RCI rate increases Dec 4, 2016

[rapmarks Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close rapmarks]

with taxes you are not beating the exchange price, even with special sales

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

with taxes you are not beating the exchange price, even with special sales

figuring in a maintenance fee?

Anyway . . .

I'll take a $199, or a $269, or a $294, or a $319, plus tax, EV or LC, and not have to own anything.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Here's an email I sent to a friend a week ago, for a surprisingly-popular Christmas Week:

"I'll never pretend to understand why RCI does what they do, but here's Branson Yacht Club right now:

1 Bedroom 4 (4) Full Sun 25-Dec-2016 Sun 01-Jan-2017 USD 173.99 Sale!"

I check EVs and LCs frequently because I have so many friends who like to stay at nice resorts for Motel 6 prices. Actually, the nearest Motel 6 is $54/night, so less than that. RCI is good at sending out the "sale notices."

Time will tell if they continue to have these sales, but my guess is that since they get their inventory for free, there is a point where they will take whatever they can get.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Maybe instead of discounting trading power, which is practically an every-day thing, they will occasionally discount the exchange fee, like they have been discounting EV and TC prices.

Or . . . maybe they will just do everything through their many rentals outlets. That is what they brag about.

[shaggy Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close shaggy]

I can remember my first exchange fee was $69, mabye $59 , internal was $39 . My MF was 215 , now close to 800 . Hello????

I do have my Wyndham which I can use . Got that free.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

My MF was 215 , now close to 800

One of ours is getting close to that. I'm guessing that would be a fair average figure to use, so that would make a typical exchange vacation week $1030.

Going by that, an $11 increase is not very much.

& it makes me wonder why there is not more discontent with people getting the same thing for $170-$319, or whatever figure we were bickering about.

[PeterS Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close PeterS]

http://www.rci.com/pre-rci-en_US/hel...promo=Help51S1

Exchange fee goes to $230 no savings for using website over call center.

There are probably more but I haven't gone through it.

I just feel so old when I look at what that fee was and what it is today

I agree the exchange fee has grown dramatically and do remember the days of the $39... $49... $59...

But from the link it looks like it is one of the smallest increases in years...


RCI® Weeks Fees United States effective January 1, 2016 (present)
Exchange Vacations - Fee
USD (RCI.com) $219 USD (Call Center) $229

RCI® Weeks Fees United States effective December 4, 2016
Exchange Vacations - Fee
Call Center/RCI.com $230

Just $1 increase by Call Center and $11 by RCI.com.

Seems like more of a realignment of fees by removing the RCI.com discount.

The total cost of MF and trade fees is my main concern also.
For now, we have found that dropping the size of units and shifting to shoulder seasons gets us multiple weeks for each of ours and that still nets a great return for our costs.
When it no longer makes sense, we may be looking at an exit strategy...

Pete

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

I agree the exchange fee has grown dramatically and do remember the days of the $39... $49... $59...

What year was it $39?

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

For now, we have found that dropping the size of units and shifting to shoulder seasons gets us multiple weeks for each of ours and that still nets a great return for our costs.
When it no longer makes sense, we may be looking at an exit strategy...

Pete

Oops, there's that "Exit Strategy" again.

What I hear you saying is that for now you are going to use it for something you did not intend to use it for when you started, going somewhere you did not intend to go because it makes cents.

[PeterS Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close PeterS]

Oops, there's that "Exit Strategy" again.

What I hear you saying is that for now you are going to use it for something you did not intend to use it for when you started, going somewhere you did not intend to go because it makes cents.

What year was it $39?

I believe it was about 1987.... was about $39 (maybe $49)...

I never said places we didn't want to go and never said going in a season we didn't want to go...
I said smaller units (1brd but still full villa) and shoulder season (but still within our wanted timeframe)...

Let me rephrase it for you...

We are still finding we can go where we want and when we want but our vacation requests are still low enough in points if we pick a unit that fits our needs (but not larger) we can turn 1 week into multiple weeks and then the value of the multiple weeks is higher than the costs for the 1 week we trade.

When we find this is no longer true... we will consider selling but for now we are still getting a good value, even over getaways...

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

I believe it was about 1987.... was about $39 (maybe $49)...

In 1989 it was $99, so I can imagine the whining about that huge increase in just two years!!!!

Good thing Al Gore didn't have his Internet up and running yet!!!!

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

In 1989 it was $99, so I can imagine the whining about that huge increase in just two years!!!!

Good thing Al Gore didn't have his Internet up and running yet!!!!

I sit corrected:


YEAR / Annual Fee/ Exchange Fee/ Guest Certificate fee

1990 $59.00 $ 79.00 -?-
1991 $59.00 $ 86.00 $ 35.00
1992 $59.00 $ 89.00 $ 35.00
1993 $65.00 $ 89.00 $ 35.00
1994 $65.00 $ 90.00 -?-
1995 $65.00 $ 93.00 -?-
1996 $74.00 $ 96.00 -?-
1997 $74.00 $103.00 $ 40.00
1998 $79.00 $110.00 $ 40.00
1999 $79.00 $118.00 $ 40.00
2000 $79.00 $124.00 $ 49.00
2001 $84.00 $124.00 $ 49.00
2002 $84.00 $129.00 $ 49.00
2003 $89.00 $139.00 $ 49.00
2004 $89.00 $139.00 $ 49.00
2005 $89.00 $149.00 $ 49.00
2006 $89.00* $164.00 $ 59.00

http://tugbbs.com/forums/index.php?t...went-up.32098/

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

I sit corrected:


YEAR / Annual Fee/ Exchange Fee/ Guest Certificate fee

1990 $59.00 $ 79.00 -?-
1991 $59.00 $ 86.00 $ 35.00
1992 $59.00 $ 89.00 $ 35.00
1993 $65.00 $ 89.00 $ 35.00
1994 $65.00 $ 90.00 -?-
1995 $65.00 $ 93.00 -?-
1996 $74.00 $ 96.00 -?-
1997 $74.00 $103.00 $ 40.00
1998 $79.00 $110.00 $ 40.00
1999 $79.00 $118.00 $ 40.00
2000 $79.00 $124.00 $ 49.00
2001 $84.00 $124.00 $ 49.00
2002 $84.00 $129.00 $ 49.00
2003 $89.00 $139.00 $ 49.00
2004 $89.00 $139.00 $ 49.00
2005 $89.00 $149.00 $ 49.00
2006 $89.00* $164.00 $ 59.00

http://tugbbs.com/forums/index.php?t...went-up.32098/

The reaction/comments to RCI fees in that 10-year-old thread are the same as they are today.

Using the 2006 exchange fee as a base, it has gone up an average of 3.6%/year. I'm thinking that for a multiple-year renewal, the subscription fee has stayed the same, m/l.

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

So what was the exchange fee rate from 1974 to 1989 ?

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

So what was the exchange fee rate from 1974 to 1989 ?

Like I said, Al Gore did not have his Internet up and running yet.

Maybe someone still has the Dehaan's index cards.

or . . .

" So I did some digging and discovered that in 1974 when RCI first started their exchange system the fee was a whopping $7.00 for an entire week!"

http://www.insidethegate.com/2014/12...sively-greedy/

Here's more . . .

"Perhaps it’s time for RCI and others to call it what it is – not an exchange fee but instead, maybe, a discounted nightly/weekly rental rate. Especially when considering JQP (John Q Public) & TS owners/members can rent discounted ‘bonus’ nights/weeks from most exchange companies, developers, travel agents, etc. ANYWAY!

And they can do so for much less than it cost TS owners/members for the privilege of outright purchasing their vacation plan (up to tens of thousands of dollars and more), the often excessively high interest rates charged by some developers to ‘tote the note’ (thousands of dollars more regardless of how good their FICO score), the annual maintenance fees (average $800 per week owned and exchanged) and potential special assessments (often thousands of more dollars per owner/member) etc."

Hmmmm. That guy's beating a dead horse.