using RCI Points to Book DVC Properties??

[jenhelgren]

Can anyone point me in the right direction for some further research on using RCI Points to book DVC resorts? I have read conflicting stories about week vs points, etc. I have had my heart set on saving up to buy into DVC but have a friend that would like to get rid of their RCI points. They told me that I could use them to stay at DVC just not with a 7 month booking window like DVC owners can. How true is this? We have never had a timeshare of any sort, so I am sorry if there questions seem obvious-any help I can get would be great! I do not want to invest in something that we will not use since every chance we get we vacation in the World!

 

[crisi]

My sister has been successful trading into DVC 3 out of 4 times. The fourth time she had to do a different Orlando timeshare and they were offsite. She doesn't always get her first choice of resorts however, and has had to be flexible with weeks. My understanding is that some of it has to do with what value YOUR timeshare has in the system - some properties never see DVC resorts at all.

 

[bwvBound]

I'd suggest taking a long, slow approach on this evaluation. You have much to study and consider before (possibly) accepting this friend's timeshare. It is far easier to GAIN a timeshare than to be be RID of it.

• I'd suggest joining the Timeshare User's Group (TUG) and getting active in dialog there with RCI Points owners.
• Ask questions of the current owner about the specific RCI Points property (the home resort). You'll want to know the resort's name, location, dues history, billing practices, etc. If the home resort is in/around Orlando it will be BLOCKED from trading into DVC at WDW.
• Once you know the Maintenance Fees -- calculate the costs per point (or per thousand points). Compare it to other RCI Points properties offered on eBay, TUG or other sites. Some RCI Points resorts might be a relative bargain but others might be too high to be used as an effective trader.
• Get to know RCI's costs related to membership, exchange costs, housekeeping costs, etc.
• If trading into DVC via RCI, you will be picking from "available inventory" deposited to RCI. That is, you won't be directly booking the DVC location and won't get to specify your "choice" of resort, unit size, dates, length of stay. Instead, you are working through a middle-man (RCI) with an unpredictable flow of inventory. Grabbing that inventory is COMPETITIVE -- be ready to watch online like a hawk to get something.

Trading into DVC, especially on a regular basis, isn't for the faint of heart. It is very possible -- but you must be flexible on all counts (unit size, dates, resort) and ready to "play the game" with strong intention.

 

[dundey]

Great response by BWVbound above and I agree with those comments. DVC is NOT easy to trade into via RCI. I am not a member of RCI points, so cannot comment on that part of RCI.

We are RCI week members. RCI weeks transferred to a points type of system a couple years ago. SO the the old trading value of a week is no longer valid. You will be able to see ALL resports available regardless of the value of your week.

HOWEVER, different weeks have a different number of trading points associated with them. These are called TPU's. To trade into DVC you will need a large number of TPU's. I assume the same is true on the points side, you would most likely need a significant amount of points to get into DVC - if you can find them!

Take your time, and do not jump into ANY timeshare without a significant amount of research. Depending on what resort your friend owns, and the amount of points that they have - the annual fees that you will pay on them could be more than you might pay to rent a DVC once a year.

 

[sndral]

Be aware that Disney has in the past switched exchange companies, so those RCI points (or week) could be worthless for DVC trading should Disney decide to switch again and drop RCI. Here's a link to a thread from when they switched from II to RCI in 2009.
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2026597&highlight=dvc+trading+ii
Also when you visit TUG take a look at the postings of people trying to give away their time shares - caveat emptor.

 

[Dean]

Can anyone point me in the right direction for some further research on using RCI Points to book DVC resorts? I have read conflicting stories about week vs points, etc. I have had my heart set on saving up to buy into DVC but have a friend that would like to get rid of their RCI points. They told me that I could use them to stay at DVC just not with a 7 month booking window like DVC owners can. How true is this? We have never had a timeshare of any sort, so I am sorry if there questions seem obvious-any help I can get would be great! I do not want to invest in something that we will not use since every chance we get we vacation in the World!

The question is wether it's a week at an RCI points resort or a mini points system such as Bluegreen or Wyndham. RCI doesn't sell timeshare ownerships to it's not really buying RCI. Assuming it's a points resort and assuming DVC is a main goal for trading, it must not be at an Orlando area resort else exchanges may be blocked or even canceled later. TPU doesn't come into play in this situation but the points grids do for DVC as well as the generic crossover grid to the RCI weeks side. One needs to look at the number of points yearly (or every other year), maint fees, underlying week or season and resort in question. I'd suggest one be well under 1 cent per point and have enough points to be functional for DVC exchanges that's maybe 45 to 50K or more and even then you're looking at using 2 years of points for one DVC exchange in many situations. The other issue is that one has to pay yearly for RCI membership in addition to the exchange fee and the $95 extra fee to DVC.

 

[JimMIA]

I would never even consider any exchange possibilities as a justification for buying (or accepting for nothing) anybody's timeshare.

There are simply too many variables to know what -- if any -- value a particular timeshare has for exchange purposes. And the landscape of how systems exchange, and the relative worth of one particular contract, is constantly in a state of flux.

IMHO, obtaining any timeshare (even for NOTHING) for the purpose of exchanging is a fool's bet for all but the most sophisticated of timeshare experts.

Research the timeshare in question thoroughly, including as bwvBound suggested, what you could buy it for on eBay. If you like the timeshare for use within its own internal system, buy it from your friends or on eBay...whichever is cheaper. If not...don't.

I would apply that same rigorous research and purchasing standard to DVC.

 

[JimMIA]

The question is wether it's a week at an RCI points resort or a mini points system such as Bluegreen or Wyndham. RCI doesn't sell timeshare ownerships to it's not really buying RCI. Assuming it's a points resort and assuming DVC is a main goal for trading, it must not be at an Orlando area resort else exchanges may be blocked or even canceled later. TPU doesn't come into play in this situation but the points grids do for DVC as well as the generic crossover grid to the RCI weeks side. One needs to look at the number of points yearly (or every other year), maint fees, underlying week or season and resort in question. I'd suggest one be well under 1 cent per point and have enough points to be functional for DVC exchanges that's maybe 45 to 50K or more and even then you're looking at using 2 years of points for one DVC exchange in many situations. The other issue is that one has to pay yearly for RCI membership in addition to the exchange fee and the $95 extra fee to DVC.

This is what I'm talking about...

I agree with every word my friend Dean posted.

But unless you understand the exact meaning of every word Dean posted, don't take on a timeshare obligation with the idea of maybe exchanging it for a DVC stay.

 

[Brian Noble]

I have had my heart set on saving up to buy into DVC but have a friend that would like to get rid of their RCI points.

Just the way you phrase this question gives me pause. There is a big difference between owning and exchanging.

The way exchange works is like barter, with RCI acting as a middleman. You put your timeshare into the "space bank" and get credit in exchange. That credit can be used for other timeshares that other people put into the bank. But, it relies on someone who owns DVC actually putting their time into the bank. DVC chooses which weeks to place into the bank as DVC Members decide to exchange out; they tend to deposit less popular resorts and times. That's not to say that they *never* deposit prime resorts at prime times, but it is rare. Finally, for DVC (or other popular properties) you are competing with a lot of other people who don't own DVC but who would also like to stay there.

This is very different from being a DVC owner. As an owner, all of the available inventory is available to be booked by DVC Members on points as soon as the relevant window opens. If you own at one DVC resort, you don't have to wait for someone who owns at another to decide not to use their points for a home resort reservation---you can just book it at seven months.

Here's how that difference manifests itself. Suppose you decide you want to go to WDW for President's Week, 2015. If you own DVC, you can book your home resort at 11 months, and be guaranteed of a stay there. You can look at 7 months, and book anything that hasn't been filled by those booking their home resort---probably lots of choices at this point.

On the other hand, if you are using RCI, you have to put in your search request *right now* and you also have to start scouring the web site every day (maybe more than once a day) starting at the 7 month mark. You have to decide whether you will be flexible on resort choice or run the risk of getting nothing in advance, because matches come in dribs and drabs. You will probably find OKW or SSR first; you have to decide if you will take it or roll the dice in hopes that something better comes along. It could be months before you know if you'll get something; during that time you have to decide when you'll just give up and book something offsite (or travel somewhere else). This process sometimes requires nerves of steel, and is not for the faint of heart.

Now, this can end up saving you a LOT of money. But, doing it well requires a LOT of time---time invested in learning how the system works, and time spent managing the process. If you view timesharing as something of a hobby, it can be fun. But, if you just want to book vacations, buy in the system in which you want to stay; don't depend on exchange to get there.

 

[ptlohmysoul]

Can anyone point me in the right direction for some further research on using RCI Points to book DVC resorts? I have read conflicting stories about week vs points, etc. I have had my heart set on saving up to buy into DVC but have a friend that would like to get rid of their RCI points. They told me that I could use them to stay at DVC just not with a 7 month booking window like DVC owners can. How true is this? We have never had a timeshare of any sort, so I am sorry if there questions seem obvious-any help I can get would be great! I do not want to invest in something that we will not use since every chance we get we vacation in the World!

With RCI you can only book weekly vacations. They must start on either Fri, Sat., or Sun and go for a week. (Of course, you don't have to stay for that long if you don't want to, but you pay the same amount.) If you are highly flexible with dates, don't need a 2 bedroom, and it's a lot cheaper with the rci timeshare, then maybe it will work. I spent from about Feb/Mar of this year watching rci points and weeks to see if I could get my specific week with a check in on Sat or Sun. I did not have an on-going search. I could not get anything at the normal drop time (6-7 months in advance), so I decided it would be better for us to buy dvc to go when we wanted and stay at the locations we wanted.

 

[Dean]

With RCI you can only book weekly vacations. They must start on either Fri, Sat., or Sun and go for a week. (Of course, you don't have to stay for that long if you don't want to, but you pay the same amount.) If you are highly flexible with dates, don't need a 2 bedroom, and it's a lot cheaper with the rci timeshare, then maybe it will work. I spent from about Feb/Mar of this year watching rci points and weeks to see if I could get my specific week with a check in on Sat or Sun. I did not have an on-going search. I could not get anything at the normal drop time (6-7 months in advance), so I decided it would be better for us to buy dvc to go when we wanted and stay at the locations we wanted.

That's not necessarily true. Some RCI resorts can be booked for less but many can't for RCI points as is the question raised. The reality is that booking a week and only using 4-5 days through a non DVC route is often better and cheaper than just getting the days you want directly by other routes. Also, many resorts have other start dates with Monday and Thursday being fairly common though Ko Olina I believe is Fri, Sat and Sun only except for Points owners or enrolled owners who can also use points. Of course the Marriott there is only II, not RCI. That is one factor if one is looking to exchange, esp to other Marriott's.

I would tend to qualify some of the exchange issues with non DVC timeshares a little differently. It certainly takes more knowledge and education to buy for this and in MOST cases isn't a good core reason to buy, I think there are exceptions. One of the exceptions is buying Marriott for the internal trading preference, another can be RCI points directly in some situations and certainly the other mini systems like Wyndham and Bluegreen can be used for internal exchanges just like exchanging within DVC (I know most DVC members don't think of it that way but that's exactly what it is when you reserve a non home resort DVC).

 

[lesroi]

Also be aware that if you exchange into DVC via RCI with a resort you own that is within a certain mile radius of WDW, they *may* let you book it, but they will cancel the reservation. This is where it comes in handy to know WHAT resort your friends have as some resorts do bulk deposits to RCI, masking your actual resort owned.

As someone who owns several timeshares myself I would take the great advice offered above and research, research, research.

 

[Dean]

Also be aware that if you exchange into DVC via RCI with a resort you own that is within a certain mile radius of WDW, they *may* let you book it, but they will cancel the reservation. This is where it comes in handy to know WHAT resort your friends have as some resorts do bulk deposits to RCI, masking your actual resort owned.

As someone who owns several timeshares myself I would take the great advice offered above and research, research, research.

30 mile radius and this also applies to other DVC resorts for trading from resorts in the area in question. One could trade an Orlando resort to DVC HH or a HH resort to DVC Orlando but not to the same region. As a rule you won't be able to search or select an exchange if you're caught with this issue on the weeks side, the issue comes in on the points side where you may book then have it canceled later. I know some have squeaked by but I do know of cancelations after a confirmed exchange as well.