I wish BG would stop this

[Thirsty Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Thirsty]

I was following a thread where a comment was made by a BG owner to someone looking to become an owner. It was suggested that “If your first purchase is qualified/All points can be used toward qualified stuff.” Bluegreen has a loophole where their hands are tied to close it. I don’t think it should be promoted. Owners like me that got into timesharing to take family vacations and not to make money get hurt when this loophole is exploited.

I am concerned that Bluegreen may initiate another premier benefit level. My concern stems from owners with Gold Status not being able to get waitlist request filled. This happens at the more popular resorts during the summer. This happens in part when inventory goes to owners that have waitlisted unauthorized/secondary market points. An example is at Big Cedar Wilderness Club where it becomes very difficult to get a summer unit for the average owner.

If Bluegreen enforces their policy of secondary market points not having Premier Benefit Status attached to them. That means no waitlist requests will be filled and no unlimited cancellations with secondary market points. This may not seem like a big issue but when you consider that one owner has over 2 1/2 million points, there are owners with over 1 million points, and several owners with hundreds of thousands points it is a huge concern for me. With that few people holding that many points not being able to use Premier Benefits with their secondary market points what happens to Bluegreen. Will those owners let their rental business go bankrupt and flood the market with millions of secondary market points leaving Bluegreen with lost revenue through unpaid maintenance fees on those points?

I wrote about this on the Bluegreen Yahoo Group and it created some anger. I posted this information because I fear what is going to happen if BG enforces their policy in regards to the unauthorized/secondary market points not having Premier Membership Benefits attached to them.

If you are like me that got into timesharing to take family vacations and would like to see this loophole closed. This is BG response to me.

"Please be advised that any Club Vacation Points that are not acquired through a Bluegreen sales office or an authorized Club reseller are ineligible for use in attaining Bluegreen Premier status or for use with any associated Bluegreen Premier benefits. Once an owner has attained Platinum status within the Bluegreen Premier program, he or she may choose to purchase additional Points through an unauthorized reseller or an individual, and those Points can be used to make reservations for personal use or placed for rent within the guidelines of standard Vacation Club ownership. However, Premier owners may not utilize

[smithiekid Member Find all posts View Profile Close smithiekid]

Yes, I remember that thread on yahoo and I also seem to remember people asking you who and how you knew about these with Millions of points, but you never did answer.
Could you please enlighten us in who these are 2.5 million points (2,500,000)
means a mf bill of almost $108 thousand payable by Nov 15 each year. It would have to be some rental business

[BoardGirl Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BoardGirl]

Yes, I too would be interested in who these mega owners are. Over 100,000 pts, yes, there are owners at that level. A million? prove it.

I think, however, that it has yet to be determined that they "hog all the waitlists". Or that they hog all the waitlists for rentals. or that the points being used all came from secondary market. I think there are some pretty major assumptions here.

Seems to me that this would be major systems changes, which I, personally, am not in favor of due to cost. I am not a mega owner and don't use waitlist.

I personally think that those getting all bunched up over waitlist should consider themselves lucky that such a thing even exists. Timesharing is most effective when flexibility is employed. Flexibility as to time and place. If one simply must be at resort x on week y, well, that's not flexible. To have waitlist available is a help. It's a nice feature! tryign to turn it into "waitlist for only those that bought all their points thru Bluegreen"? I don't think this will come to pass.

Of all the things BG could utilize their resources for, I'm not thinking this is going to be top of their list, eitehr.

Regular owners still get into prime locations at prime times. and can buy the deed to the week they want.

Also, while points are owned, maintenance gets paid or the points are disqualified. While maybe the resale market could be flooded by mega owners offloading, I don't see that as much different than the zillion points deeds available now due to unemployment.

[Thirsty Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Thirsty]

My issue is not with the individuals that are exploiting the loophole Bluegreen is allowing when it comes to buying and renting point. You can’t ask the individuals that are selling, buying, (and still having Premier Level Benefits attached to them) and renting point to stop. They are being capitalists and it is their livelihood. They are only doing what BG is allowing them to do. So it is of no benefit to mention names.

If you do your research you will come to the same conclusion I have. There are a few owners holding a million point or more and using the wait list to cherry pick the high demand units and renting them. As I stated they are only doing what BG is allowing. Therefore I want BG to close the loophole of owners wait listing unauthorized/secondary market points. It is hurting other owners and when BG adds the Diamond Level requiring 100,000 Platinum status will mean nothing compared the Diamond Level. Our chances of getting high demand units to vacation will be very hard to come by.

[Hobbitess Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Hobbitess]

If you do your research you will come to the same conclusion I have.

What kind of research are you talking about?

My research indicates that a lot of people who're small points owners joined BG specifically to stay at Big Cedar, and I'm guessing it's the many, many people with smaller ownerships who want to stay at Big Cedar and Big Cedar only who're behind the grave lack of availability there in the summer. I've lost count of the number of people I've talked to about the other options in the area (the Falls, in particular, since the points there are pretty comparable) who simply have no interest in any where but Big Cedar.

OTOH, I've yet to have that conversation with anyone about any other BG resort (except one lady who wanted a particular week at one of the affiliates with only a couple of units available). People who buy at the other BG resorts -- including the Fountains, the "other" flagship resort -- are much more willing to explore BGs other options that people who buy into Big Cedar.

Big Cedar is a great deal in that it doesn't cost a lot of points and has a ton of stuff to do on site, meaning it appeals greatly to people with small ownerships. Big Cedar resales cost more for just that reason -- people want to be sure they can get the week they want, and that's the only way to do it. Also, the Branson area is closest to a lot of BG owners (personally, I wouldn't have bought in if I lived west of the Mississippi for just that reason, but a fair number of people do). Plus Big Cedar's praised to the skies everywhere Bluegreen owners congregate on the 'net, meaning plenty of people who'd otherwise ignore the Ozarks kick that resort up higher on their "to do" list.

Unless the quality of the resort does a dive (which I think highly unlikely), Big Cedar is going to continue to be the most popular BG resort for some time to come. BG tightening the rules on big points owners isn't going to change that.

[BoardGirl Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BoardGirl]

Totally agree, Hobs. "BigC or nothing". sheesh.

The unwillingness to be flexible is a much larger problem than mega points owners (and I still do not believe there are any personally owning over a million points, and I know the names, and phone numbers, of plenty of mega owners - why don't you get one of your millionaires to post here?).

You could do the same thing with whatever amt of points you own, or, rent what you want if you refuse to buy what you want. You have the same crack at the same times. Getting beat to the punch is just tough luck.

I don't have a problem getting what/when I want so no amount of whining about bigger owners is going to cause me distress.

I do almost kinda support your complaint about secondary market points being used for waitlist but you have to remember that some of us were Bluegreen owners long before it became fashionable and long before BG drew a line in the sand, and we were grandfathered in BY BLUEGREEN.

To say that points I bought before that line was drawn are not to be counted towards the perks I enjoy is just not gonna work for me. Johnny Come Lately can do what I did - cobble together contracts as time rolls on.

Meanwhile, how is BG gonna separate all that ancient history and why would I want them using resources to do it?? Just because 90% of the ownership wants to go to ONE resort during the highest demand weeks of the year? nope. if you can't be flexible, timesharing isn't for you and whining that it isn't fair doesn't change that.

[Keep Traveling Member Find all posts View Profile Close Keep Traveling]

so are you going to tell us who these mega owners are.

My guess is though if they really do own this much they are running a REAL rental business not a side job. So they will adapt and find new ways to work the system. That's what a business does. Maybe every Easter in BG will be booked by them or Christmas and NYE in Orlando.

Heck they might even rent the Entire Complex at the Fountains (yes ever room) and sell it to a corporate for a retreat.

But in the end we just want to know who these people are.


KT

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

I
I wrote about this on the Bluegreen Yahoo Group and it created some anger. I posted this information because I fear what is going to happen if BG enforces their policy in regards to the unauthorized/secondary market points not having Premier Membership Benefits attached to them.

You have already posted here as well on 9/6/11
http://www.timeshareforums.com/forum...-benefits.html

[smithiekid Member Find all posts View Profile Close smithiekid]

I hear that there are around 2% of owners who are gold , so if that is true than the % of Plat will be very small , and the number of Plat owners with millions (if any at all) would be very very small indeed.
I am a gold owner with additional resale points, only 8000 of my "gold" points came direct from Bluegreen sales 12000 from pinnacle and 16000 from my original building 4 unit at Oasis Lakes (The Fountains). Does that make me less of a gold owner than someone who bought 36000 from the same Bluegreen salesperson, I dont think so lol.
I have only wait listed once in all these years and that was for Kauai, the norm is 11 months or less the same as those "small" owners.
As for Big C , I have no interest in that at all, I live on the moors , I was brought up in Englands first National Park (the Peak District) , I work 30 mins from the Lake District (another English National Park) I live less that 2 hrs from Snowdonia (a welsh National Park) so Big C does nothing for me at all so Thirsty I for one will not be wait listing for those "special" vacations .
Take a look at Bluegreen Facebook page ----- check out the number of people who have rentals on there and then tell me all the prime weeks are taken by the "mega millions" owners lots of people are wanting to rent spring break weeks which they have made reservations for just to rent out ---- are you saying these people should be stopped because they are just doing exactly what you say the mega owners are. You will also note that most of those on face book appear to be small point owners covering their costs.