In this installment of "Don't Buy Into Marriott Vacation Club Unless You Are Rich" we take a sobering look into the facts of the Timeshare Industry's Lack of Government Regulations.

This author is generally not a proponent of increasing the size or power of government. However here, we are talking about an industry who's product purchase can be one the of the largest a consumer ever makes. You have your home purchase, number one. Your timeshare or vacation club purchase is often more costly than your automobile purchase, etc. Left unchecked, and free to create their own maze of self-serving rules, Timeshare Industry Organizations can do almost whatever they please, such as Marriott taking a 26 year old system and changing the rules which at times are very harsh and shrewd for the primary purpose of increasing their profitability with little or no regard to past company promises or the customer's previous sizable financial investments. And just because they bury a few paragraphs into a very long, detailed contract stating they can change things, that does not make it ethically correct in many people's view.

The timeshare industry is in a unique position that inherently offers them many advantages. There are very few other industries that have their customers contractually obligated to perform for the actual lifetimes of those customers. If payments are not made, or if its deemed that a customer is not following the rules, or performing, the accessibility to the customer's product is denied and/or penalties compound. Unlike a home builder, a car manufacturer, or a lending institution, If a timeshare company goes out of business, the customer no longer has access to the product. If a timeshare company becomes so financially successful from perpetual rising rates or crowds of new customers to where the older customers can not seem to access their product purchase (which is really a key complaint from many, about Marriott Vacation Club ) there's really nothing that can be done in an industry that has virtually no regulations beyond initial cancellations. It's their way or the highway. Choose the highway, lose all the money you had invested in your vacation dreams and pipe-dreams. If disasters, or a major expense or even desired enhancements arise (e.g. pv solar installation) for the timeshare company's real estate; buildings or grounds, the timeshare companies are able to charge additional assessments to their owners to pay for such expenditures. Its almost as if the timeshare industry can extort money from their customers as time goes on and the years go by, and the customers, who are also called the "owners" have very little recourse except to default. These are some of the long term reasons why possibly government regulations could protect customers.

Now here's an additional short term Government Regulation Suggestion to eliminate misunderstandings: Its similar to Regulation Z, Truth in Lending, in the consumer lending industry. For this discussion, Timeshare and Vacation Clubs purposes, let's call it Regulation TVC. When the deal is being made, in addition to the e,g, 100 pages of contract, and the endless paperwork that the Timeshare Industry's Lawyers produce to protect their interest, not yours, there is a new 1 page summary, required by Regulation TVC, that is designed to protect you. The 1 page summary (which may actually needs to be 2-3 pages ) requires line by line initials to a vast range of brief and simple of statements in simple English that cover all the comprehensive relevant details. From deposits, cancellations, penalties, assessments, customer responsibilities, reservation procedures, financing, expectations, annual maintenence fees, data on previous increases in maintenence fees, non-usage, trading, swapping, selling, advanced planning requirements, other recourse, etc. Every conceivable detail of required customer understanding is further guaranteed by the customer's initials, line by line.

In the installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are Rich" we take a look at a method of complaining to the government if when we feel like we are being ripped off by the new company:  Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation.

In this installment of "Don't buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are Rich" we take a comprehensive view of that old saying "Why buy the cow if you can get the milk for free?"

The Marriott Vacation Properties are definitely top of the line, you and your family can have wonderful vacations in luxury 2-br villas on beaches, golf courses, ski resorts, they are very nice. There are other ways however to explore and experience these special treasures without spending $25k to $50k up front and without committing yourself to a lifetime of annual commitments, increasing maintenence fees, and the rising airfare expenditures.

Its already been established that purchasing a Marriott resale week is a much better choice as you can save yourselves $20k to $30k on the initial investment, but still you are making a commitment for once a year or once every other year for the remainder of your lives.

There other other options!  Now they won't be free, like the milk, but they are certainly worth your time and consideration.  I recommend that you research these alternatives:

1.  Rent them from other owners.  Many owners discover that they do not have the funds or the time or both to maintain their commitment every year.  By renting them, one at a time, you can live the live of luxury, have the cow that year, and avoid a lifetime of following obligation.  Redweek, ebay, and TUG are three great sources to shop for a one time rental.  Another is vrbo.com although endless deposits seem to be the norm, so I'd say avoid vrbo.  If you can wait until last minute, especially within the last month, you can usually find great deals for roughly $100 per night, where the original owner may have paid $3k- $5k for that week if you ran a lifetime depreciation analysis plus added the maintenence fees.

2.  Purchase the vacation bundles on expedia and hotels.com, etc.  These days all of the online travel vendors have signed up all of the major timeshare resorts, and even though they may use the word "hotel" in their name or within the various description headings, they will definitely be luxury condos and villas as you dig deeper into each offering.  One key advantage is that with these on line bundles (air + lodging + optional car) you will experience a greater savings on the airfare portion vs. buying the plane tickets at retail.  Plus, you will only put out the cash you need to for this one trip vs. pre-paying for a lifetime of vacations all up front.  So give this all some thought so you do not get ripped off!  Try the milk before purchasing the cow!  If you love the cow, then buy-in (resale).

In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless YOU are Rich" we take a closer look at that old expression about "The Haves and The Have-Nots"

The Haves have the financial resources for the luxury item initial purchase and the ongoing lifetime annual monetary commitments to be proud members of the Marriott Vacation Club.

The Have-Nots, do not, generally.  So if during life you have met the definition profile of being a Have-Not, do yourself a huge favor and proceed with extreme caution so that you do not sign up for an emotional experience that may leave you feeling ripped off and regretful for many years to come.  Other Have-Nots might be able to live like a Have if they find a great deal on a resale week as you can save yourself $20k to $30k on the initial buy-in.

In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are Rich" we will further clarify "Don't Buy Into the Brand New (Retail) Less Desirable Point System"

If you can afford a luxury purchase such as a Marriott Timeshare Property, do yourselves a huge favor, and purchase a resale week vs. a retail deal and save yourselves $20,000 to $30,000 or more!  There are many sources!  One awesome source is www.redweek.com

Once you set up a log-in with Redweek and want to begin shopping for a Marriott Timeshare for either a one-time week rental or a lifetime resale deeded week, you must first begin by selecting one resort; e.g. Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club on Oahu's sunny west side.

Below is an example of the dozens and dozens of choices for you.  Plus, when you are on the real site by selecting "view" you can get more information on contacting the seller.

Puruse through these listings.  They start at $4000.   The "Use" column is very important because back in the days of deeded week procurement, Marriott offered "every year" or "every other year" choices also known as Bi-Annual.  Bi-Annual obligations might actaully be better for you for a wide varierty of reasons.  As you scan down you'll see the lowest costs are for bi-annual weeks either "odd" numbered years or "even" numbered years.  It isn't until you see "annual" where the every year deals begin.  Check it Out!

Instead of getting Ripped-Off with a Brand New Overpriced and Masterfully Planned Destination Points Program that Marriott currently sells at their resorts, Go Resale!

Check out these resale week deals for Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club (and make sure that you understand the closing costs and issues and the maintenence fees):

	Price	Week (Season)	Use	Type	Unit View	Bd/ Ba	Occ
	$4,000	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
NEW!	$4,500	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Varies	2/ 2	6	View
	$4,950	Floating (Varies)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$5,000	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Garden	2/ 2	8	SOLD
	$5,000	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$5,000	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$5,450	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	SOLD
	$5,500	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$5,500	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$5,500	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Garden	2/ 2	8	View
	$6,000	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$6,500	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$7,000	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	6	View
NEW!	$7,200	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$7,500	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$7,500	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$7,900	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$8,250	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	SOLD
	$8,500	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$8,500	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
NEW!	$8,750	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$8,990	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$9,750	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$9,750	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$9,900	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$10,000	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	6	View
	$10,500	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	6	View
	$10,500	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$10,900	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$11,990	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	SOLD
NEW!	$12,500	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$12,999	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$13,000	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	SOLD
NEW!	$14,000	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Varies	2/ 2	8	View
	$14,000	1 (Varies)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	6	View
	$14,000	1 (Varies)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$14,499	Floating (Varies)	Odd	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$14,900	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$15,000	1 (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	1/ 2	4	View
	$15,000	51 (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$15,900	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	6	View
	$18,500	Floating (High)	Odd	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	6	View
	$19,500	51 (High)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$19,900	Floating (High)	Even	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$19,995	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Water view	2/ 2	8	View
NEW!	$20,000	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	6	View
	$23,000	Floating (Varies)	Annual	Deed	Mountain	2/ 2	8	View
	$24,500	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	3/ 3	10	View
	$24,900	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	3/ 3	10	View
	$27,000	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	3/ 3	10	View
	$30,000	Floating (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	3/ 3	12	View
	$43,500	1 (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View
	$47,500	Floating (Varies)	Annual	Deed	Varies	2/ 2	8	View
	$49,900	52 (High)	Annual	Deed	Ocean view	2/ 2	8	View

In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are Rich" we revisit that old saying of how "A Fool and His Money are Soon Parted" and draw a comparison to some folks who buy into their new points program.

In a perfect world, even if you are rich, let's take a scenario of a family ready to pay $42,000 for enough points for an oceanview 2BR villa for one week with plans to take this same vacation every year.  Based upon the new rates for the maintenence fees, its roughly $2000 per year, but they will go up.

Now in this perfect world, where you have the cash, you could cherry pick the ideal resale week for the same resort, and at top dollar pay $12,000.  This would then leave you $30,000 in savings by going resale and then in theory if you could place that $30,000 into a lockbox or better yet into an annual CD and not touch it for any other purpose than maintenence fees, then you would have 15 years of maintenence fees already banked.

The fees will continue to increase but then you would be collecting some interest on the CD.  Each year when its time to reinvest, just take out $2k, and reinvest the remainder into a new CD. This is one way to win with Marriott, and not foolishly part with your money.  Marriott Resale Weeks can be found online on ebay,  redweek.com, tugbbs.com and a variety of other places.  Do your research!

In this installmant of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are very Rich" we take a close look at some economic facts and again "unless you are rich" we caution you to not get Grubered!

The MIT Economics Professor thinks "American Voters are Dumb" and so must the architects of the Marriott Vacation Club Destination Points Program. The new Marriott company must think that American Vacationers are really stupid!

It does not take an Economics Professor to identify the dual-flawed double downward trajectory of value for the customer.  You see, when you decide to purchase a lifetime's worth of annually renewed "bucket of points" under the new Marriott program; you lose, in two important financial areas:

1.  Every 2 years the point value COST PER DAY of Resort Stay Increases.

2.  The maintenence fees COST PER POINT Continually Increases.

For example, if you were to buy in and purchase enough points to get yourself a 2 bedroom condo for one week every year.  Ten years later those points might only buy you 5 nights, or 7 nights in a one bedroom.  As time goes on, your investment continues to lose its value beyond the "driving the car of the lot" its as if every few years, in addition to the rising costs, you lose a door or a wheel too. Plus, in less than 5 years since the program has been introduced, maintenence fee cost per point has risen 33%.  In both of these examples, you will definitely lose financially and Marriott always wins.

Other ways Marriott must think you you are dumb is that you need their help to determine where to stay on your family vacations.  Like you are not able figure it out yourself each year with all the variety and options and online resources such as expedia and ebay and vrbo and redweek and tug and priceline and travelocity and the list goes on and on. Plus they must think you are really stupid that you would prepay the bulk of these cost up front, for your entire lifetime, not to mention... Are you so sure that you know what you want to do for the remainder of your lives?   Don't get Grubered by the new Marriott company!

Leading the FRAUD Train, a new company that hijacked the Loyalties and the Name Brand Recognition of MARRIOTT,

This old timer, an old Marriott Executive, Stephen Weisz, acquires company (to start his own) through an aging Bill Marriott.

Weisz then "pays himself first" leading the way to his daily $11k income which is just a part of a $4M annual pay schedule.

Then with no respect or regard to existing customers of 26 years, changes the rules to benefit him and his new company.

Greed and Revenue reign.  Published company values no longer matter.  Its a greedy corporate culture out of Orlando, FL.

The greed from the corporate culture trickles down to their various centers.  The greed is picked up by their management.

It's really a sad tale of corporate greed.  There were ample methods for the new company to move forward with integrity.

Instead, e.g. Stockholders and President are paid dividends funded from increased maintenence fees passed on to owners.

Author apologizes for mathematical error.

DIVIDENDS FOR STOCKHOLDERS, INCREASED MAINTENENCE FEES FOR OWNERS:

http://ir.marriottvacationsworldwide.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=876539

In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are Rich" we take an objective view of the financial status of Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation  (NYSE - VAC) in a good news / bad news manner.

The link above will bring you to a resource where you can view every quarterly report from the company.

In Q3 the financially solid company announced a rare stockholder dividend of 25 cents per share.   Good news for stockholders, bad news for owners who are faced with another year of rising maintenence fees.  Its also very good news for owners that their vacation club company is doing very well financially, opposed to various alternatives.

The remainder of this article is the beginning of the financial report, the link will then show you the entire report.  The final paragraph below is a quote from President Stephen Weisz,  a major stokholder who will receive the dividends:

October 16, 2014

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Reports Third Quarter 2014 Financial Results

Board of Directors initiates quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share and authorizes the repurchase of an additional 3.4 million shares under the company's share repurchase program

 redweek.com/forums/messages?thread_id=17045;page=60;query=

In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club unless you are rich" you will receive a link to a valuable research tool that will enable you to obtain customer complaints concerning Marriott Vacation Club beginning around the time the new company switched over to the points program.

Another popular web-site out there for timeshare industry fans and followers is REDWEEK.COM     The link above (you may need to cut and paste it into your browser) will take you directly to sixty (60) pages of archived complaints concerning Marriott Vacation Club.  Depending on the page there are 10-20 complaints per page so when you have time, scan over the sixty (60) pages.

In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club.... Unless You are Rich"   we will be discussing recission periods state by state.   A recission period is the number of days (sometimes business days, sometimes calendar days) that you are legally able to "change your mind" and cancel, immediately following the 90-minute sales presentation, even though you may have signed all of the contracts and agreements in front of a notary.

See the state of the timeshare resort where you bought.  Determine if backing out of the deal is your best option. Perhaps you got carried away with all of the emotion?  Or just took inventory of your financial status?  You can cancel. The states listed below are not for your home, but the state of where the vacation club / timeshare sale took place:

Alabama – No data available

Alaska – 15 days

Arkansas – 5 days

Arizona – 7 days

California – 7 days

Colorado – 5 days

Connecticut – 3 days

Delaware – 3 days

District of Columbia – No data available

Florida – 10 days

Georgia – 7 days (business)

Hawaii – 7 days

Idaho – No data available

Illinois – 5 days

Indiana – 3 days (business)

Iowa – 5 days

Kentucky – 5 days (business)

Louisiana – 7 days

Maine – 10 days

Maryland – 10 days

Massachusetts – 3 days

Michigan – 5 days

Minnesota – 5 days

Mississippi – 7 days

Missouri – 7 days (business)

Montana – 7 days

Nevada – 5 days

New Hampshire – 5 days

New Jersey – 7 days

New Mexico – 7 days

New York – 7 days

North Carolina – 5 days

North Dakota – No data available

Ohio – 3 days

Oklahoma – No data available

Oregon – 5 days

Pennsylvania – 5 days

Rhode Island – 5 days (business)

South Carolina – 5 days

South Dakota – 7 days

Tennessee – 10 days

Texas – 5 days

Utah – 5 days

Vermont – 3 days

Virginia – 7 days

Washington – 7 days

West Virginia – 10 days

Wisconsin – 5 days (business)

Wyoming – No data available

Split off from the original Marriott, the new company (NYSE:VAC) and its greedy leadership & management came up with a clever way to outsmart everybody & provide an expensive dis-service to their owner customers from the previous 26 years.

Steve Weisz, the President of Marriott Vacation Club earns $111,024 each day, based on 2013, and a 365 day year, according to Forbe's Magazine. You can find this data on line to verify.

As you get more familiar with the complaints of Marriott Timeshare owners of the interval week(s) that were purchased over the 26 years from 1984 to 2010, one huge reoccurring theme of these complaints:  Marriott is charging all their existing owners $10,000 if they would like to convert to the new Points Program launched mid-2010.  These complaints are under review in 2014 in the pending Class Action Lawsuit against Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation.

The point here, with the Marriott Vacation Club President earning well over $4 Million Annually which is daily compensation of $111,024, this means that each time eleven (11) Marriott owners pony up the required $10,000  (conversion fees,  a few extra points, closing fees) that revenue generated from 11 Marriott Ownership Families is applied directly to President Stephen Weisz's Daily Pay!

Many loyal and established Marriott Timeshare owners feel ripped off!  

When staying at Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club, on Oahu's west side, you may want to consider the extra expense in cash or points to secure a reservation for an ocean view villa, opposed to the mountain view selection.  Many of the inland looking rooms out at  the Ko Olina Resort, especially the higher floors, have a horrible, highly controversial, awful view of a very old and sprawling industrial area of Oahu Island, much of it called Barber's Point.  It's resemblance to an oil refinery and its boat dry docking repair facility is to say the least "a major eyesore" while vacationing. If it ends up that you're forced to have a mountain view at Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club, try to at least request a lower floor view so that the parking structures will block your view of the industrial area's eyesore and provide greater convenience when using the elevators too.

Ko Olina is a wonderful place. The 4 man-made lagoons are very special enhancement, they are beautiful, fun to swim and play in, plus they provide much needed ocean safety. Lagoons 3 & 4 are furthest to the southwest corner of Oahu and the closest to the eyesore of Barber's Point.  As you move further north the expansive golf course fills in the area's scenary.  Lagoon 2 features some private condominium villas, and on Lagoon 1, which is the northernmost and most distant from Barber's Point, thats where both the Disney Resort Aulani and the J.W. Marriott  Hotel are located out at Ko Olina.

If you end up with an "oil refinery" balcony view during your vacation stay out at Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club on Oahu, you will definitely feel ripped off!

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In this installment of "Don't Buy into Marriott Vacation Club...Unless You Are Rich" we will be discussing the airfare component and how its expense surrounds Vacation Club ownership.  

Depending upon where you live in America, and where you take your family vacations, you may like to drive, or you might have to fly.  Driving certainly has its advantages:  flexible timings and no need for a car rental.  Flying is faster, you'll get there sooner; and sometimes its the logical solution, due to distance, or the inability to drive to e.g. the Hawaiian islands.

One enormous disadvantage to Vacation Club ownership, whether its Marriott, or any of the timeshare brands or resorts is not only the cost of airfare for all of your family members, but also the fact that when you purchase airfare only, at full retail, its always the most expensive.

Its amazing how the internet has revolutionized travel and vacationing options.  Over this past decade it has improved and re-invented itself a few times.  On line merchants; e.g. Expedia, Travelocity, Hotels.com, Priceline, etc. along with the power of the internet have given all of us the access to search and sort and compare prices on a tremendous amount of inventory.

When you purchase a vacation bundle (hotel + airfare + optional car) through one of these vendors, you definitely get a much better deal on the airfare component than when you purchase the airfare alone.  Plus, these internet travel solution providers have agreements with all of the major timeshare resorts (Marriott, Hilton, Disney, Wyndham plus more).

So why make a lifetime of vacationing decisions up front?  Just live cash and carry.

No need to join the "Once Exclusive"  type of luxury resort, they are all on expedia, etc.

Take all of the factors into consideration when doing your economic evaluations...

This way you can avoid being ripped off or locked into a lifetime contract you will regret!

In this new installment of  "Don't buy into Marriott Vacation Club..., unless you are Rich" we will discuss the perpertual trend for Marriott Vacation Club to continually raise their maintenence fees.   

First, let me introduce you to a great web-site:  www.tugbbs.com    Its stands for Timeshare User's Group Bulletin Board System, and as always, I like to back up my assertions with facts and reference materials.  

Now, when we discuss Marriott increasing their maintenence fees, there are two customers segment types:

1.  The original owners who bought a Marriott Timeshare from 1984 to 2010 and/or anyone who has purchased a resale deeded week (or inherited a deeded week)  from a previous owner, a reseller, bought on ebay, etc.

2.  Any owners who bought brand new into the points system which was introduced in mid-2010.   For this segment, lets look at a brief (cut 'n paste) from www.tugbbs.com

(As of 9/11/14, the Pricing Information page at marriottvacationclub.com indicates a base price of $12.24 per Point. There have been several price increases since the MVCD introduction (similar to Marriott's Weeks system in which price increases have been implemented on a regular basis.) For historical context, the introductory base price was approx. $9.20 per point; see for the pricing history contained in an official document obtained during a sales presentation. )

So for 2015, for owners on the points program there is not a specific 2015 increase announced yet, but if you read the paragraph above you can see that Points Maintenence Fees have already increased 33% in 4.5 years.

For the deeded week owners, www.tugbbs.com has every specific resort, every floor plan's 2015 increase.  Was too complicated to do a cut 'n paste.  I purused all around and saw many 4.66% increases, other increases ranged between 3% to 7%.

So in summary, Points MF increased 33% in 4.5 years and  the deeded week annual increase approx. 5%.  That web site www.tugbbs.com also features complaints and monitors satisfaction.  Marriott owners score 44% on complete happiness/satisfaction.

According to Wikipedia, the President of the United States annual salary (since 2001) is $400,000.

According to Forbes Magazine, Steve Weisz, the President of Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, his 2013 total earnings were $4,052,376.

This means that the based on 2013 financial figures, the President of Marriott Vacation Club earns 10x more than the President of the United States.   

Based upon a 365 day year, and 2013 figures, the Marriott Vacation Club President earned $111,024 per day.

If $1850.40 was the average/median maintenence fees that an established Marriott Vacation Club owner pays per year for their deed week or points, this means that for every SIX (6) OWNER families that pay their maintenence fees for the entire year, each group of six is applied to Steve Weisz's daily pay.

Or an an annual basis, take 2,190 (two thousand one hundred ninety) owner's annual maintenence fees (averaged at $1850.40 each) and you have the total annual compensation for Marriott Vacation's President Stephen Weisz.

The Rip-Off here is that maintenence fees are presented to be related to the upkeep of the resort properties, not maintaining a greedy executive's lavish lifestyle.   Marriott Timeshare Owners have a legitimate grievance here!

Ever since the new leadership came along, turning Marriott Vacation Club into its own company (NYSE-VAC) paying licensing fees to use the name "Marriott" and redefining the Marriott Timeshare Business into Destination Points instead of the deeded weeks, numerous complaints have been registered in Central Florida's (BBB) Better Business Bureau as the new corporate heaqdquarters are based in Orlando, FL and the company is led by President Stephen Weisz.

Search online for BBB-Central Florida to see liteally dozens and dozens and dozens of registered complaints about the new company which formally does business under the name "Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation."

Flipping through these numerous complaints will give you tremendous insight into the dark sided under belly of all those friendly smiles back at the resort.

You'll definitely see trends with broken promises, hidden costs, and the endless expense of these luxury items that are often called "investments."

You'll also get to read some responses from Marriott themselves which occassionally will reveal inflexible policies and legal posturing that follows.

Now if you are very rich, these compounding expenses might not matter much to you. If you are not wealthy, arm yourself with information free of charge. If you just bought in, definitely take the time to review the contractual details.

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Aloha Folks,   The American Dream is alive and well in Orlando, Florida for Marriott Vacations Club's President Steve Weisz.   When you earn over $4m per year that's well over $10,000 per day based upon a 365 days per year, $10k per day just for waking up, it's your day off no problem, you're still earning over $10k per day.  Great job if you can get it, huh?  Mr. Weisz must be the smartest man on earth, for any company to pay $4M per year.

One might ask, where would all this revenue come from?  Some obvious answers include: Grossly overcharging Club buy in costs, annual maintenence fees, misc. add-on charges, late fees, penalties, the list goes on and on.  Below is a cut 'n paste from a Forbes salary article.  Verify this information with on-line search.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corp

President, Stephen Weisz     age 63

Compensation for 2013

I just found a website, of Marriott's, that offers Marriott Vacation Club Resale Weeks themselves and was surprised how reasonable the prices were. I compared many resorts. Maui for example had every other year deals starting around $10, 000 for a 1BR with a garden view to an every year 2BR with an ocean view for $35, 000. You can search their entire inventory worldwide. These units are repo's and defaults from past customers who just walked away from the obligation completely or couldn't keep up with the maintenance fees. The website is www.marriottvacationclub.com/resales and its very impressive.

These costs are substantially lower than what brand new couples and families pay when they tour the Marriott Resort during the infamous 90-minute presentations and some would say and agree that a deeded week is much better than the points club deal Marriott has been selling retail these past four years.  Is a deeded week better than their new points system?

In my opinion, a deeded week, is much better than the "flexible" point system because the week will always be seven (7) days. Someone brand new can purchase seven (7) days worth of points but that will perpetually diminish, every couple years the daily cost to stay per point increases. When you have a deeded week, you can completely avoid the points system.

If by chance you just bought into Marriott Vacation Club and are researching Marriott timeshare because you just bought, I would strongly encourage you to visit Marriott's Resale web-site so you can calculate how much you have just been overcharged.  Every state has a recission period where you can cancel, so you better hurry because the clock is ticking.

Ebay is another great source for Marriott resale weeks. You will pay a whole lot less than even Marriott's own resale site, but you may encounter the ROFR "Right of First Refusal" giving Marriott the option to buy it back for pennies on the dollar from the original owner. Doesn't mean you will lose your money, but it could waste some time. They do not buy back (ROFR) every time so you can keep trying with ebay, but shop carefully, and feel free to contact the seller with any questions.

Today on December 3, 2014 I was purusing through the ebay listings of Marriott Resale Weeks and there were 61 of them posted for purchase which did does not include rentals.  The Marriott Timeshare Rentals on ebay are a good deal because you are buying them directly from an owner, vs. dealing in the vacation condo rental market which can be tricky.

Anyways, this pariculardal is on for 4 more days.  Its for a true timeshare resale week purchase in the panhandle of Florida, in Panama City, at a resort named Bay Point.  Here is why this is a sensational deal for a 2BR Villa, every year but only silver season (read all ebay ads carefully)  for only this one resort:

1.  The cost is only $19.00 for "Buy it now"     ( a savings of roughly $25,000)

2.  All closing costs are paid for buy the seller   ( a reseller savings of roughly $700 )

3.  A $300 visa gift card is offered as an incentive for a serious buyer.

Below is the cut 'n paste.   Visit (((competitor's name redacted)) to avoid getting ripped off from Marriott Retail!

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Silver Season Usage in Bay Point Florida!

Buyer will receive a $300 visa gift card when the property transfers at the resort!

Buyers First Year Available: 2015

Usage: Annual Usage

Float Unit: 2 bedroom 2 bath,  sleeps 8

Float week:  1-6, 49-50  Silver Season

Unit has a full Kitchen

 Estimated Maintenance fee:  $1231.00 due annually 

Special Assessments: $0.00

Property Tax: Included in the maintenance fee above 

Perpetually deeded ownership (Week 03, Unit 2406)

Buyer will receive a $300 visa gift card when the property transfers at the resort!

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Hello again,  another installment into my "Don't buy into Marriott Vacation Club... unless you are rich" article    If you've been reading my other reports, you will see insight and recommendations to search ebay for a Marriott Timeshare Resale Week so you can save yourself $20,000 to $30,000 or more.  Naturally a "used" Marriott Timeshare week only allows you to go to that one Mariott condominium resort, but that can be okay, its different though than the super-expensive points club membership/ownership that Marriott currently sells.  In this installment, I want to introduce two new concepts:

1.  Look to ebay, under vacation rentals and timeshare and you can find yourself a good next vacation.  I honestly did this just a couple months ago.  For $1100 I stayed 8 nights on Maui at the Westin Ka'anapali Villas timeshare resort just north of Black Rock in Ka'anapali.  I purchased it from an ebay member who had been on ebay since 2002, like me.  Plus this ebay member had over 300 positive reviews.  He was a Starwood Owner and sold me a great deal.  Now on one hand I still believe $1100 is a lot of money, but for the Westin, my gosh, for a studio kitchenette, and no presentation required, good. So since we're kind of focused on Marriott here, I have seen the same kind of rental posts on ebay which is so much more credible than Craigslist and better than the vrbo.com ads because they all have all sorts of deposits and cleaning fees.  After my 8 nights I had to pay just under $50 for transient tax, but that was the only extra charge, $100 cash deposit at checkin. What I have noticed on ebay for these one time timeshare rentals is that last minute is where the very good deals are and if you secure an accomodation super-early which is noble to being a good planner, you might end up spending a bunch more.

2.  Marriott sells Preview Vacations, in a very discreet manner.  If you want to stay at a particular Marriott resort, assuming you are already not in their system as an owner, the marketing reps at that very resort can usually sell you an open ended vacation in a smaller sized unit, generally 5 nights for $500 however you are required to sit through the 90-minute presentation on that future trip.  These are generally open ended and are good for up to 18 months, but they generally are not compatible with a last minute inquiry and availalility.  I tell you this to make certain you know you have other options and that any way that you can CONTINUALLY POSTPONE THE EXPENSE makes prudent sense in these uncertain times.  So if you decide to pursue the preview vacation, discreetly call upon that one resort, ask for the marketing rep, tell them that you think you met them several months back, mention the idea, but then let them take over and present it to you.  Be prepared to pay e.g. $500 up front on cc and you probably won't even know dates.  It does work.  But again its offered discreetly.

On December 1, 2014:   www.ebay.com had 60 diiferent ads for Marriott Resale Timeshare weeks from owners direct or through resalers, brokers and/or title companies representing the owners direct.  One nice thing about ebay is that you are able to contact the owner with questions while the auction is still up.  Sometimes you can negotiate an even better price, but not always.  Other times, there is a way to make a "Best Offer"   The inventory on ebay is always evolving.  As an experienced ebay buyer and seller, let me share with you some insight on the physcological lows and highs when you are a seller.  In the middle of your auction you are feeling great.  Near the end of the auction, when something really is marketable and will sell, lots of bids will come in at the very end.   When the auction ends and you had no bidders yet still are faced with ebay fees and even more when you relist, this is when a seller is most vulnerable to sell even lower.

Ebay has many different formats.  Of the 60 Marriott timesahre resale posts on 12/1 - 28 of them were in the "buy it now" format which means if a serious buyer (or non-serious idiot) comes along and hits the button the auction ends.  The most popular format is "auction" style which as the timeline.  If the ad says $1 on page one, you had better make sure that you open it up real good and see what the actual price is, on top of the winning bid, plus of course maint fees and closing costs.

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