Cking Ressies

[afhyppie]

Is there anyway to make sure a ressie# is good if you are not a DVC member. Can I call MS and ask them to ck the ressie number.
Thanks,

 

[CarolMN]

Is there anyway to make sure a ressie# is good if you are not a DVC member. Can I call MS and ask them to ck the ressie number.
Thanks,

MS will only talk to members, so no, you cannot call MS to confirm a reservation. (But even if you could call MS, there's no guarantee that a dishonest member couldn't call back later and cancel on you).

The member should send you the confirmation letter MS sends to the member after the reservation is made.

Three to five days prior to arrival, the DVC reservations are downloaded to the resort. You can call the resort directly at that time to confirm if you like.

Since renting is a private transaction, there is a degree of risk involved. Ask for references and you should have the member's contact info - name, address, & phone number as well as an email address. If you are a worrier, renting is probably not a good choice for you.

 

[mikesmom]

Nope. The ressie is owned by, and controlled by, the member. You should get a reservation form with your name and the ressie number on it from the member, but even that is not an iron clad guarantee, it could later be cancelled by the member. I have heard you can call the resort itself 4-5 days out to verify, but I don't have first hand experience of that.

If you don't feel a good trust level with the member or just aren't comfortable with that much unknown, it's best to go through CRO for ressies. It will certainly cost more, but you will be paying for your peace of mind.

 

[sharond150]

You can have a three-way call with you, MS, and the DVC owner you rented from. They can then supply MS with the ressie number. If it were me, I would have the renter on the line, then initiate the call to DVC.

OR
You could have the owner take screen shot of their DVC member page showing the ressie and dates.

There is some degree of risk to both owner and renter but I think it still beats the cost of making ressies through CRO.

 

[Doctor P]

You can have a three-way call with you, MS, and the DVC owner you rented from. They can then supply MS with the ressie number. If it were me, I would have the renter on the line, then initiate the call to DVC.

OR
You could have the owner take screen shot of their DVC member page showing the ressie and dates.

There is some degree of risk to both owner and renter but I think it still beats the cost of making ressies through CRO.

You only want to tie a renter in after you have gotten MS. Otherwise they can hear you give all of your member information.

 

[I'mNoPrince]

And none of that matters as they can cancel it right up until you check-in.

So just hope you made the correct decision and enjoy your trip.

 

[salmoneous]

You can have a three-way call with you, MS, and the DVC owner you rented from. They can then supply MS with the ressie number. If it were me, I would have the renter on the line, then initiate the call to DVC.

Although you could go through the trouble of doing all that, it doesn't really help the renter at all. They have no idea if you are talking to MS, or with your partner in fraud.

 

[WelcomeHome]

Dear Affyppie,

I'm disappointed to see all the doomsday advise and negative cautions given to you by my fellow DVC members. I'm sure you're feeling their underlying tone to frighten you to avoid renting and to distrust people. Please allow me to put things in prospective for you.

HUNDREDS & HUNDREDS of DVC rentals occur every year without even the slightest problem. As long as the DVC renter seems honest & trustworthy and you have his name, address, phone & e-mail address, you should be just fine and have a fantastic vacation at an excellent price! And yes, if you are on the nervous side, you can always call the hotel directly about 3 days in advance when they will have your reservation listed in their records. Remberber, the VAST MAJORITY of people in the world are good and honest.

Please understand that some DVC members take a very harsh stand against renting because of the tactics of a handful of "commercial renters." Commercial renters are people who buy DVC contracts strictly to book prime reservations and sell them at a high profit (like ticket scalpers). As a result, many DVC members resent the entire renting concept - this is where all the negative energy is coming from.

So no, you shouldn't worry at all - and yes, you will have a fantastic time at a great price. I have only had the need to rent once but it was a mutually beneficial experience. I even became friendly with the people I rented to and I know we would be delighted to do business with each other again - I even sent flowers to their room with some of the profit I made on the rental!

Have a great trip. Don't let "the sky is falling" crowd get to you. Feel free to sent me a personal message if you have any other concerns or questions!

Best wishes,
Dave

 

[Muushka]

I have a totally different perspective on the OP's question.

Mine is not resenting people who rent or to or to instill the fear of being swindled. Just the opposite.

I find that the distrust that people have, to the point that they feel the need to ask questions like

Is there anyway to make sure a ressie# is good

is just plain sad. I will not rent to a non-member for fear of making an agreement with them and then come on the boards and read something like this.

OP, no offense, please. There have been very few problems on these boards with unscrupulous people, which is what gets all the attention and warnings. I miss the old days....

Note to self: STOP OPENING THESE THREADS!

 

[Lynne M]

No one is trying to talk the OP out of renting because they disapprove of it, or spreading 'negative energy'.

When someone is spending thousands of dollars of their hard-earned money on a business transaction, it it ONLY kindness to let them know of the possible pitfalls. It's very important that renters understand the nature of the process.

If I were considering renting for the first time, I'd sure as heck want to know that the owner controlled the reservation up until the moment I checked in, and could cancel it. When I know the good and the bad, I can make an intelligent, informed decision on how much risk I feel there is, and if I am going to be comfortable with that level of risk.

I know that some people want everything to be sunshine and pixie dust, but these forums are here for the purpose of sharing useful information, not just happy thoughts.

 

[Muushka]

Call me sentimental. I miss the sunshine and Pixie dust.

 

[lisaviolet]

Dear Affyppie,

I'm disappointed to see all the doomsday advise and negative cautions given to you by my fellow DVC members. I'm sure you're feeling their underlying tone to frighten you to avoid renting and to distrust people. Please allow me to put things in prospective for you.

HUNDREDS & HUNDREDS of DVC rentals occur every year without even the slightest problem. As long as the DVC renter seems honest & trustworthy and you have his name, address, phone & e-mail address, you should be just fine and have a fantastic vacation at an excellent price! And yes, if you are on the nervous side, you can always call the hotel directly about 3 days in advance when they will have your reservation listed in their records. Remberber, the VAST MAJORITY of people in the world are good and honest.

Please understand that some DVC members take a very harsh stand against renting because of the tactics of a handful of "commercial renters." Commercial renters are people who buy DVC contracts strictly to book prime reservations and sell them at a high profit (like ticket scalpers). As a result, many DVC members resent the entire renting concept - this is where all the negative energy is coming from.

So no, you shouldn't worry at all - and yes, you will have a fantastic time at a great price. I have only had the need to rent once but it was a mutually beneficial experience. I even became friendly with the people I rented to and I know we would be delighted to do business with each other again - I even sent flowers to their room with some of the profit I made on the rental!

Have a great trip. Don't let "the sky is falling" crowd get to you. Feel free to sent me a personal message if you have any other concerns or questions!

Best wishes,
Dave

Hi Dave,

How are you doing?

I going to give another viewpoint on this. This DVCers "negative cautions" are not all about not renting. One, a lot of us are just trying to make sure renters realize that there are really no absolutes in regards to risk. Not to scare. Just to educate. But then again, some know and still want to find one. And secondly, there are a lot of renters who have taken the renting of points to a whole new level. I know nothing about the OP. So I'm not talking about him or her.

Your rental might have been smooth. And as you say most absolutely are. 100% in agreement with that. But I know from personal experience and from reading lately that there are a good deal of renters who have tremendous fear/anxiety about the process. Not the majority obviously. But a group that seems be expanding. I'm not judging that as being right or wrong. However, instead of coming to the conclusion, after a few discussions with the owner that don't alleviate their fears, that "renting isn't for us....maybe we should go with CRO" they look to the owners to work overtime to help their anxiety. It's not right IMHO. And yes the owner can and should decide that a renter who won't trust the process isn't the best choice either. But some of us can be naive as well. And our hearts shouldn't have a place in a business transaction (referring to being taken advantage of only).

Do you realize that a renter asked a DVCer recently to send out a copy of her DVC card with information blacked out b/c she couldn't find her name on the county register? It ended up to be that the name has to be put in a specific way. If that was a red flag for the renter fne no judgement on that (also the DISer who was renting had thousands of posts...thousands) then move on. But send me a copy of your card? For some...okay. For me....no way.

Also, I'm a little tired of other DVC members stating to the renters you should be getting this or that. Or payment should be this or that. Suggestions...wonderful. But should denotes others who have a different process as suspect. It's giving renters more fear about owners who don't do this or that.

I really feel that the tradeoff for this "sense of owner having control" is the price. For me, pointe finale. And yes, maybe I shouldn't be renting. I seriously hope that I never will again. I love my points. And also, if you knew my process you would know why.

I told my renter, even if they didn't go with me after a week of work (don't judge me I was a newbie myself and we were working out many fears) , that to know that owners have complete control of the reservation (and of course added that the absolute majority of transactions are smooth and wonderful). Not to be unfriendly...not to produce unnecessary fear not to say "the sky is falling' but b/c it was right after the oh so special story of that "DVCer" who rented out her "aunt's points" over and over again. And a few people were victimized.

Okay...enough of a novel. I do wish all renters well. And hope they have lovely vacations. I've worked overtime on both of my transactions making sure everything was done for the renters. Above and beyond. But I am getting frustrated with the sense of some renters, and I mean some, who want you to prove everything. Trust, with a lack of red flags and instincts, or move on. Gosh, I know I sound harsh but oh well....

 

[Muushka]

And if enough DVC members feel this way, non-members will be finding less people to rent from.

 

[mikesmom]

My take is also that we are not trying to scare away a potential renter, but rather to let them know how it really works. We have all seen posts on these boards about "Why can't I talk to MS", "Why can't I get the ressie changed", "I need to get Magical Express, change to a dining plan, etc and the member didn't email me back".

I think many of us on these Boards want to prevent unrealistic expectations on the part of renters that will eventually lead to bad feelings. Renters need to know that for the cheaper price they are not dealing with Disney, that (for the most part) the member is not a travel agent available at a moments notice, and that the member may be limited in what they can do. Some unrealistic expectations even come from inexperienced new owners that really don't even know what they can and can't do in regards to renting their points. Heck, I've seen owners responding on the Rent/Trade board to a reservation request with the answer "I have points, do you know if there is availability?" Obviously a clueless owner.

I also agree with lisaviolet that sometimes it can get a bit silly on the potential renters part. People who want a contract, a 3 way call, and all your personal info can carry it too far. Bottom line is that for a determined crook, none of these things are going to do any good. A determined swindler will find a way around. Because of that, anything beyond a reasonable due diligence and making sure you have good communications just starts to border on harrassment of the owner. A person who is going to have their days and nights leading up to their vacation ruined because they are afraid of being cheated, just shouldn't rent.

 

[dianeschlicht]

And if enough DVC members feel this way, non-members will be finding less people to rent from.

Absolutely. I wouldn't want the hassle.