# 2013 Club Assessment Fees



## pedro47 (Nov 9, 2012)

The Club fee for 2013 is $299.00.


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## dwojo (Nov 9, 2012)

They get their share one way or another. It is still cheaper than Exchanging with II or RCI.


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## fluke (Nov 9, 2012)

It is a pretty steep increase.  It is particularly painful to the small points package owners.


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## dougp26364 (Nov 10, 2012)

In the few short years we've been members of THE Club, we've seen the fee go from $135 to $299. If it continues there will come a time when it's less expensive to deal with exchanges thru I.I. than to pay THE Club membership fee's. I can see this as being a major issue for owners with points package less then Silver Elite status.

Right now, everyone is having to deal with increases in benefits cost, which have been mandated, and it's being past on to everyone. Nothing in this world is free. Someone has to pay. Right now that seems to be a major theme across the board with the increasing fee's we've seen. I know I'm seeing the same thing with our employer as our benefits package has increased in cost significantly to both employees and our employer.


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## timeos2 (Nov 10, 2012)

dougp26364 said:


> In the few short years we've been members of THE Club, we've seen the fee go from $135 to $299. If it continues there will come a time when it's less expensive to deal with exchanges thru I.I. than to pay THE Club membership fee's. I can see this as being a major issue for owners with points package less then Silver Elite status.
> 
> Right now, everyone is having to deal with increases in benefits cost, which have been mandated, and it's being past on to everyone. Nothing in this world is free. Someone has to pay. Right now that seems to be a major theme across the board with the increasing fee's we've seen. I know I'm seeing the same thing with our employer as our benefits package has increased in cost significantly to both employees and our employer.



Remember Doug we got saddled a couple years back with a huge increase in Club costs due to the "bonus" of II Select (or Gold or Crap - whatever they call it). It is practically worthless, just an excuse to raise fees ans we are stuck with it.  $299 to run a reservation center which is all Club really is? It is quickly reaching the point of diminishing return.  $329 was our whole annual fee at our DRI (then Argosy) resort in 1993.  That value & he incredible quality of the resort was what sold us then. The high cost of Club now may be what makes us decide to drop that feature from our holdings.  At least it's easy to do. Just don't pay it & you're out.  That's sounding better all the time. 

DRI has perfected the art of portraying the improvements "they make" completely on the back of the owners PLUS massive overhead.  I like some (far from all) of the improvements but I also know who is really paying the hefty cost.


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## artringwald (Nov 10, 2012)

Here's the club fees since we joined. They actually went down one year.

2005 club fee	 $139 
2006 club fee	 $179 
2007 club fee	 $151 
2008 club fee	 $155 
2009 club fee	 $235 
2010 club fee	 $245 
2011 Club Fee	 $264 
2012 Club Fee	 $277 
2013 Club Fee	 $299


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## gravityrules (Nov 10, 2012)

fluke said:


> It is a pretty steep increase.  It is particularly painful to the small points package owners.



Yes, fixed fees like this make those ownerships even less viable.

The real 'cost' of running an internal exchange system can't be that much.
You can 'farm out' the call center part if you're so inclined (it may already be that way)
  Lower cost, that's what Information Technology is all about, right?  But even if they were using a rolodex, WATS line, and Big Chief tablet (i.e. the early years of exchanging) it shouldn't cost $299/yr !


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## nightnurse613 (Nov 11, 2012)

It's especially painful when you recall the POOR online reservation system they had in those early years which almost always REQUIRED calling in (and it was outsourced) and now the online system is greatly improved (which, as pointed out should have downsized the call center) however, the center was brought back to the States (which they pointed out necessitated the slight increase in fees).      As a side note, I own at the Villas of Sedona and am pretty pleased with the quality of the resort and the management which competes on a direct basis with the other DRI resorts in the area.  Our maintenance fees have held very steady over the years while the DRI managed facilities have....well, you know.


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## gravityrules (Nov 12, 2012)

*Villas of Sedona management?*

Isn't Villas of Sedona managed by VRI?


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## nightnurse613 (Nov 12, 2012)

Yes, exactly right.  I was trying to draw a comparison to the fact that DRI resorts in Sedona keep raising their fees while VOS has been holding pretty steady - even though they compete for housekeeping, maintenance, utilities and other "administrative" costs. Of course, the VOS Board is controlled by owners....


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## timeos2 (Nov 12, 2012)

nightnurse613 said:


> Yes, exactly right.  I was trying to draw a comparison to the fact that DRI resorts in Sedona keep raising their fees while VOS has been holding pretty steady - even though they compete for housekeeping, maintenance, utilities and other "administrative" costs. Of course, the VOS Board is controlled by owners....



IMO THE key to a truly satisfying timeshare ownership. Placing your ownership in the complete control of some corporate entity - which by definition means they are created to make profits - Can NEVER be in your financial best interest. 

Nearly every resort was created with documents that assumed owners would ultimately take control. That this idea has been subsumed into control & the operation not by those owners that has helped cause the mess Timesharing as an industry finds itself in. 

We divested of all our non-owner controlled resorts / systems.


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