And how is that different than RCI or II? Are you saying that they are not leftovers in those systems as well? If not, what Ongoing Searches are they denying in order to put those weeks into the available online pool?
I think what you are really seeing is that SFX just simply does not have the volume of weeks deposited that RCI and II have, so it ends up that there are very few "leftovers" for SFX to present online.
Kurt
I find inventory sitting online with RCI and II much more often, but believe me, I am no fan of RCI and their ridiculous fees. I have a lot of TPU's in RCI that may never be used. RCI has gone down a terrible road. I stopped depositing my ski and summer weeks at Val Chatelle with them. I deposit my weeks with htse.net now, and I get much more value out of them. I like Hawaiian Timeshare Exchange a lot. I also like Trading Place Maui.
I do like II and have the Starwood preference, which I use quite a bit. I also like Marriott preference and get some great resorts that way.
I have about 16 weeks deposited, give or take, with SFX and don't get matches to any of my searches. We travel 12 weeks per year and only two of those weeks are weeks we actually own. All of the rest I get via exchange, but SFX rarely has a thing to offer. And yes, sometimes I am very specific about my requests.
I could maybe be more flexible for trips over a year out. We have no desire to go to Mexico. I keep hoping for a San Francisco exchange for next summer through SFX. It's something I requested months ago. I hope to get it. I have turned down matches from II for the same period of time, believe it or not. II works very well for me.
Several times RCI has booked us a week with an OGS and did not even inform us!! And it was NOT one of my requested resorts. I saw the booking later on while I was just checking the account. Fortunately they canceled them when I called but I am not doing any more OGS with RCI. As other times I found matches when browsing online fir the exact place I had asked for , and had not gotten them. I know others are successful but RCI certainly did not help us with an OGS.
Well, this has never happened to me. Some of my holds just expire. I have never checked a box anywhere that says to automatically confirm anything. Is there such a box? I have been a member of RCI since 1983 and have never had that happen via an ongoing search. I have confirmed something I saw online and have forgotten to cancel. Things are held, and I either ignore the holds or confirm them myself.
I wish SFX did work for us. I have deposits I want to use, and I had a Platinum account for ten years to use them, and now I am supposedly Diamond. Doesn't help one bit.
Right now, we are staying at Kahana Beach Resort, two weeks back-to-back, II exchanges, and I got these units with our Marriott studios. These were the best exchanges I have received in a while. These one bedrooms are oceanfront and the unit is air conditioned. It's a fantastic trade. I would love to stay here again at any time of year. II just works so well.
I have about 8 requests ongoing with SFX. I lose track. I don't get the phone calls from SFX others get. My ongoing requests just expire. We used to be tied to Rick's work schedule, and now we are more flexible, but air travel requires a little planning. I cannot take things last-minute. Not that I have ever been offered anything last-minute.
I have some other requests I can enter with SFX. I would love to get some matches, so I will attempt some new searches.
We own way too many timeshares. That is the truth. And some of my SFX deposits will expire. That is another truth. How can I count on anything coming through for me, based on my past experience?