RCI Points windfall

[Slwags]

So I recently bought a Grandview 122,000 point account resale. Everything went smoothly and just finalized. The RCI transfer went through and apparently I received the previous owners points account? Is that normal. While that was a surprise apparently the previous owner not only didn't use the current years points he didn't use the previous years either. I had 244,000 points in my account and since I can borrow from 2019 it says I have 366,000 available.

I never intended to use the Grandview and planned to exchange out multiple times each year but I dont think I can even use that many without losing some.

Thoughts?

 

[rickandcindy23]

Congratulations on the windfall. I would be ecstatic. Be sure to bank them and maybe invest in upgrading the membership to Platinum. My RCI Platinum membership has been better than my other membership because I tend to get my ongoing searches fulfilled, where my regular account gets very few matches.

I wouldn't know what I was missing, if I had just one account. Platinum is just better.

 

[jbiza]

Check the use year for the points & you should be able to extend the use for at least 1 additional year after that use year ends. If you upgrade to RCI Platinum, that should be another additional year you can extend for.

It would probably be better to have more points to use than less, which will give you flexibility when exchanging for locations that require large amounts of points.

Also, if you are concerned about losing points after you do ¨exchange out multiple times a year¨, because of such a large amount, you could always gift/donate some of the points to another TUG member & can transfer them for free as an RCI Platinum member to another RCI Points member.

That would be kinda cool in the spirit of the holidays & paying it forward as is often done in different ways on TUG (since you received a nice windfall of unexpected points anyway).

 

[AwayWeGo]

Congratulations on the big points bonus. Getting it el freebo as a surprise makes it all the more fun.

With that many points to play with, for sure I would spring for RCI Platinum, for all the reasons described above. (Shux, even with our paltry points allocation we're still mulling over going Platinum with RCI.)

We are at the opposite end of the Grandview scale -- the triennial version of a 49,000-point 1BR unit worth 16,333 points per year.

Ideally instead, we would have bought a triennial worth 1/6 of 122,000 points. Either those were not offered by the timeshare company, or all the people who bought'm like'm so well that they're not reselling (at least, not on eBay).

We got tired of waiting for 1 to show up on eBay & settled for the minimal Grandview triennial unit that we have now. (If we ever do spy 1 of those maximum-value 1BR Grandview triennials, we'll jump all over it like a duck on a June bug.)

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[breezez]

Congratulations on the big points bonus. Getting it el freebo as a surprise makes it all the more fun.

With that many points to play with, for sure I would spring for RCI Platinum, for all the reasons described above. (Shux, even with our paltry points allocation we're still mulling over going Platinum with RCI.)

We are at the opposite end of the Grandview scale -- the triennial version of a 49,000-point 1BR unit worth 16,333 points per year.

Ideally instead, we would have bought a triennial worth 1/6 of 122,000 points. Either those were not offered by the timeshare company, or all the people who bought'm like'm so well that they're not reselling (at least, not on eBay).

We got tired of waiting for 1 to show up on eBay & settled for the minimal Grandview triennial unit that we have now. (If we ever do spy 1 of those maximum-value 1BR Grandview triennials, we'll jump all over it like a duck on a June bug.)

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

I had 294K in at 98K Grandview account I bought. Plus 1 years I could borrow like an idiot I bought another and got 196K in that one. In both cases they reset the use year to current use year points. I just extended the ones I had left for 2 more years.

At the time I didn’t realize just how far these points go. I have used the heck out of them. But am accumulating them faster than I can burn them even using 50% of my annual allotment on plus partners stuff.

They make for great get aways for friends and family too.

But the one thing I noticed if you didn’t have a points account previously when they create your account they created a use year based on month it went in my name. Technically you would think you would get points when your week is taken or on your weeks anniversary.

You can see your actually original points date looking at your resort management account profile data.

Eventually I may sell of one of mine as 196K is too much for me with my other intervals I have.

 

[DannyTS]

I may be soon in a similar situation, I would get 2019 and 2020 points. It would not be a windfall though, just part of the deal. Do the saved and current points follow the same rules upon transfer as the points earned in the member's account? Can they be extended the same way? If not, I may have difficulties spending them all this year especially because the 2020 travel plans are finalized.

I am reading the comment made by @breezez , if I understand correctly all transferred points become current year regardless of the year they come from?

 

[SteelerGal]

Bump

 

[rboesl]

I am in a similar situation which promises to become even more problematic next year. Due to a trip I had to cancel I have 151,380 current use year points. These points will go unused as I already have 5 trips booked for 2020. One of which was free thanks to Vacation Village and two that were 50% at Vidanta RM & NV as part of an upgrade. Then I will have my 2021 allocation 224,500 points added to that. My wife & I usually stay in 1BRs that average about 35,000 points. With a total of 375,880 available that gives me enough to book 10 weeks. Yikes!

I've offered to friends & family but so far no takers. We usually only travel 4 or 5 weeks each year. In 2021 we planned 1 of those weeks to be at a Vidanta resort and another of those weeks to be at a Villa Group (UVCI) resort. I guess that means we should probably look into using some of those points for something other than resort stays. Not the best way to use them but better than having them go unused.

But, I do have a question for the group. Some have mentioned donating points to a charity. If you do so, how do you value them for tax deduction purposes?

 

[Eric B]

I’ve seen a number of ads on the TUG marketplace wanted section by people looking to buy points without the continuing obligation of owning a TS. Going rate seems to be a penny a point, which I would consider to be the fair market value if donating them, or you could consider selling them, bearing in mind the RCI terms don’t allow for commercial use for what that’s worth. I’ve responded to the want ads and transferred some points that I couldn’t use in the past, in a non-commercial transaction, of course.

 

[bluehende]

I am in a similar situation which promises to become even more problematic next year. Due to a trip I had to cancel I have 151,380 current use year points. These points will go unused as I already have 5 trips booked for 2020. One of which was free thanks to Vacation Village and two that were 50% at Vidanta RM & NV as part of an upgrade. Then I will have my 2021 allocation 224,500 points added to that. My wife & I usually stay in 1BRs that average about 35,000 points. With a total of 375,880 available that gives me enough to book 10 weeks. Yikes!

I've offered to friends & family but so far no takers. We usually only travel 4 or 5 weeks each year. In 2021 we planned 1 of those weeks to be at a Vidanta resort and another of those weeks to be at a Villa Group (UVCI) resort. I guess that means we should probably look into using some of those points for something other than resort stays. Not the best way to use them but better than having them go unused.

But, I do have a question for the group. Some have mentioned donating points to a charity. If you do so, how do you value them for tax deduction purposes?

Disclaimer....I am not a tax advisor.

I would assume two ways would work. If you can find what the charity got for the points use that. If not that then figure out your cost per point and deduct that. Unless you are donating a huge amount either way should not raise eyebrows at the IRS.

 

[CPNY]

I’ve seen a number of ads on the TUG marketplace wanted section by people looking to buy points without the continuing obligation of owning a TS. Going rate seems to be a penny a point, which I would consider to be the fair market value if donating them, or you could consider selling them, bearing in mind the RCI terms don’t allow for commercial use for what that’s worth. I’ve responded to the want ads and transferred some points that I couldn’t use in the past, in a non-commercial transaction, of course.

You can transfer points between RCI members? So If I cant use my points in a given year I can say rent them to you and just transfer them out? Is that within RCI guidelines? In reverse, if I’m short points, I can rent from an owner and have them transferred into my account?

 

[Eric B]

RCI Platinum allows you to transfer points for free. Might be a fee w/o platinum.

Oh, to be clear, you can’t rent to me because I don’t need any.

 

[CPNY]

I

RCI Platinum allows you to transfer points for free. Might be a fee w/o platinum.

Oh, to be clear, you can’t rent to me because I don’t need any.

don’t have RCI and not trying to rent them to you lol. I was just throwing out a scenario