We are not nearly as depentant on RCI Weeks and Points and will not use them as much as we did 3 years ago due to RCI's newer policies.
For those IMHO who think they are getting the value out of RCI compared to 5 years ago or even 3 years ago I think they are just conning them selves even if they are a RCI Point owner.
In regards to the balancing out the points inventory if you want to believe it is being done fairly I respectfully disagree.
In regards the RCI points awarded to each resort if you want to believe it is being done fairly I respectfully disagree based on the differant rents the would comand in regard to the rental dollars to RCI Points ratio.
Remember I have no agenda against RCI Points, RCI weeks, II and the independant exchange companies as I have access to all and have made exchanges with RCI Points, RCI weeks, II and the indeptants this year.
In regard to the OP questions about less high end exchanges being made through RCI.
Yes IMHO there is definately less because of the increasing volume of these demand weeks being offered to non timeshare owners through RCI's many authorized rental vendors.
More and more timeshare owners are aware of this fact and are not pleased with these rentals negitive effects in lessing what is available in the exchange pool.
I would venture to say that a few of us have obtained ownership of more timeshares because of the the increasing rental efforts and policies of RCI that has lessened the supply of the higher demanded weeks. We are buying were we want to go during peak demand times instead being at the (non) mercy of the exchange companies.
Several years before in RCI's terms and Conditions the old RCI catalog I think RCI did not flat out say that they could use any exchange inventory as their rental inventory as RCI do now proclaim.
I can tell you that our 5 yearly RCI floating Keys weeks along with our other about 15 to 20 bright red higher demand weeks will not be banked with RCI or any other independant exchange company because of the over all lack of availability and the lower quality exchanges now being offered.
One reason is that if your Easter, Presidents, Christmas or New Years weeks of ours are banked with RCI their is a very good chance that they not would be put in to the RCI exchange pool. They may be offered only for rent through one of RCI's many rental outlets.
Most of us have heard about the 15% commisions that some travel agents can make off the weeks we put with RCI for a hope for chance of a decent exchange.
We having bought and paid for those ownerships now control those 5 Keys weeks.
We bought our ownerships can now assure our selves of having these prime weeks to vacation at or rent them out and take that cash and rent what we want with that cash.
We do not have to HOPE to get a FAIR exchange from any exchange company. Cash in hand almost always trumps points or weeks for exchanges. Cash is King.
Seeing the high prices that RCI would put on these weeks if we deposited them it makes it far easier for lot of people like us to rent out our prime high demand holiday weeks than it was even 2 years before.
Especially in this year we have more RCI members say the main reason they are renting one of our many red weeks is if after banking what a couple of years ago what would be their Tiger Trader a year or more before their Tigers check in dates, they can not get the weeks they want similar to the weeks that we own from RCI like they could a few years ago.
These renters say not only our Keys weeks but a lot of our Wi Dells and our Door Wi. Summer weeks are now harder to exchange for than they were a few years ago. They say that all the prime week availbility appears to be down.
Fom talking to other owners like us many of us many of them are unhappy seeing their weeks being put up for rent by RCI without being put in to the owners exchange pool were they feel it belongs.
So others like us because of the newer RCI Policies are not depositing nearly as many of those prime high demand holiday weeks.
You can put some of the blame on people like me for a lessing availability of prime weeks being put into the exchange system.
If I was doing what I did a 2years ago RCI would be getting about 10 to 14 Red weeks instead of 4 or so of not so bright red weeks.
Before I deposit even those weeks I may go to II and see what they might pull with II's request before deposting which RCI does not have.
In our case our first group of 16 confirmed reservations for Summer Wi Dells weeks are not being given to any exchange company. Only 4 are now left for our own personal use. On the about 6 to 8 other Summer weeks we may be able to pick up after the first group rolls of the Bluegreen reservation books maybe a few will be used for exchanges with various exchange companies.
We wish you all good luck in getting the exchanges that you want.
Bruce
