geoffb
TUG Member
We attended a meeting for VCI owners in Cancun last Tuesday. My understanding is that they will be having a meeting like this every week for some period of time.
The meeting was a presentation and Q&A with Roger Sherman (head of Royal Resorts sales and marketing) and Richard Sutton. I took the opportunity to thank Mr. Sutton in person for 29 great years at VCI after the meeting.
The presentation outlined the history of the trust and the proposal made in September 2005 to the members and then went on to describe a revised plan based on the survey that members received at that time. The stated goal of the plan presented is to offer "maximum value to members."
They stated that VCI will be offered for sale on the open market later in 2006 to guage the market value and see if the assessment done recently is accurate (approx. $40 million).
At the same time members will be asked to decide if they want to reinvest their residual rights and renew their membership at VCI for an addtional 30 years. If 75% of the 10,251 memberships reinvested the trust will be renewed and the remaining membership residuals will be paid in full. If not... the resort will be sold and all members will get approximately 45% of their residual rights in cash if the assessed value is accurate.
IF the trust is renewed for 30 years....
* based on owner feedback, the $20 million renovation to the property proposed in September 2005 will be reduced to an $8 million infrastructure upgrade. Members do not want major upgrades to the villas. Also, the resort will not be closed for 6 months for a further savings of $2.4 million.
* current VCI members who choose to renew will have first right of refusal for their current unit/interval and may be asked to make this decision as soon as April 30, 2006.
* current VCI members may also choose to purchase different units and intervals, and may also choose to purchase additional intervals. (How to do this fairly is being worked out now.) Members who want to change their unit and interval may be asked to make this commitment as soon as June 30, 2006, to lock in the 50% discount.
* all renewals and new purchases by VCI members would have any residual rights applied at 100% cash value and also a 50% discount on the list price of the unit. In my case this means I can renew my week 11 unit at VCI for 30 years for less than $2,000 after the discount and residual rights credit.
* members at other Royal Resorts are NOT eligible for the 50% discount.
* at the time of purchase/renewal the unit can be retitled. After that units may not be retitled until 2009 except in the case of death of an owner.
* VCI would remain a Royal Resort (probably with the same name, a suggestion by an owner at the meeting to change the name to The Royal Cancun was NOT popular). Maintenance fees would rise 3-10% due to new ammenities like heated pools.
It was acknowledged that the April 30 and June 30, 2006, deadlines may not be realistic and are subject to change.
All VCI owners should watch the mail for a postcard with information for registering for updates on the trust online or by phone. We were told that the mailing had probably gone out after we arrived in Cancun and some cards may need to be sent again because of an error by the mailing house.
This is a brief summary of the meeting from my handwritten notes, there was an extended discussion with the members present after the presentation. I do not speak for the Royal Resorts but I would be happy to try to elaborate or answer any questions if I can.
-G
The meeting was a presentation and Q&A with Roger Sherman (head of Royal Resorts sales and marketing) and Richard Sutton. I took the opportunity to thank Mr. Sutton in person for 29 great years at VCI after the meeting.
The presentation outlined the history of the trust and the proposal made in September 2005 to the members and then went on to describe a revised plan based on the survey that members received at that time. The stated goal of the plan presented is to offer "maximum value to members."
They stated that VCI will be offered for sale on the open market later in 2006 to guage the market value and see if the assessment done recently is accurate (approx. $40 million).
At the same time members will be asked to decide if they want to reinvest their residual rights and renew their membership at VCI for an addtional 30 years. If 75% of the 10,251 memberships reinvested the trust will be renewed and the remaining membership residuals will be paid in full. If not... the resort will be sold and all members will get approximately 45% of their residual rights in cash if the assessed value is accurate.
IF the trust is renewed for 30 years....
* based on owner feedback, the $20 million renovation to the property proposed in September 2005 will be reduced to an $8 million infrastructure upgrade. Members do not want major upgrades to the villas. Also, the resort will not be closed for 6 months for a further savings of $2.4 million.
* current VCI members who choose to renew will have first right of refusal for their current unit/interval and may be asked to make this decision as soon as April 30, 2006.
* current VCI members may also choose to purchase different units and intervals, and may also choose to purchase additional intervals. (How to do this fairly is being worked out now.) Members who want to change their unit and interval may be asked to make this commitment as soon as June 30, 2006, to lock in the 50% discount.
* all renewals and new purchases by VCI members would have any residual rights applied at 100% cash value and also a 50% discount on the list price of the unit. In my case this means I can renew my week 11 unit at VCI for 30 years for less than $2,000 after the discount and residual rights credit.
* members at other Royal Resorts are NOT eligible for the 50% discount.
* at the time of purchase/renewal the unit can be retitled. After that units may not be retitled until 2009 except in the case of death of an owner.
* VCI would remain a Royal Resort (probably with the same name, a suggestion by an owner at the meeting to change the name to The Royal Cancun was NOT popular). Maintenance fees would rise 3-10% due to new ammenities like heated pools.
It was acknowledged that the April 30 and June 30, 2006, deadlines may not be realistic and are subject to change.
All VCI owners should watch the mail for a postcard with information for registering for updates on the trust online or by phone. We were told that the mailing had probably gone out after we arrived in Cancun and some cards may need to be sent again because of an error by the mailing house.
This is a brief summary of the meeting from my handwritten notes, there was an extended discussion with the members present after the presentation. I do not speak for the Royal Resorts but I would be happy to try to elaborate or answer any questions if I can.
-G
