How to Upgrade at Bluegreen

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

I have a question for you folks. If you find a resale at one of the Bluegreen resorts that is a floating or a fixed week can it be converted to Bluegreen points? If so, would it be worth the cost? I had been looking at some of the point’s resale and there is not a bunch to choose from. On the other hand, perhaps I am not looking in the right place. However I do see a few weeks here and there that are at the Bluegreen resorts. That is why I was wondering if you can convert them.
Thanks, Darryl

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

Darryl,

This is an excellent question.

The general concept is that Bluegreen wants to bring in as many fixed or floating weeks as they can into the Club. So, you can always expect them to offer some type of program to convert. So, they offer various conversion programs to do so.

The problem is that they need to compensate their sales teams for helping with the conversions. So, the programs vary as you would expect from a sales team.

One of the most popular programs is the equity trade in program. You buy a minimum of 4000 points (there are reports of people who have done this for 3000 points, but the corporate policy is 4000) and they will convert your fixed weeks into points by taking your deeds and redeeding you into the same or another resort. The problem is that they do NOT accept any Bluegreen resort. They only take the most popular ones in which they need inventory.

I am interested in finding out what they are offering Pono Kai owners to convert. Availability at Pono Kai is very tight and this resort seems to have a pretty good resale market.

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

Pono Kai is Tricky

Here's a new one. I decided late last year to convert my fixed Pono Kai week for points. After three months of going back and forth, BG won't do it. Here's why:

PK is made up of four or five different owners associations. My particular unit is part of the "Pacific Fantasy" group. When Pono Kai was first built, it was a leasehold that expires in 2044. Several years ago, the Pono Kai Owners Association, (the overriding umbrella group that all of the individual groups belong to, and the entity that hired BG to manage the property), converted the leasehold to fee simple. Some of the associations decided to charge their members a few thousand dollars to convert their individual deeds...some owners did and some didn't. My association decided, as an association, to buy their part of the land, and then add an assessment for the next ten years to pay for it...after 10 years, everyone's deed will convert. Soooo, I'm paying an extra 60 or so dollars for the next, I think six years or so, after which my deed will convert to fee simple. BG can't convert it until that happens.

In the long run, it doesn't matter to me really. I have a two bedroom oceanfront unit that I can get at Christmas and rent out, or trade with another BG owner...but I can't convert it to points.

The resort is about half and half now...fee simple and leasehold...check your specifics. They don't make it easy either...you wouldn't believe what I went thru to find all this out...it was news to BG too!

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

Wow, Holly, thanks for sharing!

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

How to Upgrade at Bluegreen

Favorite Postings: How to Upgrade at Bluegreen
Taube’s Morals of the Story:
Take your time while upgrading and shop around!!
Get it in writing!!
Have a plan and know what you are willing to do!

Original postings on Yahoo’s Bluegreen discussion board
MESSAGE 1
Date: Sat, 11 Mar 2006 19:40:11 -0800 (PST)
From: S Wirgau <edited to keep email private>
Subject: Re: Re: Upgrade info

I am too easy of prey.....but I highly encourage others when doing consolidation to not fall prey to the high pressure sales tactics. If only I had known in November, what I know now. We had to buy 8500 points in order to consolidate. I went in thinking we could buy 3000-4000 points. We were told since there were five contracts to consolidate, 8500 was the least number we could buy. We could buy those points for $1.35 per point or we could buy 10,500 points for $1.25 per point. We chose the former as my average cost per point was less by going with that "deal".

We went to Big Cedar the next week and I wanted to get all of this done before going. I was promised things that were not in writing and they backed out on. Like I wasn't supposed to have to pay my exorbitant old structure maint fees at all......or I would get a credit for them. Not so. I was able to choose my anniv date (out of the five contract dates--making three different dates) and I don't think that was honored. I still have no clue when I will get points again. They one day mysteriously appeared in my account. In hindsight, I think my anniv date is 1/1 just like it was originally. As that's about when the points were put into my account.

I just wish I had waited and checked out what Big Cedar would offer and even checked on other resorts sales offices to find out what they would offer. I really think had I waited and shopped around that I could have gotten a deal that only required me to buy 3,000 or 4,000 points and at a comparable price to what we paid per point.

But that's a live and learn situation and once again, my purchase from the developer will at least allow others to possibly avoid the same "trap"--or at least teach others to do some homework and not jump on the first "deal". My only regret is we had put out alot more money for that consolidation purchase than I had intended to. It will take me longer to recoup my maint fee savings. But I will. And the bottom line is with the deals I got on resales....even with my original EOY purchase from BG and my consolidation BG purchase, my average price per point is just over sixty cents. So, if and when I were to sell it, I wouldn't lose my shirt on the deal.

And I love our vacations now! We actually vacation! That is what is so great about timeshare ownership!

Message 2
Date: Sat, 11 Mar 2006 16:59:26 -0800 (PST)
From: Magnolia Blossum <edited out email address for privacy>

There are several different ways they come up with their numbers but my suggestion is that you decide before talking with them what you are willing to pay and make them an offer (I would suggest you offer something a little less than you are actually willing to pay.

When I upgraded I had 33,000 points (26,000 points plus 1 fixed deed). Three of my deeds were resales and one of them wasn't really points but a fixed week which would be the equivalent of 7000 points. I wanted to be gold and was willing to buy 3000 points and was willing to pay $1.40 per point so I was prepared to spend $4200.00

I offered them that I would buy 3000 points at $1.10 and they said they couldn't do it. They said the best they could possibly do was 5000 points at $1.10 per point so I was going to walk away from the deal but then they offered me a few more things.

They say that my maintenance fees that were already due would be waived and I would not have to pay the next year's maintenance fees until April (my deal took place in November). I also got all the points for my old deeds for the next year plus the points for my new deeds so they actually waived $1700.00 in maintenance fees and I saved approximately $700.00 per year in maintenance fees starting in 2005. That made the deal worthwhile to me. However getting corporate to honor everything that the sales people promised was a different matter. They did try to charge me for the old maintenace fees so whatever deal you make get all the fine points in writing.

Good luck. As time goes on they seem to change their strategy and rules. It pays to have a plan and know what you are willing to do.

[BocaBum99 Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close BocaBum99]

I merged two threads that both dealt with the question of converting/upgrading fixed weeks to points.

In addition, I received permission from the two people whose messages were posted. In the future, please refrain from posting other people's messages without their permission. Thanks.

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

Bluegreen is great, but

one of their flaws is that the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. Whenever I get a "no" on something, I just ask someone else and keep asking until I get the answer that I want. BG is still working through a lot of these issues themselves and, just like any company, some folks are more informative than others.

The good news is that while all this back and forth is going on, I haven't met too many BG people who weren't doing their best to help in a nice, professional way. They are really out to keep their members happy from everything I can see.

Just like most parts of timesharing, if you work it right you can find some fabulous deals. If you don't work it...well...