• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 30 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 30th Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $21,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $21 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    60,000+ subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

[2015] History of Marriott DC Point Price increases

dioxide45

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
May 20, 2006
Messages
47,368
Reaction score
18,930
Points
1,299
Location
NE Florida
Resorts Owned
Marriott Grande Vista
Marriott Harbour Lake
Sheraton Vistana Villages
Club Wyndham CWA
06/20/2010 - $9.20
$9.60
$9.85
$10.22
11/06/2011 - $10.94
$11.20
09/??/2012 - $11.64
03/??/2013 - $11.88
09/??/2013 - $11.96
??/??/2014 - $12.02
06/20/2014 - $12.12
09/11/2014 - $12.24
03/26/2015 - $12.48
06/18/2015 - $12.66
09/10/2015 - $12.92
03/24/2016 - $13.04
07/14/2016 - $13.18
12/01/2016 - $13.32
 

bazzap

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2009
Messages
4,423
Reaction score
1,240
Points
399
Location
Cirencester UK
I know that MVC do charge this per point just because they can, but I never cease to be amazed that they charge (even before the next increase) $48,285 for the equivalent of just one of our 10 weeks e.g. Club Son Antem (for which our enrolled week, even with the skim, gets us 3,625 points)
Accepting the value of Sterling has been plummeting, we have recently bought 2 more resale weeks here for little over £2,000 each.
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
I know that MVC do charge this per point just because they can, but I never cease to be amazed that they charge (even before the next increase) $48,285 for the equivalent of just one of our 10 weeks e.g. Club Son Antem (for which our enrolled week, even with the skim, gets us 3,625 points)
Accepting the value of Sterling has been plummeting, we have recently bought 2 more resale weeks here for little over £2,000 each.

The obvious answer to why they can charge that, is the vast majority of potential buyers who walk through their door on a tour/presentation incentive have no knowledge of the resale market. The resale market has virtually no visibility unless you personally go looking for it, and 99% of all potential buyers have never heard of TUG. And for that same average person, even if they did see the cheaper resale prices, the gulf is so large, the natural tendency is to think, "There must be something wrong or the resale must be a scam." People just aren't conditioned to such a large gulf between the direct price and the resale price if just confronted with that basic fact, so they look at the cheaper resale with suspicion. As a result, the typical person going into a presentation thinks the price a developer charges IS the only price.

I think the real question/statement should be, "I never cease to be amazed that people will go into a presentation, and 90 minutes later, spend $48,285 with no objective research." That, to me, is the most amazing thing.

As we discussed ad-nauseum in that other long thread recently, there are situations where spending the money for points might make sense if traditional weeks ownership or rentals don't work for a given individual, but only if that individual has thoroughly researched the options, understands the pros and cons, and can afford it. Given that points allow a person to do things today that you can't do with weeks, buying points vs. a resale week might make sense for some people. The two products aren't exactly the same any more. But when you think about it, even back in the old days when only weeks were sold by Marriott, there was still a huge gulf between the Marriott price and the resale price. So back then, the two products (Marriott Direct vs. Resale) were essentially identical, but there was still a huge gulf between the Marriott price and the resale price. That can only be explained by the lack of visibility of the resale options and people's amazing willingness to spend huge amounts of money with little or no research.
 
Last edited:

NYFLTRAVELER

TUG Member
Joined
Aug 18, 2013
Messages
749
Reaction score
42
Points
238
Location
New York Metro Area
The "price per point" may be as listed, on paper, but often it is not the case. Depending on the number of points purchased there are "discounts" not to mention that the cost-average per point is also reduced when purchasing a "hybrid" package.
 

Quilter

Tug Review Crew: Rookie
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 9, 2005
Messages
3,368
Reaction score
785
Points
498
Location
Plymouth, MI
. . .

I think the real question/statement should be, "I never cease to be amazed that people will go into a presentation, and 90 minutes later, spend $48,285 with no objective research." That, to me, is the most amazing thing.

. . . That can only be explained by the lack of visibility of the resale options and people's amazing willingness to spend huge amounts of money with little or no research.

Jim, in early 1999 we spent roughly $52K for 3 OP weeks. It wasn't totally without research. Prior to this we had signed for a timeshare in Antigua. We knew we had 17 days to come home and do some research before the end of the rescind period. Our research led us to Marriott telesales.

The product was clearly better than the property in Antigua. From that we bought out first week at $15,900. On our way to OP for the first time we stopped in Orlando and met our telesales man. He was personable and we all went out to dinner that night. He asked us what we planned to do about our 1 week. Then he said the price was increasing. We thought about it overnight and called to buy 3 more weeks (the $52K I mentioned above). In 1999 we weren't so google savvy. Late that same year, while we were staying at a Marriott hotel in Chicago, I read about about TUG in USA Today.

I almost wonder if some buyers may see resale weeks like they see resale clothing shops. There may be a Coach purse but it's used. Timeshares are not the same. The product of points is a "new idea" and does come with it's flexibility. The actual rooms, however, will be the same. Both occupants will get the "used" item.
 

frank808

TUG Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2010
Messages
4,177
Reaction score
2,333
Points
448
Location
Marriott Ko Olina Beach Club
Resorts Owned
Disney Vacation Club (Aulani,SSR,VGC,VGF) Hilton Grand Vacation Club(Bay Club, Kohala Suites, The District) Marriott Vacation Club (Aruba Surf Club, Grand Residence, Grand Chateau, Grand Vista,Harbour Lake, KoOlina,Willow Ridge & DC points)
Jim, in early 1999 we spent roughly $52K for 3 OP weeks. It wasn't totally without research. Prior to this we had signed for a timeshare in Antigua. We knew we had 17 days to come home and do some research before the end of the rescind period. Our research led us to Marriott telesales.

The product was clearly better than the property in Antigua. From that we bought out first week at $15,900. On our way to OP for the first time we stopped in Orlando and met our telesales man. He was personable and we all went out to dinner that night. He asked us what we planned to do about our 1 week. Then he said the price was increasing. We thought about it overnight and called to buy 3 more weeks (the $52K I mentioned above). In 1999 we weren't so google savvy. Late that same year, while we were staying at a Marriott hotel in Chicago, I read about about TUG in USA Today.

I almost wonder if some buyers may see resale weeks like they see resale clothing shops. There may be a Coach purse but it's used. Timeshares are not the same. The product of points is a "new idea" and does come with it's flexibility. The actual rooms, however, will be the same. Both occupants will get the "used" item.
I agree with jim. I think when people see the resale prices they immediately think there is something wrong. The difference between resale and direct is so large. I would immediately go with the old saying of it sounds to good to be true, it must be. That is probably why there is so much skepticism in regards to resale.

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
I almost wonder if some buyers may see resale weeks like they see resale clothing shops. There may be a Coach purse but it's used. Timeshares are not the same. The product of points is a "new idea" and does come with it's flexibility. The actual rooms, however, will be the same. Both occupants will get the "used" item.

Yes, in the old weeks days, the "new" timeshares from a developer and the "used" resale timeshares were virtually the same - you stayed in the same "used" room for the same seven days, with the same trading and use privileges as the owner who bought "new" and paid much more. (Except in the case of Marriott, no exchanges for Rewards Points, but that has become a almost insignificant difference for most weeks.)

But, in the new points world, the products are very different. Yes, the rooms are the same, but the "product" is more than just the room, it's also the use privileges, which are much different with points - no longer restricted to seven nights, the ability to spend more or less points to change unit size or view, a more real-time/hotel-like booking process, etc. It's not just about the room, the "process" is also part of the "product".
 

bazzap

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2009
Messages
4,423
Reaction score
1,240
Points
399
Location
Cirencester UK
Yes, in the old weeks days, the "new" timeshares from a developer and the "used" resale timeshares were virtually the same - you stayed in the same "used" room for the same seven days, with the same trading and use privileges as the owner who bought "new" and paid much more. (Except in the case of Marriott, no exchanges for Rewards Points, but that has become a almost insignificant difference for most weeks.)

But, in the new points world, the products are very different. Yes, the rooms are the same, but the "product" is more than just the room, it's also the use privileges, which are much different with points - no longer restricted to seven nights, the ability to spend more or less points to change unit size or view, a more real-time/hotel-like booking process, etc. It's not just about the room, the "process" is also part of the "product".
True, although
our recent resale weeks purchases were specifically at home resorts we plan to stay at every year
our earlier resale weeks purchases were completed prior to the cut off dates, so we have enrolled these and benefit from the same use privileges and flexibility as points purchases but at resale prices
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
True, although
our recent resale weeks purchases were specifically at home resorts we plan to stay at every year
our earlier resale weeks purchases were completed prior to the cut off dates, so we have enrolled these and benefit from the same use privileges and flexibility as points purchases but at resale prices

Yes, those of us who were late to the Marriott party are quite jealous of those of you who were able to enroll cheap resale pre-2010 weeks without buying Trust points of any kind. But alas, those of us who came after 6/2010 have no real way to play in points and obtain those benefits as cheaply as you have. The best we can do are resale points or Marriott hybrids (which still aren't truly "cheap" by resale week standards). That's what I was really addressing - why someone today would decide to buy the more expensive product.
 

mas

TUG Lifetime Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
733
Reaction score
41
Points
488
Location
Twin Cities Area
Resorts Owned
MAR BeachPlace;
Cypress Harbour;
Ocean Watch;
Canyon Villas;
We were at a presentation at the end of Jan. 2017, I don't remember what the current 'rack rate' is because when they see that you have trust points in your account, they offer points at a discount depending on the package being offered. What we were offered were pkgs ranging in price from ~ $6.50/point to $7.50/point this included both points and a week purchase.

If you believe the vacationclub website, the price/point is increasing April 1st.
 

dioxide45

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
May 20, 2006
Messages
47,368
Reaction score
18,930
Points
1,299
Location
NE Florida
Resorts Owned
Marriott Grande Vista
Marriott Harbour Lake
Sheraton Vistana Villages
Club Wyndham CWA
We were at a presentation at the end of Jan. 2017, I don't remember what the current 'rack rate' is because when they see that you have trust points in your account, they offer points at a discount depending on the package being offered. What we were offered were pkgs ranging in price from ~ $6.50/point to $7.50/point this included both points and a week purchase.

If you believe the vacationclub website, the price/point is increasing April 1st.
This isn't necessarily what the price of the points are though. The combined price is $6.50-$7.50 because they are combining it with a week that give you a very low price per electable point. The DC point price of the pure trust points part of the transaction are still close to that rack rate.
 

mas

TUG Lifetime Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
733
Reaction score
41
Points
488
Location
Twin Cities Area
Resorts Owned
MAR BeachPlace;
Cypress Harbour;
Ocean Watch;
Canyon Villas;
This isn't necessarily what the price of the points are though. The combined price is $6.50-$7.50 because they are combining it with a week that give you a very low price per electable point. The DC point price of the pure trust points part of the transaction are still close to that rack rate.

You are correct, I wasn't specific/clear enough. The points part of the offer was just under $11/point and when you add in the annual points conversion of the week offered and the price of the week the average price of the points was around $7/point. The best part of this offer is that you can purchase a resale week at a 'bargain' price from Marriott which is eligible to convert to VC points annually. One can look at this as buying points for a significantly lower price than Marriott offers for just a points purchase; of course you also have to buy a certain amount of trust points as part of the deal, but the average or combined cost of the points comes out to roughly $7/point.
 

chunkygal

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2011
Messages
446
Reaction score
55
Points
238
Location
North Georgia Mtns
Resorts Owned
DVC BWV 215 pts

MVC Kauai, Wioahai

Enrolled in DC
We are interested in getting to 7k points. We own at waiohai and can therefore point generate 5075.
Went to presentation yesterdayy. They offered us 2 thnings:

2000 points for 13+ per point
_ 595 fee we paid to enroll our week
- 1750 credit for upcoming Marriott stays in sfo at the end of this trip
- 2680 discount for being
G owners long term
And a choice of either 150 k MR points
Or a one time bonus of 2k DC points good for 2 years no maintenance fees
For a grand total of $10.80 a point plus the either or bonus and put it on the card for more MR points

OR

a bundle of a silver week Grand ocean points generator of approx 1950 points, but buying the week points bundle at 7.80 total per point.
These points would be legacy not trust as I understand it.

They are giving us 5 dAys to decide.

I know all the pros and cons and I know I could buy points on the resale for maybe I feels 9 per point after junk fees.
He explained these would not be in one account. I disagree with that from others experiences, but pointless to argue.

So this is our experience.

Nice guy Lou perillo, no pressure.
He limped our Starwood accounts explained things I didn't know about the merger and asked us what we were looking to do, not telling us what he wanted to do.

Either way we can pay cash. I will probably put the cash on the Marriott card and get more points ( I am a points junkie).
 

Saintsfanfl

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2012
Messages
8,844
Reaction score
630
Points
399
Location
Central Florida
As the price of advertised points go up, the price of resale points go down. Logic would say that it should be a direct relationship but we know from timeshare history that logic does not dictate reality. In a high pressure sales presentation the real world disappears.
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
We are interested in getting to 7k points. We own at waiohai and can therefore point generate 5075.
Went to presentation yesterdayy. They offered us 2 thnings:

2000 points for 13+ per point
_ 595 fee we paid to enroll our week
- 1750 credit for upcoming Marriott stays in sfo at the end of this trip
- 2680 discount for being
G owners long term
And a choice of either 150 k MR points
Or a one time bonus of 2k DC points good for 2 years no maintenance fees
For a grand total of $10.80 a point plus the either or bonus and put it on the card for more MR points

OR

a bundle of a silver week Grand ocean points generator of approx 1950 points, but buying the week points bundle at 7.80 total per point.
These points would be legacy not trust as I understand it.

They are giving us 5 dAys to decide.

I know all the pros and cons and I know I could buy points on the resale for maybe I feels 9 per point after junk fees.
He explained these would not be in one account. I disagree with that from others experiences, but pointless to argue.

So this is our experience.

Nice guy Lou perillo, no pressure.
He limped our Starwood accounts explained things I didn't know about the merger and asked us what we were looking to do, not telling us what he wanted to do.

Either way we can pay cash. I will probably put the cash on the Marriott card and get more points ( I am a points junkie).

The pure 2000 points bundle sounds similar to other offers reported by others on TUG. Based on your $10.80, that would make the cost about $21,600.

Even though you don't say it explicitly, I assume the bundle is the Grande Ocean Silver week (I think that would be 1925 Legacy points for a Silver Oceanside), plus the 2000 matching Trust points that you would have to buy to be able to enroll that week. So that would mean you are buying a total of 3925 points (1925 legacy and 2000 Trust). Using your blended cost of $7.80/point, that means your total cost is about $30,600. According to the Marriott resales web site, a Silver Oceanside Grande Ocean is $6600, so that means the 2000 Trust points are costing you $24,000 or $12/point. (Maybe you could negotiate and ask, "Why can't you still give me the $10.80 price with the incentives, since I'm still buying 2000 Trust points PLUS a legacy week." That would drop the cost to $28,200 or $7.18/point.

The only thing to be careful about is the maintenance fee per point ratio for the Grande Ocean week if you decide to go that route - the maintenance fee of $1454 for 1925 legacy points means those points are costing you $0.76/point per year rather than the $0.53/point for Trust points. We have a similar situation with our Silver Barony Beach Club week that was bought using a similar bundle a few years ago, but the bundle still made sense because we saved so much upfront versus a pure points purchase. The other advantage is you get a week that you can either use or trade and get more value than electing for DC points, but the point value still counts toward your ownership tier.

And your figure of $9/point for resale points is way high - I think the going rate is $4 to $5 per point resale, plus $2 in junk fees - so $6 to $7 per point total. Some have reported points passing ROFR at lower levels than that, but those appear to be the averages.

I guess if you think you need the additional points, option #2 is a better deal (added to your Waiohai, you would have a total of 9000 points). But if all you want to do is get to 7000, then option #1 would be less money.
 

chunkygal

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2011
Messages
446
Reaction score
55
Points
238
Location
North Georgia Mtns
Resorts Owned
DVC BWV 215 pts

MVC Kauai, Wioahai

Enrolled in DC
You are right about the maintenance fees in grande ocean and although being near hhi living I. Ga, the silver weeks are time we may or may not go. October is one of my favorite times there. We also own Dvc hhi and boardwalk. We usually go to hhi on dvc. We may sell dvc which after 20 years has held it's value more, but less interesting now that kids are grown.

I am not interested in getting to 10000 as whatever I need more tnan 7k I can rent.

Thank you for your thoughtful reply neighbor from NC.

My recollection was wrong about the resale points. I could not remember if the 4 was before or after junkfees.


I think I will go for the option #1
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
You are right about the maintenance fees in grande ocean and although being near hhi living I. Ga, the silver weeks are time we may or may not go. October is one of my favorite times there.

Silver season in HHI is Feb/Mar, November, and Christmas/New Years Weeks. October is Gold season. Having said that, we were able to trade our 2017 Silver Barony for a Gold season week (September 2017) at Grande Ocean. We got the match last November about 10 months out. We had reserved Week 12 at Barony for deposit, which is usually the highest demand Silver week. Others on TUG had told me that trading a good Silver HHI week for Gold season in HHI should be very doable, and that proved to be the case. In a couple weeks, we are going to try to reserve week 12 for 2018, and in 2018, week 12 is the week before Easter. Since a HHI Easter week should have greater trade power than the 2017 week, I'm not sure what we'll try to request with that, if we can get it. That's the advantage of the bundle -- you get a week to either trade or elect for points -- but as you say, if your goal is just to get to 7000, spending the extra $9000 for the bundle may not be worth it.
 
Last edited:

catharsis

TUG Member
Joined
May 23, 2010
Messages
446
Reaction score
84
Points
238
The pure 2000 points bundle sounds similar to other offers reported by others on TUG. Based on your $10.80, that would make the cost about $21,600.

Even though you don't say it explicitly, I assume the bundle is the Grande Ocean Silver week (I think that would be 1925 Legacy points for a Silver Oceanside), plus the 2000 matching Trust points that you would have to buy to be able to enroll that week. So that would mean you are buying a total of 3925 points (1925 legacy and 2000 Trust). Using your blended cost of $7.80/point, that means your total cost is about $30,600. According to the Marriott resales web site, a Silver Oceanside Grande Ocean is $6600, so that means the 2000 Trust points are costing you $24,000 or $12/point. (Maybe you could negotiate and ask, "Why can't you still give me the $10.80 price with the incentives, since I'm still buying 2000 Trust points PLUS a legacy week." That would drop the cost to $28,200 or $7.18/point.

The only thing to be careful about is the maintenance fee per point ratio for the Grande Ocean week if you decide to go that route - the maintenance fee of $1454 for 1925 legacy points means those points are costing you $0.76/point per year rather than the $0.53/point for Trust points. We have a similar situation with our Silver Barony Beach Club week that was bought using a similar bundle a few years ago, but the bundle still made sense because we saved so much upfront versus a pure points purchase. The other advantage is you get a week that you can either use or trade and get more value than electing for DC points, but the point value still counts toward your ownership tier.

And your figure of $9/point for resale points is way high - I think the going rate is $4 to $5 per point resale, plus $2 in junk fees - so $6 to $7 per point total. Some have reported points passing ROFR at lower levels than that, but those appear to be the averages.

I guess if you think you need the additional points, option #2 is a better deal (added to your Waiohai, you would have a total of 9000 points). But if all you want to do is get to 7000, then option #1 would be less money.
Surely if the *only* objective is to reach 7k then the cheapest way is to add 2k resale points and pay the junk fees ... Total cost probably 13k all-inclusive including junk fees. ( And possibly lower ... See recent updates on ROFR thread)

And why add points which cost .76 per point in MF when any number of points can be rented for less.


Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
Surely if the *only* objective is to reach 7k then the cheapest way is to add 2k resale points and pay the junk fees ... Total cost probably 13k all-inclusive including junk fees. ( And possibly lower ... See recent updates on ROFR thread)

And why add points which cost .76 per point in MF when any number of points can be rented for less.


Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

Valid points. Since the OP only needs 2000 points, I think the resale+junk fees option might make a lot of sense. For larger purchases (at least 3000 to 4000 or more points), the per point prices of most bundles winds up being fairly close to the average resale+junk purchase price, so for those larger amounts, I would probably opt for the bundle from Marriott for the extra security that Marriott can't restrict usage at some point in the future. We need about 3750 to 4000 points to get to the 7000 point level ourselves, so if we ever opt to do that, we'll probably go the bundle route, if we can find a good week with a reasonable mf/point ratio that we might also want to use and can get the bundle at somewhere around $7/point (that is, unless the ultra cheap price that GregT was able get for resale points becomes the new norm).

As far as the $0.76 maintenance fee cost for the companion week, we have the same situation with our Silver Barony, and that's why we have opted not to elect for points for 2017 and 2018. We get more value using it as a week - our September trade to Grande Ocean would cost at least 3500 points, but our Silver week is only worth 1625. However, the points value of the week still counts toward our ownership tier, and in a year when we need a few more DC points, we can still elect without forking out additional cash to rent a comparable amount of points. I like that flexibility, but the ability to actually use the week is what makes it an attractive option for us.
 

catharsis

TUG Member
Joined
May 23, 2010
Messages
446
Reaction score
84
Points
238
Valid points. Since the OP only needs 2000 points, I think the resale+junk fees option might make a lot of sense. For larger purchases (at least 3000 to 4000 or more points), the per point prices of most bundles winds up being fairly close to the average resale+junk purchase price, so for those larger amounts, I would probably opt for the bundle from Marriott for the extra security that Marriott can't restrict usage at some point in the future. We need about 3750 to 4000 points to get to the 7000 point level ourselves, so if we ever opt to do that, we'll probably go the bundle route, if we can find a good week with a reasonable mf/point ratio that we might also want to use and can get the bundle at somewhere around $7/point (that is, unless the ultra cheap price that GregT was able get for resale points becomes the new norm).

As far as the $0.76 maintenance fee cost for the companion week, we have the same situation with our Silver Barony, and that's why we have opted not to elect for points for 2017 and 2018. We get more value using it as a week - our September trade to Grande Ocean would cost at least 3500 points, but our Silver week is only worth 1625. However, the points value of the week still counts toward our ownership tier, and in a year when we need a few more DC points, we can still elect without forking out additional cash to rent a comparable amount of points. I like that flexibility, but the ability to actually use the week is what makes it an attractive option for us.
I completely see the logic of buying a week which is a good rented or trader but not very points rich IF you need the points to get to a higher tier because as you say one does not *have* to trade for points. But the OP is not in that situation and so the hybrid doesn't make much sense for them.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 

SunandFun83

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2012
Messages
505
Reaction score
69
Points
239
Location
Margaritaville
Resorts Owned
Marriott: Canyon Villas, Grande Vista, Ocean Pointe
Hyatt: Coconut Plantation, Hyatt Pinion Point
The retail price for points is such a painful conversation to watch. I know the uninformed first time buyers are dropping hard cash on their first tour. But, why are long time owners paying $50,000 to $100,000 or more for new points?

Points are abundantly available in the secondary market. Yes Marriott charges a junk fee to transfer that works out to $2 a point. Go to redweek.com and find points listed at $4 or $4.50 with a reputable broker. Need a name , PM me.

Marriott might take $4.00 with ROFR, $4.50 will probably pass. With closing cost and $2 transfer fee, your total cost is $6.75 a point. Buying a Silver anything week to get a hybrid with points is a waste of money. You can usually reserve a silver MGO with an A/C for $189. Why would you ever want to pay $1,300 maintenance fees forever for a $189 value week.

I bought points at these prices. It can be done, Do not let the agent push you to $5 or $6 to pass ROFR, just try again at $4.50. If you have already found TUG, do not pay $13 for points that you can buy for $6.75.
 
Joined
Feb 14, 2017
Messages
67
Reaction score
22
Points
18
Resorts Owned
Monastero
There is excellent analysis in this thread of the boondoggle known as destination point purchases and the boondoggle of buying "hybrid" weeks that either rent very cheaply or can be obtained with an A/C. I cannot fathom buying the lifelong ridiculous maintenance fees. I cannot fathom people spending 50-100K on these points, then participating in threads discussing the anxiety of competing with other "owners" to book what they want.
 

JIMinNC

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,879
Reaction score
4,429
Points
599
Location
Marvin, NC (Charlotte) & Hilton Head Island, SC
Resorts Owned
Marriott:
Maui Ocean Club
Waiohai Beach Club
Barony Beach Club
Abound ClubPoints
HGVC:
HGVC at Sea World
Marriott might take $4.00 with ROFR, $4.50 will probably pass. With closing cost and $2 transfer fee, your total cost is $6.75 a point. Buying a Silver anything week to get a hybrid with points is a waste of money. You can usually reserve a silver MGO with an A/C for $189. Why would you ever want to pay $1,300 maintenance fees forever for a $189 value week.

I bought points at these prices. It can be done, Do not let the agent push you to $5 or $6 to pass ROFR, just try again at $4.50. If you have already found TUG, do not pay $13 for points that you can buy for $6.75.

Many Hybrid Bundles can result in a net cost per point of $6.50 to $7.50, so those are very competitive with the cost of resale points. Also, not all bundles are built around Silver weeks. Many bundles are built around Gold or Platinum weeks and still result in cost per point in that same range. Even Silver weeks can be good values. We used our Silver Barony Beach Club to easily trade into September (Gold season) at Grande Ocean. That same September booking would have taken 3500-4000 points at a maintenance fee cost of roughly $1900 to $2100, or at a cash cost of around $2700 on Marriott.com (yes, I know, rental from owner is cheaper, but we don't book that way, as I've discussed ad-naseum in other posts). Buying a Hybrid for the same cost as resale points gives you greater value because you can choose to play in either weeks or points.

As far as the $189 A/C option, I've found those can be hit or miss and there's no guarantee that there will be an A/C available when you want to go. With the Silver week, we don't have to hope for an A/C. But having said that, I think we will rarely if ever use our Silver week in season unless we decided we wanted to go over the Christmas holiday sometime. We bought it as part of a hybrid as an inexpensive way to get a usable number of points to test drive the DC system, with the added advantage of being able to use it as a trader for shoulder season trips.

Plus, if we decided to ditch the Silver week at some point, we could broker it through Marriott Resales and probably recoup about two-thirds of our purchase price (since they have increased the retail price of our week by $400 since we bought three years ago). Factoring in that residual value, by the end of this year, or certainly by 2018, we will have already recouped the full cost of that week with the trips we've booked as weeks (trades) or from electing points. (Admittedly, electing for points on a Silver week is not a great value due to the mf/point. We will do so only when we absolutely need those points to book something we really want, and then only if point rental doesn't work for that situation.)

There is excellent analysis in this thread of the boondoggle known as destination point purchases and the boondoggle of buying "hybrid" weeks that either rent very cheaply or can be obtained with an A/C. I cannot fathom buying the lifelong ridiculous maintenance fees. I cannot fathom people spending 50-100K on these points, then participating in threads discussing the anxiety of competing with other "owners" to book what they want.

If you can't fathom it, then don't buy it. It's not right for you. But there are also many other financial analyses on TUG that show that, for many of us, owning is anything but a boondoggle. We save money over time when compared to cash bookings. I can honestly say, if I had to pay the $3000+ cost for a cash booking at Barony or a similar property for Heritage PGA week in HHI, there is no way we would be going next month...and we certainly wouldn't be going again in September to Grande Ocean, thus spending almost $6000 in cash to book two weeks in Hilton Head for 2017. If we hadn't owned our old non-Marriott timeshare on Maui from 1999-2014, there is no way we would have paid what it would have cost to book a 2BR condo on Maui seven times over those years.

You continue to characterize others' well-thought-out plans that happen to be right for them as boondoggles just because their approach is not right for you. No one should buy without thorough analysis and research, and ownership is not for everyone - and it's clearly not for you - but don't paint everyone with that same brush.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Feb 14, 2017
Messages
67
Reaction score
22
Points
18
Resorts Owned
Monastero
There is a vibrant rental market all over the world for timeshares, condos, wholly owned homes, we've rented them owner direct or through third parties like VRBO, Redweek. Timeshares routinely rent for half of the Marriott rack rates. I see little validity in analysis predicated on comparisons to rack rate.
On the really big thread there was discussion of a weekly rental during the HHI Heritage Golf course. In a two minute search I found two bedroom Monarch overlapping the last two golf rounds for $1750. The week prior there were numerous listings at $1100. Our friends just returned from HHI golf weeks, friends rented Barony and GO each for a week. The first week of March a two bedroom Barony was $900 and the GO week rented for $ 1000. NO maintenance fees.
 
Top