# What are my alternatives to RCI?



## squierjosh (Jan 6, 2014)

I'm sure this has been discussed before, but I don't know how it works for the two TSs I own. We have an annual at Breezy Point TS and an odd year at White Birch Resorts, both in MN. They are automatically deposited into RCI, which I'm not sure how that works.

Much like everyone else, I'm getting sick of the extra fees that make it cheaper to stay in a Marriott Suite. Where else can I trade my TS into, and how is this done? We really only use them to get points and stay in either FL (around Clearwater) or near home in MN, and we plan far ahead, so I'm not overly concerned with available options if I can save some money.


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## tschwa2 (Jan 6, 2014)

If your weeks are in RCI points it is nearly impossible to exchange any other way without removing them from points. If you remove them from points they will revert back to deeded week and you can exchange through other companies that accept the deposit.  Depending in the number of points to MF's ratio or the tpu's to Mf ratio, it may be easier to give away or sell the week if it is still in points.  Once it is removed from points it takes $2000-$4000 to get it back in points.


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## Carolinian (Jan 6, 2014)

I think there are three year anniversaries at which you can remove a week from RCI Points.

DAE has been getting a fair amount of inventory in Pinellas County, Florida lately, so they might be one independent to look at.


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## squierjosh (Jan 6, 2014)

When I called before, they told me I had to reserve my own week 13 months ahead of time. If I do that, and my RCI membership expires in the meantime, I wonder if I can just stop participating at that point? Or if I use all my points for that same year?

I'm looking at Platinum Interchange as well.


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## squierjosh (Jan 7, 2014)

The manager of one of the resorts I own says to not bank my week with RCI, yet RCI requires you do that 13 months ahead of time. Can I just call them at the 13 month timeframe and say "I don't want my week deposited?"


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## Passepartout (Jan 7, 2014)

squierjosh said:


> The manager of one of the resorts I own says to not bank my week with RCI, yet RCI requires you do that 13 months ahead of time. Can I just call them at the 13 month timeframe and say "I don't want my week deposited?"



I can do exactly that at my RCI Points resort.


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## tschwa2 (Jan 7, 2014)

Yes,  At 13 months prior you call and say don't deposit my week as points.  I want to reserve my home week.  You can still decide as late as 91 days before check in to deposit it as points with RCI.  As long as your account is a points account, RCI won't verify your deposit as eligible with another exchange company.  You will need to be working to get your weeks out of the points system if you want other options.  Within the RCI points system you always have the option to reserve your home week and use it or rent it out to someone else.

Tracey


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Jan 7, 2014)

If you are always using your ownership for exchanging, IMHO it only makes sense to keep the week if the $/point is very good.  If not, it's time to dump it and find something that fits your interests better.

That could mean getting a week that gives you more points for the buck or that is tiger trader in a weeks system.  Or if there is a particular set of places you want to visit and there is a resort network that aligns with that you might consider buying into that system.  That way you avoid the exchange, but that will probably be offset by added costs of ownership in the resort system.  (You still wind up paying for the cost of being able to access many resorts.)  The real advantage of one of the mini-systems is the ability to directly reserve specific units and not be relegated to the leftover units as an exchanger.  Of if there is an independent exchange company that is particularly strong in the areas that you want to visit, find out how to get the most out of that system then buy something that matches up.

Or don't get involved anywhere and just find rentals.


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## squierjosh (Jan 7, 2014)

I'm just trying to avoid using RCI, and go through a cheaper service to exchange my week. The nickel and dime approach is making it not worth it to use RCI for anything. I'd rather not have any TS, I didn't really know what I was getting into, but I'm trying to make the best of it.



T_R_Oglodyte said:


> If you are always using your ownership for exchanging, IMHO it only makes sense to keep the week if the $/point is very good.  If not, it's time to dump it and find something that fits your interests better.
> 
> That could mean getting a week that gives you more points for the buck or that is tiger trader in a weeks system.  Or if there is a particular set of places you want to visit and there is a resort network that aligns with that you might consider buying into that system.  That way you avoid the exchange, but that will probably be offset by added costs of ownership in the resort system.  (You still wind up paying for the cost of being able to access many resorts.)  The real advantage of one of the mini-systems is the ability to directly reserve specific units and not be relegated to the leftover units as an exchanger.  Of if there is an independent exchange company that is particularly strong in the areas that you want to visit, find out how to get the most out of that system then buy something that matches up.
> 
> Or don't get involved anywhere and just find rentals.


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## squierjosh (Jan 7, 2014)

But that's still reserving my week through RCI, which I am trying to avoid. I just want to figure out how to cut the cord completely with RCI, and the timing. My account is paid through the end of 2014, so I'm thinking this year at 13 months out I'll call RCI and let them know my intention of not coming back. I just have to figure out the timing with my two TSs that I own.



tschwa2 said:


> Yes,  At 13 months prior you call and say don't deposit my week as points.  I want to reserve my home week.  You can still decide as late as 91 days before check in to deposit it as points with RCI.  As long as your account is a points account, RCI won't verify your deposit as eligible with another exchange company.  You will need to be working to get your weeks out of the points system if you want other options.  Within the RCI points system you always have the option to reserve your home week and use it or rent it out to someone else.
> 
> Tracey


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## bnoble (Jan 7, 2014)

> I'm just trying to avoid using RCI, and go through a cheaper service to exchange my week.


Steve's advice is worth paying attention to, though: perhaps the problem isn't (only) RCI, but is (also) the timeshares that you own.

Do you *ever* intend to stay in the weeks you own?  If not, then you should think very carefully about what your strategy should be---and that might well involve liquidating the weeks you own.


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## squierjosh (Jan 7, 2014)

It's hard to liquidate TS, isn't it? Nobody wants to buy them? Luckily the big one I have is a week in a 3BR, and gets me 51,000 points annually, so it might be worth something. My other TS is the one that I got suckered into buying and got me in TSs in the first place, I can't get rid of it without some issues. It's only every other year though, so maybe I can keep that one and just use RCI's other benefits to try and avoid exchange fees. 



bnoble said:


> Steve's advice is worth paying attention to, though: perhaps the problem isn't (only) RCI, but is (also) the timeshares that you own.
> 
> Do you *ever* intend to stay in the weeks you own?  If not, then you should think very carefully about what your strategy should be---and that might well involve liquidating the weeks you own.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Jan 7, 2014)

squierjosh said:


> I'm just trying to avoid using RCI, and go through a cheaper service to exchange my week. The nickel and dime approach is making it not worth it to use RCI for anything. I'd rather not have any TS, I didn't really know what I was getting into, but I'm trying to make the best of it.



As was mentioned upthread, to do something other than RCI you will need to pull your week out of RCI Points.  But as I tried to indicate in my thread, look at all of your options so that you know that where you are headed to after you leave RCI is the best place to be.

Note that "making the best of it" could mean dumping some or all of what you own, even if that means taking a one-time loss in order to avoid long-term obligations.


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## presley (Jan 7, 2014)

I had a RCI points ownership that I wanted out of points forever.  I called my resort and told them.  That year, I had already "lost" my week to points, but after that, it was just a normal timeshare week that could be traded wherever I wanted to trade it.


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## squierjosh (Jan 7, 2014)

So your resort took care of it for you? You didn't need to inform RCI? 



presley said:


> I had a RCI points ownership that I wanted out of points forever.  I called my resort and told them.  That year, I had already "lost" my week to points, but after that, it was just a normal timeshare week that could be traded wherever I wanted to trade it.


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## presley (Jan 7, 2014)

squierjosh said:


> So your resort took care of it for you? You didn't need to inform RCI?



That is correct.  I did not renew my RCI account and my week was never deposited into RCI points (or RCI weeks) after I called and spoke to resort.


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## squierjosh (Jan 8, 2014)

That sounds like my best course of action if I choose to dump RCI. I need to figure out if my weeks are worth anything with smaller exchangers first. I'm not looking for glamour, just off peak weeks in FL or MN. Shouldn't be that difficult.



presley said:


> That is correct.  I did not renew my RCI account and my week was never deposited into RCI points (or RCI weeks) after I called and spoke to resort.


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## FlaKmunKy (Jan 8, 2014)

tschwa2 said:


> If your weeks are in RCI points it is nearly impossible to exchange any other way without removing them from points. If you remove them from points they will revert back to deeded week and you can exchange through other companies that accept the deposit.  Depending in the number of points to MF's ratio or the tpu's to Mf ratio, it may be easier to give away or sell the week if it is still in points.  Once it is removed from points it takes $2000-$4000 to get it back in points.



If I am not mistaken I thought the RCI points re-instatement fee was 424USD.  Maybe if you go back through the resort it would be 2-4k but not if you do it through RCI


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