Sorry Dumbo, you seem to be under the mistaken impression that this sytem is fair and reasonable. These issues are the limitation of the Deposit first as it applies to DVC. You make a deposit then later make a request and they may tell you that your deposit doesn't qualify for that exchange request. DVC actually deposits a week and goes ahead and uses the points. You just take your chances if it's the right deposit for what you want to trade for. This type of deposit is likely to be less points for the same exchange but there are risks involved. That means that you may have a deposit that doesn't qualify for a certain exchange request that you want. This type of transaction requires a much more informed member to make it work correctly. You just have to make sure what you deposit will cover all unit sizes and seasons that you want.
I pressed the exchange people pretty hard on getting info on deposit first. I wanted to know if things like which week or which resort would affect the trade power. I wanted to know if I could ask for a larger unit or better season than my deposit. I wanted to know if I could deposit a unit that I had originally reserved for myself. I asked why BWV 2 BR exchanges for 8 when OKW exchanges only for 6. I asked if I could request resorts not on the exchange list. I asked about buying Getaways and getting bonus weeks. In general, the DVC reps that deal with II exchanges are very ignorant of the rest of the timeshare world and I had to ask things several times and in several ways to get answers I was fairly comfortable with, even talking to a supervisor. The answers I got were no increased trade power except by DVC season, no Getaways, no bonus weeks, only resorts on the DVC list, can only ask for a unit the same size or smaller than deposited. They had no clue about why BWV exchanged for 8 and OKW for 6, I don't think they ever really understood. I also asked II about DVC, even had an II rep tell me I could list DVC and do direct exchanges. I thought he was out to lunch and when all was said and done, I was right.
If you deposit a studio Adventure time, you can only search for a unit that sleeps 2 that will qualify for adventure time. That's right, technically, the DVC studios only trade for 2 except WLV for some reason which is listed as a 2/4 unit. OKW probably should be a 2/4 unit because of the 2 queen beds, the pull outs don't usually qualify unless they're in a separate room. They will also confirm you using the criteria of how many people are traveling. If you deposit a 2 BR and tell them only 4 are traveling, you can (within II-DVC rules) be confirmed to a 1 BR. Caveat's are to always tell them the Maximum number of people that will fit in the unit being exchanged (2/4/6) and have them list that the full kitchen is required. Another caveat is that if you say I want Friday 21 Sept, II will assume you will accept any checkin day between Thursday and Sunday. Be sure to check the specific info carefully when they call for an exchange to make sure it's truly what you want.
I suspect, but don't know for sure, that an exchange request against a deposit first will be confirmed without calling. This is II's usualy way of operating, to confirm the first thing that exactly matches the criteria you've given them. Under the normal DVC request first rules, they will call first and ask if you want a certain exchange. If you say no, they will take that resort off your list. Once upon a time, they actually took the entire immediate area off your exchange list but this has changed some several years ago.
One note is that ongoing searches (not instant and the Flexchange (less than 60 days)) are the only instances where you may get a unit larger than being given up. Say you ask for a studio in Aruba for summer, you may actually get a 1 BR if it's an ongoing exchange.
For those that have points they can't use, this can be a great way to extend the life of the points but it is not without drawbacks as noted above. Unless you're very familiar with the system, know exactly what you want and do your homework ahead of time, the request first may be better for most DVC members.
Dean
