Authorized vs Unauthorized Points

[JosephHenry Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close JosephHenry]

We have a 5,000 point timeshare through Big Cedar that are authorized points with Charter membership. If we bought unauthorized points how would that effect the 5,000 points that we already have? Is is better to buy authorized or unauthorized once we have the initial charter membership? From now on will it make any difference in the type of points we buy?

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

Once you have access to Bonus Time and all the other stuff you already have, the only reason to get more authorized points is if you want the Premiere Benefits offered to owners with 15000 points or more. Only authorized points qualify for those.

Buying resale points usually has no impact on your current points, however you need to know what you have and what you're buying to be sure of that. All you need to do is check the yearly maintenance fees for those points against the formulas at the Yahoo Bluegreen Group to figure out what Trust Fund an ownership is in, then make sure that's the Trust Fund you buy. For instance, if you own points in Trust Fund E and buy more points in Trust Fund E (the most common Trust Fund, and likely what you have), those points will combine beautifully and save you money.

If you get points from a different trust fund than the one you own, they won't combine well and that could mean higher maintenance fees. There are also issues with a particular type of resale points (Trust Fund A, I think), that can cause big problems, at least the first year. Fortunately, those kind of points are pretty rare.

If you have any concerns, you could also buy through Jim, who posts here (Bocabum); he'll make sure you gets points that combine with yours and expedite the processing. He's also great to work with. Buying unauthorized points through Jim is much cheaper than buying from Bluegreen, and I think you can sign up to get his special deals lists, which were competitive with e-bay the one time I checked (which admittedly was a while back). Buying off e-bay can be cheaper yet, but it's also higher risk if you're not sure what you're doing, and can take months longer to process than Jim does. So which is the best deal depends on how sensitive you are to risk, how impatient you are, or how much the price difference means.

[jophesgo Member Find all posts View Profile Close jophesgo]

As I understand it, if you own Trust Fund E (which you and I both believe the OP probably does, Hobbitess), in addition to making sure you get another trust Fund E contract, you will also need to make sure that you are not mixing Sales Types. If you have sales type Y, you should get another sales type y contract - if you have sales type A, you will need to proceed cautiously so that you don't inadvertantly cause your mf due date to be moved forward on your existing contract. Bocabum can confirm...

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

in addition to making sure you get another trust Fund E contract, you will also need to make sure that you are not mixing Sales Types. ..

You are correct, I think. And I was dead wrong in saying that Trust Fund E "combines beautifully," because that is exactly the one with the problems! Sorry about that. I believe it's still true that the rest of them combine fine so long as they're in the same Trust Fund.

Trust Fund E points used to combine well, too, but now it's more complicated. I think they changed the Sales Type in 2009(?), but whenever it was, it's Trust Fund E points sold by the developer after a certain date that can be a problem. Trust Fund E, Sales Type A points do not always combine properly with earlier Trust Fund E points, which can cause financial and flexibility issues.

And, as jophesgo says, Bocabum's the one to check with.

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

You are correct, I think. And I was dead wrong in saying that Trust Fund E "combines beautifully,"
And, as jophesgo says, Bocabum's the one to check with.

The OP should know that the "combining" problems are only in the financial areas, not in the point usage. If you have 5000 points in "E" and 8000 points in "C", you will have 13000 points every year with which to make reservations with no problems. Of course your MF would be higher than if you had 13000 points in "E".

While it is true that the latest sales (sales type "A" in Trust Fund "E") are causing administrative type problems, work is being done on solving the problems. Stay tuned for updates.

And I will third Boca's nomination. Great guy to work with. He cares that you get what you need.

Charles

[JWKess Member Find all posts View Profile Close JWKess]

Resale Points

If you decide to buy resale points; be very sure that you know what you are buying. There can be many surprizes in buying that can turn into shocks after you buy.

I also would encourage you to discuss, before you buy, with an expert on this. Jim is a good choice.