hey Karen, I am always too embarrassed to ask, but how does DVC work? Do you pay monthly? Do you HAVE to go to WDW every year? Will your points expire if you don't? I am interested but there is no way we can make it to WDW once a year!
First, let me say, if you are interested, put ME down as a referral....not Bear and Mark and Mary!!! HA HA HA (sorry, joke from another thread)
DVC is awesome. It's a timeshare, but unlike other timeshares you are not tied to any particular week. You buy a certain number of points....and each year at a certain time (your use year) your points are replenished. So, if you buy 150 points and your use year is December, every December 1st, 150 points are put into your account....
yes, you can bank points to the next year....or you can borrow points from the next year. So theoretically you can get 3 yrs worth of points to use on one trip (but then you won't have some for awhile) Typically DVC'ers run OUT of points in any given year and have to borrow.
There is someting like 300 different places that you can go BESIDES WDW. They have places all over the world (Europe, Cota Rica, Africa, etc) or you can use them on the cruise line (many say this isn't a good use of your points) or you can use them for "adventures" like a week of biking or a dude ranch.
There are maintenance fees associated with your points. They are about $3.50 per point per year depending on which resort you own at. Right now they are selling at Saratoga Springs and your points will replenish for about 50 years, every year. They will soon be selling Animal Kingdom Lodge points. These are what Disney is selling. If you really like Old Key West or Boardwalk or anything that is technically "sold out" you can buy a resale through The Timeshare Store. Whichever resort you own at you get priority to make reservations there. For example, we own at Wilderness Lodge so we can make reservations there 11 months in advance. If we want to stay at Beach Club, we can only make reservations 7 months in advance (whereas the Beach Club owners could make reservations at Beach Club at the 11 month window.)
I'd highly suggest at least contacting DVC and getting their shiney leaflets and the DVD. (use my name as a referral--Karen Patrick, London, Ohio hint hint hint) At least check it out. My brother checked it out in 2001 and still hasn't bought (b/c he can't make a decision about what to wear in the morning, much less to buy into a timeshare) but they are not high pressure at all. My brother will get a postcard now and then announcing a new resort or a price increase, but they don't pester him at all.
I am so spoiled by my DVC b/c when we go we get a full kitchen, jacuzzi tub and a washer and dryer in the room. Now when we go somewhere and have to stay in a "typical" hotel room I feel like I'm roughing it!
That's DVC in a nutshell.
Too bad we can't keep him! 
So, does the price of the point vary from Resort? And let's say they add 150 points on Dec. 1st, does that mean you have to pay for ALL the points then, or do you pay in installments? Do they expire or can I just keep accumulating them until I can go for like 4 weeks? 
