Diamond offered to lower/eliminate maintenance fees if I buy more points

[Kelandpat]

I have a silver membership with diamond. Diamond rep says if I pay another $65k over next ten years, I’ll have a deeded ownership and pay less (in monthly payments) than I pay now for annual fees. I will be upgraded to platinum and he says I’ll never never have to pay maintenance fees again because I will earn credits toward future maintenance fees… does anyone else have a clear understanding of this and whether it really works that way? Also wondering how merging with Hilton will affect this.

 

[echino]

No. It doesn't work like this at all.

 

[geist1223]

The loud sound you heard were my peals of laughter. Remember the old saying about a Timeshare sales person's lips moving. Also currently nobody is certain about how things are going to work with HGVC. Though the current indications are they will basically be maintained as 2 separate clubs.

 

[pedro47]

I'm, I reading this correctly you must spend another $65K to become Platinum. I pray that you final answer was no.

 

[GT75]

Remember the old saying about a Timeshare sales person's lips moving. Also currently nobody is certain about how things are going to work with HGVC. Though the current indications are they will basically be maintained as 2 separate clubs.

This is my take even though I am really only familiar with the HGVC side of this merger.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

The likely mumbo jumbo. There is an option to use points to pay maintenance fees. My guess is that the sales person is talking about you using the points from your new purchase to pay the maintenance fees on what you know own. Presto - if you make the 65k purchase, the maintenance fees you are now paying can go away.

Of course, you would still have to pay maintenance fees on your new purchase. And when you use points to pay maintenance fees, you take a haircut on the value of those points. If you want to use points to pay a $1500 maintenance fee, you will have paid about $3000 for the points that you use.

 

[Iggyearl]

When Diamond took over Gold Key in Virginia Beach, the pitch was to trade in your deed and purchase points. A lot of people regretted that. Those that kept their deeds were happy they did. The pitch to pay maintenance fees with points is a BIG selling point with the unscrupulous Diamond sales guys. It doesn't work. I'm sure that he did not put this in any written form.

 

[bogey21]

What a steal. Only $65,000...

George

 

[b2bailey]

I had an experience once when my husband and I agreed to purchase something at Hilton Hawaiian Village. We went back to our room with the paperwork -- looked at each other and said:
"What have we done?"
Cancelled immediately.
That's when I said -- they must pump a low dose of nitrous oxide in those sales rooms.
That's what it would take for me to agree to pay $65,000 to Diamond.

 

[pedro47]

I hope Hilton is monitoring the TUG website and will terminate some of these bad employees .

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

When Diamond took over Gold Key in Virginia Beach, the pitch was to trade in your deed and purchase points. A lot of people regretted that. Those that kept their deeds were happy they did. The pitch to pay maintenance fees with points is a BIG selling point with the unscrupulous Diamond sales guys. It doesn't work. I'm sure that he did not put this in any written form.

I've heard them rhapsodize about how wonderful it is that we can monetize our points. - use them to pay maintenance fees, book hotels and flights, etc. etc. That is one of the tremendous values that one gets by becoming Gold, and it's even more wonderful if you go to Platinum because your points have value when you are platinum (or higher yet).

If I respond at all, I ask them why I would pay $1000 in maintenance fees using $2000 in points. And that every time I've looked at using my Diamond points for other services, I have always been able to make the same reservation directly for less money than those Diamond points cost me.

One sales guy agree with me, then said it probably worked best if you did that using points that were going to expire anyway. To which I replied, that if you monetize Diamond points, you can't use current year points. So you can't use expiring points that way any way. He said nothing, but the look on his face was eloquent. I don't think he knew that limitation existed.

 

[davidvel]

I have a machine that turns water into wine, and paper into gold. It's only $45,000, a bargain.

 

[Kelandpat]

thanks for your replies! I agree this seems an absurd amount of money, but when they’re telling you that you’re going to pay that much anyway over the next 10 years in maintenance fees… and why wouldn’t you want to upgrade to platinum and avoid fees… what I really start to wonder is why I’m paying all of these maintenance fees?!?!

 

[GT75]

If I respond at all, I ask them why I would pay $1000 in maintenance fees using $2000 in points. And that every time I've looked at using my Diamond points for other services, I have always been able to make the same reservation directly for less money than those Diamond points cost me.

HGVC also has a similar conversion but to Hilton honors points at 25-1 (of next year's pts). I find it is best to use HGVC TS points to book HGVC TS stays. Of course, TS salesperson will try to "sell" this "wonderful" option. I agree with @T_R_Oglodyte, you need to be informed prior to going to any 'owners update' (aka sales presentation).