Would DVC be right for us (large family)

[blessedwinter]

I looked into DVC last year, and am getting ready to look into it again. I am just wanting unbiased opinions.

My husband and I are 31 and 30. We have SIX children, ages 10 down to 1, and we will possibly have more. My husband makes around $50,000/year and that should stay steady but probably will not go up. We would not be able to pay cash for our membership.

I LOVE Disney and we are getting ready for our third trip within 19 months. To be fair, only 1 of the 3 trips were with all of us. The other 2 are going to be just my husband and I with our baby (anniversary trip) and one was with just me and my daughter. We have never gone into debt to pay for a trip, just cut a lot of corners and budgeted right.

What appeals to me about DVC is the fact that we would "have" to continue taking trips and I know we would have no problem using it for 40+ years because of the number of children we have, and GRANDKIDS someday!!!

1. Would it be completely foolish since we would have to finance it somehow (we are needing to build up our credit anyhow and were advised that getting a credit card would be good for that...?)

2. How many points would we need to house our family of 8 to, say 10 yearly? I don't hear of many large families with a DVC membership, maybe it just isn't smart because of the sheer number of people we would have to room? Ideally I would love BCV or BLT but I know those are probably way out of what we could ever afford.

I know this is a HUGE financial decision and we are obviously not wealthy so this would take a lot of sacrifice, but I feel that for the reasons I mentioned, it may be a worthwhile investment. WDYT?

 

[robinb]

You would need a 2 BR at the very least with your family just the way it is. A 2BR will also work if you have another child (see the DVC occupancy thread here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2894661. Once your family is larger than 9, you will have to book a GV. When would you usually vacation? The number of points needed depends on what size villa you book and when you go.

 

[blessedwinter]

You would need a 2 BR at the very least with your family just the way it is. A 2BR will also work if you have another child (see the DVC occupancy thread here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2894661. Once your family is larger than 9, you will have to book a GV. When would you usually vacation? The number of points needed depends on what size villa you book and when you go.

Thank you! We can go during off-peak times b/c we homeschool. I have really enjoyed our January trips, I would prefer either early in the year or early December.

 

[JaimeA]

I am a family of 5 and am in the process of buying DVC. We will be reserving two bedroom so the kids aren't all squished into the living room. I would think you would need a two bedroom to a grand villa to be comfortable. There is a point chart link at the top of the boards you can look at.

I wont tell you if you should or shouldn't purchase but if I had 6 kids under the age of 10 with a salary that doesn't increase steadily I would really think about it before purchasing.

 

[DizBub]

You would certainly need that 2 bedroom. Just so you know, AKV, BLT and OKW have sleeper chairs in their living rooms along with the sofa beds. AKV and BLT have 3 full bathrooms in their 2 bedrooms. They all sleep 9, 10 if you count a baby in a pack & play.

OKW is very cheap point wise, BLT and AKV savanna view are more. I think 300 points might fit your needs especially if you are going once a year at a value season. Resale is worth looking into, it can save you thousands over buying direct although you really need to consider the Members Fees into your calculations.

My daughter has a family of 8 so I understand what you are dealing with. She really wants her own DVC but knows she will be getting 1/3 of ours when we are done with it. 156 points won't get her too far.

 

[ELMC]

I'm not sure you are going to get a lot of people to go so far as to say "yes" or "no" to your question. But you should get a good amount of responses to the information you have provided. In the end, you'll need to sift through all that information and make the decision yourself. Good luck! Oh, and here are my responses, I hope they help.

I looked into DVC last year, and am getting ready to look into it again. I am just wanting unbiased opinions.

My husband and I are 31 and 30. We have SIX children, ages 10 down to 1, and we will possibly have more. My husband makes around $50,000/year and that should stay steady but probably will not go up. We would not be able to pay cash for our membership.

I'm not sure what part of the country you live in or what your cost of living looks like, but personally I would be nervous making such a tremendous financial commitment when you have 8 people trying to live on a semi fixed salary of $50,000. In my opinion, DVC would take up too high a percentage of your annual income. Add to that the fact that you said you would have to finance your purchase, and this is an even bigger red flag. If you purchase direct and choose to finance over 10 years at Disney rates, you are actually paying close to DOUBLE the contract price when all is said and done. Add in the annual maintenance fees and you have just created quite a burden for yourself.

I LOVE Disney and we are getting ready for our third trip within 19 months. To be fair, only 1 of the 3 trips were with all of us. The other 2 are going to be just my husband and I with our baby (anniversary trip) and one was with just me and my daughter. We have never gone into debt to pay for a trip, just cut a lot of corners and budgeted right.

In my opinion, you do not have enough of a track record to know if DVC is right for you. DVC is best suited for those who wish to visit Disney every year or even multiple times a year. It can work for those that want to go every other year or every third year as well. You've only been once with the whole family, which is not a large enough sample size. We originally investigated DVC about 12 years ago. But we did not purchase until recently when we realized that we had taken five trips in the past four years. At that point we knew we would be going every year, and DVC started to make more sense.

What appeals to me about DVC is the fact that we would "have" to continue taking trips and I know we would have no problem using it for 40+ years because of the number of children we have, and GRANDKIDS someday!!!

I understand the concept of a forced vacation and how it is a positive in some people's lives. But in this case I can almost see it turning into a burden. You are basically forcing yourself to not only go on vacation, but pay for food, transportation, park tickets, etc. etc. for eight people. And like you said, you are almost forced to go every year.

1. Would it be completely foolish since we would have to finance it somehow (we are needing to build up our credit anyhow and were advised that getting a credit card would be good for that...?)

See my comment above about what financing really costs when purchasing DVC. As far as building up your credit, DVC purchases do not show up on your credit. If you are looking for ways to build up your credit, I would talk to a financial planner. I don't think that a $20,000ish DVC purchase is a good way to go about it.

2. How many points would we need to house our family of 8 to, say 10 yearly? I don't hear of many large families with a DVC membership, maybe it just isn't smart because of the sheer number of people we would have to room? Ideally I would love BCV or BLT but I know those are probably way out of what we could ever afford.

This has been answered, but to add to it, once you hit 10 you have entered the range where you need to stay in Grand Villas, which are insanely expensive compared to two bedroom villas. You'll want to look at the point charts to see how many points are required for which sized rooms in which resorts during certain times of the year.

I know this is a HUGE financial decision and we are obviously not wealthy so this would take a lot of sacrifice, but I feel that for the reasons I mentioned, it may be a worthwhile investment. WDYT?

Ok so a few things here. First off, DVC is not an investment, it is a way to prepay for deluxe accommodations for future vacations. If you purchase direct your "investment" will lose close to 50% of its value as soon as you sign the contract. Second, you said that it would take a lot of sacrifice. Are you really willing to have your entire lives revolve around your DVC purchase? Third, and I say this with all due respect, I'm just not seeing how this is doable for you. Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not seeing how you have the room to squeeze annual trips to Disney and a DVC purchase into your budget. For a week's stay during the low season at Old Key West you will need about 220 points. The purchase price of that is $22,000. Financed over 10 years, your annual payment is $3636. Add to that maintenance fees of $1144 and that is close to 10% of your annual (pretax) income on DVC alone for the next 10 years...this doesn't account for park tickets, transportation or food. I hope this doesn't come across as insulting or mean, because that is truly not my intent. I even reread my post to try to soften it up a bit.

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, I don't think DVC is a good fit for you. (I know I said I wouldn't say yes or no, but I changed my mind.) Since you have the flexibility to travel when you want, I would recommend going when they offer free dining and staying in two rooms at a value resort. With the size of your group (especially when the kids get older and count as adults for the DDP) you should be able to save some significant money on your trips and have the option to go or not go as you see fit.

Best of luck in your decision!

 

[crisi]

You are going to need about 300 points for a yearly vacation - thats around $1500 in dues right now. Dues go up - maybe 3% a year - and your husband's income is stable. In ten years you'll have about $3500 in dues. In 15 years, $5,600 in dues. In 20 years, over $9k in dues. Unless you are wrong about your husband's income going up, buying DVC would not be a good decision for you.

ETA: Ticket prices also go up every year. For our family of four adults, we'll put $1300 worth of park passes into a vacation this year, easy. Do the same 3% a year calculation, and your park pass bill is going to be huge.

 

[robinb]

Ok so a few things here. First off, DVC is not an investment, it is a way to prepay for deluxe accommodations for future vacations. If you purchase direct your "investment" will lose close to 50% of its value as soon as you sign the contract. Second, you said that it would take a lot of sacrifice. Are you really willing to have your entire lives revolve around your DVC purchase? Third, and I say this with all due respect, I'm just not seeing how this is doable for you. Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not seeing how you have the room to squeeze annual trips to Disney and a DVC purchase into your budget. For a week's stay during the low season at Old Key West you will need about 220 points. The purchase price of that is $22,000. Financed over 10 years, your annual payment is $3636. Add to that maintenance fees of $1144 and that is close to 10% of your annual (pretax) income on DVC alone for the next 10 years...this doesn't account for park tickets, transportation or food. I hope this doesn't come across as insulting or mean, because that is truly not my intent. I even reread my post to try to soften it up a bit.

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, I don't think DVC is a good fit for you. (I know I said I wouldn't say yes or no, but I changed my mind.) Since you have the flexibility to travel when you want, I would recommend going when they offer free dining and staying in two rooms at a value resort. With the size of your group (especially when the kids get older and count as adults for the DDP) you should be able to save some significant money on your trips and have the option to go or not go as you see fit.

I think you just about nailed the issue of funding DVC/Disney trips for the OP in a very respectful way. I was thinking that it wasn't the best fit as well and I am glad that you took the time to calculate how much it would cost the OP. Unfortunately, onsite Disney resorts (even with free dining) are not the best fit for large families with limited funds and most large families end up in a roomy offsite house rental for a fraction of the cost of a cramped Disney resort.

Good luck with your decision OP!

 

[blessedwinter]

(I know I said I wouldn't say yes or no, but I changed my mind.)

Thank you, your advice helped a lot and wasn't harsh at all. You were very kind.

I can't believe I used the term "investment" that was a horrible choice of words. I know it's not an "investment." You all have convinced me that I just need to let this go, I was thinking it wasn't the best choice for OUR large family and I'm sure that is correct. Hopefully we will still be able to take Disney vacations as often as we choose and would like to, though. We'll see.

 

[ELMC]

Thank you, your advice helped a lot and wasn't harsh at all. You were very kind.

I can't believe I used the term "investment" that was a horrible choice of words. I know it's not an "investment." You all have convinced me that I just need to let this go, I was thinking it wasn't the best choice for OUR large family and I'm sure that is correct. Hopefully we will still be able to take Disney vacations as often as we choose and would like to, though. We'll see.

I'm glad my comments were taken as intended. One thing that robinb mentioned is that there are plenty of vacation homes for rent in the Orlando area for a fraction of the cost of DVC (and you get an entire house). Personally I don't know that much about them, but I do know that they are in pretty close proximity to the parks and can even be closer to some of the parks than some of the on property hotels. That could be an affordable way to take your family on a Disney vacation when you choose to do so. I understand that staying on property is cool, but we have been on a Disney vacation many times while staying at the Marriott Harbour Lake and have had a wonderful time.

 

[ELKHUNTER]

IMHO DVC is the only way you will be able to afford to bring a family the size of yours to Disney. We also have a large family and to take them all you will need multiple rooms in the regular resorts and will not have the same comfort with the cost of two rooms. With a 200 point resale contract which would run in the neighborhood of 12000.00 and annual dues of around 950.00 would be plenty of points for and eight to ten night stay or two five night stays every other year. Also if you own your home an equity loan with interest rates from 3% to 5% can be used to make your purchase. I know the OP have valid points but its something to think about. P.S Your biggest expense these days is park tickets!

 

[DizBub]

IMHO DVC is the only way you will be able to afford to bring a family the size of yours to Disney. We also have a large family and to take them all you will need multiple rooms in the regular resorts and will not have the same comfort with the cost of two rooms. With a 200 point resale contract which would run in the neighborhood of 12000.00 and annual dues of around 950.00 would be plenty of points for and eight to ten night stay or two five night stays every other year. Also if you own your home an equity loan with interest rates from 3% to 5% can be used to make your purchase. I know the OP have valid points but its something to think about. P.S Your biggest expense these days is park tickets!

I agree with this. I just looked at the new offers of free dining and 30% off and applied these to my daughter's family. 2 rooms at POFQ with free dining and tickets was at least $5200. Looked at getting a villa and it would cost almost $7000.

When they go in October the 2 bedroom villa at BLT cost 278 points. All they will have to pay for is food and tickets. The full kitchen will be used for all breakfasts and most lunches. The tickets will most certainly be their biggest expense apart from getting there. Not determined yet if they are flying or driving. They may move over to SSR because there is more to do for the kids and they won't feel like they need to go to parks every day. 251 points to stay there for a week.

Granted that my daughter's family has a lot more income than Original Poster and kids range in age from 18 to 5 and just living life is expensive. Vacations, memories and down time is priceless for families like this.

OP, only you know what is right for your family and it sounds like you won't be doing this right now and that's probably the right decision, right now. DVC will still be there if your circumstances change. If you are visiting anyway this seems like the most cost effective way to do it. Just my honest opinion.

 

[::danielle::]

As an alternative, why not consider purchasing a motorhome that sleeps 10? Then you can stay onsite at the campgrounds.

 

[Brian Noble]

You all have convinced me that I just need to let this go, I was thinking it wasn't the best choice for OUR large family and I'm sure that is correct. Hopefully we will still be able to take Disney vacations as often as we choose and would like to, though. We'll see.

Given your financial position, I think this is very very wise. My advice would have been "no, not a good idea" for the same reasons ELMC points out.

The motorhome is a good idea. Another good idea is renting an offsite pool home. You can usually rent a 4 or 5BR home for about the cost of a single Moderate room, and often a little bit less. For example, i've stayed here in the past, and loved it. It would be a great fit for your family (even if it grows), very affordable, and the owners are great---very responsive, easy to deal with.

http://luxuryorlandovilla.co.uk/

That's just one example. There are a ton of homes like this out there.

 

[hlizard]

Hi, My family has DVC. There is a total of 6 of us. We got it becasue we go everyyear. The amount of points we recieve each year is perfect for us to vist on our yearly trip.

 

[blessedwinter]

Yes, we stayed in a vacation home our first visit, when we took everyone. It was great. I'm sure that is what we will do on family visits from here on out.

We wouldn't do a motor home because we have to fly (we are coming from WA state, about as far as you can get!), but that is a good idea if we ever are able to drive!

 

[DougEMG]

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, I don't think DVC is a good fit for you. (I know I said I wouldn't say yes or no, but I changed my mind.) Since you have the flexibility to travel when you want, I would recommend going when they offer free dining and staying in two rooms at a value resort. With the size of your group (especially when the kids get older and count as adults for the DDP) you should be able to save some significant money on your trips and have the option to go or not go as you see fit.

I agree with ELMC, I don't think it makes sense to make a long term commitment of such a large portion of your income to a luxury purchase.

If you are able to go durning free dining promotions, because of the number of people in your family that would work out to the best discount possible (4 people in a a moderate room is a $200 per day savings) and you would be able to decide on a year by year basis if you wanted or could afford to go.

The other option is to try renting DVC points and see if staying in a 2 bedroom works for you, but without that longer term committment.

 

[Little Mum]

New to disboards.....my family of 5 have been on 2 disney vacations this year, most recent Vero beach. We are considering buying into the DVC. I am hoping to get the ins and outs on this site!

Upon check out at Vero Beach I was surprised at all the taxes that were added to our invoice: visitor tax, vero beach tax, etc. it ended up adding about an extra $50 a day (we stayed for 9) that we were not expecting as this did not happen when we stayed at WDW in January.

My question is: are these taxes included in the monthly/yearly dues or do you still have to pay them at the end of every trip?

Thanks

 

[Mtnman44]

Sheraton, Marriott, and Bonnet Creek are all timeshare villas available for normal cash rentals, normally at a cost on par or sometimes much cheaper than your dues costs each year. There are also dozens of other similar choices, but these seem to be among the better ones. Sure, there is no free parking or busses, but you are saving a lot of money. In additon, you could purchase one of these resale for a fraction of DVC costs and especially in the case of Bonnett Creek, you are geopraphically on property as much as many of the DVC properties. Anyhow, just another reminder that our DVC expenses each year are much lower than the other expenses of actually using DVC. tickets, food, airfare, etc all cost more for each trip than our DVC expenses, so keep than in mind as you evaluate your vacationing budget.

Stay off site for a while and put money in savings for a paid in full DVC purchase in the future. Who knows, maybe you and the kids will be sick of Disney in 10 years and then you'll have a pile of cash in savings.

 

[DougEMG]

New to disboards.....my family of 5 have been on 2 disney vacations this year, most recent Vero beach. We are considering buying into the DVC. I am hoping to get the ins and outs on this site!

Upon check out at Vero Beach I was surprised at all the taxes that were added to our invoice: visitor tax, vero beach tax, etc. it ended up adding about an extra $50 a day (we stayed for 9) that we were not expecting as this did not happen when we stayed at WDW in January.

My question is: are these taxes included in the monthly/yearly dues or do you still have to pay them at the end of every trip?

Thanks

Wow, I knew that Aulani had a tax you had to pay when you checked out, but I didn't know VB did.