Hello, this is my maiden post on this board and yes, like so many others, wish I had found this board sooner! The husband and I are both members of the Marriott Vacation Club (Asia Pacific). We recently went to NY on a Hilton promo deal (stayed 4 nights at the Doubletree Metropolitan for US$585nett, 25000 HHonors points and US$200 dining vouchers) in return for sitting through the timeshare presentation for 90 minutes (which turned into almost 3 hours of hardsell). We got out relatively unscathed, with just a bitter taste in a mouths AND a preview package (urgh) of staying for 5N at West 57th within the next 18 months.
We are now considering buying 5000-7000 points at the HCNY on the resale and are hoping to make offers of about US$0.40 - 0.50 a point, which I understand to be realistic given that the HCNY has 18+ years left on its lease (if it is not realistic, please let me know!). Does anyone know if these per point sums should include all closing costs and transfer fees? I was also told that buying resale no longer comes with Gold HHonors membership - is that true? We are both current Gold members but our status will expire at the end of this year.
Also wondering what yearly increases of MFs/Club dues should I be looking at. I understand that at 7000 points, the MFs/Club dues are about US$1800 - do you think an average of US$100 increase per year is realistic? Also, are rescue fees for points built into the MFs/Club dues? I know the per booking charge is but am not sure about rescue fees (over at the MVCI AP, we have no rescue fees - rolling over to the next year is free (or rather, included in the MFs/Club dues so we don't see it)).
Lastly, we intend to get this for our own use rather than exchange through the HGVC network; the MVCI AP covers our vacations in HI and Las Vegas. Do existing HCNY owners have problems with availability at HCNY? We will typically be able to book 6-9 months out and will mainly stay in 1BR units while going for studios on occasion when husband and I travel without the kid. We like to travel between March and November; not keen fans of the harsh NY winter! If availability is going to be a problem, then it won't make sense for us to purchase this. Also, in a given year when we aren't going to stay there (for example when we will be at the West 57th St property on that preview deal zzz), is this property readily rentable?
Thanks in advance and apologies for all these questions!
We are now considering buying 5000-7000 points at the HCNY on the resale and are hoping to make offers of about US$0.40 - 0.50 a point, which I understand to be realistic given that the HCNY has 18+ years left on its lease (if it is not realistic, please let me know!). Does anyone know if these per point sums should include all closing costs and transfer fees? I was also told that buying resale no longer comes with Gold HHonors membership - is that true? We are both current Gold members but our status will expire at the end of this year.
Also wondering what yearly increases of MFs/Club dues should I be looking at. I understand that at 7000 points, the MFs/Club dues are about US$1800 - do you think an average of US$100 increase per year is realistic? Also, are rescue fees for points built into the MFs/Club dues? I know the per booking charge is but am not sure about rescue fees (over at the MVCI AP, we have no rescue fees - rolling over to the next year is free (or rather, included in the MFs/Club dues so we don't see it)).
Lastly, we intend to get this for our own use rather than exchange through the HGVC network; the MVCI AP covers our vacations in HI and Las Vegas. Do existing HCNY owners have problems with availability at HCNY? We will typically be able to book 6-9 months out and will mainly stay in 1BR units while going for studios on occasion when husband and I travel without the kid. We like to travel between March and November; not keen fans of the harsh NY winter! If availability is going to be a problem, then it won't make sense for us to purchase this. Also, in a given year when we aren't going to stay there (for example when we will be at the West 57th St property on that preview deal zzz), is this property readily rentable?
Thanks in advance and apologies for all these questions!
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