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Koala fills a niche that others may not see quite yet, but I see it as a great alternative

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rickandcindy23 said:
My DVC OKW was December dates, Sun-Fri, cheap in points, so renting them on Koala was easy and no exchanges to compete with. Redweek has RCI exchanges listed, which is fine for those who want to take the chance of renting exchanges, but they stick out like a sore thumb, so Redweek should be taking care not to allow those rentals. Any 7-night stay in a one bedroom under $2,400 is a good indicator that this is an exchange. I think a lot of people rent exchanges on Redweek. You can make some big bucks on Redweek renting exchanges.
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I don't have any interest in renting exchanges. Seems the only point of this post is to cast shade on Redweek?
 
grupp said:
I don't have any interest in renting exchanges. Seems the only point of this post is to cast shade on Redweek?
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Not really. I use Redweek, as well as Koala, both are great sites. And on a positive note for Redweek, they will not allow people to add the verify to the DVC exchanges. So that is also an indicator of which are actually exchanges, if they aren't verified.

But competing with exchanges is pretty tough for OKW, when I am renting for even $15 per point, studios for weeknights. Exchanges rent, my points rarely rent, and only at $15 per point if they do. That is my "point." I have never netted $17.50 per point in my life on my DVC and $20 per point net is my goal for next year. My fees keep going up, so I might as well give it a try at $20 per point. Redweek won't get my DVC business, but the other weeks I own, absolutely.
 
No nibbles on my rental listing on Koala, but week is not until Feb. I think I'll have to sign up for Redweek in September/October. The other year it didn't rent until Thanksgiving, but it was a Sunday check in. Next year's is better, on a Saturday.
 
dsmrp said:
No nibbles on my rental listing on Koala, but week is not until Feb. I think I'll have to sign up for Redweek in September/October. The other year it didn't rent until Thanksgiving, but it was a Sunday check in. Next year's is better, on a Saturday.
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I just rented my Caribbean February week thru Jet Set.
Only one inquiry on Redweek, next year I will use their verified listing (not full service)
I will give Koala a try again when I do my Ocean Pointe resies in August.
 
dsmrp said:
No nibbles on my rental listing on Koala, but week is not until Feb. I think I'll have to sign up for Redweek in September/October. The other year it didn't rent until Thanksgiving, but it was a Sunday check in. Next year's is better, on a Saturday.
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Wow, I wasn't expecting anything out of Koala, and out of the blue I got a rental request for my Hawaii February week. Good thing I forgot and procrastinated in listing with Red week.
 
So here I am again giving koala a try for March April Spring Break Easter weeks.
Have also listed on Redweek.
Will let you know how it goes this time.
 
One thing about Koala some may have noticed. Small, independent resorts are put on a Wait List, pending verification by Koala. Unless Koala receives some demand for that resort, it may not be verified ever.

My example is Pine Acres Lodge in Pacific Grove, CA, with just over a dozen units.
 
chapjim said:
One thing about Koala some may have noticed. Small, independent resorts are put on a Wait List, pending verification by Koala. Unless Koala receives some demand for that resort, it may not be verified ever.

My example is Pine Acres Lodge in Pacific Grove, CA, with just over a dozen units.
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@MikeKennedy

Let's see if Mike can take care of that. I understand the issue, as I had a similar one.
 
rickandcindy23 said:
@MikeKennedy

Let's see if Mike can take care of that. I understand the issue, as I had a similar one.
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I have no complaint with Koala and didn't intend my post to do anything other than let people know that listings for small, unaffiliated resorts will probably not go live on Koala right away.

There probably aren't many resorts with fewer units than Pine Acres Lodge.
 
chapjim said:
I have no complaint with Koala and didn't intend my post to do anything other than let people know that listings for small, unaffiliated resorts will probably not go live on Koala right away.

There probably aren't many resorts with fewer units than Pine Acres Lodge.
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I send Koala a copy of my confirmation email and they accept that.
 
chapjim said:
I have no complaint with Koala and didn't intend my post to do anything other than let people know that listings for small, unaffiliated resorts will probably not go live on Koala right away.

There probably aren't many resorts with fewer units than Pine Acres Lodge.
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Happened to me with Val Chatelle, where there are six units. I tried to list a week for the week before Christmas and just deleted it because it never got confirmed, and I was able to rent it myself. I have another one that I would like to list for MLK week, prime ski season, but I doubt it will get confirmed before I rent.
 
GrayFal said:
I send Koala a copy of my confirmation email and they accept that.
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I have a fixed week. Nothing to show other than a maintenance fee payment confirmation (which I can't find).
 
rickandcindy23 said:
@MikeKennedy

Let's see if Mike can take care of that. I understand the issue, as I had a similar one.
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Hi @rickandcindy23,
Yes will have every timeshare resort live in our system and accepting listings/bookings as soon as possible -- including the smaller independent resorts. I know it can take some time for certain resorts and I appreciate the patience, but there are simply ones that need to be prioritized. We are, however, in the process of expanding our team to address the backlog of requests and all the other platform updates that will help you all maximize your ownership. For smaller legacy resorts, my suggestion is to contact your HOA and suggest us as your affiliate rental partner. The more quantity of owners there are within a particular resort, the faster we can prioritize and get it live. Let me know if you have any other questions!
 
rickandcindy23 said:
In the age of Airbnb and VRBO, timeshare rentals can be lost in the vast offerings of these big websites. There are some negatives with VRBO and Airbnb like the people who inquire about a Tuesday-Tuesday rental, when most timeshares are Friday, Saturday or Sunday check-in. A renter inquires about those weekdays, then your listing goes to the bottom of the list because you cannot accommodate that request. You lose points somehow. So the system automatically puts you on the bottom of the pile.

I always hoped for a site that would provide timeshare owners with an alternative that would not cost anything to list; would be cost effective for fees charged; and would fit the timeshare world perfectly. With Koala, I think we have the perfect option.

The only cost to timeshare owners is the 8% commission, which covers the credit card fees. You can choose how strict you want to be with refunds. I like that because I need my Wisconsin Door County reservations to be cancellable at 60+ days out, so I don't lose my Shell points. Sixty-two days is an option.

I found it very easy to list my weeks, but there are some that aren't included on the site, including Door County Little Sweden resort. I found that odd because it's a very popular resort. All they need to do is go through the RCI directory to add more resorts.

What I am wondering is how successful you have been with Koala? Redweek is so popular but I have had weeks that didn't get a single inquiry, and I was renting pretty cheaply. When I told Redweek that my Summit County ski weeks didn't even receive a single inquiry, I was not offered an extension of my listing or an opportunity to get a refund or offered any compensation. I realize this is not really something that do regularly, it was just my expectations not being met, but I would bet Breckenridge listings did just fine during the ski season, and I was able to rent my Frisco weeks via Craig's List for the price I was asking on Redweek, and I rented the weeks very easily that way. So I think my listings got lost on the site somehow.
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I list for free on Airbnb and pay a fee of 3% when it rents which includes the credit card fees. I add a cleaning fee which covers this cost so my cost is nothing. I don't list on VRBO because they charge double what Airbnb charges including the payment fee. I'm puzzled as to how sites that have a small fraction of the audience of Airbnb can charge double or more what Airbnb charges. I also advertise on Redweek and Myresortnetwork. This year I've gotten a lot more rentals from Redweek than in the past for some reason but still a lot less than Airbnb.
 
Robert D said:
I list for free on Airbnb and pay a fee of 3% when it rents which includes the credit card fees. I add a cleaning fee which covers this cost so my cost is nothing. I don't list on VRBO because they charge double what Airbnb charges including the payment fee. I'm puzzled as to how sites that have a small fraction of the audience of Airbnb can charge double or more what Airbnb charges. I also advertise on Redweek and Myresortnetwork. This year I've gotten a lot more rentals from Redweek than in the past for some reason but still a lot less than Airbnb.
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When you list on Airbnb (or VRBO) are you able to mandate that the renter has to take the full week? Or do you have more flexibility with your timeshares?
 
@Jblub
On airbnb you may set:
min # of nights = 7,
max # of nights = 7
to ensure that no renter makes a reservation for fewer than 7 nights.
 
I rented two weeks on Airbnb. Still haven't figured out how to work that system. The dates are approaching and I want to add guest names and details to those weeks, but I don't know whether they will follow through with the rentals or if they will cancel at the last minute. I really don't know what I am doing. :)

I just rented another Shell Peacock Suites 2 bedroom on koala That is the third one I have rented through them. I am so confident they will rent that I am not going to cancel reservations at Peacock Suites until I am 15 days out. It's the same cancellation penalty for 15-60 days out, so I might as well risk it. I was upset with myself for not cancelling one that I had (that we were going to use) and I put it on Koala and rented it within 72 hours of Koala verifying. Craig's List used to be my go-to for Peacock Suites, but someone takes down my ads within hours of posting. It's obviously another owner.
 
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There is no issue with the casual mention of other sites on TUG. however your blatant advertising for them and other outlets to promote them is again a violation of the TUG posting guidelines...and we have even had this exact same conversation in the past. It should not have to happen again (or at all).
 
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