Bought TS from Ebay...RCI questions.

[cosmicmama]

Hi all, I'm so glad I found this forum! I'm new to TS.

A couple of months ago I bought an Outer Banks TS from Ebay (I live in driving distance). My week is in September and I'm looking forward to going.

This past week, I bought two more from ebay (low prices, no closing costs), one in the NC mountains in November, one in Hollywood FL in April. I bought the first one to use, at least once or twice, and the other two to exchange.

All three auctions stated that these were RCI affiliated resorts.

I've been trying to read up on RCI and figure out how it works...and I think I understand the difference between RCI Weeks and RCI Points, but I have some questions.

Can I decide whether I want a Weeks membership or a Points membership? Or does it depend on my resorts? I think the Points sounds like a better deal for flexibility.

Can I just join RCI, then add all three weeks to my (one) RCI Points account? (using the Deposit for Points program?) Do I need three seperate accounts since I have three seperate properties? I'm not quite understanding how all this works. What I would love to do is exchange all my weeks for points next year and use the points to pick up some Last Call vacations, paying for airfare etc. too, and maybe even take a cruise the year after that. I'm very flexible and not picky, I mostly want to see different places and get the most travel for my points.

How will I know what my Trading Power is (or how many points my TS's are worth), or even if my weeks are eligible to trade for points, without first paying the RCI membership fee? I don't want to join if it's not worth it. If I can't use my weeks to exchange like I want to, I will probably just try to rent them myself, or sell two of the three (which were almost free on ebay) for a small profit.

Will someone help me make sense of this RCI stuff?

 

[ownsherown]

Link to an explanation of how the week to points works, read it carefully.

http://www.alltimeshare.com/qualify.html

Link to chart showing what weeks resort cost in points ergo how many points weeks resorts units are worth.
http://www.alltimeshare.com/rcipointsregional.pdf

Not sure how current this chart is.

 

[cosmicmama]

I am still quite confused, and I can't find the answers here or on RCI's website.

None of my three resorts are RCI Points resorts, but they are all "RCI affiliated". Can I sign up for RCI Points, and deposit all my weeks for points, or do I have to sign up for RCI Weeks? I would like to deposit all my weeks (for a total of about 63,000 points, from what I saw on the "points table" that I saw at one of those links you gave), and take ONE vacation at an awesome resort in an awesome location, maybe even using points for airfare etc, instead of taking THREE vacations at my three mediocre resorts.
If I do this, do I have to pay THREE exchange fees, or one?

As you can see, I am still confused about the points vs. weeks thing, and how I may use my weeks (that I got for cheap on ebay) to get the most out of my vacation time.

 

[vacationhopeful]

Sorry, you are a RCI Weeks member. Must own RCI Points to open a points account and do PFD.

Want that mega vacation, join REDWEEK, deposit all you weeks into their points system, and pick from other's deposit for that vacation.

Just be sure to do all your research before hand ...

 

[cosmicmama]

Actually, I'm not an RCI member at all right now, that's where I'm confused. Can I join RCI as a Points member and deposit my TS's for points?

I'm a redweek member, and I haven't seen very many weeks offer up for exchange there. Mostly people trying to rent or sell their TS.

Thanks.

 

[AwayWeGo]

Got To Own Or Lease A Points Timeshare To Join R. C. I. Points.

Can I join RCI as a Points member and deposit my TS's for points?

Then once you're in RCI Points, you can deposit your other weeks timeshares for more points via the process RCI refers to as Points For Deposit. (They charge $26 for that, every time.)

A fringe benefit of membership in RCI Points is a free side-by-side membership in RCI Weeks. That way you can do conventional straight-weeks exchanges if you want with your non-points timeshares, rather than being limited just to Points For Deposit.

The points-weeks interface is semi-tricky in some ways. For example, if you own a timeshare week at an RCI Points timeshare resort but for some reason the particular week you own was never brought into the points system, that week still works for exchange purposes the same as all the conventional straight timeshare weeks at regular non-points timeshare resorts. Not only that, you can't do Points For Deposit with a non-points week at a points timeshare resort. Points For Deposit only works with regular timeshare weeks at non-points timeshare resorts.

The only way to get points for a week at a points timeshare resort is to have that week officially "converted" into points. That means paying the points resort to have your non-points timeshare week there converted over to the points system. How much does that cost? Maybe a little, maybe lots, maybe some price in between, depending on how hard the resort chooses to squeeze its owners.

If you don't care to buy a points timeshare, the lease option is still out there -- 3 years (renewable) RTU. In fact, that's what we'd have gone for instead of buying a dinky points timeshare if we'd known about the lease possibility at the time. Live & learn, eh ?

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[aliikai2]

NO,

You can't just pick which part of RCI you want to join, since none of your purchases are " converted points weeks" you don't own a resort that will allow you to join RCI Points, so if you wish to use RCI, then it will be as a week for week trades. Period.

If at some point to purchase an RCI points ownership, then and only then can you join RCI points and deposit your non-point weeks for points using their PFD Points for deposit program.



fwiw,

Greg

Actually, I'm not an RCI member at all right now, that's where I'm confused. Can I join RCI as a Points member and deposit my TS's for points?

I'm a redweek member, and I haven't seen very many weeks offer up for exchange there. Mostly people trying to rent or sell their TS.

Thanks.

 

[cosmicmama]

Thanks Greg and Alan, it's much clearer to me now.

The lease option looks very intriguing.

Jennifer

 

[e.bram]

You should have looked before you lept. If you don't like your TSes or exchanges, it will cost you to get out. Lots if TSes on Ebay for a dollar(including all costs), some don't sell. If it does you will have to pay the listing fee, closing costs and transfer fees as well as the current MF.

 

[cosmicmama]

Thanks for your concern, e.bram, but I DID look before I lept. I realized that I wasn't getting the best TSes in the world for a $1, but I decided to take the chance. I'm a risk taker. At least if I want to get out of one of them, I'm out a few hundred bucks, and not $14K+ like the poor person who originally bought the weeks from the developers.

 

[Laurie]

I'd also advise you to slow down at this point, see how what you've bought works for you. Points may turn out to work great for you, but paying 3 maintenance fees for one week of exchange, no matter how fabulous the resort, is probably not the most economical way to get there. Plus, some timeshares aren't always so easy to get rid of - even if you pay closing costs for your buyer, you might end up stuck with maintenance fees for a few years.

Your Outer Banks week for your own use sounds like a nice one, we like the NC beaches then too!

 

[mamiecarter]

Join Dial an Exchange right now and let the Marriot snobs do their own thing!!!

Join DAE to really enjoy you timeshares. It is free. Even if your timeshare week is a studio You can exchange it for any week in any size with DAE. I have gotten good exchanges with them and have deposited some good Summer weeks with them. Better yet I have gotten great bonus weeks for $99, no exchange required, at the last minute from DAE.

You bought low cost timeshares you will use. Why waste an annual fee on RCI? RCI exchange fees are $160 I believe while DAE charges $125. Add the $100 RCI annual membership and your yearly exchange costs $260.

DAE does not have the depth of inventory RCI has but can always get you good Mexico, Spain and Portugal weeks and sometimes even good week in New England, Hawaii, France, the Caribbean and Florida.

TUG is polarized between lovers of Marriott, Hilton and other high end, high price timeshares and those of us us who just want great vacations (nice girls like to have fun too!). Welcome to the down home section of TUG!!!

 

[mamiecarter]

PS: wanna swap use of the the Hollywood Florida in April

Florida in April is wonderful. I grew up there. Use it at least once and see. Or do a TUG exchange with someone like me for a week they own. Now the outer banks in September is really something. Congratulations!!!