MVC newbie

[b3achlife]

Hi all

I did my first Abound/MVC presentation on the weekend in Florida and did some research afterwards and cancelled the contract as it was too expensive. After discovering this site, redweek and others I had no idea how complex this subject can be, it's apparent it will take time for me to become knowledgeable about this world and make smart decisions... Anyway I am looking for 3-4 weeks vaca year in a 1 or 2 bedroom that I can use with my wife and 2 kids (2&4 year olds) and we will travel globally not a problem. How many points should I need and what's the best site to buy the points? I noticed that there is a 3 dollar per point transfer fee added to any transaction, does that mean we have access to the same options as the Destinations program? (which they now call Abound). I am also Platinum Elite on Marriott Bonvoy.

Any advice appreciated!!

Thanks

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

Points are an expensive way to go. Granted they are easy to use and have great flexibility.

Instead, consider buying resale weeks as the carrying costs are generally lower. Purchase weeks that lock off so you are able to obtain two trades for each week that you buy (if you don't stay at your home Resort).

Don't do anything at all until you do your homework and study up here on TUG. Do think about spending $15 and becoming a member; it may be the best $15 that you can spend.

Best of luck and welcome to TUG.





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[b3achlife]

Points are an expensive way to go. Granted they are easy to use and have great flexibility.

Instead, consider buying resale weeks as the carrying costs are generally lower. Purchase weeks that lock off so you are able to obtain two trades for each week that you buy (if you don't stay at your home Resort).

Don't do anything at all until you do your homework and study up here on TUG. Do think about spending $15 and becoming a member; it may be the best $15 that you can spend.

Best of luck and welcome to TUG.





.

Thanks for the tips mate! So if I was to buy resale weeks how do I decide which resorts to buy if I haven't been to them? Is there an honest review site that lists the top 20 or so? Also for "Purchase weeks that lock off so you are able to obtain two trades for each week that you buy (if you don't stay at your home Resort)." can you elaborate on that? I don't understand the "lock off" and trades piece. Thanks

 

[b3achlife]

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?
- We regularly go to Orlando, we live in Jacksonville FL.

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?
- trade more than half based on the resort locations

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
- Orlando, FL
- Caribbean
- North America
- Asia
- Europe

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
- 2 Adults, 2 young Kids

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
- Anytime

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
- Yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
- Yes

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
- 4 to 5

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
- $20000-30000

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
- $4000-6000

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
- Yes

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
- Yes

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

Marriott resale weeks that will likely give you the best bang for the buck:


1). Grande Vista in Orlando, 2 or 3 Bedroom, buy only Florida Club Platinum weeks

2). Grand Chateau in Las Vegas, 2 or 3 Bedroom, Platinum 1-51


The above Platinum weeks are all good traders, inexpensive to buy, offer lock off Villas, and reasonable maintenance fees.


Should you decide to buy then be sure to use www.LTTransfers.com to handle the transaction for you. LT Transfers has an excellent reputation.




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[jmhpsu93]

With your budget you should be able to acquire maybe 3, 2-3 BR lockoff weeks at either Grande Vista or Grand Chateau as noted above. That would net you six weeks in vacation time via trades. You'll do great trading with the flexibility you have right now. Remember in a few years your kids will be in school unless you decide to homeschool, so account for that in your medium-term plans.

Orlando is super-easy to trade into and you can drive there in a little over two hours which is great. Your other locations are pretty broad, but I easily trade into Aruba and Cancun. Europe is a little tougher if you want to stay in the Marriott family as they only have four resorts there, and they are all easy to trade into during off-seasons. I'm not as familiar with Asia.

Points have their place (I own a bunch) but have specific use cases that maximize their value and are better when combined with weeks.

 

[b3achlife]

1). Grande Vista in Orlando, 2 or 3 Bedroom, buy only Florida Club Platinum weeks

2). Grand Chateau in Las Vegas, 2 or 3 Bedroom, Platinum 1-51

Thanks - What sites do you recommend I buy them from? redweek?

 

[Pamplemousse]

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?
- We regularly go to Orlando, we live in Jacksonville FL.

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?
- trade more than half based on the resort locations of HGVC

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
- Orlando, FL
- Caribbean
- North America
- Asia
- Europe

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
- 2 Adults, 2 young Kids

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
- Anytime

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
- Yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
- Yes

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
- 4 to 5

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
- $20000-30000

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
- $4000-6000

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
- Yes

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
- Yes

In #2 above you mention HGVC. Is that Hilton Grand Vacation Club? Do you want to stay in Hilton TS?
Most MVC resorts exchanges on interval International, HGVC exchanges on RCI.

Be aware too that when the little ones are in school if you only want to travel on break you will need to plan ahead and request exchanges on II early- there are many many people who will be wanting those same trips.

 

[b3achlife]

In #2 above you mention HGVC. Is that Hilton Grand Vacation Club? Do you want to stay in Hilton TS?
Most MVC resorts exchanges on interval International, HGVC exchanges on RCI.

Be aware too that when the little ones are in school if you only want to travel on break you will need to plan ahead and request exchanges on II early- there are many many people who will be wanting those same trips.

my bad I meant MVC

 

[dioxide45]

I think for peak seasons you are simply better owning a deeded week. Using points is expensive to buy in (even resale) and the maintenance fees are usually way more expensive when you compare them to a similar prime season week. While a deeded week limits your flexibility, it would be significantly cheaper. Availability using points is also a challenge at legacy resorts where most points inventory has to come from owners electing their weeks for points.

 

[danill]

As an alternate point of view - I understand the impact (best bang for buck) of buying resale weeks, but for me it is simpler and less time consuming to own points and enrolled weeks that can be converted to points. I am generally satisfied with the MVC portfolio, so there is no attraction to trading to different properties. Resale points can be acquired for around $8, including the MVC transfer fee. You can buy resale weeks and later pay (significantly) to enroll them or acquire a hybrid bundle from MVC with a combo of points and enrolled week. And you can rent points when needed to supplement base ownership. Yes, the investment is somewhat greater with this approach and maintenance fees are somewhat greater, depending on the mix of points and enrolled weeks, but I consider it less time consuming to manage and more flexible for the places I want to go. As a caveat, I am able to plan well in advance and have always been able to eventually get in where I want (Aruba Ocean Club in Jan/Feb has been the hardest, but doable). At Chairman level, I can book at 13 mos, but sometimes have more success at 12 mos for the higher demand properties. Others, feel free to counter these thoughts.

 

[dioxide45]

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?
- We regularly go to Orlando, we live in Jacksonville FL.

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?
- trade more than half based on the resort locations

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
- Orlando, FL
- Caribbean
- North America
- Asia
- Europe

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
- 2 Adults, 2 young Kids

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
- Anytime

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
- Yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
- Yes

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
- 4 to 5

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
- $20000-30000

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
- $4000-6000

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
- Yes

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
- Yes

For #5, will you always be able to travel anytime? Even when your children become school age?

 

[GetawaysRus]

Have we jumped ahead too far and too fast? Looking back at post #3, the OP is asking some very basic questions.

I will reiterate the advice to join TUG. Almost everything I know about timeshares I learned here. Also expect that you will gradually learn more and more over time. Timesharing is a confusing world, especially if you are trying to maximize the value you get from your ownership.

The traditional TUG advice is to buy somewhere where you might want to go. From your screen name, perhaps you like the beach and you live in Florida. This gives you many resorts on the East coast that are easily reachable.

TUG has a section that rates resorts and has reviews that members can read. So if you like Orlando, you have quite a few choices of highly rated resorts there.

Lock-offs: some resorts will have dedicated 2BR or 3BR units that cannot be divided. A lock off is a 2BR or 3BR unit that can be separated into two pieces. So a 2BR lockoff most often can be divided into a 1BR Master and a Studio. If you choose to deposit your usage to a timeshare trading company, that allows you to deposit one or both sides of the unit and try to "trade up" to a 2BR if one becomes available. That's how one week of timeshare ownership can get you 2 weeks of vacation. There are some fees involved: a fee to lock off, a trading fee, and a unit size upgrade fee. Understand that different resorts and different weeks and the different unit sizes will have differing degrees of "trading power." That's why you are seeing advice to buy a high value (platinum, also called red) week at a high demand resort. Marriott resorts are usually high demand, but some are more prized than others.

Let's look at your situation. You have kids, so you will want to stay in at least a 2BR unit. Your kids will be in school someday soon, so your travel dates may be constrained by the school schedule. Trading may be more difficult for you because there are others in the same situation as you, so it's competitive.

So you have some thinking and reading to do. Where do I want to buy? What resorts interest me? Do I want to buy a lock off? Do I want to simply reserve and use my own unit or lock off/trade or perhaps a mix of both?

When we were ready to jump in, we started small, with a one week ownership of a 2BR lockoff. As you learn more, and if you find that you like timeshares, you can always add more. But I hesitate to give you more specific advice because my personal situation is very different than yours.

 

[Fallenone]

Relatively new ourselves, our family is quite similar to yours (2 kids, now 3 and 5). We like to visit different places rather than go to the same place for now. And we prefer to stay 4-5 nights with MVC and supplement with hotels if we want to linger longer. As a result, points work pretty well for us. We own 4000 points and find it good enough for most cases as long as we avoid holiday seasons. We can get ~20 nights with MVC per year.

 

[ljmiii]

I second most of the recommendations made above. That said, I would add that given your situation it might make sense to purchase two or three 2-3 BR lockoff weeks at Grande Vista or Grand Chateau as suggested above to 'get your feet wet'. Then depending on your experiences you could...
1) Stand pat
2) Add more weeks
3) Sell your weeks for what will likely be approximately what you paid for them
4) Enroll those weeks in the Abound program during one of the annual 'amnesty' sales promotions by buying additional Abound points (or a somewhat expensive week at a location such as Aruba that can't be part of the Abound Trust). This is a cost effective way of accruing a large number of Abound points and also would give you the most flexible and useful thing in the MVC system - enrolled weeks that can be used as weeks or elected into Abound points depending on your vacation plans.

 

[b3achlife]

For #5, will you always be able to travel anytime? Even when your children become school age?

Good point! that will change from age 6 onwards for both of them.

 

[b3achlife]

Happy Friday to all and really appreciate your advice!

Trying to understand the additional work involved for me if I went down the "buying the lockoff" route versus the point route, and roughly how much am I saving as a percentage by going the lockoff route?

If I have 3 lockoff TS, what is the process to use them so we can stay at other properties? am I dependent on the market exchanging it with me? can I convert them into points to be used at any MVC property?

If I purchase at Grande Vista for this strategy do I have to stay there? There are some interesting reviews for that on tripadvisor.

For the last few years we've stayed at the JW Grande Lakes and love it there because you have access to Ritz Carlton, but the rooms are small. At the presentation they mentioned Lakeshore Reserve which sounds good as you get more room, and you still get access to the resort.

 

[Dean]

Hi all

I did my first Abound/MVC presentation on the weekend in Florida and did some research afterwards and cancelled the contract as it was too expensive. After discovering this site, redweek and others I had no idea how complex this subject can be, it's apparent it will take time for me to become knowledgeable about this world and make smart decisions... Anyway I am looking for 3-4 weeks vaca year in a 1 or 2 bedroom that I can use with my wife and 2 kids (2&4 year olds) and we will travel globally not a problem. How many points should I need and what's the best site to buy the points? I noticed that there is a 3 dollar per point transfer fee added to any transaction, does that mean we have access to the same options as the Destinations program? (which they now call Abound). I am also Platinum Elite on Marriott Bonvoy.

Any advice appreciated!!

Thanks

Once you spend a few MONTHS digesting this information, you'll have an idea what will work for you. Other than few areas, MVC won't help much for overseas. Orlando is easy, anything will get you there with a little planning and effort. Your budget will not get you into points with sufficient volume but it will be enough to get you both 1 or 2 trading weeks and a couple of resorts that are higher end options that you would visit routinely. Realize that MVC resort are 4 star at best, there are none that are 5 star. If you don't have timeshare/MVC experience you should consider renting privately and trying it out for a visit or 2 minimum.

 

[b3achlife]

I second most of the recommendations made above. That said, I would add that given your situation it might make sense to purchase two or three 2-3 BR lockoff weeks at Grande Vista or Grand Chateau as suggested above to 'get your feet wet'. Then depending on your experiences you could...
1) Stand pat
2) Add more weeks
3) Sell your weeks for what will likely be approximately what you paid for them
4) Enroll those weeks in the Abound program during one of the annual 'amnesty' sales promotions by buying additional Abound points (or a somewhat expensive week at a location such as Aruba that can't be part of the Abound Trust). This is a cost effective way of accruing a large number of Abound points and also would give you the most flexible and useful thing in the MVC system - enrolled weeks that can be used as weeks or elected into Abound points depending on your vacation plans.

For number 4, can I enroll all my weeks into this? and how long do I have to use the Abound points I receive? Roughly how many points would I get for trading a platinum week for Grande Vista?

 

[b3achlife]

Once you spend a few MONTHS digesting this information, you'll have an idea what will work for you. Other than few areas, MVC won't help much for overseas. Orlando is easy, anything will get you there with a little planning and effort. Your budget will not get you into points with sufficient volume but it will be enough to get you both 1 or 2 trading weeks and a couple of resorts that are higher end options that you would visit routinely. Realize that MVC resort are 4 star at best, there are none that are 5 star. If you don't have timeshare/MVC experience you should consider renting privately and trying it out for a visit or 2 minimum.

We recently stayed at the Marriot Cypress Harbor in Orlando and we enjoyed that property. Wondering which TS programs have 5 star properties?

 

[Dean]

We recently stayed at the Marriot Cypress Harbor in Orlando and we enjoyed that property. Wondering which TS programs have 5 star properties?

Extremely few. Ritz Carlton and Four Seasons come to mind that some would call 5* but that's about it and they are all out of your price range. Besides the purchase decisions, realize that there are compromises with timeshares. No housekeeping and usually no room service, you have to plan ahead and you are committed. Maybe if a pandemic hits you have to continue to pay but can't go on vacation just like owning a condo or second home. I'd put Cypress Harbour at 3* along with many others and some MVC/Westin at 4* with a handful at 2.5*.

 

[b3achlife]

Extremely few. Ritz Carlton and Four Seasons come to mind that some would call 5* but that's about it and they are all out of your price range. Besides the purchase decisions, realize that there are compromises with timeshares. No housekeeping and usually no room service, you have to plan ahead and you are committed. Maybe if a pandemic hits you have to continue to pay but can't go on vacation just like owning a condo or second home. I'd put Cypress Harbour at 3* along with many others and some MVC/Westin at 4* with a handful at 2.5*.

Ritz Carlton and Four Seasons come to mind that some would call 5* but that's about it and they are all out of your price range > curious what is the price range for those?

Maybe if a pandemic hits you have to continue to pay but can't go on vacation > good to know thanks

 

[Dean]

I don't have any specific info on the prices there, others here can give you a lot more info than I can on specifics there. Pay attention to yearly fees as well. Ritz you can potentially enroll with MVC as well. Don't get in too big of a hurry as doing so to "get the savings on the next vacation" will often cost you a lot more than waiting will.

 

[ljmiii]

For number 4, can I enroll all my weeks into this? and how long do I have to use the Abound points I receive? Roughly how many points would I get for trading a platinum week for Grande Vista?

Yes. Thus far the promotions have had a 'price' for enrolling 2 resale weeks and then a higher price for 3-7 weeks. Grand Chateau Platinum 2BR is 3275 and 3BR is 4625, Grande Vista Platinum 2BR is 2775 and 3BR is 3725. These numbers and a great deal of other useful MVC information can be found on https://vacationpointexchange.com/ (which also is a platform for renting Abound Points).

And Abound Points can be used for a year, but they can also be borrowed and banked. The length of time they can be banked into depends on the number of points and enrolled week point equivalents you own - an additional 12 months for lesser tiers, 18 months if you own 10,000 points, and 24 months if you own 15,000 points.

 

[Pamplemousse]

Happy Friday to all and really appreciate your advice!

Trying to understand the additional work involved for me if I went down the "buying the lockoff" route versus the point route, and roughly how much am I saving as a percentage by going the lockoff route?

If I have 3 lockoff TS, what is the process to use them so we can stay at other properties? am I dependent on the market exchanging it with me? can I convert them into points to be used at any MVC property?

If I purchase at Grande Vista for this strategy do I have to stay there? There are some interesting reviews for that on tripadvisor.

For the last few years we've stayed at the JW Grande Lakes and love it there because you have access to Ritz Carlton, but the rooms are small. At the presentation they mentioned Lakeshore Reserve which sounds good as you get more room, and you still get access to the resort.

MVC does not have an internal weeks exchange program. You will need to exchange your units on interval international if you are not staying your home season at your home resort (except Florida club). Trades to other MVC/abound resorts get priority within II. You will have the most luck requesting early- a year is not too much. If you do lock offs you will have to pay II $99 per step to up size ( so 1 br to 2 is $99, studio to 2 $198). II trades are confirmed based on trading power- so an Orlando studio is unlikely to get you a 2 br in Maui. When you exchange on II you are not exchanging directly with someone else- you deposit your unit and then have 2 years from the check in date of the unit you deposit to exchange. You can boost your trading power by depositing the full 2 br instead locking off.

Booking with abound points is not a sure thing either. It is often difficult to book a full week. There Is a waitlist if it is working.
Abound points are good for 1 year, then you can bank them with abound for one year if you do so by the deadline. You can also borrow from the year ahead so it is possible to use 3 years worth of points in 1 year.
You can rent additional points once you own points and you can use excess points for other things like resort credits or golf lessons. It can be difficult to have the correct number of points each year since stays vary.

You never have to stay at your home resort if you don’t want to- but what are you reading? Grande Vista is one of our favorites in Orlando and really typical MVC. If you don’t like that, MVC TS may not be for you. TS is not like staying at the ritz. Maybe book a weekend at Grande Vista with cash since you don’t live that far away and see if it is what you are looking for? Harbour Lakes is another good choice for young kids.

As far as how much you are saving buying a resale lock off vs points that will require so calculations.
MVC charges to lock off your unit ($90?).
II membership costs $99/yr ( discounts for purchasing multi year).
There is an exchange fee on II for each exchange -not sure in network discount, out of network it’s $219 each so x 2
Upsize fee to get you 2 Br each piece is $99 and $198
And then your maintenance fee
And then factor in the original purchase price.
That gives you 2 week long vacations
With points the number needed varies per stay.

It’s important to realize TS ownership will require some effort and planning either way you go. It is often not easy to change plans so you need to think about if this will work in your life.