Still trying to figure out if DVC really is a way to save money. It's a question that I have been asking since Pete created the DVC Fan website. Then I came across this
article... To all DVC members, agree or disagree?
Let me state this simply but then give an explanation: NO, buying DVC does NOT save you money. At least not most buyers.
That doesn't mean it can't be a good deal. But it is not an investment, and it really isn't a money-saving device.
The cost-savings-analyses are always based on 2 mostly-false assumptions:
Assumption number 1: For at least the next 20+ years, you will travel the exact same way by owning DVC as you would have traveled without it. While a family with some school-age children might go several years straight to WDW even without owning DVC, at some point... the ownership of DVC will change how you otherwise would have traveled. Maybe, if you hadn't purchased DVC 10 years ago, you'd go to the Grand Canyon this year. But you can't waste your points, you paid your dues (money that might have gone to that Grand Canyon trip)... so it's another trip to WDW. So it's not a cost-savings if it's not the trip you would have otherwise taken.
Assumption number 2: The comparisons are always to deluxe hotels and rack rates. And mostly based on studio use. But staying in a DVC studio simply isn't the same thing as staying in a deluxe regular hotel room, with some pros and cons in the trade. Additionally, if you're booking 1-bedroom units, you really won't find much cost savings by using points. Finally, many people would rarely book rack rate. Sure, DVC saves you "40% compared to rack rate" -- but you can often get 30% off rack rate anyway. And DVC ownership often pushes people to up-buy. A 1 bedroom, when they would get a studio if they didn't have DVC. A deluxe DVC, when they would otherwise book a moderate or value hotel.
This up-selling is a key element of DVC and shows how it really isn't a savings: Compare it to a buy 1, get a second at half price sale.
I need 1 pair of shoes... they cost $80. But with that sale, I get an extra pair, and pay $120. So because of the sale, I actually spent MORE. I got a second pair of shoes that I don't really need, and that I wouldn't have purchased but for the sale.
And that's the crux of DVC.... If you lock in the basic purchase, you get a good deal on getting more.
The big sacrifice -- The present value of money. If I'm willing to pay full price for my first 5-10 years of vacations, they will give me a big discount on the next 20+ years of vacations!
But like that second pair of shoes I really didn't need... Nobody can really say for certainty what vacations they will want to take in 20 years.
So it's not a savings: It's simply paying less to get something less: Less future flexibility. Much like hotels and airlines give a discount for non-refundable fares. Lock in your next 20-50 years, you get a discount!
So it's not a savings. But it can be a good deal. If I get good use out of that second pair of shoes, then it ends up being a very good deal for me. Sure, I might not have purchased the second pair ever, without the deal. But then I'd only have a black pair of shoes, which wouldn't match my brown suit as well as the brown loafers that I got as the second pair. So since I use both pairs or shoes, I feel I did indeed get a good deal.
If you end up using and enjoying your DVC for many years... you will look back and see it as a good deal in hindsight.