Add on: right UY, right pt amt, but I don't "need" to add on for 3-5 years

[Jasonkat]

I have 200 points at Wilderness Lodge. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old. When they are school age we will definitely want a 1 bedroom. Our plan is a 1 bedroom for 1 week in July. That's 271 points.

So eventually I will need to add on 100 points. I have read of people having trouble getting the right use year and point total when they are looking for resale so they end up going to Disney at a higher cost.

Should I look to buy points now if the right UY and point amount show up? Or should I wait until I "need" the points before I start looking?

Assume that money is a non-issue.

 

[AppleDisneyDad]

I have 200 points at Wilderness Lodge. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old. When they are school age we will definitely want a 1 bedroom. Our plan is a 1 bedroom for 1 week in July. That's 271 points.

So eventually I will need to add on 100 points. I have read of people having trouble getting the right use year and point total when they are looking for resale so they end up going to Disney at a higher cost.

Should I look to buy points now if the right UY and point amount show up? Or should I wait until I "need" the points before I start looking?

Assume that money is a non-issue.

I hate to answer with a series of questions but:
Are you sure you want to be at VWL. Ie have you visited other resorts
Are you sure about the time of year?
Will you take grandparents etc at times?
Will your family expand more?

I think there are too many unknowns for me to offer any advice. And with kids that young your life is full of unknowns.

 

[Missyrose]

I have 200 points at Wilderness Lodge. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old. When they are school age we will definitely want a 1 bedroom. Our plan is a 1 bedroom for 1 week in July. That's 271 points.

So eventually I will need to add on 100 points. I have read of people having trouble getting the right use year and point total when they are looking for resale so they end up going to Disney at a higher cost.

Should I look to buy points now if the right UY and point amount show up? Or should I wait until I "need" the points before I start looking?

Assume that money is a non-issue.

I've had the same arguments with myself recently. I know we need another 100 BWV points to upgrade our 10-day Food and Wine Festival trips from a studio to a 1 bedroom. But we're getting married this fall and we'll only spend five nights at Disney as the first half of our honeymoon. The following year will bring another shorter fall trip because we have a week-long early December trip planned with extended family. So it will be three Octobers from now that we will need the extra points. I figure in those intervening years the prices will continue to drop and I will have saved almost $600 in MFs each year. We will get more points, just closer to when we would actually need them.

Though I have to admit that when I saw one of the brokers put up a 100-point BWV contract in my UY today, my trigger finger got awfully itchy. But my willpower won out, for now at least.

 

[Dean]

I have 200 points at Wilderness Lodge. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old. When they are school age we will definitely want a 1 bedroom. Our plan is a 1 bedroom for 1 week in July. That's 271 points.

So eventually I will need to add on 100 points. I have read of people having trouble getting the right use year and point total when they are looking for resale so they end up going to Disney at a higher cost.

Should I look to buy points now if the right UY and point amount show up? Or should I wait until I "need" the points before I start looking?

Assume that money is a non-issue.

I'd wait and make do. Since you don't need the extra points for a few years and assuming you can bank a full years points by then, you'll be able to get the 1 BR for the full week for about an addition 6 years after your habits change with no additional points and before you get stuck. In the interim there are many ways to stretch your points. A day her or there on a cash discount, a 1 time transfer, one less day every few years or even a missed year will essentially get you to the end of the RTU without needing more points for your planned trips. I'd wait because the price will be less later, you'r habits or preferences may change, you could have financial issues or you might prefer a new resort that comes available.

 

[Kidanifan08]

I have 200 points at Wilderness Lodge. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old. When they are school age we will definitely want a 1 bedroom. Our plan is a 1 bedroom for 1 week in July. That's 271 points.

So eventually I will need to add on 100 points. I have read of people having trouble getting the right use year and point total when they are looking for resale so they end up going to Disney at a higher cost.

Should I look to buy points now if the right UY and point amount show up? Or should I wait until I "need" the points before I start looking?

Assume that money is a non-issue.

If you have $6-7k burning a hole in your pocket and could part with it in a blink, then go for it. VWL is a small resort, and those smallish contracts in the right UY may be harder to come by.

I have been watching small resales for AKV and BWV for a couple of years, and 50-100 pointers come by in my desired UY fairly frequently, but they are larger resorts.

So I remain patient, but, like Missy, I have almost pulled the trigger a few times in the past 3-4 weeks. I have come to realize that addonitis is a chronic condition!

 

[Pirate Granny]

I've been waiting over a year for a small december VWL... So... Since you have a few years, you can wait...but not too long...and yes, I know this is the contract I want

 

[ELMC]

I have 200 points at Wilderness Lodge. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old. When they are school age we will definitely want a 1 bedroom. Our plan is a 1 bedroom for 1 week in July. That's 271 points.

So eventually I will need to add on 100 points. I have read of people having trouble getting the right use year and point total when they are looking for resale so they end up going to Disney at a higher cost.

Should I look to buy points now if the right UY and point amount show up? Or should I wait until I "need" the points before I start looking?

Assume that money is a non-issue.

Personally, I'm not a huge believer in getting use years to line up, so I don't think that is a huge motivator to buy. But if it is super important to you, and if you know that VWL is where you want to own for the 11 month window and if you have the ability/desire to rent out the extra points until you need to use them and if money truly is a non issue then I don't see the harm of buying now. But if you are not 100% sure about any of those criteria, then you can probably afford to wait and see what happens.

 

[Jasonkat]

Thanks for all the replies.

I was also thinking of waiting a few years, but I was subconsciously hoping you guys would tell me it was smart to buy now so I had an excuse to do it!

Even though money isn't really a problem it's always smarter to keep the cash on hand rather than spend it now.

I didn't really consider the banking/borrowing strategy but that could work pretty well. My point-deficit issue is short-term (kids age 10-18) so I could skip a year when they're about 9 or 10 and then bank those points, then use the banked pts to get a 1 bedroom and then borrow future points and that could get me to about 6 years worth of trips. I could also skip a year in the middle and that would really extend it.

I asked my wife about this and she said something like "I don't really care, I'm not as into Disney World as you are", so I'm sure she wouldn't mind having a non-WDW trip every few years.

 

[Dean]

Thanks for all the replies.

I was also thinking of waiting a few years, but I was subconsciously hoping you guys would tell me it was smart to buy now so I had an excuse to do it!

Even though money isn't really a problem it's always smarter to keep the cash on hand rather than spend it now.

I didn't really consider the banking/borrowing strategy but that could work pretty well. My point-deficit issue is short-term (kids age 10-18) so I could skip a year when they're about 9 or 10 and then bank those points, then use the banked pts to get a 1 bedroom and then borrow future points and that could get me to about 6 years worth of trips. I could also skip a year in the middle and that would really extend it.

I asked my wife about this and she said something like "I don't really care, I'm not as into Disney World as you are", so I'm sure she wouldn't mind having a non-WDW trip every few years.

Maybe consider a non DVC timeshare for other trips?

 

[CarolMN]

I'm with Dean - wait. If you find you want/need to add on in a few years, the price will most likely be less than it is now, so less cash needed up front. (VWL expires in 2042, so cost is destined to decrease as time goes on).

AS Dean posted, you can vacation several years in a 1 bedroom before you have to skip a trip or look for a transfer. Your wife would like to go other places occasionally, which would be a great time to bank and/or skip WDW for that year.

 

[bakerworld]

Wait - you might be in a different mood for another home venue by then also