Is SFX the right choice?

[pt181 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close pt181]

I hope Mark will answer this but any suggestions are welcome. I've had some good exchanges with SFX in the past but have not had anything come up in many months. I'm asking for trades in 2008: Florida coast for winter/spring, Telluride/Wyoming/Tahoe for late May to early June or many places on California coast beginning of March - end of May. I've had some requests in since Jan but have had no calls even with a close match.

SFX reps told me that I'm asking too far out; that availability won't come up this early. Two of my previous trades thru SFX were booked more than a year out and that was perfect. Flights to the west coast are very expensive from our city so I want to use FF miles but flights are hard to get so I have to book 11 months out (amazing but true).

A couple of times I took a chance and booked flights 11 months ahead and waited for a match but no luck; I finally had to pay for a hotel room.

This seemed to work in the past but maybe I just happened to get lucky. Now the question is, am I asking too much to get trades more than 11 months ahead with SFX? Or do I need to use an exchange co that I can see inventory and pick something (maybe not the quality of SFX) just to book so far ahead.

Thanks,
Heidi

[Mark @SFX Industry Representative Find all posts View Profile Close Mark @SFX]

I hope Mark will answer this but any suggestions are welcome. I've had some good exchanges with SFX in the past but have not had anything come up in many months. I'm asking for trades in 2008: Florida coast for winter/spring, Telluride/Wyoming/Tahoe for late May to early June or many places on California coast beginning of March - end of May. I've had some requests in since Jan but have had no calls even with a close match.

SFX reps told me that I'm asking too far out; that availability won't come up this early. Two of my previous trades thru SFX were booked more than a year out and that was perfect. Flights to the west coast are very expensive from our city so I want to use FF miles but flights are hard to get so I have to book 11 months out (amazing but true).

A couple of times I took a chance and booked flights 11 months ahead and waited for a match but no luck; I finally had to pay for a hotel room.

This seemed to work in the past but maybe I just happened to get lucky. Now the question is, am I asking too much to get trades more than 11 months ahead with SFX? Or do I need to use an exchange co that I can see inventory and pick something (maybe not the quality of SFX) just to book so far ahead.

Thanks,
Heidi

Hi Heidi - if you could pm me your name and account number, I will review and gladly respond.

[Mark @SFX Industry Representative Find all posts View Profile Close Mark @SFX]

I hope Mark will answer this but any suggestions are welcome. I've had some good exchanges with SFX in the past but have not had anything come up in many months. I'm asking for trades in 2008: Florida coast for winter/spring, Telluride/Wyoming/Tahoe for late May to early June or many places on California coast beginning of March - end of May. I've had some requests in since Jan but have had no calls even with a close match.

SFX reps told me that I'm asking too far out; that availability won't come up this early. Two of my previous trades thru SFX were booked more than a year out and that was perfect. Flights to the west coast are very expensive from our city so I want to use FF miles but flights are hard to get so I have to book 11 months out (amazing but true).

A couple of times I took a chance and booked flights 11 months ahead and waited for a match but no luck; I finally had to pay for a hotel room.

This seemed to work in the past but maybe I just happened to get lucky. Now the question is, am I asking too much to get trades more than 11 months ahead with SFX? Or do I need to use an exchange co that I can see inventory and pick something (maybe not the quality of SFX) just to book so far ahead.

Thanks,
Heidi

Hi Heidi - thank you for your post. You have given multiple choices for locations which is good, 9 to be precise. However, 5 locations out of the 9 are areas that only have a couple of small properties. That is one of the reasons you haven't received a match yet.

Another reason, a number of them start more than one year in advance. Although some resorts allow owners to reserve and deposit more than a year in advance, probably about 97% of all resorts don't. In most instances resorts do not allow owners to reserve their time for use or exchange more than 12 months in advance. Which means if you place your request more than 12 months in advance, nothing is available and you have to play the waiting game for a 12 month window to begin, and hope there are a number of owners at the resorts you want who wake up early and deposit their weeks.

However, the reality is most owners "do not" deposit their weeks 12 months in advance. Most of them deposit around 6-9 months in advance, and/or wait until they get their maintenance bill towards the end of the year, which slows down the availability process for everyone with "every exchange company". This is why exchange companies "nag" their members to deposit way in advance and early, as that creates availability. Exchange companies do not create availability of space, they manage it.

So, in summary this is why you haven't been booked yet. Most areas with almost no critical mass of space, and others with more than a year in advance. The good news is, you have structured the requests well with lots of Flexibility, which allows me to say you are virtually guaranteed of a match....

Like the two possibilities that matched this morning that you haven't been contacted about yet.

[pt181 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close pt181]

Mark,

Thanks so much! SFX comes through again! I don't know which one to take yet but will discuss with my husband and make a decision tonight.

I realize that many people don't deposit that far ahead but it seems to have worked out for us in the past - guess we've just been lucky. I always deposit 18 months ahead because I want the best trading power and want to give others the option to reserve early as well.

We have 2 years left on our platinum membership so will be ready to deposit our 2009 week early in 2008.

Thanks again,
Heidi