Marriott Resale weeks seem like good value

[win555]

After reading about HGVC and Marriott, I'm coming to a conclusion that Marriott represents better value for me and I am planning to buy a platinum Grande Vista 2 BR Lock-off EOY Florida Club unit. I plan to use my Worldmark to make advance bookings and then wait for an II exchange using high trade power of MGV. It if comes through I will enjoy the nicer resort and cancel my Worldmark reservation due to the flexible booking. If not, I can use my Worldmark booking.

• Because the MVC resale weeks are no longer eligible to enroll in points program, the weeks sell for a lot less than HGVC. I found someone selling MGV for $1000 total and looks like ROFR shouldn't be an issue right now.
• MGV is a nice resort to stay at that I plan to use along with Florida club benefit half the time. If using, send the studio of lock-off to II for exchanging.
• Marriott resale week transfer fee is $120 while Hilton transfer fee is > $1000. The cost to try out a Marriott week is low.
• There is limited room for devaluation of MVC weeks unlike weeks that have value because they are in the points systems (HGVC Vegas).
• MFs are high but you get what you pay for with high quality resorts in MVC portfolio in places of interest to me.
• II exchanging seems to work great with lock-off Marriott weeks. It's a great way to stay for a week in a larger unit at an affordable cost. For my long weekend trips, I can use WM.
• Lots of great locations with Marriott preference in II. Based on what others have posted, RCI seems to be not as good as II.

While I won't be enrolled in Marriott points program, it is a well designed system with points value appropriate to the demand for the week unlike most other points systems like Worldmark, HGVC, Vistana. The good inventory can be hard to obtain when too many points from lower demand locations chase the good stuff. While those systems are accessible for resale buyers, I felt I might not have as much long term success with it.

 

[rthib]

Just remember there is a fee to lock-off and also a fee to upgrade unit size when you trade with II.

 

[Dean]

After reading about HGVC and Marriott, I'm coming to a conclusion that Marriott represents better value for me and I am planning to buy a platinum Grande Vista 2 BR Lock-off EOY Florida Club unit. I plan to use my Worldmark to make advance bookings and then wait for an II exchange using high trade power of MGV. It if comes through I will enjoy the nicer resort and cancel my Worldmark reservation due to the flexible booking. If not, I can use my Worldmark booking.

• Because the MVC resale weeks are no longer eligible to enroll in points program, the weeks sell for a lot less than HGVC. I found someone selling MGV for $1000 total and looks like ROFR shouldn't be an issue right now.
• MGV is a nice resort to stay at that I plan to use along with Florida club benefit half the time. If using, send the studio of lock-off to II for exchanging.
• Marriott resale week transfer fee is $120 while Hilton transfer fee is > $1000. The cost to try out a Marriott week is low.
• There is limited room for devaluation of MVC weeks unlike weeks that have value because they are in the points systems (HGVC Vegas).
• MFs are high but you get what you pay for with high quality resorts in MVC portfolio in places of interest to me.
• II exchanging seems to work great with lock-off Marriott weeks. It's a great way to stay for a week in a larger unit at an affordable cost. For my long weekend trips, I can use WM.
• Lots of great locations with Marriott preference in II. Based on what others have posted, RCI seems to be not as good as II.

While I won't be enrolled in Marriott points program, it is a well designed system with points value appropriate to the demand for the week unlike most other points systems like Worldmark, HGVC, Vistana. The good inventory can be hard to obtain when too many points from lower demand locations chase the good stuff. While those systems are accessible for resale buyers, I felt I might not have as much long term success with it.

Seems reasonable assuming you're going to trade exclusively to other Marriott properties. I assume you have a private II account already or are taking that into consideration. If you'll use it and/or the FL Club routinely, GV is a good choice but you may also consider some of the other FC properties esp Doral and Legend's Edge. I'd also suggest you consider an EY week as well. Willow Ridge will be the cheapest dues for a trading MVC resort, LV is next cheapest. I'd question one of your premises and that is the of high trading power. The internal trading preference is huge but the trade power itself I'd rate as decent.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Looks like you have made some reasonable choices for your situation. Florida deed is a good location if you need to walk someday. Just a note on the transfer fees:

The HGVC $1000 fee includes enrollment in their club points program for short stays and upgrades. The MVC transfer fee does not. If you think you may want to enroll in the MVC points program in the future you should compare apples to apples to get a true picture of the cost. If you believe you will remain with II indefinitely and don't want to enroll, then the comparison is valid.

 

[win555]

Seems reasonable assuming you're going to trade exclusively to other Marriott properties. I assume you have a private II account already or are taking that into consideration. If you'll use it and/or the FL Club routinely, GV is a good choice but you may also consider some of the other FC properties esp Doral and Legend's Edge. I'd also suggest you consider an EY week as well. Willow Ridge will be the cheapest dues for a trading MVC resort, LV is next cheapest. I'd question one of your premises and that is the of high trading power. The internal trading preference is huge but the trade power itself I'd rate as decent.

Thanks. What I was reading is if you buy a very high trade power week, it will be too expensive as most of the stuff you get in return won't be of comparable value so you are not likely to come out ahead when you consider II fees. I do have a high trade power trader with Worldmark. You use the power of a 3 BR to search but only pay points for the unit size you book. But it doesn't have the Marriott preference so GV will give me that and I will use GV to trade to other Marriott resorts only. I can use Worldmark to exchange for non-Marriott destinations. One II membership for both Worldmark and Marriott seems like a good way to keep costs under control ($350 for 5 years of II membership). II ACs and getaways are booking options as well if available for my timeframe.

I'm open to renting on Redweek if I don't get my desired exchange. Renting on Redweek seems better value than Airbnb/VRBO with their numerous extra fees. If the location I'm going to doesn't have a timeshare option, I will use Airbnb/VRBO if it is good value. I will also use hotel points from credit cards such as Chase Sapphire Reserve for Hyatt, Amex Hilton, Amex Marriott, etc.

I may increase my commitment to annual instead of EOY if things go very well. The closing/transfer fees with Marriott are not high so a future change would not be too expensive.

 

[turkel]

I only have resale weeks and I am a very happy Marriott owner and II trader.

 

[Dean]

Thanks. What I was reading is if you buy a very high trade power week, it will be too expensive as most of the stuff you get in return won't be of comparable value so you are not likely to come out ahead when you consider II fees. I do have a high trade power trader with Worldmark. You use the power of a 3 BR to search but only pay points for the unit size you book. But it doesn't have the Marriott preference so GV will give me that and I will use GV to trade to other Marriott resorts only. I can use Worldmark to exchange for non-Marriott destinations. One II membership for both Worldmark and Marriott seems like a good way to keep costs under control ($350 for 5 years of II membership). II ACs and getaways are booking options as well if available for my timeframe.

I'm open to renting on Redweek if I don't get my desired exchange. Renting on Redweek seems better value than Airbnb/VRBO with their numerous extra fees. If the location I'm going to doesn't have a timeshare option, I will use Airbnb/VRBO if it is good value. I will also use hotel points from credit cards such as Chase Sapphire Reserve for Hyatt, Amex Hilton, Amex Marriott, etc.

I may increase my commitment to annual instead of EOY if things go very well. The closing/transfer fees with Marriott are not high so a future change would not be too expensive.

If buying to trade, IMO the resorts and seasons that historically have been the best values are Platinum at Lockoff resorts that have reasonable fees (comparatively) and one can easily buy into for a small up front amount. These include Branson, LV, Grande Vista, Harbour Lake and Manor Club Sequel. I'd also throw in Gold at the Desert locations. Now if you can get something cheap that's above that, say Platinum (or similar) at one of the Desert locations, even better. And all of those will trade reasonably well if any only if one is trading internally, depositing at least 10 months out and requesting a good year out. That's not to say you can't be successful not meeting those criteria, it just adds risk. A couple of other tidbits, those with a Thursday check in give you some potential additional value IF one adds other weeks later. Also, the 3 BR at GV trades as a 2 BR & a 1 BR. The advantage of opening up to other resorts and EY instead of EOY is it gives you lots more to chose from and a much better chance of success. For most situations though I'd suggest buying something you'd use part of the time but you seem to have a handle on the exchange risks and options so the added value of trading up routinely may be worth the added risk.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

If you don't want to be locked into fixed week trades, another option is Sheraton Vistana Villages mandatory for about the same price. This will give you automatic enrollment in StarOption points for short stays at other Vistana Resorts, plus you get trading preference for MVC in II over other systems. (First for Westin/Sheraton, Second after MVC). Vistana is still part of MVC and may have other options in the future if they cross-pollinate programs.

Either way there is good value. Depends on how much flexibility you desire, intended locations, and how much you want to focus on each system.

 

[win555]

If buying to trade, IMO the resorts and seasons that historically have been the best values are Platinum at Lockoff resorts that have reasonable fees (comparatively) and one can easily buy into for a small up front amount. These include Branson, LV, Grande Vista, Harbour Lake and Manor Club Sequel. I'd also throw in Gold at the Desert locations. Now if you can get something cheap that's above that, say Platinum (or similar) at one of the Desert locations, even better. And all of those will trade reasonably well if any only if one is trading internally, depositing at least 10 months out and requesting a good year out.

That's not to say you can't be successful not meeting those criteria, it just adds risk. A couple of other tidbits, those with a Thursday check in give you some potential additional value IF one adds other weeks later. Also, the 3 BR at GV trades as a 2 BR & a 1 BR. The advantage of opening up to other resorts and EY instead of EOY is it gives you lots more to chose from and a much better chance of success.

For most situations though I'd suggest buying something you'd use part of the time but you seem to have a handle on the exchange risks and options so the added value of trading up routinely may be worth the added risk.

I have read a bunch of previous posts from you about this and that affected my decision to go for GV: I can use the 1 BR side of lock-off from time to time and more often if I can get a reservation using the Florida club benefit.

Excited to see how all this works out.

 

[jabberwocky]

Glad to see you've figured out what will work best for you. Good luck in the hunt in getting the unit. Marriott resorts are fantastic and I'm sure you'll enjoy them to the fullest.

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

After reading about HGVC and Marriott, I'm coming to a conclusion that Marriott represents better value for me and I am planning to buy a platinum Grande Vista 2 BR Lock-off EOY Florida Club unit. I plan to use my Worldmark to make advance bookings and then wait for an II exchange using high trade power of MGV. It if comes through I will enjoy the nicer resort and cancel my Worldmark reservation due to the flexible booking. If not, I can use my Worldmark booking.

• Because the MVC resale weeks are no longer eligible to enroll in points program, the weeks sell for a lot less than HGVC. I found someone selling MGV for $1000 total and looks like ROFR shouldn't be an issue right now.
• MGV is a nice resort to stay at that I plan to use along with Florida club benefit half the time. If using, send the studio of lock-off to II for exchanging.
• Marriott resale week transfer fee is $120 while Hilton transfer fee is > $1000. The cost to try out a Marriott week is low.
• There is limited room for devaluation of MVC weeks unlike weeks that have value because they are in the points systems (HGVC Vegas).
• MFs are high but you get what you pay for with high quality resorts in MVC portfolio in places of interest to me.
• II exchanging seems to work great with lock-off Marriott weeks. It's a great way to stay for a week in a larger unit at an affordable cost. For my long weekend trips, I can use WM.
• Lots of great locations with Marriott preference in II. Based on what others have posted, RCI seems to be not as good as II.

While I won't be enrolled in Marriott points program, it is a well designed system with points value appropriate to the demand for the week unlike most other points systems like Worldmark, HGVC, Vistana. The good inventory can be hard to obtain when too many points from lower demand locations chase the good stuff. While those systems are accessible for resale buyers, I felt I might not have as much long term success with it.

GV is a good choice. Just keep in mind that not all GV units belong to the Florida Club, and if you do use the Florida Club to a sister resort then you can only do so beginning at the six month mark......



.

 

[CA Richard]

A couple of other tidbits, those with a Thursday check in give you some potential additional value IF one adds other weeks later.

Hi Dean, could you please explain how a Thursday checkin can give additional value? I’ve tried to think of how it could but just can’t figure that one out. I’m probably missing something obvious. Thanks!

 

[TheTimeTraveler]

Hi Dean, could you please explain how a Thursday checkin can give additional value? I’ve tried to think of how it could but just can’t figure that one out. I’m probably missing something obvious. Thanks!

It may have to do with obtaining cheaper flights as opposed to Friday, Saturday or Sunday.......



.

 

[Fasttr]

Hi Dean, could you please explain how a Thursday checkin can give additional value? I’ve tried to think of how it could but just can’t figure that one out. I’m probably missing something obvious. Thanks!

I believe it gives you an extra day to book hard to get ressies at 13 months vs somebody trying to book using a Friday check in resort.

 

[Dean]

Hi Dean, could you please explain how a Thursday checkin can give additional value? I’ve tried to think of how it could but just can’t figure that one out. I’m probably missing something obvious. Thanks!

It's more about the 13 months reservation for concurrent or consecutive weeks which is why I qualified it to adding additional weeks since the OP doesn't own other MVC weeks from what I understand. The reservation window starts 13 months from the FIRST day reservations open. So a resort with a Thursday check in is available to reserve a day earlier. Only about half of the resorts I mentioned have this option. But you'd have to start the chain with a resort with a Thursday check in to take advantage. It can be very important for some situations, not so much for others. And of course the units must be able to be booked as such but they do not have to be the same season otherwise.

 

[CA Richard]

It's more about the 13 months reservation for concurrent or consecutive weeks which is why I qualified it to adding additional weeks since the OP doesn't own other MVC weeks from what I understand. The reservation window starts 13 months from the FIRST day reservations open. So a resort with a Thursday check in is available to reserve a day earlier. Only about half of the resorts I mentioned have this option. But you'd have to start the chain with a resort with a Thursday check in to take advantage. It can be very important for some situations, not so much for others. And of course the units must be able to be booked as such but they do not have to be the same season otherwise.

Aha! Thanks!

 

[CA Richard]

It may have to do with obtaining cheaper flights as opposed to Friday, Saturday or Sunday.......



.

I can see where flight cost could also come into play in some situations. Thanks!

 

[Hobee]

Which resorts offer Thursday check-in for week stays?

 

[Dean]

Off the top of my head for the above trading resorts it's Branson, 2 Orlando resorts and 2 of the CA resorts. LV, Williamsburg, AZ & one of the CA resorts does not. The 2 FL club resorts I mentioned that do not have lockout's (Doral & LE) also do not. I'd also note that for lockout's it's only Manor Club Sequel but not the older section.

 

[jmhpsu93]

Ocean Pointe also has Thursday check-in and is part of the Florida Club, but their maintenace fees are higher.

 

[Dean]

Ocean Pointe also has Thursday check-in and is part of the Florida Club, but their maintenace fees are higher.

Not only are it's fees higher, it's more costly to get into for a good season. If one is looking at the FL Club it's helpful to look at the seasons as one is locked in to the season they own for exchanging within the FL and not all resorts have all seasons. One other note is it's 7 months for concurrent or consecutive weeks assuming one owns 2 weeks, not just locking off to get 2 weeks.