SDO platinum

[mstoyanov]

I fully agree with jerseygirl - If Starwood cared too much about inventory in SDO they would have offered option for resale buyer to join SVN for $599 but instead they went ahead and bought Villas of Cave Creek.
I don't think they care too much about availability in SBP, SDO, LT, SMV and other lower tier resorts. And WPORV and WMH are relatively new resorts so there is still plenty of availability in SVN. As for WSJ-BV - there StarOptions in any season other than Platinum are not enough to entice owners to exchange in SVN. In a long term yes - they may offer such enrollment but it probably be on a different terms and they may even adjust the SVN charts.
They will only start to care if SVN can bring more profitability now that selling timeshares are difficult but they either need to impose booking fees per transaction or raise SVN membership fees much above what is it currently for them to make some serious profits from SVN. Oh and they need to finally get online booking and reduce their call center costs if they are serious about making profit from SVN.

Ah ... but these same realities have been apparent for a long time and Starwood has never cared -- IMO, they only care about retail sales and inflated management fees. I think they screwed up royally by making some of the more popular resorts voluntary (WPORV, WSJ-BV, WMH, etc) --- but I seriously doubt if they care about the lesser resorts falling out of the network. Again, JMO! That's not to say they might not do it just for the short-term pop in revenue -- but, that revenue is not sustainable if the resorts remain voluntary ... they'll just turn over again ... and again. The population of owners ain't gettin' any younger!

My prediction -- they'll do it ... but the price won't be $599!! In fact, I suspect the "last chance offers" are intertwined in this mystery!

If they make drastic changes (ala' Marriott), I'll renew my prediction of a SERIOUS SO re-evaluation in addition to >$595 for resale owners to join.

The good news for me -- I don't care! I have the mandatories I need/want and I'm reducing my portfolio of traders due to an inability to use them all. But, it's fun to watch and speculate nonetheless!

Having said all this, I think if L2Trade has the play money to make this gamble -- then I say go for it! If SDO Platinum is invited in at 148,100 for minimal $, it will have been a great coup. And, if it's not, so what -- L2Trade still has a great external trader on his hands!

 

[K2Quick]

I don't think they care too much about availability in SBP, SDO, LT, SMV and other lower tier resorts. And WPORV and WMH are relatively new resorts so there is still plenty of availability in SVN.

I agree with that for the most part. At least for resorts where there is a nearby, fancier option with higher demand. I'm guessing that WKV will always be more in demand than SDO and will have a decent supply available. LT and SMV have the new Riverfront villas pumping supply into the system. What I think they'll do is just turn on the spigot to open up SVN to resale owners only when they are running short on supply.

SBP will probably get more of the offers in the future because there's nothing else close by and that SVN pool will need to be replenished once a critical mass of ownership changes hands. Starwood has time on their side for the time being in Palm Springs, but they'll eventually need to address that - same goes for WLR.

 

[l2trade]

Q: What does Starwood buying Villas of Cave Creek have to do with offering SVN membership to resale owners?
A: Nothing

IMHO -
1. Starwood cares about their Sheraton brand name too. They are not going to abandon it or intentionally devalue it. Starwood is not out to destroy what they have built. It is a valuable asset. Companies may sell brands, they don't deliberately destroy them. SDO is a beautiful property and is being well maintained, funded and improved. Like any corporation, Starwood has made mistakes in the past and their interests are not always aligned with what I wanted. However, that doesn't mean that Starwood is out to get all of us! If I thought that, I would dump everything I own and take my business elsewhere. Overall, I am a very happy timeshare owner. In spite of changes I have strongly disagreed with, I continue to get really great value out of exchanging my existing ownerships with II. SDO is a great trader. I love it!

2. Combining EOY/annual 2BD SDO 'true platinum' weeks, there are 360 weeks per year that are valued at 148k SO. As someone pointed out earlier in this thread, SDO gold plus at 81k is proportionally lower than average of three seasons. There are ~15,000 total ownerships at SDO. It is not necessary for Starwood to revalue SVN point chart for this resort on account of a relatively small number of peak demand weeks. And, by the way, many owners of those 148k SO weeks paid big money to buy new based on the points charts and/or did the same to retro. I don't think Starwood wants to upset those owners. Doing so would be a HUGE mistake, especially since some of them happen to be 5* Elite!

3. SDO trades great on II. Why? II isn't narrowly focused on comparing WKV vs. SDO, best vs. nothing. II is looking at the big picture. Everything Starwood is better than most timeshares out there. SDO is a great resort, an II Premier Resort, with member ratings from almost 300 people averaging to 5, 4.5 & 4.5 on a 5 point scale in the past 12 months. That is not shabby for a cheap resort, eh? Oh, and by the way, SDO just replaced all the unit appliances and will do unit refreshes out of the well funded reserves.

 

[DanCali]

Gee - I wonder if there is any truth to the rumor Starwood will allow SDO to join SVN?

If there weren't hundreds of potential sellers and PCCs who have an incentive to spread that rumor to get a higher price for weeks they bought for $200 (or got paid to take in the case of PCCs), I may buy into that concept.

But hey, $4000+ for something that sold three weeks ago for $1500 means it's working. The truth may be a whole other matter though.

 

[ada903]

Most PCC's have no clue of the difference between float 1-52 and true plat.

Gee - I wonder if there is any truth to the rumor Starwood will allow SDO to join SVN?

If there weren't hundreds of potential sellers and PCCs who have an incentive to spread that rumor to get a higher price for weeks they bought for $200 (or got paid to take in the case of PCCs), I may buy into that concept.

But hey, $4000+ for something that sold three weeks ago for $1500 means it's working. The truth may be a whole other matter though.

 

[DanCali]

Most PCC's have no clue of the difference between float 1-52 and true plat.

You're focusing on the wrong point. PCCs may not know the difference but you, me, and many others do...

Buy low (from pcc), spread rumor,sell high? It's called "pump and dump"...


I don't own any SDO so I have no incentives. I am also not making any accusations against any fellow tuggers (who may have heard it from someone who has a hidden motive) who posted these rumors.

Maybe it's a rumor and maybe there is some truth to it. I am just trying to make a point that this is the type of rumor that should be taken with a huge grain of salt because many people can gain from such a rumor being perpetuated. And if you get into a bidding war, or load up on timeshares and your MF obligations based on these types of rumors, you do so at your own peril.

 

[l2trade]

You're focusing on the wrong point. PCCs may not know the difference but you, me, and many others do...

Buy low (from pcc), spread rumor,sell high? It's called "pump and dump"...


I don't own any SDO so I have no incentives. I am also not making any accusations against any fellow tuggers (who may have heard it from someone who has a hidden motive) who posted these rumors.

Maybe it's a rumor and maybe there is some truth to it. I am just trying to make a point that this is the type of rumor that should be taken with a huge grain of salt because many people can gain from such a rumor being perpetuated. And if you get into a bidding war, or load up on timeshares and your MF obligations based on these types of rumors, you do so at your own peril.

I am not a PCC. I have NEVER sold a Starwood timeshare. I have NEVER bought a Starwood timeshare for less than $1,000. If and when I buy a 'true platinum', I will probably try to sell my first timeshare to make up for the new one I purchase. I won't make a profit if I sell it, not even close!

Nodge started the rumor thread. Financially, I thank Nodge for teaching me about XYZ (now let's stop talking about that please). Humor wise, I thank Nodge for countless laughs! Because of Nodge and his ability to bring us together, I have a huge repertoire of lawyer jokes! So, while I don't know Nodge from anything but what we read here, I trust him. Nodge is NOT A PCC. Nodge simply reported what he heard from a Starwood phone agent. I highly doubt Starwood phone agents are PCC and out to pump & dump. Starwood records phone calls for quality purposes. The simple explanation is the agent was being helpful and honest. I am more likely to believe that, than some type of conspiratorial scam where a PCC infiltrates Nodge or a Starwood phone agent.

And with that said, I am not intending to perpetuate the rumor as truth. I am just saying that the posting about the "phone conversation about said rumor" is most likely true. As for the rumor itself, we will need to wait and see.

I agree with you, DanCali, that we should take all rumors with 'a huge grain of salt'. However, we should also consider the source, which in this case is not directly a PCC as you imply it might be. In this case, I think the source Nodge/phone agent is much more believable, and, while it should be taken with 'a huge grain of salt', it merits further investigating to see if we can find any more leaks or facts about it.

 

[l2trade]

~20 minutes left. I've not re-bid yet. I am watching this with my finger on the button to submit my snipe bid. Given all the PMs and posts I've read, I will probably NOT click it. L2Trade is a LOSER on this auction! :-(

I sure hope this auction winner is a non-payer and it gets re-listed, so I can have a 2nd chance!!!

 

[nodge]

Nodge started the rumor thread.

Yep. I just report what I heard. No deep seeded goal to prop up SDO prices, and certainly no guarantee or promise that what I reported will ever actually happen.

Now if we're talking about me attempting to prop-up the resale price of jewelry purchased at a homemade jewelry "party." Guilty as charged.

-nodge

 

[l2trade]

Thanks Nodge! You made me laugh again.

 

[l2trade]

With a few minutes left, I just learned the seller is also a TUG member. I am interested to see if he stays quiet after this closes. < 2 minutes. I haven't clicked my snipe bid yet. I probably won't. This is so, so hard. I hope we seen another 'true platinum' soon!!!

 

[l2trade]

It just closed at $3,906, with the 2nd highest bid at $3,900... neither of those bids are me! L2Trade is a big loser, who ended up watching this finish from the dugout! Because these two bids are really close together, I assume this means the maximum snipe bid was the same as the close price. Had I tried to snipe at $4,460, it looks like I would have won this for $3,956. I hope I didn't make a HUGE mistake! I hope there is time to pick another one of these up cheap and soon.

timesharepro - Care to weigh in on this one???

 

[DavidnRobin]

Why do you say 'big loser' - it sounds to me that you 'won' by not paying $3900 for this VOI...

there is a concept (Mike Caro - among many) that money you do not put into a pot that has no value (-EV) is money saved...
see DUCY (David Skalansky)

IMO NAE
(btw - only here on SDO threads so what all the commotion was about...)

 

[l2trade]

Why do you say 'big loser' - it sounds to me that you 'won' by not paying $3900 for this VOI...

there is a concept (Mike Caro - among many) that money you do not put into a pot that has no value (-EV) is money saved...
see DUCY (David Skalansky)

IMO NAE
(btw - only here on SDO threads so what all the commotion was about...)

The pot has value to me, not as an investment, but for personal consumption. I'll try again next time.

L2Trade is a 'big loser' because I didn't win the auction. It's Ok to have fun here and poke fun at ourselves, right? As long as I say it about myself and not another poster that is within the rule, correct? Perhaps I'm just not using enough smilies???
:hysterical: :rofl:

 

[DavidnRobin]

The pot has value to me, not as an investment, but for personal consumption. I'll try again next time.

L2Trade is a 'big loser' because I didn't win the auction. It's Ok to have fun here and poke fun at ourselves, right? As long as I say it about myself and not another poster that is within the rule, correct? Perhaps I'm just not using enough smilies???

I agree you can poke fun at yourself - and not even with all the smilies. I just think that not winning a SVO VOI auction because you did not overbid is considered 'losing' (as is true with most things)
#winning...

 

[levatino]

:deadhorse:

damn, I am glad this is over. This topic was beat like cheap, dead horse.

 

[JanT]

Amen brother!!!!

:deadhorse:

damn, I am glad this is over. This topic was beat like cheap, dead horse.

 

[l2trade]

Amen brother!!!!

I don't know what you two are talking about?

No matter, this will be my last TUG post for weeks.

If anyone finds an annual 2BD 'true platinum' SDO listing and cares enough to let me know, please send me a PM to alert me. Next time around, I am going to try a different strategy to win it. I'm stepping away for now. Will only check listings. bye, bye now...

 

[VacationForever]

I just closed on a SDO 2 BR L/O annual platinum week, waiting for completion... (I am pretty sure it's platinum - 3097/3098 Wk 21) opening up the possibility to requalify within next couple of years to get to 4*. No plans to go 5*. Hopefully Starwood does not change the rules during this period. Any suggestions on the cheapest path is appreciated.

This is what I have:
SVR with 90K options in SVN.
SDO 2BR 1-52 with 81K if requalified.
SDO 2BR Platinum with 148K if requalified.

If I buy a straight forward 2BR platinum week at WDW to requalify SDO platinum, it will get me to 386K.

Suggestions for cheaper alternatives?

Thanks,
SP

 

[ada903]

So you made an offer to Doug Ochoa on eBay and he took it and ended the listing! Just curious, how much did he settle for?

I just closed on a SDO 2 BR L/O annual platinum week, waiting for completion... (I am pretty sure it's platinum - 3097/3098 Wk 21) opening up the possibility to requalify within next couple of years to get to 4*. No plans to go 5*. Hopefully Starwood does not change the rules during this period. Any suggestions on the cheapest path is appreciated.

This is what I have:
SVR with 90K options in SVN.
SDO 2BR 1-52 with 81K if requalified.
SDO 2BR Platinum with 148K if requalified.

If I buy a straight forward 2BR platinum week at WDW to requalify SDO platinum, it will get me to 386K.

Suggestions for cheaper alternatives?

Thanks,
SP

 

[VacationForever]

I admit to nothing...

 

[ada903]

not a bad strategy... Used it myself

I was watching that one!

 

[DavidnRobin]

I just closed on a SDO 2 BR L/O annual platinum week, waiting for completion... (I am pretty sure it's platinum - 3097/3098 Wk 21) opening up the possibility to requalify within next couple of years to get to 4*. No plans to go 5*. Hopefully Starwood does not change the rules during this period. Any suggestions on the cheapest path is appreciated.

This is what I have:
SVR with 90K options in SVN.
SDO 2BR 1-52 with 81K if requalified.
SDO 2BR Platinum with 148K if requalified.

If I buy a straight forward 2BR platinum week at WDW to requalify SDO platinum, it will get me to 386K.

Suggestions for cheaper alternatives?

Thanks,
SP

Not sure what value 4* (for the cost...) has if you have no plans to go to 5*. I am sure this has been discussed (perhaps not?), but I do not understand the goal of getting to 4*. I can see picking up the SVO VOIs in order to get value out of them - but requaling to get to 4* just doesn't seem worth it if the final goal is not 5* where real benefits do come into play.

 

[VacationForever]

David, I like the option of converting to starpoints. I know Denise and several folks have said it's not worth it. After we are retired, which is going to be no later than 4 years' time, we intend to travel alot. We both used to travel and live internationally when we were working for corporate America. We are currently bogged down to not travelling too far away as we were silly enough to run our own company. Can't wait to get out there again. Starpoints give us the flexibility. The only expensive part about going to 4* is the one time buy of a new developer unit.

 

[jarta]

IMO, not sure what 4* (even without the cost) has if you have no plans to go to 5*. Annual conversion to Starpoints is not enough for me; flexibility in making multi-week reservations at mainland places I can drive to when I retire (4-5 years) probably is, though.

But, if you are happy with your purchase, I see no reason to rain on your parade. Enjoy your new timeshare! ... eom