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Marriott Stockholm Syndrome and questions about resale points/weeks

Bill4728

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Interesting how this turned into a Vistana thread. As a Marriott owner you lost me on all the resort abbreviations.

To the OP question: I own all resale weeks. Only 1 is enrolled and I a have never used points to book. I own all lock offs always split and deposit my units in II. I love my Marriott’s. My goal is to pay as little as possible and I get great value from what I own. Fees always increase though. When I bought Shadow Ridge the MF was in the $800 range they are now in the $1600 range. It’s also my only enrolled week, but the DP points I get for my gold week would only get me a studio somewhere else. So II is a much better value to trade in for me.

I have realistic expectations of II. I rarely put in a request. I enjoy the hunt. If you want what you want and want to put in no effort to get it then weeks won’t work for you. You also can’t pick your view with II.

DP are expensive to buy even resale. Some are very happy with their DP. The math just doesn’t work for me. YMMV
Since you are in the club with one enrolled week you have the option of renting pts from other owners. IMHO that is a big plus. I see no reason to buy more MVC pts
 

jme

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Is it possible to enjoy the Marriott system without paying any money to the developer?
Are most of the happy Marriott owners people who purchased from developer?
Perhaps there's a bit of Stockholm syndrome going on?
Let me know if you are a resale buyer and happy with Marriott.



Per your question #2, I'd have to say a hearty YES for me personally, and I'll explain.

I purchased 5 weeks from the developer (Marriott) around 1998 and 1999. Because of that I was able to "enroll" those 5 weeks
for only $795 ($695 or $795, can't remember?) into the Destinations Club program in 2010, so now I have plenty of Destination Points
each year if so desired (17,800/year available).
And, we were able to use the "other" points program, the Rewards Points, by playing the accumulation game, enabling us
to travel to Europe more than once for free (airfare and accommodations--County Hall x 3 and Grosvenor Sq in London, & Palazzo Naiadi in Rome),
and to stay for free in great hotels all over this country (we never skimped) and in others....
England 4 times, Scotland once, and Italy twice.
And we continue to use that Rewards Points program benefit to this day,
having multiple free stays each year. We have never traded in any weeks for Rewards Points (not a good value),
we just accumulate thru other means. We reached Chairman level early on (now grandfathered),
are also now Lifetime Titanium Elite, so we benefit even more from those.
So I'm more than happy for our developer purchases.

I also purchased 5 resale Marriott weeks, the price being far less, but the benefits of additional points not there.
Doesn't matter, though, as each method has its benefits...one from Points availability, etc and the other from initial purchase price reduction.
We do use the resales for occupying, which is exactly what we want......and that frees up the other weeks for going either way.

But I can most adamantly say that I'm grateful for both methods of purchase because I have an unusual freedom
and flexibility that many don't, just because I was in the right place at the right time. Pure dumb luck, as they say.
Enrolling instead of ever buying DC Points directly to enter the points game was golden.

I have been more than happy to own all my weeks, and would not have done it differently.
For those TUG members who did it like me, I know they are satisfied too, and we are certainly not naive enough
to imagine that we ever succumbed to Stockholm Syndrome.
I can add and subtract, so I always knew what the numbers were, and we were never abused.
I would have recognized it, but it didn't happen. We knew what we had, and that is was perfect for us.
Plus, we've used all of our weeks wisely, even rented a few out to offset maintenance fees.
Many of our rental weeks will cover two maintenance fees. It's a beautiful thing.

We entered the Marriott system early thru Developer purchases, but there again, our families benefitted immensely from that
in that our children were able to grow up in the system and stay at awesome resorts.
We had great vacation weeks each year which were written in stone----that's a must for a happy family, and something that they rallied around.
We played in many ocean waters and on many gorgeous beaches, and swam in every conceivable pool configuration,
both in the US, Caribbean, & Hawaii multiple times,
skied at the 2 top Marriott resorts in Utah 6 years running (Summit Watch & MountainSide), saw dozens of castles, and rode many trains across Europe,
including the Eurostar to Paris,
and I count ourselves very lucky. Not a year goes by that our children don't bring up the subject as to how lucky they were....
and we continue to do those things, btw. We even give them weeks or points to use for their own families, and they love it.

Developer weeks: Not to have the DC Points availability now would be a bummer, as our travel habits have changed
and we can do anything we want. Too many options.
Resale weeks: We continue to have awesome vacations, and trade occasionally to visit other beloved destinations
like Boston's Custom House almost every year, Newport Coast, Manor Club, and others).
 
Last edited:

win555

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Interesting how this turned into a Vistana thread. As a Marriott owner you lost me on all the resort abbreviations.

To the OP question: I own all resale weeks. Only 1 is enrolled and I a have never used points to book. I own all lock offs always split and deposit my units in II. I love my Marriott’s. My goal is to pay as little as possible and I get great value from what I own. Fees always increase though. When I bought Shadow Ridge the MF was in the $800 range they are now in the $1600 range. It’s also my only enrolled week, but the DP points I get for my gold week would only get me a studio somewhere else. So II is a much better value to trade in for me.

I have realistic expectations of II. I rarely put in a request. I enjoy the hunt. If you want what you want and want to put in no effort to get it then weeks won’t work for you. You also can’t pick your view with II.

DP are expensive to buy even resale. Some are very happy with their DP. The math just doesn’t work for me. YMMV
good to know that a resale only owner with Marriott is also happy.

What I saw is weeks with Marriott cost less to purchase than HGVC and have comparable fees. So there is value in weeks if you are going to use those weeks regularly (sadly, this does not apply to me).


Per your question #2, I'd have to say a hearty YES for me personally, and I'll explain.

I purchased 5 weeks from the developer (Marriott) around 1998 and 1999. Because of that I was able to "enroll" those 5 weeks
for only $795 ($695 or $795, can't remember?) into the Destinations Club program in 2010, so now I have plenty of Destination Points
each year if so desired (17,800/year available).
And, we were able to use the "other" points program, the Rewards Points, by playing the accumulation game, enabling us
to travel to Europe more than once for free (airfare and accommodations--County Hall x 3 and Grosvenor Sq in London, & Palazzo Naiadi in Rome),
and to stay for free in great hotels all over this country (we never skimped) and in others....
England 4 times, Scotland once, and Italy twice.
And we continue to use that Rewards Points program benefit to this day,
having multiple free stays each year. We have never traded in any weeks for Rewards Points (not a good value),
we just accumulate thru other means. We reached Chairman level early on (now grandfathered),
are also now Lifetime Titanium Elite, so we benefit even more from those.
So I'm more than happy for our developer purchases.

I also purchased 5 resale Marriott weeks, the price being far less, but the benefits of additional points not there.
Doesn't matter, though, as each method has its benefits...one from Points availability, etc and the other from initial purchase price reduction.
We do use the resales for occupying, which is exactly what we want......and that frees up the other weeks for going either way.

But I can most adamantly say that I'm grateful for both methods of purchase because I have an unusual freedom
and flexibility that many don't, just because I was in the right place at the right time. Pure dumb luck, as they say.
Enrolling instead of ever buying DC Points directly to enter the points game was golden.

I have been more than happy to own all my weeks, and would not have done it differently.
For those TUG members who did it like me, I know they are satisfied too, and we are certainly not naive enough
to imagine that we ever succumbed to Stockholm Syndrome.
I can add and subtract, so I always knew what the numbers were, and we were never abused.
I would have recognized it, but it didn't happen. We knew what we had, and that is was perfect for us.
Plus, we've used all of our weeks wisely, even rented a few out to offset maintenance fees.
Many of our rental weeks will cover two maintenance fees. It's a beautiful thing.

We entered the Marriott system early thru Developer purchases, but there again, our families benefitted immensely from that
in that our children were able to grow up in the system and stay at awesome resorts.
We had great vacation weeks each year which were written in stone----that's a must for a happy family, and something that they rallied around.
We played in many ocean waters and on many gorgeous beaches, and swam in every conceivable pool configuration,
both in the US, Caribbean, & Hawaii multiple times,
skied at the 2 top Marriott resorts in Utah (Summit Watch & MountainSide), saw dozens of castles, and rode many trains across Europe,
including the Eurostar to Paris,
and I count ourselves very lucky. Not a year goes by that our children don't bring up the subject as to how lucky they were....
and we continue to do those things, btw. We even give them weeks or points to use for their own families, and they love it.

Developer weeks: Not to have the DC Points availability now would be a bummer, as our travel habits have changed
and we can do anything we want. Too many options.
Resale weeks: We continue to have awesome vacations, and trade occasionally to visit other beloved destinations
like Boston's Custom House almost every year, Newport Coast, Manor Club, and others).

Thanks for the explanation. I'm not sure many of the rewards points came for free though since the developer purchase was required. Not taking away anything you said about enjoying your developer or resale purchase. That's great.

As I understand it, the same variety of options and enjoyment that you had is not possible with the current status of Marriott program for someone looking to buy today.
 

jme

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Thanks for the explanation. I'm not sure many of the rewards points came for free though since the developer purchase was required. Not taking away anything you said about enjoying your developer or resale purchase. That's great.

The developer purchase was worth it in that I got cheap entry into the DC points program for a one-time fee of $695-$795 (?),
giving me availability of 17,800 DC points annually with no maintenance fee (only the Club dues of $200+).
That alone was worth a bundle.

Then, one of the incentives for each platinum week (I had two) was a "World Trip" as they called it,
and it included a 200,000 Rewards Points gift, and with that number of points you got the following:
"anywhere in world for 7 nights" (we chose London's County Hall on the Thames, very expensive otherwise)
plus "two free Airfares". Those too were very costly otherwise, so I beg to differ.
We went to England twice, flying Delta Free (x 2) and the 7 nights (x 2).... Two world trips were amazing values.
 

Mroze

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Starting a separate thread so as not to go OT in the other one.


How does one buy resale weeks and convert them to points?

Is it possible to enjoy the Marriott system without paying any money to the developer? Are most of the happy Marriott owners people who purchased from developer? Perhaps there a bit of Stockholm syndrome going on?

Let me know if you are a resale buyer and happy with Marriott.
Hi Win555,

You seem to have made up your mind that "Resale-Good", "Developer-Bad". At least that's the vibe [based on the Stockholm-Syndrome title] I get from your replies to the responses.
Sounds like you don't like what you are hearing; "Some Marriott owners who purchased Developer-Direct are also happy".
Just an assumption and I could be totally wrong.

You will always find "Happy" & "Unhappy" owners for various reasons.
For example I am a Resale + Direct-Buyer. If possible I would have liked to have bought everything resale [Cheaper] and never bought Points [Higher-MF].
I would he happiest as a Resale-Buyer, however, Marriott has incrementally made it more appealing to Enroll in the DCP-Program "Better to Belong" which has resulted in Resale-Buyers feeling excluded. The steep cost to enroll [including purchasing Points] has led to disgruntlement. As Marriott enhances the program [Vistana, Interval, SPG+Bonvoy] the more this gap will grow.

But realistically I do understand that there is "No Free Lunch" and usually when I "Pay Peanuts I Got Monkeys".
 

suzannesimon

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I have 5 MVC weeks, 4 Vistana and 1 Hyatt. 2 of the Marriotts were developer purchases and enrolled when points were offered in 2010 which gives me 10,000+ points which I never use but keep paying the dues in case I want to someday. We usually go on a timeshare vacation at least once a year, but not necessariky what I own. I discovered early on that it was a better deal to rent My weeks than to trade them or elect points. I take the money and rent where I want to go - timeshares, cruises, villa rentals etc. The timeshares are my travel fund and usually I can get a lot more rent than what the maintenance fees cost excluding hurricanes and Covid 19, nothing is risk-free.
 

csalter2

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good to know that a resale only owner with Marriott is also happy.

What I saw is weeks with Marriott cost less to purchase than HGVC and have comparable fees. So there is value in weeks if you are going to use those weeks regularly (sadly, this does not apply to me).

I am not sure what you are looking for. Can you not believe that people are actually happy with their purchase? First and foremost, the general rule of thumb on TUG is to purchase places you’d want to stay. Secondly, why would you buy a timeshare if you’re not going to use it? People use their weeks be they developer weeks or resale weeks to use, rent or trade. There is no magic to knowledge of your timeshare. Many people initially find out about timeshares and pay developer rates and then discover this site and learned how to buy resale weeks. That’s fine. However, we’ve also learned that depending on what you’re trying to accomplish, you can get great deals from the developer purchases. There are people here who love the flexibility of the points program and the removal of fees for trading, locking off, and exchange company enrollment that it offers, so they buy points or weeks direct from Marriott that allow them to bring those weeks into the program. Why do they do this because they find value in the program and like the resorts.
I liked the flexibility of points from my Diamond Resorts ownership. I wished that my Ko Olina ownership with Marriott had had that flexibility. When Marriott offered the new program in 2010, I immediately enrolled my week. I enjoyed my Hawaii week at Ko Olina and used it in conjunction with my Diamond properties. However, whenever I traveled, I loved the Marriott’s. In fact, I would often use my Diamond Points and exchange into Marriott’s when possible. In 2018, I looked for more time to travel with my kids and grandkids with retirement looming. I could have rented but I wanted to have my own time. I was going to buy resale weeks and just exchange or rent the weeks and vacation. I called Marriott just to see what they were offering. I ended up buying two weeks directly from Marriott that were enrolled in the points program that elected to well over 9000 points. What was significant was that for the number of points those weeks were valued at I could not have done better on the resale market. I and others here checked. This was 2018. Take into account the large number of incentives such as maintenance fees being paid for the first year, 400,000 rewards points, a platinum 2 bedroom deposited into Interval, etc. I was able to make up almost $10,000 of my purchase the first year with renting and the incentives. This was a developer purchase and it was not 30 years ago but 2 years ago.
So can you now see why people may be happy.
 

win555

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Hi Win555,

You seem to have made up your mind that "Resale-Good", "Developer-Bad". At least that's the vibe [based on the Stockholm-Syndrome title] I get from your replies to the responses.
Sounds like you don't like what you are hearing; "Some Marriott owners who purchased Developer-Direct are also happy".
Just an assumption and I could be totally wrong.

You will always find "Happy" & "Unhappy" owners for various reasons.
For example I am a Resale + Direct-Buyer. If possible I would have liked to have bought everything resale [Cheaper] and never bought Points [Higher-MF].
I would he happiest as a Resale-Buyer, however, Marriott has incrementally made it more appealing to Enroll in the DCP-Program "Better to Belong" which has resulted in Resale-Buyers feeling excluded. The steep cost to enroll [including purchasing Points] has led to disgruntlement. As Marriott enhances the program [Vistana, Interval, SPG+Bonvoy] the more this gap will grow.

But realistically I do understand that there is "No Free Lunch" and usually when I "Pay Peanuts I Got Monkeys".

well, you are right. I don't like the depreciation on a retail timeshare developer purchase as the developer benefits can change (and do change) often to the detriment of owners. My impression was only developer purchasers were happy with Marriott. Turns out that is not the case.

But I won't be making a developer purchase with Marriott for enrolled weeks or points. If I buy, it will be a Marriott resale week as there are some people above who have explained how they enjoy resale weeks. The impediment is I don't plan to go to the same location every year or every other year. It might be that I won't buy a resale Marriott week either not because is is not a good product, but because I'm not a good fit for it.

It's better to come to that conclusion now rather than after purchasing. I hope you understand. Thanks for indulging me.
 

win555

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I am not sure what you are looking for. Can you not believe that people are actually happy with their purchase? First and foremost, the general rule of thumb on TUG is to purchase places you’d want to stay. Secondly, why would you buy a timeshare if you’re not going to use it? People use their weeks be they developer weeks or resale weeks to use, rent or trade. There is no magic to knowledge of your timeshare. Many people initially find out about timeshares and pay developer rates and then discover this site and learned how to buy resale weeks. That’s fine. However, we’ve also learned that depending on what you’re trying to accomplish, you can get great deals from the developer purchases. There are people here who love the flexibility of the points program and the removal of fees for trading, locking off, and exchange company enrollment that it offers, so they buy points or weeks direct from Marriott that allow them to bring those weeks into the program. Why do they do this because they find value in the program and like the resorts.

What I meant is I don't plan to stay at the same place every year. Just not our travel style. With our Worldmark, we don't have to go to the same place every year.

So buying a week to use every year is a bit of leap in style that may work or may not. Hence the hesitation in buying from developer.
 

Mroze

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What I meant is I don't plan to stay at the same place every year. Just not our travel style. With our Worldmark, we don't have to go to the same place every year.

So buying a week to use every year is a bit of leap in style that may work or may not. Hence the hesitation in buying from developer.
I you buy a resale Marriott, you don't have to enroll it within the DCP-System.
You can still exchange via Interval and travel to a different destination each year.
Within Interval you can benefit from M-M Exchange preference which now includes Westin & Sheraton resorts.
Resale Marriott units also enjoy lower M-M [including Westin/Sheraton] Exchange-Fees.
 

win555

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I you buy a resale Marriott, you don't have to enroll it within the DCP-System.
You can still exchange via Interval and travel to a different destination each year.
Within Interval you can benefit from M-M Exchange preference which now includes Westin & Sheraton resorts.
Resale Marriott units also enjoy lower M-M [including Westin/Sheraton] Exchange-Fees.

I might consider doing that for a resort in Florida. It seems to be a good state to own TS for a worst case exit plan. And we can visit FL too. A lot there to keep the family entertained.



Florida – FL, inaction or non-objection results in estate, anti-deficiency foreclosure, but objection leads to judicial, deficiency action: http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0721/0721.html
https://www.flrules.org/gateway/ChapterHome.asp?Chapter=61B-37
 

csalter2

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What I meant is I don't plan to stay at the same place every year. Just not our travel style. With our Worldmark, we don't have to go to the same place every year.

So buying a week to use every year is a bit of leap in style that may work or may not. Hence the hesitation in buying from developer.

Worldmark is like Diamond so I understand. I own three weeks, but I don’t stay at any of them every year. I like visiting the world. With weeks or points resale or developer purchased you can accomplish that goal. The difference is just the consistency in quality in the Marriott resorts is higher than that of Worldmark and Diamond. That’s truly the difference.
 

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Starting a separate thread so as not to go OT in the other one.


How does one buy resale weeks and convert them to points?

Is it possible to enjoy the Marriott system without paying any money to the developer? Are most of the happy Marriott owners people who purchased from developer? Perhaps there a bit of Stockholm syndrome going on?

Let me know if you are a resale buyer and happy with Marriott.
We are satisfied overall. You have the advantage of knowing about all the current options and making the best decision. I'd start by deciding how flexible you are, when and where you want to go. That with some investigation should lead you to the best system, resorts and method to get you there. The costs are what they are so you can decide not to participate. I wouldn't count on Vistana enrollment but if they do, assume it's as much as MVC enrollment. You could buy MVC resale and enroll over the last few years. There's no guarantee the option will continue to be available but it likely will be for at least the next couple of years. You could buy retail and the weeks would be enrolled. You could buy retail pointsand you can buy resale points even cheaper. Or you could look at a "hybrid" purchase where you either buy points and resale from Marriott or weeks that come enrolled (like Aruba/St.Kitts) plus resale week(s).

We own a number of weeks all enrolled plus a few points bought resale. All of our weeks were resale except for 2 and those were strategic purchases to get additional options. We use weeks, points and exchanges all routinely. It's not cheap but I feel it's a good value for what we get and how we use it.
 

LMills

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Marriott & Vistana just like many other resort chains have Low-Value & High-Value weeks based on location and season.

Thus you can find Marriott-Weeks for $20K and some for $0. Some will even pay you to take it.
Same thing with Vistana, you can pay north of $20K for a Westin Maui [$60K for Christmas/New-Year Fixed-Week], or $15K for a Westin Kierland and pay $0 for a Harborside, Bahamas. And yes these are all resale prices.
Like @TravelTime mentioned earlier. MF in Hawaii are north of $2600 for 148100-SO while its $1600 for Westin Kierland.

BTW: These are the VSN Mandatory-Resorts.
Expect to pay Top$ for these units as they hold their resale value and trade like Direct-Purchase within VSN. However, this may change once MVCI integrates VSN shortly.
The prices also vary by season. Kierland GOLD 2BR-EY can be found for $2000 but a PLATINUM+ goes for $15K.
View attachment 22353
Thank you for this chart. What doess low-ex value/no P+ mean? I think I know the low-ex value part.
 

LMills

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Interesting how this turned into a Vistana thread. As a Marriott owner you lost me on all the resort abbreviations.

To the OP question: I own all resale weeks. Only 1 is enrolled and I a have never used points to book. I own all lock offs always split and deposit my units in II. I love my Marriott’s. My goal is to pay as little as possible and I get great value from what I own. Fees always increase though. When I bought Shadow Ridge the MF was in the $800 range they are now in the $1600 range. It’s also my only enrolled week, but the DP points I get for my gold week would only get me a studio somewhere else. So II is a much better value to trade in for me.

I have realistic expectations of II. I rarely put in a request. I enjoy the hunt. If you want what you want and want to put in no effort to get it then weeks won’t work for you. You also can’t pick your view with II.

DP are expensive to buy even resale. Some are very happy with their DP. The math just doesn’t work for me. YMMV
What does YMMV mean?
 

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WKV,WNA
HYS,HYN,HYB
Thank you for this chart. What doess low-ex value/no P+ mean? I think I know the low-ex value part due to Supply/Demand.
Low Ex-Value means Low Exchange-Value. E.g. A Sheraton-Orlando-Unit is usually not as powerful as a Westin-Maui-Unit.

MF = Maintenance-Fees.
P+ = Platinum+ Season.
SO = Star-Options/Points
Example [High-Season V Low-Season Value]
  • A Westin-Kierland P+ 2BR accrues 148100-Star-Options [points] per year with a Maintenance-Fee of $1645 [1.11¢/SO].
  • A Westin-Kierland GOLD 2BR accrues 56300-Star-Options [points] per year with a Maintenance-Fee of $1645 [2.92¢/SO].
Exchanging internally within Vistana: It takes 153100-SO for a 2BR-Premium [Sleeps-8] at Harborside-Atlantis [HRA] in summer.
  • The P+ 2BR-Unit will get you 12-Nights at Atlantis, Bahamas for $1700 in MF.
  • With the GOLD 2BR-Unit you will have to save up for almost 3-Years costing about $4473 in MF.
Reason: Within Vistana MF are based on Unit-Type irrespective of Season [High/Low].
This is why it costs much more to purchase a 2BR-P+ WKV [~$13K - $15K] while a GOLD goes for $1K-$2K. High upfront cost for lifetime of Lower-MF/High-Points-Value.

Other Benefits of owning WKV
The P+ WKV units also rent fairly easily [March Baseball-Season] for between $4K - $5K almost 3 x MF.
The 2BR WKV Units exchange well via Interval as they Lock-Off into 1BR + 1BR [as opposed to many Marriott's that split into Studio + 1BR].
 
Last edited:

LMills

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Low Ex-Value means Low Exchange-Value. E.g. A Sheraton-Orlando-Unit is usually not as powerful as a Westin-Maui-Unit.

MF = Maintenance-Fees.
P+ = Platinum+ Season.
SO = Star-Options/Points
Example [High-Season V Low-Season Value]
  • A Westin-Kierland P+ 2BR accrues 148100-Star-Options [points] per year with a Maintenance-Fee of $1645 [1.11¢/SO].
  • A Westin-Kierland GOLD 2BR accrues 56300-Star-Options [points] per year with a Maintenance-Fee of $1645 [2.92¢/SO].
Exchanging internally within Vistana: It takes 153100-SO for a 2BR-Premium [Sleeps-8] at Harborside-Atlantis [HRA] in summer.
  • The P+ 2BR-Unit will get you 12-Nights at Atlantis, Bahamas for $1700 in MF.
  • With the GOLD 2BR-Unit you will have to save up for almost 3-Years costing about $4473 in MF.
Reason: Within Vistana MF are based on Unit-Type irrespective of Season [High/Low].
This is why it costs much more to purchase a 2BR-P+ WKV [~$13K - $15K] while a GOLD goes for $1K-$2K. High upfront cost for lifetime of Lower-MF/High-Points-Value.

Other Benefits of owning WKV
The P+ WKV units also rent fairly easily [March Baseball-Season] for between $4K - $5K almost 3 x MF.
The 2BR WKV Units exchange well via Interval as they Lock-Off into 1BR + 1BR [as opposed to many Marriott's that split into Studio + 1BR].
Thank you! Great explanation.
 

DanCali

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That link on Wikipedia defined "rent-seeking" as:

rent-seeking means seeking to increase one's share of existing wealth without creating new wealth


The $3 Marriott charges is exactly that because if the "real" value of a a point on the resale market is $5, it now gets allocated 60% ($3) to Marriott and 40% ($2) to the seller. Marriott increased that fee from $1 in 2010 to $3 over time, thus capturing a greater share of the resale price.

Unfortunately, they also have an incentive to increase that fee over time because if a buyer and seller agree on $2/point Marriott can buy at $2/point with ROFR and then sell those points for $10. If tomorrow Marriott increases that fee to $4, then arguably the "real" resale value of the points is still $5, but now a buyer would pay the seller only $1 (expecting to pay $4 more to Marriott) and Marriott can buy points at ROFR for $1 and sell them for $10. Being able to double gross margins is very attractive to a public company.
 
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