We have narrowed down to buying at BWV, hopefully 200-220 points. We were looking at a contract that is listed at $69 and we made a lower offer that the seller declined. Not surprising, but I *was* surprised when I asked for guidance from the realtor as to what the seller might be expecting that she told me, "I am not sure as they simply 'declined.' Most Boardwalk listings are selling in the mid $60s per point so closer to that I would assume."
Every seller is different and you will really never know what motivates them. Some people will fixate on a price and not sell for less. There are contracts on Fidelity that have been there for years, simply because the sellers are unwilling or unable to come down in price.
Is this true that BWV is selling in the mid-60s??? From what I can see on the ROFR thread, it looks like BWV is going more in the mid-50s to 60, no?
The ROFR thread does not tell the whole picture. Starting at about this time last year there has been a run on BWV contracts. There has also been a dearth of sellers in that time. So while it's true BWV contracts did sell in the mid $50 range, the new normal for BWV pricing is $60 and above. As an added tip, when looking at the pricing of contracts, you also need to factor in who paid closing and maintenance fees. Each one of these elements can add or subtract between $3-6 per point. As others have mentioned, you also need to look at the amount of banked points and assign a value to them.
Quick quiz: Which contract would you rather buy?
Contract A: $70 per point with 2011's points banked, all 2012 points and all 2013 points coming this year where the seller pays closing and maintenance fees
or
Contract B: $43 per point where it has full points coming in 2013 and you have to pay closing and reimburse maintenance fees.
It's a trick question, because both contracts are worth the same. So your purchasing decision would be based on your needs, because using cost as your only criteria won't help you decide between the two.
I'm trying to gauge if I'm just totally off or if this realtor is just trying to get the seller a better deal?
Neither. You're not that off because if you just look at the numbers without considering recent trends in the market, your expectations were realistic. As far as the broker, brokers of timeshare sales in the state of Florida represent the transaction, not the seller or the buyer. Different brokers have different approaches in the way they represent the transaction, so this might affect how your low offers are being perceived.
We actually tried to bid on another contract and apparently missed out by an hour or two, but it also sold for $55/point for 200 points (with all points plus some banked), so I thought that was maybe a pretty competitive price. I guess I'll just have to wait and wait and wait
Yeah, there's a reason that contract went so quickly. It was underpriced.
What do most people offer in relation to the listing price? Eg. $10 below listing? $5 below listing? Or just wait until a listing is at exactly the price point you expect to pay? (Though I don't think I've seen very many listed below $60 yet the ROFR indicates many people pay less than that, so I just assumed lots of negotiating is the norm. Maybe it's not?)
There are threads dedicated to this very question. People who have been waiting for a specific use year or don't want to "lose" a contract go in and offer full price. Bargain shoppers like myself go in with a very low offer hoping to find a motivated seller. (Note: this has a very low success rate.)
From what I've been reading on here, I think the norm is $5-10 less than asking price which usually results in immediate acceptance or one counter offer and then acceptance.
I have to admit I'm fairly confused by the agent's role in all of this. Do they all make commission off the sales? I understand that the buyer pays a fee as well, but it seems it would be much less than the potential commission on a 200+ point contract.
Sellers pay a commission to the broker in the neighborhood of 10%. The buyer's fee is new and as far as I know only Fidelity is charging it (but I could be wrong about that).
Okay, that is kind of what I thought - I guess I just have to be patient
Is it generally true that the bigger the contract, the lower the price per point? I know there's variability depending on how stripped the contract is, but that seems to be the trend?
Point availability aside, smaller contracts tend to sell for more (sometimes significantly more) than larger contracts. There is a much higher demand for small contracts. Fewer buyers are looking for larger contracts. The laws of supply and demand are in full effect here.
Thanks everyone for your feedback! I guess I just need to be patient!
I just want to be able to book by this summer for a trip next summer. I guess that's still months away, but with how long it takes to get through ROFR and clearing the title, etc., I somehow feel like it's kind of urgent
I'm still adjusting to how far in advance all this DVC planning has to occur - I'm planning out vacations for 2014 and 2016 already!
Be patient for the process, but if you see a contract you want you should jump on it. The average time it takes a contract to go from offer to point availability is about 10 weeks. So you have until September to close on a contract if you are looking at a trip for next August. DVC planning is best done 11 months in advance. Good luck finding something!
