Negotiating an II contract for a resort. I have lots of questions.

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

I know that many of you have had this daunting task of negotiating with II. I have been assigned this task for my Colorado resort. Of course, I was asked by the management company because they are the ones who run just about everything. That is beside the point. I talked to Janie Beal, our II rep, last year and she basically talked down to me, told me how great our trading power with II is because of our exclusive contract. Well la dee dah, but we are looking at the possibility of dual affiliation with RCI, which will finally open up our potential for exchanging with the independent companies, my main goal.

Dual-affiliation will help so many more people because many of them have dropped II and just don't want to pay a membership fee and high exchange fee for one week per year.

Some owners are very upset that we are going this direction, especially the ex-president who signed the exclusive contract ten years ago. He feels that II is the absolute best exchange company and we would be nuts to change anything. He was vocal at last week's meeting, calling RCI criminal for renting out weeks and said they had lost some lawsuits in recent years. That is not the way I understand it, but that was his argument as a person who is a criminal investigator. Anyway, we are still going to check on the possibilities for dual affiliation.

My questions: Is there anything I need to know when talking to both companies? What is my first step? I don't think the resort gave me enough information to go forward. I want to make the calls today and need to know what I can request and how to get the most for us as a resort.

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

Cindy,

The first step is to request a copy of the contract that RCI and II will propose to use to sign up your resort.

Once you get that, you will see exactly what it is your resort will be agreeing to. I think you will then be able to ask pertinent questions as a result.

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

I may not be current on the exchange fees. but isn't II's lower than RCI's ?

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

Yes, they're only $135 with Interval.

[taffy19 Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close taffy19]

As far as I know, a resort can have a contract with multiple exchange companies because that's what one of our timeshare resorts has too (RCI, II, and SFX) so the owners can deposit their week where they want to deposit it.

Getting a copy of the contract sounds like a smart idea and your resort should be able to negotiate on some changes of a standard contract too so long it is in writing and has been signed by both parties. The more owners you get on the HOA board, the better it will be for all timeshare owners because they know what people want.

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

Yes, they're only $135 with Interval.

Sad state when you can say, only $135. That with an annual fee is still very much money for the service provided. It doesn't sound to me like you've been given enough information to go play with the big dogs. This is not something that many people on these forums have any experience with, good luck!

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

Gee thanks, Spence. $135 is a lot better than $164, though both are too high, I agree. I never know when you are being nice or not, but I don't count on your being nice of late. I do not know what is up with you recently, but something has gotten you in a bad mood.

Janie Beal is not available today, so I will call again tomorrow. RCI already has expressed interest in our resort and already has Pines at Meadowridge, the sister resort to Twin Rivers, as exclusive. RCI wants Twin Rivers because Pines is going to dual affiliate.

I was hoping John Chase would chime in at some point. I know that Carolinian has a lot of experience with these issues as well, so I know I can ask them privately and get some answers. Since no one has posted really negative experiences with such contracts, I would suspect it will be pretty easy. Janie was pretty snotty to me last year when I questiioned our "exclusivity" with II. She insisted that we cannot use any other exchange companies. As long as our management company believed it was true, we could not convince them otherwise. It's pretty sad when, as a board member, you meet owners who really want to go elsewhere but think the annual fee+exchange fee is just too much to spend for a possibility of exchanging. One older couple was impressed that we can go to Orlando in the off season. They tried 20 years ago, before the building boom in Orlando, and were told there was nothing available.

I guess all contracts with exchange companies are ten years. That seems too long to be exclusive and certainly does not give anyone choices. I hope RCI will offer something by way of incentives to get people to join. I am anxious to see how our ski week trades with RCI.

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

I never know when you are being nice or not, but I don't count on your being nice of late. I do not know what is up with you recently, but something has gotten you in a bad mood.

[sign]Off Topic[/sign]

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

I've always been interested in the contracts between resorts and the exchange companies. I'm hoping you will continue to share your experience with us.

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

I've always been interested in the contracts between resorts and the exchange companies. I'm hoping you will continue to share your experience with us.

I am also, but I believe a lot of HOA board has some kind of no sharing policy, and a lot of contract has the same. So make sure you did not violate any of them. Especially if it comes to the details.

Jya-Ning

[timeos2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close timeos2]

Been there - done that

I have been lucky enough to go through the process (it really isn't a negotiation) of affiliating with both II and RCI. They don't make it very hard and they want you to do it their way.

First both were invited to talk to the Board. Both did so. They left the "standard" agreement which they assumed would be signed and returned shortly after that meeting. The agreements are around 12 pages long as I recall and are quite one sided. Most of it is boilerplate and, after a review by our Association Attorneys (very important - you should have an independent attorney for your Association hired by the Board and answering to only the Board not the management) was approved for signature. The only paragraph I simply crossed out (#6 if I recall) was the one that stated II/RCI will be the exclusive exchange company. I then called both, noted that we were removing that clause and neither company had any complaint. After that we were dual affiliated. It really wasn't hard. Our attorneys advised against trying to write a new agreement as it would be costly and the removal of the undesired paragraph accomplished the same result.

Get the agreements, read them, get your attorney to read them and approve any changes you desire. You have the power.

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

John, I so appreciate your comments here, as I did Carolinian's on TUG. I knew you had accomplished what I want. I have several owners who are very much against this that are going to buck me all the way. Our ex-president is threatening to get back on the board again. Well, he volunteered, but I consider it a threat. I will get a copy of both contracts, as Mike suggested. We have an attorney that is supposedly on the association's side, but that same guy almost got us in trouble with the owners' list issue early this year.

Jya-Ning, TonyG and the rest that are watching the process, I will share what I can. I understand that some of the goings on could be sensitive information that should stay between the board and the two exchange giants.

I sent Janie Beall a long email, informing her that our board is going to dual-affiliate, no debate on that issue. She is not very easy to deal with and will give me a hard time. You would think with all the resorts going this direction that we can get through this without a lot of unnecessary dialogue.

Spence, you are a little unpredictable, but I have so much respect for you and will try not to take offense too often. Being matter-of-fact can be a good or bad thing, but with a right-brained person like me, I am just too sensitive and will take whatever you say pretty personally. That is the truth, not a joke.

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

Why is your resort against dual affiliation? Does it cost more? Does it give owner less choice?

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

There are so many issues here that my mind is positively whirling right now.

First, the original president of 22 years or so has great influence over the current one, who was handpicked by the former president, both of which worked for The Real Estate Commission in criminal investigations. The new president seems unsure of himself; the ex-president is anything but unsure. When issues arise, the old president is called and his opinion is always paramount over any other. He is against dual-affiliation. He says our trading power will slip if we dual affiliate. I have no idea if that is true. Has anyone experienced a drop in trade power with II after this process?

The other board member, known best by her longevity of 25 years, goes along with whatever the first president, her good friend, has to say. I understand the loyalty, but nothing I say sinks in with these two people. The ex-pres said something at the annual meeting about the current lawsuits against RCI for the rental of weeks and said they had lost such suits before. He called RCI criminal as an expert in criminal investigations, though to me, his expertise in The Colorado RE Commission does not make him an expert in exchange companies. Pretty strong words at a meeting with 25 people who have owned forever and respect the guy.

Another person with great clout is our management company's owner (over 25 years), whom I consider to be nosy, arrogant and too much in control. He is VERY respected by our board and has such a long leash, he gets by with telling us there are going to be increases in his fees and not asking for them. But he is favoring dual affiliation, so he is on my side in this one, but I cannot use that because I don't want his opinion on other matters right now.

So these four people, pres, ex-pres, secretary and manager, all have a cozy relationship and none will back down. We have an older board member who is very nice but will probably side with the manager because he was picked by the manager for a vacant board position. He is very knowledgable, easy to get along with and has respect for me, but not as much respect as he has for the pres and the manager. Not good for getting things done.

We had zero meetings of the interval owners this year. The master association had meetings, but I am not allowed to vote at all on that one. Only two votes allowed from the interval owners (new pres and secretary of 25 years), I had no say all of last year in anything having to do with the exterior renovations because I cannot vote. No opinions wanted either. I went to two meetings and was disregarded completely at the second. I have no idea how it was decided who would be the voting members of that board. They do not want me, so with their two votes and the older guy on their side, I will not be involved in anything with the master association.

There are so many other things at work here. I have no idea why I would want to be on a board that I cannot convince of ANYTHING! If I quit the board, I will sell my week and be done with it. That is what Rick has been pushing for all along.

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

shopgirl, Do you think that no one you're talking about visits, has access, or hears about postings on this board? I'd carry a lot of this stuff private to the people that have responded to you with experience.