I have had the late checkout and also been offered free health club use when it would have otherwise cost.

These hardly qualify as "privileges," since they apply to all SPG members.

Are you sure about this? What is the two points for every dollar spent and the instant awards privileges?

I can't get to the SPG site at the moment to find the exact text, but any preferred guest can use their starpoints on the spot for things during your stay, like room service (I think) or spa treatments or something of the like. Preferred Guest, Preferred Plus and Corporate Preferred Guests all earn 2 starpoints per dollar spent at the hotel. Gold Preferred and Plat Preferred earn 3 starpoints per dollar spent.

I'm corporate preferred and you really don't get anything except a slightly different card. Maybe you get a room upgrade...but it is hard to tell the difference from the standard room. I will see about the health club tomorrow...regular members are charged $8 so that would be a plus.

As I would otherwise be a Preferred member, I guess anything above and beyond is a plus.

Thanks to all the advice on this forum, I applied for the Amex Starwood card after cancelling my old Amex skymiles card. My understanding is that my status is preferred plus, giving me late checkout, and automatic upgrade, if available.
My husband also has a Starwood account, which I discovered yesterday is Gold (apparently because he was signed up through a corporate amenity program). When I checked to see what gold status means, the description sounds identical to my preferred plus, i.e., late checkout, automatic upgrade.
My question: is there any difference? Would I have a better chance of upgrades if I moved my award points to his account, and made award stay reservations there? Obviously, I need to use my own account to get points on the Amex for a paid stay. Bottom line, what is the difference, if any, between preferred plus, and gold?

Gold gets you 50% bonus in points. I think that's about it. And welcome to FT!

I was preferred plus, then gold, and am now preferred plus again. On paper, the benefits are the same (except for the 50% point bonus for Gold). In my experience, I was much more likely to get upgraded to a preferred room as a Gold than as preferred plus. It may have been differences between the hotels I was staying at (the extent of participation does seem to vary quite a bit by hotel), but I can't imagine the person at the front desk saying to me, "Oh, Mr. Goodman, I see you're a Preferred Plus Guest...we've got an upgraded room on a preferred floor for you," but I'll keep my fingers crossed.

I've never been given late check-out with either status.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but by paying with the AMEX Starwood Card, don't you effectively receive the 50% bonus anyway? For example, as an SPG, you'll receive 2 points per dollar for your stay, plus 1 point per dollar spent on the Card? In other words, the 1 point you'll receive just paying with the card is equal to the 1 bonus point you'll receive as a gold.

Am I missing something?

Yes and no. You technically earn 4 points per dollar if Gold and paying with the AMEX.

Golds are definitely upgraded before Preferred Plus status members and have more clout when there are customer service issues.

As they should be.

Maybe that's the problem -- don't wait to be "given" the late check-out, just take it! It's your entitlement except apparently at certain resort properties.
So I go under the assumption that the front desk knows I will take the late check-out since it is my published benefit as Gold, and I expect them to proactively tell me if for some reason I can't do it. (Though even if I still did, not sure what they could do - escort me out of the room? charge me extra for my free benefit?)

I've never had a problem.

My company has an agreement with SPG to join as a "SPG Corporate Preferred" but I cannot find anything on SPG's website about Corporate Preferred and what benefits this has/does not have. I asked my travel person at work and they said it was close to SPG Gold (thats what she was told by SPG) but that she didnt have specifics.

Does anyone have this information? Will enrolling as SPG Corp keep me from getting SPG Gold/Plat?

Thanks!
Corey

IIRC, it's roughly the same as what AAA members are eligible to get (Preferred Plus) in that it includes most of the benefits of Gold (upgrade to a "preferred" room, late checkout, etc.) sans the 50% elite points bonus.

It should NOT have any effect at all on reaching either of those levels by any means (promo, stays, nights, etc.).

A.J.