Use points to maintain status buy back
 

Will Marriott have a buy back program with points?

Marriott elite buy back

http://www.marriott.com/marriott/elitebuyback.mi

Warning to newbies: Points from your account used to buy back status, are deducted from you lifetime total. IMO, a serious omission for linked Marriott webpage not to mention this.

Is there a minimum number of nights one must stay to qualify for this offer?

I was Plat in 2015 (earned in 2014).

Does it matter whether I stayed 1 night or 74 nights with regards to this buyback offer for 40,000 points?

Can Platinum status be 'bought back' year after year?

Don't think it matters and seems to be OK.

This offer is valid through April 1, 2016 and allows only one level of buyback, which must match the Elite level you enjoyed in 2015.

http://www.marriott.com/marriott/elitebuyback.mi

Buy back Platinum Status?
 

I have been Platinum for years but last year my husband was sick and we did not travel much so few hotel stays.
I have been "demoted" to GOLD, with the option of "buying back" my Platinum status for 40,000 points. I have over 600k points so I certainly can afford it.
Gold gives me what I value most -- lounge access and upgrades when available. I can live without the arrival gift.
I do value the Premier Silver Status on United but I fly so little domestically and if I fly internationally i get Business Class tickets using miles.
Is there any good reason to buy back the Platinum Status?

since you're getting the perks that are important to you - IMO, nope

Also consider; if you buy back, those points will be deducted from the total points you need for lifetime status.

I have more than 3 million points lifetime so using the 40K is not an issue
I need 41 nights for lifetime gold

I am thinking that if I move to Platinum and don't meet the threshold, the worst that can happen is that I get demoted to Gold again. If I stay Gold, and don't meet that threshold, I will be Silver (no lounge, no upgrade)

Personally, I'd focus on getting those 41 nights to secure lifetime gold and not worry about yearly platinum renewal.

I don't disagree. Where a Marriott fits my needs, I will stay there. But I am not a slave to the brand. If location is not good or property is not good, I go elsewhere. I already have many hotel reservations for 2016, many of them Marriotts, but in some places not. I should make it to lifetime Gold by end of 2017.

Thanks all for the advice.

It might be worth keeping Platinum to see what happens after the Starwood merger. Will benefits match current SPG Platinum or Marriott Platinum? Might be worth holding out until that question is answered.

I did not think of that. Good point.

I did not see this stipulation anywhere. Lifetime status is based on accrual not balance to the best of my knowledge I did not see my lifetime balance drop the last time I did this. Can you site your source as this will have impact on my decision if true? Thanks!

Just how close are you to the minimum number of lifetime points for lifetime Gold and how many points will you earn during those final 41 nights?

I have more than met the threshold for Gold in terms of points -- I have more than 3 million. I just need those 41 stays. I have about 20 scheduled.

I just bought back my Platinum status -- nothing to lose I have so many points.

Here is what I learned from the rep (some of you may know these things)
Just by having the credit card I get 15 nights towards stays -- those will post for me in May -- so I am only 26 nights away from Lifetime Gold
For every $3000 I spend on the credit card I get 1 night. I tend to only use the card at Marriotts but I may rethink that.
As of last November, nights booked with points counts as stays toward status.
The 40K points I deducted to buy back my Platinum Status do indeed get deducted from my lifetime points (it does not matter to me but may to others).

Thanks for all the good input.

I think it's also a safe bet (but by no means guaranteed), that lifetime SPG nights will be added to your lifetime Marriott count upon combination of the two programs.

I probably have 10 SPG nights -- will help a little -- thanks

It is getting more interesting

I wrote to SPG and I have 227 lifetime nights (I have no recollection of many of those stays). If I remain Gold Elite for two more years (a status I get from AMEX Platinum) I will be Lifetime Gold.
Kind of insane -- so easy to be Lifetime Gold on Starwood without even staying at their properties. You have to work hard for similar status at Marriott.

So once your lifetime SPG nights are added you'll be in shot of lifetime Plat on Marriott!

PS not doubting you on what SPG told you, but you can double check on your SPG account online (Account Overview under Manage My Account).

Info is not on the SPG site -- I tried

Here is email I received:

Thank you for contacting Starwood Preferred Guest Gold. It is always a pleasure to hear from our elite. I welcome the opportunity to assist you today.
I am pleased to inform you, you currently only need two more years of Elite Gold status to become a Lifetime Gold member.
I do not believe there is an option to view Lifetime nights online however you may always reach out to us at any time and we will be more than happy to look into that for you. Your account is currently at 227 Lifetime nights.


Do any of you know for sure that SPG and Marriott nights would be combined? That would be incredible. I would be lifetime Platinum in no time.

An easy way to get those 41 nights would be to get the MR credit card. You get 15 nights per year plus one night for every $3,000 you spend.

I have the card --

I've never used the "buy back" status option but am considering it this year (primarily for United Silver). I didn't re-qualify for Plat (or even Gold) but appear to have been soft-landed to Gold based on mail from MR.

1) If I bought back Platinum through 2016 and failed to re-qualify for either Platinum or Gold again, would I be able to buy back Platinum again for 2017 (a consideration if MR-UA Rewards Plus continues to give UA Silver for MR Plat)?

2) Based on past experiences, if I bought back Platinum through 2016 and failed to re-qualify for either Platinum or Gold again, would I be soft-landed to Gold through 2017?

3) And, if I soft-landed to Gold, am I likely to be able to buy-back Gold the next year (e.g., 2018)?

Essentially, could (1) I keep re-buy-back Platinum each year and (2) when I stop buying-back Platinum, be soft-landed to Gold the next year and (3) when soft-landed to Gold, would I have the option to buy-back to Gold the next year?

Good strategy

I too have been kept at Platinum when I was close and reduced to Gold when I was nowhere near close.

I upgraded. I hope to be Lifetime Gold before the year is out.

No buyback required?
 

For the past couple of years I've bought back my Gold status. I've been close to Gold night requirements, but not quite made it.

This year I see this message on my account - which I don't remember seeing before.

"Congratulations! Your Gold Elite status has been renewed."

Does this mean, I am good to go for 2016? :cool:

deleted

Yes
Sometimes you get renewed even if you don't meet the threshold. I assume they look at your history and future reservations and hope to motivate you to remain loyal

So I finally got around to calling Marriott and it was confirmed by the person I spoke with that the points used to buy back status are deducted from your current balance as well as your lifetime balance. Her words were, "It is treated as if you never earned those points." Just an FYI for those who weren't aware.

For me, I could buy 40,000K points to keep my status for $500. If I were to spend that same $500 points at a hotel it would yield 5,000 points. For the same $500 to maintain Plat status I will more than earn that potential 5,000 points in the 50% platinum bonus I would earn over the year. Plus, by buying the points I don't go backwards at all towards my lifetime platinum status pursuit. I'm currently 70 nights and 210,000 points away from qualification.

You are valuing those 40k points at 1.25 cents. Pretty high value for Marriott points.

The 5k earning versus plat bonus is meaningless data. You would get the additional accrual with 40k points or $500. Keep it simple. Always give your miles a $$$ value and that will lead you to the best decision.

has marriott consistently offered this buy back every year? I'm wondering if they will next year considering the SPG merger.

I'm asking because I've been status matched to Gold from SPG. Am considering doing the Road to Platinum challenge (Marriott has told me I'm eligible) for 9 stays...then hoping to be able to buy back the platinum yearly...as it's unlikely I'd ever be able to reach the 75 nights a year needed for requalification. anyone have input on this / in a similar situation?

Buying back status with points
 

Every now and again, I've had a slow year and slipped from Gold to Silver. Marriott routinely offered me the chance to buy back my Gold status via paying a certain amount of Marriott points to reclaim it. I'll be slipping from Platinum after the end of the year, and I'd be interested in buying it back next year in the same manner. Does anyone know if Marriott has offered this in the past? Would anyone know about how many points it's run?

I'm not sure if anyone knows if they'll offer it again this year. But you can find lots of discussions on it if you search on the term "buyback".

Perfect. I appreciate the tip.

http://www.marriott.com/marriott/elitebuyback.mi has the amount needed for 2016 status buyback:

Until April 1, 2016, you can retain your status at an exclusive rate:

• Buy back your Platinum status – only 40,000 points
• Buy back your Gold status – only 25,000 points
• Buy back your Silver status – only 7,500 points

Don't automatically assume you will lose Plat. If you are close, there's still a chance that Marriott might allow you to retain your status. I have friends who fell short of 50 nights but were allowed to retain Gold. But I don't know if they offer the same for Plats who fall a bit short of 75.

I appreciate the data point, but it was a slow year for travel. I have most of my nights from my Marriott credit cards. I'm only at 32 nights.

I called the Marriott Platinum Line today (I only stayed 22 nights, yes 22 nights, I had a few deaths in the family, stayed at a lot of homes for that reason) because I expect to get back at traveling a little more in 2017.

The main reason I want the Marriott Platinum is for the United Silver, as I’m 6 foot 6 inches, and have fallen in love with the free Economy Plus, and the Premier Access and Priority phone line over there has helped me a lot.

Anyway, I called, and the guy seemed to be new or un-educated about the buy-back, and quoted me a price of 60,000 points for Platinum, but says that it’s because the early redemption promo rate of 40,000 pts ended on April 1st. He did say that it might go back to 40,000 in January, but if they don’t renew the promotion, I might run the risk of having no UA Status and pointless Marriott Silver.

I didn’t pay the 60,000 points, mainly because I didn’t have that many points in my Marriott Bank at the time (but I could through RewardsPlus transfer if I want to).

Any thoughts on what I should do? When does Marriott typically announce the buy-back rates?

I was just a few nights short from re-qualifying. My YTD nights counter online has not reset yet. I thought it reset on 1/1. Is there a way to determine if they gave it to me for being close?

I do not see the option to buy it back but that could be because 1) hopefully they gave it to me so it is not needed or 2) it was because I got it initially through linking to SPG which doesn't qualify for buyback.