"Its not just points you loose "

[Dave M Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dave M]

Jya-Ning -

I need some help understanding your post.

As Grayfal advised you earlier in this thread, we aren't referring to a Marriott timeshare points system. For the most part, Marriott operates a floating week system that is not based on points.

The Marriott Rewards points system being discussed is a frequent-stay program, similar to airline frequent-flyer programs. People earn Marriott Rewards points based on how much money they spend when staying in hotels. Those points can be used for free hotel stays and other awards. As an adjunct to that program, some Marriott owners can earn Marriott Rewards points by giving the use of their week back to Marriott for a specific year.

With that in mind, could you please clarify your post?

[Jya-Ning Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close Jya-Ning]

Jya-Ning -

I need some help understanding your post.

As Grayfal advised you earlier in this thread, we aren't referring to a Marriott timeshare points system. For the most part, Marriott operates a floating week system that is not based on points.

The Marriott Rewards points system being discussed is a frequent-stay program, similar to airline frequent-flyer programs. People earn Marriott Rewards points based on how much money they spend when staying in hotels. Those points can be used for free hotel stays and other awards. As an adjunct to that program, some Marriott owners can earn Marriott Rewards points by giving the use of their week back to Marriott for a specific year.

With that in mind, could you please clarify your post?

Sure, there are so many points, and I have very bad to manage the terminology or English in general, it is hard to manage.

When you give back the TS to get reward point and use it to make an airline reservation on USAir (say), what Marriott suppose to do with your TS? How will USAir do with your points? Somewhere Marriott needs to make cash from the TS stay you give them. Or they need to put aside of certain portion of the money you spend to get that TS stay right and try to invest it to beat the inflation.

If they need to make it to cash by rent it out, the value of the property or the MF does not matter. A better index should be something like avg room rate * occupancy rate over like 5 year or 10 year span.

If they put money aside, a better index should be the MF + original cost * the investment return they can get.

I tend to believe they just rent out TS instead of put money aside.

Both approachs will introduce uncertainty, and add certain risk. So, the easiest way is to just use a fix reward point system. Of course, over time, since other stuff (airline, hotel, ...) get changed based on their own inflation rate, and for owner, the cost to get these reward point is the loss of opportunity and MF which has its own inflation rate, in the long run, a fix reward point will actually more hard to balance and make the reward point system less value.

Jya-Ning

[Jya-Ning Silver Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close Jya-Ning]

If they put money aside, a better index should be the MF + original cost * the investment return they can get.

Come to think of it. Marriott does not get any from the MF does not matter if you give them the TS usuage right for rewarding point or not. HOA gets it and pays them the management fee which does not change no matter you use it or not. So, from that angle, it should be just original cost allocates for the point cost * the investment return they can get. So fix point looks right to them.

Jya-Ning

[Dave M Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dave M]

Now I understand. Thank you.

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

Can't speak for other resorts, but, at NCV, Marriott gets all the MF's, as they are still developing the resort, control the HOA and charge my credit card each year. Once they build out and turn the resort over to the owner HOA, they'll still collect a whopping management fee, which is a component of the MF's.

In the 3.5 years since we purchased, prices are up about 65%, MF's are up about 10% and, obviously, surrender points remain the same. Combine that with escalating hotel rates (which are driven by demand, not cost) which cause MRP category creep and you have timeshare net value deflation in the one area Marriott can honestly sell with hard numbers.

In my mind, the more I pay each year for MF's, "property" taxes, and fees (which Marriott is expert at extracting for every little thing), the less likely I'm going to pay one more fee to extract points out of the deal. I'd much rather put my time and energy into convincing other "friends" to "buy the Marriott way of life"

Pat