Some comments from my experience as an owner. We own in both seasons at NCV...
1. Buy a resale platinum. If you can get one for 17K, go for it. Call or e-mail Seth Nock and see what he has.
2. Concurrently, consider buying a resale blue (summer) week at MDS (Desert Springs Villas #1). It books during the same period as the summer weeks at NCV that you want, so you can book consecutively at 13 months out, bettering your chances of getting the NCV interval you want. MDS does not have ROFR and can be had pretty cheap (~5K or less sometimes). Talk to Seth about that too. MDS locks off and you can exchange it into something else.
3. Platinum NCV trades well in the MVCI system. I never traded for anything but a Marriott. Got MAW (Waiohai) without difficulty our first year. We're no longer with II, choosing to rent on our own or deposit with one of the independents. The Platinum intervals qualify for bonus weeks in almost any system. They rent for 2300-2500 without issue.
4. From your handle, it appears you live in California. IMO, buying a fairly local timeshare is smart, as you can easily get to it to occupy, if you want. NCV is a great location, seperated from the rancor of the LA basin, but still close to important things and with easy access to the beaches. It's about 15-20 minutes from SNA (John Wayne Airport). I would estimate that it is about 2/3-3/4 built out (no idea of sales), so there's still upside for appreciation of your intervals. Resale intervals there are still going for less than what we paid developer in 2003, but the difference is now ~20% or so.
If you'd like an unbiased (both the good and the bad) opinion about NCV, contact me privately.
Good luck!
Pat