My stance is to rent rather than buy. I want all young people, including my millennial kids, to build their own wealth. I want the OP and all young families to vacation together and make memories.
Whether I rent from an owner or whether you own a Marriott TS - the end product is really the same. The TS unit I rented three years ago from a Waiohai owner was the same as the next door unit occupied by the "owner". I just paid much much less for the same product. Different procurement. I paid $2000 for the week and the "owner" shelled out huge amounts in upfront cost and yearly fees. When he tires of the TS he probably won't recover much of what he paid.
For us and other owners we met years ago the appeal wanes over time. Kids lose interest and frankly I did too. We wanted to show our kids more of the world.
Rent from an owner, the process is easy. I don't expect seasoned posters to start doing this but newbies need to know how easy it is. You exchange a few emails or phone calls, mail in a check, check with Marriott to make sure your name is on the reservation. This is the alternative to shelling out big bucks to own some points. Give it a try before you buy.
The only issue I take with what you are arguing are the blanket statements. I am 100% in agreement that the typical buyer who goes to a developer presentation and buys on the spot should rescind and study their alternatives in more depth. But what we're talking about here is the OP - GoldenVIKE - who clearly did his homework and appears to be able to afford what he has decided to do. In that case, I find his decision perfectly fine because it was an informed business decision based on his priorities and what he could afford. His decision may not be right for you, but after much study and consideration, he thinks it's right for him. Given the goals he laid out and the fact that he seemed to have similar concerns as I do about private owner transactions, I think that decision is probably the right one for him, as ours was for us. It may not be the right call for you, since you are obviously very comfortable with private transactions. But as Quadmaniac just said in post #191, "You can't paint everyone with the same brush."
When I give advice on the rent vs. buy decision here on TUG, I always preface my advice by saying if you are a person that is comfortable with owner rental transactions, then buying is probably never a good idea. If you're a bargain hunter willing to do what it takes to get a bargain, then you should never, ever think about buying points, maybe not even a resale timeshare week. There are better ways to find the ultimate low price vacation. At the same time, I will
always point out the potential pitfalls of the owner rental approach, if for no other reason than to provide the newbie with a counter-point or alternative perspective than the "conventional" wisdom here on TUG, but I will always say that in the end, it really depends on what your priorities are, what you can afford, and where your comfort zone is. One size definitely does not fit all.
So I'm just reacting to the broad brush statements that say "Always rent from an owner" and to do otherwise means you're doing it wrong. If there is any one thing that bugs me about the advice given on TUG it is that point - a lack of recognition that not all newbies are uninformed and that what works for YOU works for ME. Also, remember getting the absolute lowest price is not the top priority for everyone. For some, flexibility, choices, and control in how the reservation is selected and booked are important as well. While you are correct the accommodations the renter and the "owner next door" have are the same, the process they went through to get that accommodation was different with respect to the factors I mentioned - flexibility, control, choice, etc.
Well put and very true that renting is probably the most flexible option when most times you can rent for very little more than the MF, it doesn't make sense to buy as you would never come out ahead, especially when it comes to points. Even with the hybrid purchase at $7.50 a point or resale at say $5-6/point, it will take many many many trips (like 50-100x) to come out ahead buying points vs renting points. Current MF for points are $0.53 and renting points $0.50-60. At $0.50 you are paying less than owning the points. At $0.60 points, you still have to rent those points 100x (0.06) to break even with the resale point purchase. Add on top of that you never have to worry if you decide not to travel that year or wanted to travel more, you just rent more or less or none at all. There is never a worry about passing on the points or what happens if you pass away, what your estate will have to do to liquidate it. No commitment and a better deal.
I think it also needs to be said, even with thousands of points, it does not always guarantee you availability. You can be shut out of being able to book a reservation.
I agree with your comments as it relates to renting points. Frankly, the only reason we will ever seriously consider an additional points purchase beyond our current ownership (3375 Trust + Enrolled Points), is to get to Executive status so we can take advantage of the ability to book short stays at 12 or 13 months out instead of 10 months. I don't have the same concern about point rentals as I do week rentals because as soon as the point rental transaction is finalized, those are MY points and I can use them to book accommodations just like my owned points and I still control my reservations.
We are well aware that JiminNC has issues with renting and the lack of control, but his concerns and fears are not shared by the vast majority of people as rentals occur all day long. Is there a potential to get scammed ? Absolutely, but there are precautions you can take and in most cases, you are dealing with honest owners looking to rent out their units. You can't paint everyone with the same brush. There will be honest and dishonest people no matter what deal or , but I believe if you do your homework, the chances are quite low.
I agree that private rental transactions are popular with most TUGgers and that I am in the minority here (but even in this thread, there were several TUGgers who expressed the same reluctance that I have), but I'm not sure that I agree that the "vast majority of people" do it that way. I have no hard data to support my belief, but I would almost be willing to bet that the total number of transactions done on sites like VRBO, HomeAway, Redweek, AirBNB, and other direct owner-to-renter sites pales in comparison to the number of more traditional bookings made on sites like marriott.com, hilton.com, orbitz.com, expedia.com, etc. In general, I think people are just more comfortable dealing with a company or a professional corporate booking site. No prepayment required; liberal cancellation privileges, etc.
