Resale Question - Unit Selection

[talisanman]

Hi...

Thanks for all of the information from our initial post. Now that we're looking into resale, we have just as many questions...

We've been review the secondary market website for resale, and one of the areas of confusion is around specific units. During our sales pitch in Princeville, the sales rep indicated that we we're buying a specific interest in a specific unit (for deed purposes), but that our unit, when booking for holiday, would be floating. So I get that. However, when pursuing resale units (on Maui/South) we see that there are ocean view and ocean front.

So, I assume that by purchasing resale, we would also be purchasing an interest in a specific unit (for deed), but that the actual "oceanfront" unit would be based on availability, when the season is defined as "floating". is this correct?

Also, the season descriptions on Redweek.com indicate Floating (varies) versus Floating (High). Where can these terms be qualified?

Thanks in advance ...

 

[DeniseM]

All the units at WKORV and WKORVN are floating weeks, except Christmas and New Years which were sold at a premium as fixed weeks. Floating week owners cannot reserve those weeks.

All the units at WKORV and WKORVN are deeded either Island View, Ocean View, or Ocean Front. If you book early enough, you are guaranteed the view on your deed. The later you book, the worse your view will be. After 8 mos. out, you no longer have any priority for your view. Savvy owners book at 12 mos. out at 9 a.m. ET.

So if you buy Ocean Front and you book on the first day possible - yes, you will get ocean front.

If you buy ocean view or island view, the chances of ever getting ocean front are slim and none....

Although the resorts are similar, the OF units at WKORV have a far superior view - full beach front with 180º ocean views. Some of the supposedly OF units at WKORV-N just have a glimpse of the ocean - I don't know how in good conscience Starwood could have sold them as OF. The OF owners are not happy about it...

Those Redweek terms are basically whatever the owner puts in his Ad. The Starwood Maui resorts are Platinum (high season) year round - Starwood doesn't use the word "red." - there are no seasons other than Platinum at WKORV and WKORVN. Other resorts have all kinds of seasons and it gets kind of confusing. It doesn't really matter what someone calls their week in their Ad. When you are buying resale, what matters is 3 things on the deed - IV, OV, or OF, whether it's a 1 bdm. or 2 bdm., and if it's every year or every other year.

Many Ads are misleading or erroneous in their content, so don't hesitate to email and ask for more info. If you get serious about buying something you can ask to see a copy of the deed and/or confirm with Starwood that the week they are selling is accurately described. And of course when you go through professional escrow/closing you are paying the service to guarantee that you get what you paid for, so it's not as dicey as it may seem.

 

[dss]

Denise as usuaul absolutely nailed it, but I'll add some additional detail on the view categories at the Maui properties

WKORN OF and D-OF
- Easily the nicest units at either property in most peoples opinion.
-Deluxe are they corner units with an approx 300 extra sq ft and windows along the side of the living room which provide significantly extra light/view. The downside is the MFs are higher and the studio unit is actually on the side though it is large and has a nice lanai. The Center Ocean Front units (called Premium OF) have both units dead center in the building but are a bit smaller with less light and a slightly more narrow layout. The lanai is particularly large and has a dining table on it. It also has lower MFs. Both types of units are great, I personally prefer D-OF but both kinds have their fans and if view really matters to you, you can't go wrong either way as all the units have fantastic views.

WKORV-N OF - As Denise indicated, they are angled at the ocean so they don't have full 180 views but they are still very nice. Unfortunately SVN classified some very borderline units as OF so there is more disparity in room assignment.

WKORN-N OV - The good news is that all of the OV units at North tend to have a good, angled view of the water. This is the major upgrade from WKORV where OC is all over the place.

WKORV OV - There are most of these out there than most any other unit. Unfortunately OV at WKORN can mean a lot of things, including a sixth floor unit next to the water, down to a ground floor room with a view of the AC (and water if you crane your neck).

WKORN-N IV - These are still very nice units and (I believe?) some have pool and water views.

WKORN IV - These often overlook the dreaded "parking lot" and are typically assigned to exchangers. Probably not your best buy if you are looking to own in Maui as you could pay about the same to buy Kierland with much lower MFs and simply trade in.

There are also Deluxe OV and IV units in building four, but I skipped those as they are very few in number and rarely are seen on the resale market. Basically, they are corner units in building four with the same layout o the Deluxe OF.