Change to Redweek process and all those extra fees... And not in a good way.... [MERGED]

[dioxide45]

Just got paid for this rental, so I'm all set now. Did Redweek remove your ability to take down your own listings? I had to send them a secure message asking them to do it (still waiting to hear back), since I no longer see an option to change the listing status. Lame.

At any rate, outside of the lack of information on Finding Meili's site, and their non-existent notifications, this was ultimately a success.

How were you paid, through Finding Meili or a transaction outside the site?

 

[NTP66]

How were you paid, through Finding Meili or a transaction outside the site?

They PayPal'd me directly, since my listing was basically DIY. Right now, their site has an option to let them handle payment collection, but it's grayed out and says 'coming soon'. I would never choose that option, though. I mean, that's one reason why I started exploring alternatives to Redweek a little more this year.

 

[exyeh]

Hi, I paid redweek for a new listing and sent the confirmation document on 10/1/2025, it sent me the email says "This verification process can take about 10 business days (sometimes more depending on your resort), but we make every effort to make it quicker. " today is 10/13, 9 business days now, I still haven't received their posting complete info. I can not believe it will take this long, isn't it just a phone call to verify your confirmation? Does this happened to anybody else?

 

[NTP66]

It took them one day to verify my week, so I'd contact them again if I were you.

 

[rickandcindy23]

I posted one on 10/3, and it's still not live on RW. I sent the confirmation immediately, sent it again three days later because they said they didn't get it.

 

[exyeh]

Completely the same situation as yours, first said didn't get it then said take 10 business days, and sometimes even longer, sounds like unlimited time.

 

[NTP66]

I honestly wouldn't mind seeing a thread created where everyone can post a tally of where they ended up renting their unit, with a master list updated. I only have 1-2 units to rent, but I know there are quite a few with 5+, so I'm interested to see how many are still getting rentals on Redweek.

 

[MOXJO7282]

I honestly wouldn't mind seeing a thread created where everyone can post a tally of where they ended up renting their unit, with a master list updated. I only have 1-2 units to rent, but I know there are quite a few with 5+, so I'm interested to see how many are still getting rentals on Redweek.

Until we find a better option I'm still all in on Redweek with my now 25 Marriott TSs. So far I've rented 8 of them, not through RW but repeat customers. I did secure my first RW rental just recently, a Newport Coast July 5th 2026 week. I'm very happy with my net, its the highest I've ever received so if that is how it plays out I'll live with the delayed payments but that remains to be seen. I'm still very concerned the new model prices many prospective renters out of the market so I'm pushing my unit hard on FB and have started to use AirBNB and VRBO to see if they can work for me. I'm always very price competitive on all the sites but so far nothing has hit from those, although I had a few inquiries.

 

[MOXJO7282]

So just got second RW direct rental. Again I’m happy with the rental total for sure so if they are able to perform successfully as they always have even with their added fees I will live with them holding my money.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Completely the same situation as yours, first said didn't get it then said take 10 business days, and sometimes even longer, sounds like unlimited time.

Mine did finally post today.

 

[exyeh]

I called redweek many times and talked to them. I started my posting on 10/1 and they just don't make my posting live. they did not say I have anything wrong, just say I have to wait 10 busness days but it is over that time now. they just don't do it.

 

[dioxide45]

So just got second RW direct rental. Again I’m happy with the rental total for sure so if they are able to perform successfully as they always have even with their added fees I will live with them holding my money.

Redweek does still seem to have the critical mass when it comes to attracting renters. There are several other free and cheap sites out there where you can list your rentals (other than Vrbo and Airbnb). Are you doing that. Those sites can't gain traction without listings, without listings they can't gain traction with renters. Those smaller sites are stuck in a catch 22, people won't list because they don't think they will get a renter. Renters won't go because there aren't many listings. I say list in as many places as you can. Sure it is more work, but it may be better in the long run to provide additional competition to Redweek.

 

[billymach4]

Redweek does still seem to have the critical mass when it comes to attracting renters. There are several other free and cheap sites out there where you can list your rentals (other than Vrbo and Airbnb). Are you doing that. Those sites can't gain traction without listings, without listings they can't gain traction with renters. Those smaller sites are stuck in a catch 22, people won't list because they don't think they will get a renter. Renters won't go because there aren't many listings. I say list in as many places as you can. Sure it is more work, but it may be better in the long run to provide additional competition to Redweek.

I have expanded my reach on several FB groups. It's not designed for effective targeted listings. Has anyone listed on FB marketplace? I will look into that angle as well.

 

[gores95]

Hey guys I am also struggling with listing my Aurba Surf Club unit on Redweek again and for the first time since 2008 I will look to rent elsewhere. I just checked out Koala and whoever said it was free was wrong! They want to charge 8% once I find a renter which is certainly not free. I am going to list it on TUG and on Facebook groups now and take my chances. Any other suggestions?

 

[dioxide45]

Hey guys I am also struggling with listing my Aurba Surf Club unit on Redweek again and for the first time since 2008 I will look to rent elsewhere. I just checked out Koala and whoever said it was free was wrong! They want to charge 8% once I find a renter which is certainly not free. I am going to list it on TUG and on Facebook groups now and take my chances. Any other suggestions?

I haven't seen anyone say Koala was free. Just that they are free to list. You don't have to pay a listing fee upfront like you do with Redweek.

 

[Norcal5]

Ok since no feedback there, how about a better/easier question.

if you could change or improve one thing in the marketplace, what would it be?

The pages need to be organized with a lot less scrolling needed. Small print is ok since people can zoom in. I’d be willing to pay a premium fee to participate, and I’m sure others would. The format and function that Redweek had about 15 years ago was very simple, and would not take much setup time.

 

[jp10558]

The pages need to be organized with a lot less scrolling needed. Small print is ok since people can zoom in. I’d be willing to pay a premium fee to participate, and I’m sure others would. The format and function that Redweek had about 15 years ago was very simple, and would not take much setup time.

Personally I think needing to zoom in is offputting, but I also don't use Redweek. I think the "home page" when you click on Rentals is a little confusing, and ideally would be more like the search results page where it's more obvious how to do filters and such. But I also think most people probably just use the search box anyway.

One thing that would be nice in the advertised "last minute rentals" on the first page would be unit size. For me Unit Size is 90% non-negotiable.

 

[DeniseM]

From an owner's perspective, I like the TUG format and find it easy to use.

 

[TUGBrian]

The pages need to be organized with a lot less scrolling needed. Small print is ok since people can zoom in. I’d be willing to pay a premium fee to participate, and I’m sure others would. The format and function that Redweek had about 15 years ago was very simple, and would not take much setup time.

one of the biggest complaints we get is when using small print. a very large % of our membership/visitors are 50+

I think we could perhaps shrink the "summary" listing boxes in size so more would fit on the screen and still allow for the larger font!

perhaps we could provide multiple view options with one super condensed option that offered a single line or two per listing for those who want it as quick/easy as possible.

let me tinker with it.

 

[cinematic]

Redweek does still seem to have the critical mass when it comes to attracting renters. There are several other free and cheap sites out there where you can list your rentals (other than Vrbo and Airbnb). Are you doing that. Those sites can't gain traction without listings, without listings they can't gain traction with renters. Those smaller sites are stuck in a catch 22, people won't list because they don't think they will get a renter. Renters won't go because there aren't many listings. I say list in as many places as you can. Sure it is more work, but it may be better in the long run to provide additional competition to Redweek.

I’ve been noticing a pattern with RedWeek/Koala lately - owners keep feeding these big platforms even though the fees just keep getting worse. As a renter, I honestly don’t understand it, because those fees don’t benefit owners OR guests. They only benefit the platform.


I also checked out Koala recently, and the messaging system feels just like Airbnb/VRBO… owners seem afraid to talk openly because of the platform rules, which makes the whole process way more complicated than it needs to be.


I ended up renting the week i wanted through Finding Meili because the same week was almost $1,000 more on RedWeek after the rw fees.
On Meili, the owner and I communicated directly through their platform, they showed their reservation with Marriott and I had my final confirmation in about two or three days - no extra charges, no hoops to jump through.


It really shows the catch-22: smaller fair-fee platforms can’t grow if owners won’t list, and owners won’t list because they assume the platform won’t grow.
But nothing changes if everyone keeps feeding the same beast.


Just my opinion, but if owners consolidated on one low-fee platform like Finding Meili, renters would naturally follow.
IMO a good week rents no matter where it’s listed - might as well list it where you keep more of your money and guests aren’t hit with insane fees.

 

[jabberwocky]

It would be helpful if there was site that can aggregate from across all the different platforms and show the best price for a particular week. The users would then likely choose the weeks with the lower intermediary costs. I’m surprised more AI tools haven been developed to do comparison shopping like this.