Renting VIP reservations with unit assignments

[vacationhopeful]

A VIP owner approached me thru a Redweek ad to rent one of my Wyndham points reservations. As a Gold VIP, I can get this a certain unit assigned to my reservation during the ARP window. He wanted the unit to be "garurnteed" on my rental contract. He did NOT want a street view (oceanview or oceanfront) and I am ONLY covering my points costs (not GC fee included). However, the resort reserves the right to substitute a another unit. This resort does not have units booked with different point values on view. He is deeded at this resort also and has stayed there multiple times; he didn't get his reservation there this year.

I told him I would accept money order or cashier's check. He wanted American Title service so he could use a credit card (and stated he would pay their fee). I told him I would accept PAYPAL which he said he had never used before. I sent him a PAYPAL invoice where immediately displayed his full name and address. 6 hours later, he CANCELS my PAYPAL invoice per my notice from PP.:annoyed: Sent him an email an hour ago.

MY QUESTION:=> Is American Title the escrow ONLY arm of Redweek? I pull up several older threads on TUG and I do NOT want to wait for my money, as it sounds like he will argue he got a different unit - even though the contract I sent him states the resort can "change" unit assignments. And I would hanker to bet, he will not be returning my contract signed.

I still have the unit for rent on Redweek.

 

[bnoble]

If it were me, I'd move on. This guy sounds like more trouble than he is worth. I would just respond: "Sorry, I am unable to guarantee the view you are requesting. I hope you can find someone who can satisfy your needs."

 

[Sandi Bo]

I agree with Brian.

No matter how many times you say it, people do not hear the part about the resort having the right to move units. I'm sure you already know, you are especially susceptible to that happening if you put a GC on the reservation (vs. being an owner staying there).

And if you are talking about where I'm think, I've had some fun experiences with views there. We had 4 rooms for our family reunion, held forever in ocean view / ocean front rooms. On the morning of checkin I called to be sure we still had them. 2 had been reassigned. In trying to sort things out, they offered me our other 2 rooms as replacements for the rooms they gave away. Comical (you can't give me that room, it's already assigned to my Dad).

We did get our originally assigned rooms, but only because I called that morning and stayed on top of things.

Unless there is something I don't know (which is very possible) the only way you can truly guarantee an ocean front or ocean view room is to book a 3 BR or a 4 BR Pres.

I'd be considering walking away from this, sounds like trouble. As a VIP owner, he should understand the rules, too.

 

[jjmanthei05]

Why don't you offer to cancel the room over to him and request he pay for your profit only. That way being a vip he could garauntee his room and you wouldn't have to deal with it. Give him "if you miss it, it is non refundable". May work for both of you and you don't have the hassle of waiting (unless it is within the 2 week window)

Jason

 

[lcml11]

Why don't you offer to cancel the room over to him and request he pay for your profit only. That way being a vip he could garauntee his room and you wouldn't have to deal with it. Give him "if you miss it, it is non refundable". May work for both of you and you don't have the hassle of waiting (unless it is within the 2 week window)

Jason

Nice thought, however, VIP rights do not transfer on a non-owner occupied unit, even if it goes to a different owner that is not on the same account even if that owner has VIP status in their own right. There are no guarentees by Wyndham or most of the resorts on a specific room assignment, a Wyndham VIP owner has no ability to guarentee this and make it happen if the resort will not do it.

 

[SOS8260456]

Linda,
You have great instincts, go with your gut on this one. The renter should know that even WITH a VIP owner, unit assignments are not guaranteed.

 

[vacationhopeful]

Oh, I figured that he was dishing bull when he called me that he had "questions" about my rental agreement.

I keep those things real simple - you pay me this amount by this date and you stay there for these days in this size unit. And I want full payment in 7 days via USPS money order or certified funds (if within 45 days of checkin). Even people who are from foreign countries and read/speak limited English, understand this level of real simple.

 

[jjmanthei05]

Nice thought, however, VIP rights do not transfer on a non-owner occupied unit, even if it goes to a different owner that is not on the same account even if that owner has VIP status in their own right. There are no guarentees by Wyndham or most of the resorts on a specific room assignment, a Wyndham VIP owner has no ability to guarentee this and make it happen if the resort will not do it.

I understand that but doing a cancel and rebook with your renter would put it in his account. That way it would be under his VIP status and he could get his room. I have done this only a couple but I have never done it at an extra holidays resort so there is a chance the reservation could be never put back in the system.

Jason

 

[vacationhopeful]

This resort week would disappear if I did the cancel to rebook action. Extra Holidays would rent the first 5 nights and collect more than I would for the 7 night reservation.

 

[lcml11]

I understand that but doing a cancel and rebook with your renter would put it in his account. That way it would be under his VIP status and he could get his room. I have done this only a couple but I have never done it at an extra holidays resort so there is a chance the reservation could be never put back in the system.

Jason

I am not sure I am following. Is this an example of what you mean:

Both Rentor and Rentee are Platinum VIP.

Rentee does not have 240,000 points for a high demand resort or does not have ARP rights at that resort.

Rentor books a 240,000 full week reservation during the ARP period in a hard to get location.

Rentee agrees to take the reservation in their name within the 60 day discount period using 120,000 points from their own account.

Rentee pays rentor the agreed upon profit only portion because the Rentor gets their points back. The profit would be compensation for tying up their points for the better part of a year?

If it is not a verision of the above, I am at a loss how the reservation gets from the rentor's account to the rentee's.

 

[vacationhopeful]

I have done the sitting on the cell phone and cancel a reservation for another VIP owner to pick up, use the week to get the free upgrade and I reclaim my original unit with the discounted point value. The other owner had a larger unit which they had release so it was available while they were booking.

There are some resorts which don't have a very good balance of unit sizes - like Shawnee is almost ALL 2 bedrooms and at least ONE of their villages does not honor the VIP upgrades on units (seems that village does have 1bdr and 2bdr).

 

[chapjim]

Guests have no standing at Ocean Walk (that is where we're talking about, right?). A guest will get the same size unit as what is in the reservation. 3BR units are all oceanfront as are the cheaper 2BR Lockoffs. (The A-unit has the oceanfront balcony, the B-unit has no outside view at all.)

For guests, anything else is a roll of the dice. Owners will get the specific unit in the reservation (if a unit number was assigned when the reservation was made) unless it is uninhabitable for some reason. Obviously, a cancel and rebook resets everything.

On my RedWeek.com listings at Ocean Walk, I put ASSIGNED AT CHECK-IN in the unit number slot and a note that view is not guaranteed.

I've never tried to synchronize a cancel & rebook with another owner on the phone. It ought to work just as well (or as badly) as when I do it myself.

 

[pacodemountainside]

Nice thought, however, VIP rights do not transfer on a non-owner occupied unit, even if it goes to a different owner that is not on the same account even if that owner has VIP status in their own right. There are no guarentees by Wyndham or most of the resorts on a specific room assignment, a Wyndham VIP owner has no ability to guarentee this and make it happen if the resort will not do it.

After reading page 287 of Directory not sure about this!

"Guests traveling without a Club Wyndham Plus VIP Member present are not eligible to receive VIP benefits during their stay".

Nothing about VIP owner having to be present!

Language is more explict that RCI exchanges do not allow VIP benefits even if one is a VIP.


In any case I would walk. Room assignments are a crap shoot especially if resort is full!