:

I am hoping to purchase a week at the Marriott Vacation Club in St Thomas (Frenchman's Cove). I am working with a salesperson from the Marriott, but also am very interested in the resale market. Some questions:

- I've heard that if you buy on the resale market, you don't get to convert your property to points every other year. Is this true?

YES, it is true. Did he advise you that some Marriott allow every year tradeback for points? And some MVCI do not allow points trade backs at all?

Are there any other drawbacks? NO So far, no other drawbacks from buying resale over developer.

Can I trade just as easily with a resale as with one bought from Marriott?

Yes, everything else is the same as of today. FYI= T/S management companies are notorious for changing rules in the middle of the game. Marriott is not ( yet) one of these type companies.

- I'm also curious about trading. I would want to go in October, which happens to be Silver. October is an ultra SLOW month for teading in the T/S world. It is still hurricane season, most kids are in school, so the parents are unable to travel. I would assume you would get into those units quite easily, EVEN WITHOUT A MARRIOTT PURCHASE - in October. Ask me about Easter Week, or Christmas. ( I've seen top Four Seasons weeks listed as trades for my studio Marriott in October ( Four Season is the highest rated T/S in several T/S forums. ( The one just N of San Diego)

If I buy silver, will I still be able to trade easily within the Marriott system?

Yes. You may have a hard time getting an Easter week in St Thomas, Aruba. Problem here is the II filters. Your 5 star status will prevent other lesser units from showing up on the trade availability charts the VC or you can access.

I've heard from the sales guy that because it is a 2 bedroom island property with ocean views, it should be easy to trade. Is this true?

Maybe. II, RCI, independent exchange companies all like the bigger units better....they trade stronger. BUT....October isn't very strong.

And IMO, a lock out at those maintance fee & taxes for Marriott go a lot longer in value. There are not lock outs, are they?

- From reading the posts, it sounds like most people trade for the year on 1 day - the first day they are allowed. Is this necessary?

You can reserve excatly one year from when you want to travel via MVCI. They give you 13 months leeway if you OWN 2 or more MVCI units. What the problem here is the float time. When you buy MOST MAR MVCI weeks, they float in a period. That period has some very excellent travel dates. If YOU want those travel dates, you must call within one minute of exactly one year out. And many owners do not get that float week they want if they call 10 minutes late.

Why? Because if they aren't going to use them, they can rent them for a ton of money....but only the top weeks.

When is this date? What if I go on a few months before I would like to travel - will I be out of luck for other high demand island properties?

Probably, unless you get lucky. Remember, the main property demand is not the wonderful or spartan resort. IT IS THE TIME.

Right now, there are tons of plain Jane beach front or near beach front units in SE & SW Florida that are motel conversions ....some apartment hotels pre WW2 that are inpossible to get into during Jan, Feb, March and April. It opens in May, then shuts tight again end of June throughfirst 2 or 3 weeks in Aug....why? The kids are out of school.

- The current pre-construction pricing for a silver week is $20,500. If I buy on the resale market, I have heard about 35% off is what I can expect. Is this right?

Check on Redweek or even E bay. Right now a MAR Monarch (HHI) beachfront 2 bed 2 bath non lockout is selling for less than $2000.

Some Plat Manor Club Marriotts 2 bed 2 bath (Williamsburg) have been sold without ROFR kicking in at $7200. I think they were in the $20,000 range via MAR Developer pricing.

Most people are asking about $17K. Can I expect to get closer to $14K? Have you checked Redweek? Myresortnetwork.com ? I think it will get lower after sellout. Many on the www.tugbbs.com were uncomfortable at that location.

For $17K I would probably just buy from Marriott, since I get the points, which I would likely use as an avid Marriott member.

Thank you so much for your time. I really hope to hear from all Marriott owners on this and the program in general.

Last spring & winter, Marriott had a sale on the reward points ( remember...they are travel reward points, like AA miles & High Honor Hilton) for ONE PENNY A POINT. Unless you are an expert on how to use the points to full advantage, they are probably not worth it. Several on tug have learned how to squeeze these points ( which are not inflation proof, buy the way) to their max. Most can't.

Figure it this way. You MUST still pay the maint fees and taxes on the week you are giving to MAR. You will also have other fees...plenty.

I don't know how many points they want to give for your week, but many say value them at two cents each. Most returned 2 bed 2 bath weeks earn 125,000 points upon turn in. If you want another 2 bed 2 bath unit in the MAR system, it will cost 150,000 points....NO MATTER what season you try to get.

Interval will have extra vacations listed in the slow times. I have seen tons in October for a week in a MAR 2 bed 2 bath for less than $500.

I never thought to note St Thomas. Please do yourself a favor. Learn much more of what you need to know at the www.tugbbs.com site ( free) and check the Marriott Forums.....and the other forums as well.

Please just say no until you learn exactly how these things work. Guess what? The deal will still be there 10 weeks from now. Don't give away your $$ so easily

kekouri wrote:

Some answers follow questions: ( This is my opinion...others may differ)

davidm726 wrote:

I am hoping to purchase a week at the Marriott Vacation Club in St Thomas (Frenchman's Cove). I am working with a salesperson from the Marriott, but also am very interested in the resale market. Some questions:

- I've heard that if you buy on the resale market, you don't get to convert your property to points every other year. Is this true?

YES, it is true. Did he advise you that some Marriott allow every year tradeback for points? And some MVCI do not allow points trade backs at all?

Are there any other drawbacks? NO So far, no other drawbacks from buying resale over developer.

Can I trade just as easily with a resale as with one bought from Marriott?

Yes, everything else is the same as of today. FYI= T/S management companies are notorious for changing rules in the middle of the game. Marriott is not ( yet) one of these type companies.

- I'm also curious about trading. I would want to go in October, which happens to be Silver. October is an ultra SLOW month for teading in the T/S world. It is still hurricane season, most kids are in school, so the parents are unable to travel. I would assume you would get into those units quite easily, EVEN WITHOUT A MARRIOTT PURCHASE - in October. Ask me about Easter Week, or Christmas. ( I've seen top Four Seasons weeks listed as trades for my studio Marriott in October ( Four Season is the highest rated T/S in several T/S forums. ( The one just N of San Diego)

If I buy silver, will I still be able to trade easily within the Marriott system?

Yes. You may have a hard time getting an Easter week in St Thomas, Aruba. Problem here is the II filters. Your 5 star status will prevent other lesser units from showing up on the trade availability charts the VC or you can access.

I've heard from the sales guy that because it is a 2 bedroom island property with ocean views, it should be easy to trade. Is this true?

Maybe. II, RCI, independent exchange companies all like the bigger units better....they trade stronger. BUT....October isn't very strong.

And IMO, a lock out at those maintance fee & taxes for Marriott go a lot longer in value. There are not lock outs, are they?

- From reading the posts, it sounds like most people trade for the year on 1 day - the first day they are allowed. Is this necessary?

You can reserve excatly one year from when you want to travel via MVCI. They give you 13 months leeway if you OWN 2 or more MVCI units. What the problem here is the float time. When you buy MOST MAR MVCI weeks, they float in a period. That period has some very excellent travel dates. If YOU want those travel dates, you must call within one minute of exactly one year out. And many owners do not get that float week they want if they call 10 minutes late.

Why? Because if they aren't going to use them, they can rent them for a ton of money....but only the top weeks.

When is this date? What if I go on a few months before I would like to travel - will I be out of luck for other high demand island properties?

Probably, unless you get lucky. Remember, the main property demand is not the wonderful or spartan resort. IT IS THE TIME.

Right now, there are tons of plain Jane beach front or near beach front units in SE & SW Florida that are motel conversions ....some apartment hotels pre WW2 that are inpossible to get into during Jan, Feb, March and April. It opens in May, then shuts tight again end of June throughfirst 2 or 3 weeks in Aug....why? The kids are out of school.

- The current pre-construction pricing for a silver week is $20,500. If I buy on the resale market, I have heard about 35% off is what I can expect. Is this right?

Check on Redweek or even E bay. Right now a MAR Monarch (HHI) beachfront 2 bed 2 bath non lockout is selling for less than $2000.

Some Plat Manor Club Marriotts 2 bed 2 bath (Williamsburg) have been sold without ROFR kicking in at $7200. I think they were in the $20,000 range via MAR Developer pricing.

Most people are asking about $17K. Can I expect to get closer to $14K? Have you checked Redweek? Myresortnetwork.com ? I think it will get lower after sellout. Many on the www.tugbbs.com were uncomfortable at that location.

For $17K I would probably just buy from Marriott, since I get the points, which I would likely use as an avid Marriott member.

Thank you so much for your time. I really hope to hear from all Marriott owners on this and the program in general.

Last spring & winter, Marriott had a sale on the reward points ( remember...they are travel reward points, like AA miles & High Honor Hilton) for ONE PENNY A POINT. Unless you are an expert on how to use the points to full advantage, they are probably not worth it. Several on tug have learned how to squeeze these points ( which are not inflation proof, buy the way) to their max. Most can't.

Figure it this way. You MUST still pay the maint fees and taxes on the week you are giving to MAR. You will also have other fees...plenty.

I don't know how many points they want to give for your week, but many say value them at two cents each. Most returned 2 bed 2 bath weeks earn 125,000 points upon turn in. If you want another 2 bed 2 bath unit in the MAR system, it will cost 150,000 points....NO MATTER what season you try to get.

Interval will have extra vacations listed in the slow times. I have seen tons in October for a week in a MAR 2 bed 2 bath for less than $500.

I never thought to note St Thomas. Please do yourself a favor. Learn much more of what you need to know at the www.tugbbs.com site ( free) and check the Marriott Forums.....and the other forums as well.

Please just say no until you learn exactly how these things work. Guess what? The deal will still be there 10 weeks from now. Don't give away your $$ so easily

Thank you so much for all the great information. You have given me A LOT to think about. One additional question, if I may - you referenced a lockout. From what I've gathered, if you have a two bedroom lockout, you can use it for a week, or you can split it, and use it as a 1 bedroom for a week, and trade the other half for a week somewhere else. Is that right? Does that also mean that if you buy a biennial you could either have a 2 br every other year or a 1 br each year at that property?

Also, based on my experiences, the Marriott properties are all gorgeous and I trust the name. I am not as familiar with other TS companies. Are there others that generally have the same level of quality?

Finally, if I don't own a TS, are there places to search for extra inventory deals like you referenced? The rents I've seen for the St. Thomas Marriott on this and other sites are all closer to $2K for October, not $500.

Not all timeshares are the same.....BUT MANY PEOPLE DON"T CARE....just want clean and safe

One of the biggest problems with T/S and fractional ownership when exchanging is the blindness and downright lies the places show as ... from both the owners and management companies. If most want beach front, and need a time that can fit, everyone would take a Marriott, Hyatt, Four Seasons ( the real Four Seasons), Hilton, Westin and some other Sheratons.

But, most will not be able to trade into those type units...( sometimes its a quality issue, usually they waited too long to exchange) So....they settle on something less. I promise, the kids don't see much of a differend as long as the sand & water are near, ot the MOUSE is, or that fishing & swimming lake....clean and safe, but what upsets most is the lies....of what to expect, and then be let down.

Most here would say when a T/S salespersons lips move, there a lie vocalizing...or info they know is supressed . This industry is very dirty.

I checked II and it is too late to try to find something in Oct on St Thomas. I could go the RCI.....but I did find a Marriott Aruba week for $370. I found tons of Cancun Royals in Nov ( Royals are all 5 star) for around $500 in a one bedroom full kitchen. A 2 bed 2 bath was just over $600. ( All are per week, for the unit)

I don't think my search week would turn up several on St Thomas, because II has my info linked to Marriott 5 star and the places were filtered out. I think one on St Thomas is having very bad lawsuits with the management companies, and maybe trading has stopped?

Not all resorts have lock outs. And not all management companies allow owners to use their lock outs in the same way. In most (Like Marriott) YOU chose a week in the float time, and the YOU pay a small fee to MAR to lock it out. Then you have your two weeks in the time you picked....of course the best time in the float you could possibility find.

The next step is to either use the two units any way you want....at this point, you can still stay there or rent it out. You can give one week or both to an exchange company and they will deposit your weeks into your account.

But once you give the weeks in to RCI or II, you have lost some sontrol. You can not rent the weeks you get in exchange.

In II, if they think your weeks are powerful enough, they MAY give you a accomodation week ( AC) or bonus week...usually for your one bedroom side...not the studio. (Now, your one week has returned to you 3 weeks.) On tug, it is usually reported that Four Seasons weeks locked out will get four weeks ( one week = 4 weeks.

ACs do have a service charge as to what size unit you want, and is restriced as to some resorts. You can usually get a one sized upgrade from you lockout...ie a one bedroom will get two, a studio will get one. However, is weaker times, many have reported getting a 2 bed 2 bath Marriot for the studio.

Just remember, Marriott is not a point system. They only deal in weeks. Their point system is simply a travel reward program.

Hope this helps. Most here is spelled out on the tug Marriott Forums

You or your family may even qualify for affinity websites run by RCI, II, and Trading Places.

I also volunteer for the VA, was there this AM, and help RCI & II distribute info for Vets, Active & Reserve US service to distribute left over weeks cheap. (Well, it used to be cheap...$129 a week....now its 329 a week)

Is anyone in your family a vet, a government worker (any) or a vet?

kekouri wrote:

You or your family may even qualify for affinity websites run by RCI, II, and Trading Places.

I also volunteer for the VA, was there this AM, and help RCI & II distribute info for Vets, Active & Reserve US service to distribute left over weeks cheap. (Well, it used to be cheap...$129 a week....now its 329 a week)

Is anyone in your family a vet, a government worker (any) or a vet?

My brother is active military, how who would he contact to get a week?

Remember these are 'leftover weeks'

RCI sites:

All active duty reserves, retired :

www.afvclub.com (Using this site will provide a donation by RCI to the military facility of the users choice. When Marriott was first noticed on this site, it appeared they wanted the weeks off the site- so for the last few years, I haven't seen Marriott-they have abour 1/8th of their units trade via both. Hilton isn't ashamed to let their weeks stand, however - as HGVC....nor is Wyndham/Fairfield/Worldmark and Sheraton)

Your brother can let you use his account....however upon checkin, they can ask for the ID card.

All other US & CAN government workers:

www.getravelop.com

All USA & CAN Vets:

www.veteransholidays.com

(All above site are open to browse for anyone. There are also certain Almuni groups that share the above search engines.)

Interval International & Trading Places:

www.govarm.com ( the Trading Places has had very last minute rentals for less than $100 a week.....but airfare would be a killer) Usually, this site is more expensive than the RCI sites above..

None of the above weeks can be re rented. They can, however, be gifted. They MAY ask for a credit card for check in.

kekouri wrote:

Remember these are 'leftover weeks'

RCI sites:

All active duty reserves, retired :

www.afvclub.com (Using this site will provide a donation by RCI to the military facility of the users choice. When Marriott was first noticed on this site, it appeared they wanted the weeks off the site- so for the last few years, I haven't seen Marriott-they have abour 1/8th of their units trade via both. Hilton isn't ashamed to let their weeks stand, however - as HGVC....nor is Wyndham/Fairfield/Worldmark and Sheraton)

Your brother can let you use his account....however upon checkin, they can ask for the ID card.

All other US & CAN government workers:

www.getravelop.com

All USA & CAN Vets:

www.veteransholidays.com

(All above site are open to browse for anyone. There are also certain Almuni groups that share the above search engines.)

Interval International & Trading Places:

www.govarm.com ( the Trading Places has had very last minute rentals for less than $100 a week.....but airfare would be a killer) Usually, this site is more expensive than the RCI sites above..

None of the above weeks can be re rented. They can, however, be gifted. They MAY ask for a credit card for check in.

kekouri wrote:

Your brother can let you use his account....however upon checkin, they can ask for the ID card.

Actually with the AFVC the member has to book the week, not a guest. The member can book as many weeks as they choose for members of their family or friends. There are some very good deals there.

Using the AFVC (retired national guard member) we're going to the Orlando area in December to a two bedroom Gold Crown resort.

We're paying $371 for 7 nights, and even though the weeks have gone up in price from $129 to $329 (+tax) over the years they are still a good deal. We're paying $53.11 a night.

RCI's Extra Vacations and Last Call Vacations have recently added taxes also. This formerly was not the case, the amount posted was the final price, so be sure and add taxes when booking one of the above vacations. Our taxes came out to $42.77.

JayJay Have you ever tried the www.govarm.com site? The II search engine section is exactly the same as the II search engine for the members getaway section, except the prices are a bit higher.

kekouri wrote:

JayJay Have you ever tried the www.govarm.com site? The II search engine section is exactly the same as the II search engine for the members getaway section, except the prices are a bit higher.

No, haven't tried the govarm.com site. I mainly peruse AFVC and RCI Last Call. I could have saved money by going with RCI Last Call if I had waited a bit longer to book our December vacation, but I didn't want to take any chances as we definitely wanted a 2 bedroom gold crown unit at a certain resort. RCI had not yet listed their Last Call Vacations for December when I booked with AFVC. RCI Last Call has some fantastic deals.