Exploring a resale at Kierland

[Tucsonadventurer]

We have been considering Hawaii but are wary about the high MFs. We have started looking at Kierland mainly using it for trading , hopefully every other year to Hawaii and once in a while renting it out. How difficult is it to rent kierland? What sort of pricing for rents can you expect? We are looking at the 2 bedroom platinum 148,000 SO.
We have been discouraged by what Interval is doing with Hyatt so had been holding off and postponing a decison. Do you anticipate that changes will be made to the Vistana system next or do you think resales are still a good option? I know there are no guarantees but we would not be using the week to stay at Kierland itself so want to make a wise choice.

 

[vacationtime1]

Platinum season at Kierland rents well; March is best. The past three years, we have rented the two bedroom unit for $3,325 - $3,650 (MF's are currently $1,495).

 

[mjm1]

We have an annual 1BR and an EOY 1BR, but have yet to stay there. We will next year. In the meantime, we have used StarOptions to stay on Maui, Harborside and even St John. We will be staying at Lagunamar (Cancun) this coming January. As Robert mentioned, a Platinum unit works best both for rentals and the StarOptions you receive.

The only downside is the higher purchase price. That said, we have been very happy with our ownership and highly recommend WKV.

It is hard to say how ILG's ownership of Vistana will impact things in the future, but hopefully any changes won't have a significantly negative impact.

Best regards.

Mike

 

[r1lee]

I use kierland and our new svv for trading. So far no issues.

 

[Tucsonadventurer]

Platinum season at Kierland rents well; March is best. The past three years, we have rented the two bedroom unit for $3,325 - $3,650 (MF's are currently $1,495).

Thank you
Interesting. How difficult is it to get a March week?

 

[r1lee]

Thank you
Interesting. How difficult is it to get a March week?

I own a march, but it's a float in platinum plus. I guess you just need to be online and book.

 

[DavidnRobin]

Thank you
Interesting. How difficult is it to get a March week?

I have had no problem reserving at 10-12 months out.

 

[mjm1]

Thank you
Interesting. How difficult is it to get a March week?

We have not had any problems reserving a unit in March. I usually make the reservation right at the 12 month mark to have the best shot at getting what we want.

Mike

 

[Tucsonadventurer]

I saw platinum and platinum plus for only slightly more. What is the difference? Thanks to everyone for all the helpful info.

 

[tschwa2]

You need to look at the dates. At one point the highest level at that resort was called platinum. They changed the designation to platinum plus. What they call the unit isn't important. You want one that floats 1-21 and 50-52.

 

[RJones]

Is there a high demand for Gold resales?

 

[DavidnRobin]

Is there a high demand for Gold resales?

No. But depends on price.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Sea Six]

We go every year 3rd week of January for the Barrett-Jackson auction, and all the others as well. There's one set up in front of the hotel.

 

[dioxide45]

Is there a high demand for Gold resales?

From a MF per StarOption ratio, it is a poor value. You get a better ratio at SVV. Unless you want to go to Kierland in gold season, they don't have a lot of value.

 

[vacationtime1]

From a MF per StarOption ratio, it is a poor value. You get a better ratio at SVV. Unless you want to go to Kierland in gold season, they don't have a lot of value.

The MF/SO ratio is poor, but the purchase price for a summer week in Arizona should be approximately $1, so the total annual cost (MF + imputed value of capital) is actually quite low.

That said, MF/SO ratio is better for gold+ season (weeks 22-27 & 36-39).

And it is a cheap Interval trader with a Vistana preference.

 

[VacationForever]

The MF/SO ratio is poor, but the purchase price for a summer week in Arizona should be approximately $1, so the total annual cost (MF + imputed value of capital) is actually quite low.

That said, MF/SO ratio is better for gold+ season (weeks 22-27 & 36-39).

And it is a cheap Interval trader with a Vistana preference.

But you can get better Vistana II trader than that. SDO 1-52 or true platinum have much lower MF for II trading.

 

[vacationtime1]

But you can get better Vistana II trader than that. SDO 1-52 or true platinum have much lower MF for II trading.

The small side one bedroom at Kierland has MF's of $577 (+ VSE membership) -- about the same as the small side one bedroom at SDO (of which I used to own two).

What I like about owning Kierland rather than SDO is the availability of StarOptions. 37000 SO's don't do a whole lot by themselves, but they can be used to "top off" other StarOptions, creating a second method of use, something SDO doesn't.

 

[VacationForever]

The small side one bedroom at Kierland has MF's of $577 (+ VSE membership) -- about the same as the small side one bedroom at SDO (of which I used to own two).

What I like about owning Kierland rather than SDO is the availability of StarOptions. 37000 SO's don't do a whole lot by themselves, but they can be used to "top off" other StarOptions, creating a second method of use, something SDO doesn't.

It may make sense to someone who is already paying VSN club dues.

 

[vacationtime1]

It may make sense to someone who is already paying VSN club dues.

Agreed. We already had three Vistana units when we bought the 37K Kierland unit so the VSN fee was $0.

What does not make sense here is to buy the large side unit off season (44000 or 30500 SO's); the MF's are too high to use as either a trader or for SO's.

 

[dioxide45]

The Gold Plus weeks at Keirland have a higher MF per SO than the Platinum weeks at SVV. In fact, it is about $4 more per 1000 SOs. For an SO trader, I am not sure it makes much sense to go after Gold Plus WKV when SVV is so plentiful. The small 1BR is a pretty bad value, but the large 1BR in Platinum Plus season is pretty good. Though nothing beats the Platinum Plus 2BR-LO.

 

[skibummer]

The Sheraton Vistana Villages (Bella and Key West) sections are mandatory and include StarOptions on resale. They are plentiful and cheap and will give you more SO/MF than a gold WKV week. I recently picked up two Sheraton Vistana Villages Bella 2 bedroom non-lockoff units that come with 81,000 StarOptions with each ownership week: an annual 2 bdr (non-lockoff) Platinum week for $611 INCLUDING all closing/transfer costs off eBay, and the same size/season in an ODD year usage for $500 (I used LT Transfers for that transaction). My VSN fees for those weeks are $0. After the first week with a VSN fee of $140, a second week VSN fee is $45 and any additional weeks do not incur a VSN fee. This allows you to add biennial units, or smaller units to "top off" your SO points without paying a higher fee as you pay 1/2 of the annual MF each year for a biennial, but you still pay the VSN fee each year and only get every other year usage. It's best to own the biennial weeks, or smaller units as a 2nd, 3rd or more weeks to reduce the VSN fee as a part of the total annual cost. Best places to find cheap SVV units are eBay, TUG marketplace, MyResortNetwork, and Redweek. Good hunting.

 

[suzannesimon]

We have been considering Hawaii but are wary about the high MFs. We have started looking at Kierland mainly using it for trading , hopefully every other year to Hawaii and once in a while renting it out. How difficult is it to rent kierland? What sort of pricing for rents can you expect? We are looking at the 2 bedroom platinum 148,000 SO.
We have been discouraged by what Interval is doing with Hyatt so had been holding off and postponing a decison. Do you anticipate that changes will be made to the Vistana system next or do you think resales are still a good option? I know there are no guarantees but we would not be using the week to stay at Kierland itself so want to make a wise choice.

I bought Kierland last year - 2 bedroom Platinum and we used it this last March. I rented it for
March 2018 several months ago for $4000. Very happy with the purchase.

 

[Tucsonadventurer]

wow. Where did you advertise?

 

[suzannesimon]

Redweek, TUG, Vacation Candy. It rented in Redweek by a broker.