Another WWYD…Direct Riviera or Resale BCV?

[buzzrelly]

Hello!

We've been DVC members since 2014. We own at BLT and actually just sold a small PVB contract with the hopes of purchasing BCV resale.

We love BCV…we stayed there twice last year in a 2-bedroom villa and in a studio. We love the location, the pool, and just the general feel of the resort. When we are there it feels like home to us.

What we don't love about BCV is the 2042 expiration but honestly, we are in our 50s and the expiration 20 years from now will likely be a blessing as we may not want to continue to pay dues beyond that anyway. (Or is this what I tell myself to justify the 2042 expiration??)

We've never stayed at RIV but we have walked through once while checking out the skyliner. It's a beautiful resort but we honestly don't love the location and really don't love being dependent on the skyliner. For example, when we were at BCV in August, the skyliner shut down at some point almost every day due to storms and I kept thinking to myself, "so glad we don't have to rely on that as our main transportation."

I'm sure it doesn't go down as often as I think, but in my mind that's a huge drawback.

We just put in an offer on our first BCV contract and sadly, Disney exercised their ROFR so we are pretty bummed. It was just what we wanted and we are obviously now back to stalking the resale sites to find another perfect contract. But I'm also playing around with the ideal of adding RIV direct instead, since the price seems to be not that much more than BCV resale and we'd get the longer contract which we could eventually sell or leave to our kids.

Would you buy RIV with the hopes of mostly staying at BCV? I've been checking out BCV availability and it looks like we'd have to almost always get 1-bedrooms instead of studios, especially in the fall. I know I've never stayed at RIV, but the rooms do look very nice and I probably wouldn't hate staying there if we had to. Again, it's the skyliner issue that's a big deterrent for me.

Just looking for advice/opinions please! Thanks!

 

[808blessing]

Buy where you want to stay. You can sell BC later to recoup some of the cost as you age on. Riv is expensive as 7 month points albeit a distant cousin of the EP area. It is the next best thing though on the other hand. Well, I have Boardwalk so not letting my bias come out.

 

[Nabas]

If BCV is where you always want to stay, then buy BCV.

We recently bought VGF because we decided we want to stay there once a year.

We’ll use our other DVC points for a bunch of resorts but VGF will always be for VGF.

 

[Sandisw]

The big question is how disappointed will you be if you can’t get into BCV when you want,

I love RIV, but I think owning a place where you really want to be, if you have one…which you do..outweighs a lot,

The 2042 expiration is a big one, but DVC is too much money to spend for something that could disappoint.

I do agree that 1 bedrooms at 7 months are easier than other room sizes, but fall is a popular time for BCV.

Now, in all the times we have stayed at RIV, the Skyliner has been down only once for a few hours mid afternoon.

Personally, I’d have a hard time paying the price for BCV giving 19 years to use and think RIV is better in that regard.

 

[TCRAIG]

if BCV is what you love than that’s where you should buy - 20 years is still a long time and you’ll still own at BLT when those 20 years are up…

 

[thank_the_phoenicians88]

Just a few weeks ago, I was in a similar situation that you are in now. I own at PVB, but my wife and I LOVE the BCV. We made an offer, it was accepted, but Disney ultimately took it in ROFR at $160 a point. Disney exercising the ROFR turned out to be the best thing for me because it gave me time to reflect. We only want to go to BCV in the summer to enjoy the pool, and there is good availability there at seven months. We go in July, and as I write this, there is still a lot of availability for one-bedrooms. You can get a studio, but you have to get it right at the seven-month mark, which I did for my July 2022 trip.

So what did I do instead? I've made an offer for a resale PVB which I'll use the points to help get me into a one-bedroom if the studios are unavailable. Then, come 2042, when Disney takes back BCV, I'll still be able to sell the resale and use the principal to go toward the new BCV (or whatever they decide to call it!). If I had bought the BCV instead, I would have no residual value left come 2042. But, at least with PVB, it will still be worth something.

I agree with the others - buy where you want to stay! But my advice is to consider when you want to stay to see if you can achieve that goal with points that will outlast the 2042 expiration.

 

[dvc lover 1970]

BCV is a resort you really need to own to secure a room there. In terms of location...BCV is the best location - the ability to walk back to your room at the end of the night vs. Waiting for transportation is a huge benefit. RIV is a beautiful resort too, but the bcv location is prime. If bcv is your first choice then that is where I would buy. I own at bcv and if you are looking to travel in the fall through xmas all booking categories are tight. You really can't go by this year or last because covid has altered availability

 

[Jimmy Geppetto]

Just a few weeks ago, I was in a similar situation that you are in now. I own at PVB, but my wife and I LOVE the BCV. We made an offer, it was accepted, but Disney ultimately took it in ROFR at $160 a point. Disney exercising the ROFR turned out to be the best thing for me because it gave me time to reflect. We only want to go to BCV in the summer to enjoy the pool, and there is good availability there at seven months. We go in July, and as I write this, there is still a lot of availability for one-bedrooms. You can get a studio, but you have to get it right at the seven-month mark, which I did for my July 2022 trip.

So what did I do instead? I've made an offer for a resale PVB which I'll use the points to help get me into a one-bedroom if the studios are unavailable. Then, come 2042, when Disney takes back BCV, I'll still be able to sell the resale and use the principal to go toward the new BCV (or whatever they decide to call it!). If I had bought the BCV instead, I would have no residual value left come 2042. But, at least with PVB, it will still be worth something.

I agree with the others - buy where you want to stay! But my advice is to consider when you want to stay to see if you can achieve that goal with points that will outlast the 2042 expiration.

This year may be an exception to the norm for BCV availability in July less than 7 months out. I think a lot of people from outside of the USA have postponed their trip due to Omnicron. You typically have to own at BCV to get in there. That has been our experience with the odd exception from time to time. We’ll see what 2023 brings.

 

[rubybutt]

How about neither? You will be upset every time you have to stay at RIV and BCV is to expensive to buy in my mind. What makes the most sense is to rent BCV when you want to stay. Know your 11 months date and find a renter at 12 months to get ready to secure your spot.

 

[DVChris]

Another idea is to transfer in BCV points. I just did this for a reasonable price from a long time owner.

 

[DougEMG]

Buying RIV with the hope of staying at BCV is not a bad idea provided you don't mind not getting BCV all the time and are flexible on room size and dates.

If you always want to stay at BCV then I would buy there.

I love staying at BCV for the pool and have stayed there a number of times, but I have also been shut out, then I am at BWV which I'm still very happy with.

This year I have a split stay at OKW, BWV and BLT (assuming travel is back to normal) and I'll probably try switching some of it to BCV, but if that doesn't work out it doesn't really matter that much to me.

 

[buzzrelly]

Thank you all for helping me thing this through. I guess I'll let this stew for a little bit while continuing to look for a BCV contract.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I can’t extend my BCV July one bedroom reservation by one night, so the availability in July is not helping me. I will keep looking, and I do have a waitlist.

Summer point costs are going down, aren’t they? If you want BCV, buy BCV.

 

[vacay77]

If BCV is your favorite resort and you don't mind the expiration date, that's where I would buy.

 

[Bjaiken77]

This is where the “buy where you love” mentality doesn’t work for me. I see nothing wrong with deciding to buy Beach Club if your ok with the cost and the 2042 expiration. I just can’t do it. And Beach Club is probably my favorite DVC property. I can’t do it based on our age and the fact that DVC is expensive and we want to be doing it for (God willing) many, many years.

If I were in my 60s and just retiring now, I probably would give Beach Club a go. You just have to 1) evaluate how much you love BCV and 2) give consideration to the 2042 end date.

 

[UofMGuy423]

If you don't mind paying a premium for BCV since it expires in 19 years, then you should go with BCV. If you're hesitant about the coming expiration, then you should buy at a resort with a longer contract. Your tastes could change in 10 years when you find a different resort is a better fit and then you'll be disappointed that your contract only has 9 years left. Just my two cents!

 

[Frugal Fairy Tales]

Just a few weeks ago, I was in a similar situation that you are in now. I own at PVB, but my wife and I LOVE the BCV. We made an offer, it was accepted, but Disney ultimately took it in ROFR at $160 a point. Disney exercising the ROFR turned out to be the best thing for me because it gave me time to reflect. We only want to go to BCV in the summer to enjoy the pool, and there is good availability there at seven months. We go in July, and as I write this, there is still a lot of availability for one-bedrooms. You can get a studio, but you have to get it right at the seven-month mark, which I did for my July 2022 trip.

So what did I do instead? I've made an offer for a resale PVB which I'll use the points to help get me into a one-bedroom if the studios are unavailable. Then, come 2042, when Disney takes back BCV, I'll still be able to sell the resale and use the principal to go toward the new BCV (or whatever they decide to call it!). If I had bought the BCV instead, I would have no residual value left come 2042. But, at least with PVB, it will still be worth something.

I agree with the others - buy where you want to stay! But my advice is to consider when you want to stay to see if you can achieve that goal with points that will outlast the 2042 expiration.

Plus, having all those points at Poly, instead of two resorts, makes the points easier to manage. And, if you can't use the points in any given year it is very easy to rent out Poly points or Poly reservations... they are always in demand.

 

[thank_the_phoenicians88]

Plus, having all those points at Poly, instead of two resorts, makes the points easier to manage. And, if you can't use the points in any given year it is very easy to rent out Poly points or Poly reservations... they are always in demand.

Exactly! I know rentals are in demand, so it won't be an issue using the points in the years I can't make trip happen. It stinks as I'm at the mercy of the 7-month window for BCV, but I've had luck getting what I want even before COVID struck. As the others said, you need to be flexible and willing to be okay if you can't always get BCV.

 

[RoseGold]

I think exit strategy matters. If you plan to sell in 10 years, I think BC will hold up. I can totally see a starter BC contract being desirable against 50 years at RIV3. If you plan to hold for 20 years, then I'm passing. If I'm buying SAP points to stay at BC, they aren't going to be at RIV.

If you plan to pass this on to whoever, then maybe RIV is more appealing? If you are going to have to sell RIV in 20 years, that's a big nope for me.

 

[Frugal Fairy Tales]

I think exit strategy matters. If you plan to sell in 10 years, I think BC will hold up. I can totally see a starter BC contract being desirable against 50 years at RIV3. If you plan to hold for 20 years, then I'm passing. If I'm buying SAP points to stay at BC, they aren't going to be at RIV.

If you plan to pass this on to whoever, then maybe RIV is more appealing? If you are going to have to sell RIV in 20 years, that's a big nope for me.

What is RIV3? And, do you predict RIV will be difficult to sell in 20 years?