Newbie looking for suggestions on renting points

[mcgregml]

Hello!

Not my first post here, but darn close! (I lurk...a lot...)

I have some points I will be posting for rent - yes, there's a separate board for this, I know - but I'm looking for some suggestions before I post this.

Potential renters are told to ask for references, get things in writing, always receive a written confirmation, etc. Since this is the first time I'll be renting points (tried unsuccessfully to rent points out over a year ago), I'm looking for suggestions from people who have successfully rented in the past.

Did you require a deposit? If so, how much? Was it refundable? What exactly do you have in writing?

I want to be a conscientious renter and establish good references as I hope to be able to do this again in the future. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Melissa

 

[dianeschlicht]

First of all, you need to get a good contract that protects both you and the person renting from you. The potential problems for the renter are monetary and vacation loss, but the potential problems for you the owner is in time spent "servicing" the renter, and also the possible loss of points, should the renter renig on the agreement. It is by no means and easy proposition for EITHER party, and not to be taken lightly. If you find you continually have "extra" points, it might not be worth it to you to continue your current level of DVC ownership. If you have more than one contract, you might try selling one to get closer to your ideal number for personal point usage. Since DVC is trying to "crack down" on commercial renting, there are many here who find it to be a bit of a hassle.

 

[JimMIA]

There was a thread a few months ago that was a "Primer" for owners renting points. I don't have it bookmarked, but I'm sure someone will post a link to it soon. You'll find a lot of good information there.

As far as potential renters, they are often told to look for someone with an established track record on the DIS (lots of posts) and check references. Since you are just starting out, those pieces of advice will work against you.

However, you have a track record somewhere, and can give references for other types of activities, so I'd use those. For example, you haven't rented DVC before, but if you have a good feedback record on eBay, that would be helpful.

My advice to you is to be sure you understand all of the ins and outs of cancellations, and how your Use Year and banking deadlines will work in connection with rentals. That, of course, will vary depending on where you are in your use year. The biggest risk to an owner, IMHO, is not understanding their own account and getting in trouble because of that.

I'd also expect many potential renters to be very unsettled about their dates, and expect that to be a significant problem. People get all excited and will have you spending hours on the phone with MS checking availability when, in fact, they have no idea when they are actually going. Some of these folks are very nice people, but there comes a point where you have to decide how "high maintenance" a renter you can handle.

You can also expect someone to agree on dates and a price with you, have you make the reservation, and then re-contact you and ask for a lower price because someone offered them a lower price. That's going to happen, so you need to figure out how you're going to handle it.

Good luck!

 

[dianeschlicht]

I don't believe solicitations like that are allowed on this board. I also don't think PM is available to those who have under a certain number of posts.

 

[Granny]

There was a thread a few months ago that was a "Primer" for owners renting points. I don't have it bookmarked, but I'm sure someone will post a link to it soon. You'll find a lot of good information there.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1255828&

 

[mcgregml]

Thanks for the replies! I am going to check out the primer thread now.

It's good to know that Disney is cracking down on the renting. I'm going to try and rent these points, but in a year or two I'll probably end up selling a portion of what I currently own - can't sell everything! Where's the fun in that?

Good suggestion about ebay too! Not a really high feedback number (somewhere in the forties, I think) but it's all 100% positive, and the account was established either in 1999 or 2001 - so a long track record anyway.

Thanks again!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Thanks for the replies! I am going to check out the primer thread now.

It's good to know that Disney is cracking down on the renting. I'm going to try and rent these points, but in a year or two I'll probably end up selling a portion of what I currently own - can't sell everything! Where's the fun in that?

Good suggestion about ebay too! Not a really high feedback number (somewhere in the forties, I think) but it's all 100% positive, and the account was established either in 1999 or 2001 - so a long track record anyway.

Thanks again!

Remember, too, that you can't sell a part of a contract when you decide to get rid of some of your points. You'll have to sell a complete initial contract or add-on contract that you purchased. Only Disney can split these up.

 

[mcgregml]

Yes - unfortunately I remember that you can't "split up an interest" so to speak. When my parents initially invested in DVC, I paid for half of their points - which are totally in their name, but in fact mine. I paid for them, I pay the maintenance, the whole nine yards.

A couple of years later I bought my own through The Timeshare Store on a toally separate contract - so unfortunately that is probably what I will have to get rid of. Sniff sniff...

But that's a few years off anyway.

Thanks again for all the great suggestions, and the responses! I see I'm going to have some serious research to do this weekend before I post about points for rent!

 

[mcgregml]

Just a quick follow-up - thanks to all who replied, especially Granny with the link to the primer thread! That was a real life saver!

Successfully rented my points last week - now all I have to do is keep my fingers crossed that everything goes smoothly between now and the reservation date!

Thanks again!

Melissa

 

[dianeschlicht]

Yes - unfortunately I remember that you can't "split up an interest" so to speak. When my parents initially invested in DVC, I paid for half of their points - which are totally in their name, but in fact mine. I paid for them, I pay the maintenance, the whole nine yards.

A couple of years later I bought my own through The Timeshare Store on a toally separate contract - so unfortunately that is probably what I will have to get rid of. Sniff sniff...

But that's a few years off anyway.

Thanks again for all the great suggestions, and the responses! I see I'm going to have some serious research to do this weekend before I post about points for rent!

You might try having your parents "sign over" the points to you. That might simplify things for all involved. I'm not exactly sure how that all works, and I know that you have to register something with the county, but since your name is already on the contract, it can't be THAT difficult.