Buying Sheraton Flex after market versus from developer

[dioxide45]

I thought resale Sheraton flex contracts could only be used to book other Sheraton properties and that you had to buy flex from the developer to be able to book short stays and exchange using the seasonal options grid.

You can use HomeOptions from any of the Flex programs in II to exchange into other Vistana resorts.

 

[kozykritter]

I thought resale Sheraton flex contracts could only be used to book other Sheraton properties and that you had to buy flex from the developer to be able to book short stays and exchange using the seasonal options grid.

Right now, the big hole in our porfolio is being able to book Marriott properties in prime season for family vacations. Converting our Vistana weeks to Destination points in order to book Marriott is too expensive an option and multiple units are difficult to get in an exchange. Sheraton flex seemed like a good option. By pooling points or borrowing from a future year, for example, you could get access to Ko'Olina or the Hilton Head resorts in June. Also, the weeks we own are platinum season, so the times when we exchange into a non-prime season, we are using more options than we'd need to if we had a flex account. The salesperson showed us how these could be booked in real time without putting in exchange requests, but said it could only be done with flex options purchased from the developer. Can resale flex be used in the same way?

The only real time way to book Marriott properties with your Sheraton flex ownership without it being an II exchange would be to elect your flex ownership for Abound Club points and book in the Abound system through Marriott. You can only elect Club Points with Sheraton flex ownership that was bought from the developer or requalified with a subsequent purchase. That is what your salesperson was saying and likely what they were showing you on the screen.

 

[regatta333]

The only real time way to book Marriott properties with your Sheraton flex ownership without it being an II exchange would be to elect your flex ownership for Abound Club points and book in the Abound system through Marriott. You can only elect Club Points with Sheraton flex ownership that was bought from the developer or requalified with a subsequent purchase. That is what your salesperson was saying and likely what they were showing you on the screen.

The salesperson signed on to an Interval account and from units available for exchange, he was able to select Sheraton flex to search. He showed us various areas (Hawaii, Hilton Head, and others) where Marriott inventory was available to book in a 2bd for 81k flex points in summer and for less (according to the grid which you posted in another thread).
These same exchanges were not available using a Vistana week (different pool of inventory, he said). It seemed as though it was a much larger inventory pool.

It seems like what I'm reading here is that this same pool of Marriott inventory would be available if I were searching with resale Sheraton flex (recognizing I'd have to pay for my
own Interval account), but salesman indicated the resale Sheraton flex could only be used to book other Sheraton properties. I understand that this is the case when booking within VSN, but unclear to me whether resale and developer Sheraton flex work the same way in Interval and access the same inventory.

 

[dioxide45]

The salesperson signed on to an Interval account and from units available for exchange, he was able to select Sheraton flex to search. He showed us various areas (Hawaii, Hilton Head, and others) where Marriott inventory was available to book in a 2bd for 81k flex points in summer and for less (according to the grid which you posted in another thread).
These same exchanges were not available using a Vistana week (different pool of inventory, he said). It seemed as though it was a much larger inventory pool.

It seems like what I'm reading here is that this same pool of Marriott inventory would be available if I were searching with resale Sheraton flex (recognizing I'd have to pay for my
own Interval account), but salesman indicated the resale Sheraton flex could only be used to book other Sheraton properties. I understand that this is the case when booking within VSN, but unclear to me whether resale and developer Sheraton flex work the same way in Interval and access the same inventory.

The inventory using points can be different than a deeded week because points see all available inventory in II and you can book up to the number of points available. Weeks are constrained by trade power. A week can only trade into another week if there is enough trade power of the deposited week. Resale Flex would be able to do the same. Though resale Flex will have transaction and membership fees through II since they aren't enrolled in VSN/Abound.

 

[regatta333]

So, there is no difference in the inventory pool? Assuming the week had sufficient trade power, I would be able to see the same Marriott inventory as the flex could pull?
Does flex have preference for the Marriott inventory the way Marriott weeks do or is the inventory available at the same point in time as it is to the Vistana weeks?

 

[Hindsite]

So, there is no difference in the inventory pool? Assuming the week had sufficient trade power, I would be able to see the same Marriott inventory as the flex could pull?
Does flex have preference for the Marriott inventory the way Marriott weeks do or is the inventory available at the same point in time as it is to the Vistana weeks?

No different inventory pool, its about the trading power your weeks have, which has many parameters and can vary, vs points, which is usually governed by a table of unit size and TDI and sometimes resort quality.

Flex, and all Sheraton and Westin deposits, do not have the MVC to MVC weeks preference, but do get a few days before release to general inventory.

 

[regatta333]

Thank you for the insights. Sounds like the only benefit to owning Sheraton flex is the options you might save by using only the exact number required to book your trade compared to the full option value of the week you'd be surrendering. So since we only own platinum season, smallest value unit I could use would be 67.1k options, which I'd need to use even to book an non-prime week of say 44k options. Then again, I'm not sure how much of a benefit that really is considering that the maintenance fees for the platinum season 1BD are the same as for a lower season that has fewer staroptions.

Am I missing anything?

 

[dioxide45]

Thank you for the insights. Sounds like the only benefit to owning Sheraton flex is the options you might save by using only the exact number required to book your trade compared to the full option value of the week you'd be surrendering. So since we only own platinum season, smallest value unit I could use would be 67.1k options, which I'd need to use even to book an non-prime week of say 44k options. Then again, I'm not sure how much of a benefit that really is considering that the maintenance fees for the platinum season 1BD are the same as for a lower season that has fewer staroptions.

Am I missing anything?

There are certain weeks where in II it costs fewer StarOptions than it does to book directly through VSN or as Home resort with HomeOptions. The drawback is, on resale, you need to pay for an individual II account and pay exchange fees for each trade. So where you save on points you pay for it in fees.

 

[Hindsite]

Am I missing anything?

Just double check the maint fees for a mandatory week for the SOs vs Flex, to ensure that you aren't paying more for Flex than you could get with a week. As @dioxide45 says, also factor in the different II account costs for the 2 different choices. Running the comparative numbers for your specific need is worth doing.
The other bit is exit plan costs. Flex has zero to negative value, mandatory resale may have some positive value when you come to want to divest.
If in doubt, do what you feel most comfortable with and enjoy the great vacations you can have with whatever you choose