Banking StarOptions [Important update 2/13/12!]

[Tfleming675]

I just purchased a 2bedroom LO, silver at Westin Riverside EOY. Price was right and this was one of the perks that I was told about. No mention of elite level requirmemtnts. I am starwood plat and have been for a few years. Absolutely love the Westin in Avon and love the villas.

 

[DeniseM]

If you are still within the rescission period, you should rescind. A silver week sells for a fraction of the cost, on the resale market. more info.

 

[C30NY]

If sales loves it so much, perhaps it's because they made it a developer sales only option.

I'm afraid that when it rolls out, this is going to be the requirement...Its another way to promote buying developer, and detract from resale...although I doubt it will sway many of us.

 

[DeniseM]

I'm afraid that when it rolls out, this is going to be the requirement...Its another way to promote buying developer, and detract from resale...although I doubt it will sway many of us.

They've already stated that it will be for 4 and 5 Star Elites - for a timeshare to count towards Elite status it must be a developer purchase, or be requalified. You can't reach 4 or 5 Star Elite with only resale purchases.

 

[KACTravels]

Obviously, we will know more when it is announced, but my rep mentioned "no cost to 4* and 5*" which indicates 1) a fee to do it for non 4\5* and 2) availability to at least 3* for a fee

 

[Tfleming675]

If you are still within the rescission period, you should rescind. A silver week sells for a fraction of the cost, on the resale market. more info.

Too late. I did not see any Westin Avon on e-bay. We did not pay a lot (I think) for what we got to start with. Just dipping our toes in the water. Not sure why but I am skeptical about the whole e-bay thing.

What would we lose by purchasing the same location on e-bay?

 

[DeniseM]

Too late. I did not see any Westin Avon on e-bay. We did not pay a lot (I think) for what we got to start with. Just dipping our toes in the water. Not sure why but I am skeptical about the whole e-bay thing.

What would we lose by purchasing the same location on e-bay?

You would lose the ability to convert to Starpoints and Staroptions. However, with a silver week, you get so few points and options anyway, that feature has little value. You would have saved thousands of dollars buying resale. Silver weeks have very little resale value.

Your unit converts to 46,500 Staroptions or 18,000 Starpoints. For comparison purposes, a studio at the Hawaii resorts is 67,500 Staroptions and 18,000 Starpoints will get you 2 or 3 nights in a standard hotel room.

Most of the regulars on this forum have bought timeshares on ebay. When you buy a TS, you don't make an instant payment on ebay like you do with other items - the sale is handled after you win the bid and you use a closing/title company. When you use a reputable closing/title company, there is very little risk.

Upside -

1) This is a beautiful resort, and you will enjoy using it.
2) You can use this week to trade through II into some of the top Starwood resorts, with the exception of school holidays, and WSJ & HRA - which are difficult trades. When you trade in II, the Staroptions/points don't come into play at all. You can trade a 2 bdm. for a 2 bdm. through II, regardless of the number of options/points.

 

[woodyd70]

I might be a little dense, but what did you mean by "not user friendly"?

I just meant that I do not believe the "owner-user" will benefit. I cannot perceive how carrying over options from last year will benefit owners as a whole. Options are tied to inventory, when more than one use year is being used in only one use year, somebody loses. For those that disagree, I respect your opinions.....

Sales associates are licking their chops right now because up until this moment in time, when a guest asked the question "what happens if I don't use all of my options?" the honest answer has been........ "use them or lose them". The new answer for sales associates will be "if you don't use them all, you can carry them over"...........

Starwood "WIN"
Sales Associate "WIN"
Perceived Flexibility "WIN"

Owner (the user friendly one scrambling to use inventory) "LOSE"

I totally understand that for a myriad of reasons, sometimes it may be impossible to use some or all of your options in any given year........but, allowing owners that don't use all of their options to effect the availabilty of other owners in a subsequent use year will prove deadly.........This will infectuously grow to include all owners, no matter package size or how many *'s there are in close proximity to your "elite" status. Unused/left over options should be rented, gifted, etc.........renting options works, if you don't believe me........ask Denise

Just my 2 cents.......

 

[grgs]

........but, allowing owners that don't use all of their options to effect the availabilty of other owners in a subsequent use year will prove deadly.........This will infectuously grow to include all owners, no matter package size or how many *'s there are in close proximity to your "elite" status.

It all depends on how it's set up. Presumably, if you roll your options to the following year, that might increase availability in the current year for others. Hilton allows unused points to be rolled over, and I always thought that was an advantage of the Hilton system. I haven't heard about any negative ramifications for Hilton owners. Anyone have first hand experience with Hilton?

 

[C30NY]

They've already stated that it will be for 3 and 4 Star Elites - for a timeshare to count towards Elite status it must be a developer purchase, or be requalified. You can't reach 3 or 4 Star Elite with only resale purchases.

I was referring to someone previously stating it may be rolled out eventually to all SVN members...not just * elite.

Ive been hanging around these forums for almost a year now, although I dont post much....but I do notice and dont know why are you always on the attack to prove someone wrong, or yourself right? As helpful as you are at times...you are the exact opposite as well.

 

[DeniseM]

I was referring to someone previously stating it may be rolled out eventually to all SVN members...not just * elite.

Ive been hanging around these forums for almost a year now, although I dont post much....but I do notice and dont know why are you always on the attack to prove someone wrong, or yourself right? As helpful as you are at times...you are the exact opposite as well.

I'm sorry, but that's not what you said - you said:

I'm afraid that when it rolls out, [buying from the developer] is going to be the requirement...Its another way to promote buying developer, and detract from resale...although I doubt it will sway many of us.

To "roll something out" is to start something new.

I was simply pointing out that "when this rolls out" only 4 & 5 Star Elite owner will be allowed to participate, and the timeshares used to reach 4 & 5 Elite owners are automatically treated as developer purchases, so it's a moot point.

I honestly didn't know if you knew that - I was simply providing additional information.

It appears now, that you actually meant to say, "When they expand this program beyond the Elite owners, I bet they will only allow developer weeks."

That's a very good question - In most situations, mandatory/resale owners are treated the same as developer owners. So treating them differently in this situation would be a deviation from that. I'm drawing a blank here - can't mandatory/resale owners borrow Staroptions from the next year?

We correct & disagree with each other here on TUG all the time - it's the nature of the forum - we love to debate the ins and outs of timesharing. But just because someone corrects you, or disagrees with you, doesn't make it an attack. In reality, TUG is an extremely civil website, compared to many.

 

[Ken555]

I suspect they will limit this to elite owners only, at least for a while. And while I own enough to qualify for a (low) elite level, I'm not elite since I bought resale and therefore wouldn't benefit by this new (anticipated) benefit. No complaint here, though, as over the last five years the most I've "lost" each year has been about 4,000 options, so would take a bunch of years for me to gain value from this new feature. For others, I'm sure it has much more practical use and could be a welcome benefit.

 

[alwysonvac]

Just my opinion...

I hope this new feature is true and is available to everyone.
This is a BIG PLUS in my book

Certainly makes being in SVN and using SOs more attractive.

Yes, Defintely !!

Yaaay! Great perk. Now to balance things out, how about them letting us "borrow" too!

Katherine

Yes let's hope they consider borrrowing as well.

One of the best features of my other timeshares (Hilton, Disney and WorldMark) is the ability to bank and borrow.

For Hilton and Disney that means I can use my banked/borrowed usage as soon as the reservation window opens for non-home resort owners (Hilton 9 months before check-in & Disney 7 months before checkin). Disney actually extends that option a bit further by allowing banked/borrowed usage during the home resort reservation window (however this is only allowed for banked points that are associated with the same home resort).

It all depends on how it's set up. Presumably, if you roll your options to the following year, that might increase availability in the current year for others. Hilton allows unused points to be rolled over, and I always thought that was an advantage of the Hilton system. I haven't heard about any negative ramifications for Hilton owners. Anyone have first hand experience with Hilton?

Banking and Borrowing gives me lots of flexibility with my Hilton, WorldMark and Disney timeshares. It allow me to stretch my week/points/credits over a two year period. I can visit every year, every two or every three years. I can combine my usage for consecutive or concurrent stay. For my extend family trips, I can reserve larger accomodations for longer periods of time. I can also combine my usage to stay at resorts that require more points/credits.
NOTE: With all my timeshares, you can not bank or borrow usage for more than one year.

Hilton and Disney have banking windows.
For Hilton, I have to purchase this option ($69 online / $89 by phone) before the end of the year. So by 12/31/2011, I have to tell them if I want to bank my 2012 usage into 2013. I can also borrow my previous banked points at anytime for a 2012 reservation. Hilton doesn't charges a fee for borrowing.
For Disney, there is no separate fee for banking/borrowing however banking must be completed at least 120 days (four months) prior to the end of your Use Year.

The lack of a banking/borrowing option is one of the things I hate about my annual Four Season week. You have to either use it (for yourself, rent, etc) or exchange it.

I recently purchased a resale Starwood EOY week with the thought of selling my annual resale Starwood week because I purposely wanted to use my SOs within SVN. I didn't want to be stuck with having to deposit my week with II if I couldn't use it within my use year.

This potential new option for resale owners makes having more SOs a workable option for me.

 

[zinger1457]

I just meant that I do not believe the "owner-user" will benefit. I cannot perceive how carrying over options from last year will benefit owners as a whole. Options are tied to inventory, when more than one use year is being used in only one use year, somebody loses. For those that disagree, I respect your opinions.....

I would welcome it if there is a short window (60/90 days) to using carried over options. I own at WKV and the occupancy is rarely full during platinum season, except during MLB spring training season. I've been there when the occupancy has been as low as 50%. In most cases these carry over options will be used on rooms that would have gone unused otherwise.

 

[lorenmd]

we are going to the owner's update on wednesday so i will ask all your questions. the person who booked us mentioned there is a new program they're rolling out about banking star options so i will get some answers. the weather is perfect here and our "penthouse suite" is awesome.

 

[WestinOwner]

I was just at the Owners Update at Harbourside 4 days ago and they advised me the banking of Staroptions was definitely coming into place later this year.

In my opinion, banking works incredibly well in the Disney Vacation Club, and so I think it will work well in Starwood. Anything that adds flexibility to my ownership interests is welcome.

WestinOwner

 

[tfalk]

My wife got an email announcing it this afternoon, I haven't seen the email yet but it said it was available for all owners, 4 and 5* could bank this years points.

 

[tomandrobin]

Just got my email on the new StarOption banking!

Welcome to the newest benefit of Starwood Vacation Network … a better way to see the world®.

Owners like you have told us that you'd like to bank your unused StarOptions to make the most of your ownership. Today, we're making that possible.

Beginning in early 2012, you may bank your StarOptions and use them for travel to a Starwood Vacation Network resort, for up to two years.

There's no limit on how many StarOptions you can bank, and no annual restrictions on how often you can use this benefit to make the most of your ownership. You're free to bank as many StarOptions as you'd like, as many times as you need.

As an added bonus, Four- and Five-Star Starwood Vacation Network Elite members may bank any remaining StarOptions from their 2011 Use Year right now. Simply call Owner Services at 800 847 8262.

Would you like more details about this new benefit? Please, review the FAQ for answers to your most common questions. Then, plan on banking in 2012.

If you still need more information, call Owner Services today

Click here for Terms and Conditions.

 

[GregT]

Just got my email on the new StarOption banking!

Welcome to the newest benefit of Starwood Vacation Network … a better way to see the world®.

Owners like you have told us that you'd like to bank your unused StarOptions to make the most of your ownership. Today, we're making that possible.

Beginning in early 2012, you may bank your StarOptions and use them for travel to a Starwood Vacation Network resort, for up to two years.

There's no limit on how many StarOptions you can bank, and no annual restrictions on how often you can use this benefit to make the most of your ownership. You're free to bank as many StarOptions as you'd like, as many times as you need.

As an added bonus, Four- and Five-Star Starwood Vacation Network Elite members may bank any remaining StarOptions from their 2011 Use Year right now. Simply call Owner Services at 800 847 8262.

Would you like more details about this new benefit? Please, review the FAQ for answers to your most common questions. Then, plan on banking in 2012.

If you still need more information, call Owner Services today

Click here for Terms and Conditions.

Tom,

Can you post the Terms and Conditions? Very interesting....

Thanks!

 

[jarta]

tomandrobin, ... "As an added bonus, Four- and Five-Star Starwood Vacation Network Elite members may bank any remaining StarOptions from their 2011 Use Year right now. Simply call Owner Services at 800 847 8262."

Since 4 and 5 Star SVN Elites have until October 1, 2011 to convert any StarOption weeks to SPG Starpoints, I don't see the necessity of rushing. Why not wait until September 30 and see if anything develops in the air mile market?

Nice perk, though.

I wonder if you will be able to bank 2012 StarOptions into 2013 and then convert the banked 2012 StarOptions up until October 1, 2013? ... eom

 

[woodyd70]

A few of the rules of Life........

"What goes up, must come down"
"Only Death and taxes are guaranteed"
With higher risk comes higher reward, and vice versa
For every action there is an equal reaction
Oh, I almost forgot, if you live in the USA you don't have to work anymore, we have programs for all the basic essentials in life, even cell phones now:rofl:

A few of the rules of timesharing........

Maintenance fees go up
Developer financing is outrageously high
Fixed/Float weeks will bring $1 on resale (with a few exceptions)
Buyer's of Developer weeks pay the marketing cost of non-buyers plus, plus

"Flexibility comes at a price, AVAILABILITY"

I really don't mean to sound negative about the banking of staroptions. I have my fingers crossed along with all of you that it works well for all of us. I just have my doubts, I SO hope I'm wrong.........
JMO

 

[KACTravels]

More Info from the FAQ:
Q: How much does it cost to bank StarOptions?
A:Five-Star Elite Owners: No charge.
Three-Star and Four-Star Elite Owners: $79
All other Owners: $99

AND for resales:
Q: I bought my ownership from a third party and not directly from Starwood Vacation Ownership. Can I bank my StarOptions?
A: Yes. You can bank your StarOptions.

 

[jarta]

For banking of SVN StarOptions to be a benefit to an owner, you must first have SVN StarOptions to bank. Banking StarOptions is of no benefit to those who have none.

And, if availability by SVN trade shrinks due to banking of StarOptions, availability due to bulk depositing in II will probably shrink, too. ... eom

 

[Maui_ed]

[FONT=&quot]The [FONT=&quot]Starwood Vacation Network[/FONT]SM program is debuting a brand-new benefit in 2012: The ability to [/FONT][FONT=&quot]bank[/FONT][FONT=&quot] your unused StarOptions, for up to two years. When you're ready to take your next vacation, your Banked StarOptions will help get you there. Or, store those extra StarOptions for a special trip you're planning or an extra-long getaway.

There's no limit on how many StarOptions you can [/FONT][FONT=&quot]bank[/FONT][FONT=&quot], and no annual restrictions on how often you can use this flexible choice to manage your ownership. You're free to [/FONT][FONT=&quot]bank[/FONT][FONT=&quot] as many StarOptions as you'd like, as many times as you need.

As an added bonus, Four- and Five-Star Elite members may bank any remaining StarOptions from their 2011 Use Year right now.

[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Get complete details on banking StarOptions.[/FONT]


From an e-mail that I just received. The link takes you to mystarcentral.com where you have to log in to your account to see the announcement.

 

[Maui_ed]

I guess I should have read the earlier post. Not exactly the same wording as the e-mail I received, but certainly the same message. Apologies.