Banking Deadline - Why should Disney even care?

[DVC Grandpa]

After reading and participating in the treads regarding the old vs. new banking deadline, I have to ask myself, why should Disney care when I bank my points as long as I do in the appropriate use year?
If Disney wanted to make it easy on all DVC members, they would allow 100% to be banked right up until the end of the use year and to make it even more user friendly, there system could do it for us. At the end of the use year, just rollover what is remaining into the use year. Am I missing something?

 

[Dean]

It's a planning issue. Since there are only enough units to book in a single year with none banked and borrowed points, the points that are used in other than their use years must balance. If things get too out of balance, they'd have to suspend banking and borrowing temporarily. The current rules (both old and new) do so fairly well. The newer ones will be easier for members to learn and know going forward with a small mathematical advantage as well overall.

I own with two other points systems. One allows you to borrow all your points by paying the full maintenance fees in advance. It also automatically rolls over the points at the end of the use year but restricts the use of banked points to lower demand times. The other points resort I own gives me a 3 month priority reservation window where I can reserve my unit type and season before anyone else can. It allows full banking and/or borrowing. Again you must pay the full fees to borrow but can only get 2 years worth of points into one year. With that one you can book anything 2 years out starting 1 Jan (the preceding 1 Oct for your priority type). It also charges a fee both to bank and/or borrow.

 

[iloveokw]

What if 25% of members would bank their points at the last minute into the next year ---- 25% of members wouldn't get rooms ---- if you can't plan ahead you shouldn't be a DVC member --- that is what I've always told family and friends.

 

[disneynutz]

After reading and participating in the treads regarding the old vs. new banking deadline, I have to ask myself, why should Disney care when I bank my points as long as I do in the appropriate use year?
If Disney wanted to make it easy on all DVC members, they would allow 100% to be banked right up until the end of the use year and to make it even more user friendly, there system could do it for us. At the end of the use year, just rollover what is remaining into the use year. Am I missing something?

If you loose your points, and from what I hear it's more than you would think, more money for DVD. People pay their dues on their points every year, but never use them. Some people feel that it's their points and they don't want the hustle of renting or giving them away. Some people don't believe in banking or borrowing. I met a member last year who told me that he and his wife don't take the time to go to WDW much any more but they own a few hundred points and just let them expire. I told him about renting his points and he told me that he didn't want to do it in case they changed their mind and decided to vacation.

 

[Chuck S]

If you loose your points, and from what I hear it's more than you would think, more money for DVD. People pay their dues on their points every year, but never use them. Some people feel that it's their points and they don't want the hustle of renting or giving them away. Some people don't believe in banking or borrowing. I met a member last year who told me that he and his wife don't take the time to go to WDW much any more but they own a few hundred points and just let them expire. I told him about renting his points and he told me that he didn't want to do it in case they changed their mind and decided to vacation.

I think I'd feel awful if I let points expire, unless it was a medical or family emergency. I can't imagine letting them expire on a routine basis.

 

[disneynutz]

I think I'd feel awful if I let points expire, unless it was a medical or family emergency. I can't imagine letting them expire on a routine basis.

You and me both.

The DW and I used to own a RV lot at a upscale RV resort in Palm Springs CA. The dues were a couple of hundred a month. Due to the hot desert temperatures, you would only use the resort during the winter months. When the resort was new, most of the resort owners would be there every winter. As time went on fewer and fewer owners would come back. Due to lack of demand, the management company started cutting the extras. First the snack bar went, then the spa. Next they stopped having parties and they fired most of the grounds crew and security. Some owners sold, most didn't. They just kept paying their $3,000 per year dues. People are interesting.

 

[DVC Grandpa]

It's a planning issue. Since there are only enough units to book in a single year with none banked and borrowed points, the points that are used in other than their use years must balance. If things get too out of balance, they'd have to suspend banking and borrowing temporarily. The current rules (both old and new) do so fairly well. The newer ones will be easier for members to learn and know going forward with a small mathematical advantage as well overall.

It seams to me that under the new rules that perhaps more points will be banked in a given year as at the eight month deadline, all remaining points in ones account have a greater chance of being banked. Under the old guidelines one might use some or all of those points on a “spur of the moment” trip or may add a day or two on a planned trip, knowing that you have until the tenth month to bank 25% of your points. On the flip side of it, if you don’t have an eye on the calendar, you could loose in the deal as you will no longer be able to salvage 50% or 25% of your points “down the road”.

Does anyone know 1) if the balancing of points? and 2) suspend banking and borrowing is done by location or DVC overall?

 

[Dean]

It seams to me that under the new rules that perhaps more points will be banked in a given year as at the eight month deadline, all remaining points in ones account have a greater chance of being banked. Under the old guidelines one might use some or all of those points on a “spur of the moment” trip or may add a day or two on a planned trip, knowing that you have until the tenth month to bank 25% of your points. On the flip side of it, if you don’t have an eye on the calendar, you could loose in the deal as you will no longer be able to salvage 50% or 25% of your points “down the road”.

Does anyone know 1) if the balancing of points? and 2) suspend banking and borrowing is done by location or DVC overall?

Just mathematically you'd expect about an extra 2% points banked with the new guidelines compared to the old. Obviously behavior will actually have a larger impact beyond simple math. My guess is we'll see about 3-5% more banked points under the new system going forward as in the past but it's unlikely us members will actually know for certain. I think it'd harder to compare points lost partly because we don't have a good benchmark going in and partly because it will be almost totally behavior dependent.

I do expect this will have some impact on availability with a slight further decrease in long term availability and a modest increase in shorter term, esp less than 4 months. As for as rules, I think DVC could do it either way legally. I would be surprised if they made any resort by resort changes other than when you get close to the times when some resorts are expiring and others are not and then you should expect consistency based on the expiration date. We'll likely see a little more emphasis on UY for new buyers and possibly some minor variations in prices for some UY compared to others.

 

[DVC Grandpa]

Thanks Dean for your insight. I think my objection to the new banking deadline is that I feel some degree restricted on how I can use my current year points. I normally make my base reservation at the eleven month window, (using most of our points since we only go once a year), and modify it as time progresses and the vacation nears. I may add a day or two (so that I don’t have to bank points) or in the event of unforeseen circumstances, cancel plans entirely knowing I can save 50% or 25% of those points. I have consider taking the insurance but “pre-exiting” conditions are not covered therefore the old banking guidelines give me some peace of mind when I make the initial reservations. Perhaps it’s just an age thing.

 

[Alexander]

Banking?
We don't recognize that word.

Now if you say borrowing....I understand!

I didn't even know there were new banking regulations. I probably won't EVER have to worry about it anyways!

 

[Dean]

Thanks Dean for your insight. I think my objection to the new banking deadline is that I feel some degree restricted on how I can use my current year points. I normally make my base reservation at the eleven month window, (using most of our points since we only go once a year), and modify it as time progresses and the vacation nears. I may add a day or two (so that I don’t have to bank points) or in the event of unforeseen circumstances, cancel plans entirely knowing I can save 50% or 25% of those points. I have consider taking the insurance but “pre-exiting” conditions are not covered therefore the old banking guidelines give me some peace of mind when I make the initial reservations. Perhaps it’s just an age thing.

I think most people will find they have better options and more protection, not worse. Realize you always lost the last 30 days prior to your reservation anyway and assuming you were traveling the last days of your UY, I think most will find they pick up a couple of months of more liberal banking than under the old system. Only reservations in the last 3 (not 4) months of your UY will actually be affected.

 

[JPS439]

I'm new to this whole thing so if this has been covered forgive me....

Say the use year is drawing to a close and I've banked my remaining 08 points. Should I decided to take a last minute trip can I borrow from my 09 points? Is there any type of time restrictions on borrowing?

 

[Dean]

I'm new to this whole thing so if this has been covered forgive me....

Say the use year is drawing to a close and I've banked my remaining 08 points. Should I decided to take a last minute trip can I borrow from my 09 points? Is there any type of time restrictions on borrowing?

Yes, you can borrow the next UY points without restrictions but can't unbank the banked points. Borrowed points can't be banked once borrowed so it'd be use or lose.

 

[Mtnman44]

not sure if this point was already addressed, but for the benefit of anyone reading that may not fully understand:

-Points represent actual, usuable rooms. In general there are the same points available for members each year. Banking your points to next year does not create more usuable rooms next year, so essentially banking and borrowing points are "trades" with other members.

For an over-simplified example, if I bank this years points into next year, when that next year rolls around the banked points I use are essentially some other member's points from that year that they have borrowed into their previous year (Which when they used those borrowed points in the previous year, they were actually using my points from that year that I didn't use due to banking.)


confused yet?

This is an important reason for banking deadlines. DVC needs time to reallocate your banked points before they expire.

 

[dianeschlicht]

If you loose your points, and from what I hear it's more than you would think, more money for DVD. People pay their dues on their points every year, but never use them. Some people feel that it's their points and they don't want the hustle of renting or giving them away. Some people don't believe in banking or borrowing. I met a member last year who told me that he and his wife don't take the time to go to WDW much any more but they own a few hundred points and just let them expire. I told him about renting his points and he told me that he didn't want to do it in case they changed their mind and decided to vacation.

Obviously those folks don't own a lot of points! I would think making a maintenance fee payment of a couple thousand dollars would make you not want to lose any of those precious points! I would think they would sell and just pay OOP for a trip if they weren't utilizing them!

 

[Dean]

Obviously those folks don't own a lot of points! I would think making a maintenance fee payment of a couple thousand dollars would make you not want to lose any of those precious points! I would think they would sell and just pay OOP for a trip if they weren't utilizing them!

I paid my Bluegreen maint fees of over $2300 in Oct to get access to the next years points and make reservations.

 

[DVC Grandpa]

I think most people will find they have better options and more protection, not worse. Realize you always lost the last 30 days prior to your reservation anyway and assuming you were traveling the last days of your UY, I think most will find they pick up a couple of months of more liberal banking than under the old system. Only reservations in the last 3 (not 4) months of your UY will actually be affected.

Therefore we will be effected since our UY is February and our travel has been between the first of November until mid February. We go once a year and use all available points during that time, staying as long as a month. With the new banking rules we will have to consider if it is feasible it continue paying the fees or put those $ towards travel itself where cancellations can be made almost to the day of arrival. We understand the length of stay won’t be as long but it gives more flexibility which at our age is a big plus and almost worth the peace of mind. I have a year to think about it.