Buying a vacation home in Florida instead of DVC

[smileycrissy]

OP, I hear ya about the DVC. It confuses the heck out of me. My BIL is VERY interested in buying into it and he's tried to explain it to me but it just doesn't make sense to me -unless you really, really want to stay on Disney property. Don't get me wrong, I totally understand people wanting to stay on Disney property.

I would suggest like a few others mentioned and check out other timeshares in the area. Just like the homes & condo's being cheaper in prices, I imagine you could snag a good deal on a timeshare. Especially if you are willing to look about an hour away.

I would say to weigh the pros & cons of buying the condo vs timeshare. I know someone mentioned you get to write off some of it for taxes if you went the condo route but don't forget because you own FL property you would be considered a resident and can get the discounted tix. But don't buy a condo just for that reason.

My fiancee and I keep debating purchasing a condo to rent out ourselves. It'll be easy for us to keep an eye on the place since we live here but in your case, you might just need to take trips every few months to make sure the property is ok.

I live near Disney and I can suggest the surronding area for you to check for some deals. I just checked Trulia and found a few listings in the 40-100k range. I'll PM you the info I found.

Wishing you good luck on your decision.

 

[tonums]

Personally, I wouldn't buy a timeshare of any kind, but just pay for a rental as I go, but thats my preference. Buying a home in Florida can be dicey, I live about 70 miles from WDW, you can buy a 3 bedroom 2 bath pool home here for under 100K. BUT, the insurance in certian zip codes can be OVERWHELMING. Do ALOT of research first.

That being said, I have often thought of buying a vacation home *right next to * WDW and renting it out through the various vacation rental agencies.

 

[blondietink]

We also considered purchasing a 2nd home in Florida, but with the monthly expenses depending on whether it is a free standing home vs. condo, we just couldn't swing it, even if we rented it out at different times. Also we didn't want to commit to having to vacation only in Florida for the rest of our lives, even though we are currently Disneyholics.

We own DVC and also a Sheraton timeshare. The yearly expenses are negligible compared to owning another home and we can trade either or both to vacation in other areas of the country/world if we want. We can also rent a home/condo in Flrodia for a month or two at a time if we want in the future for much less than home ownership would cost.

 

[crisi]

My cousin owns a condo in Florida that they rent out when they aren't using it.

Well, try and rent out. Generally, it sits empty 48 weeks a year and they or family use it four.

In the meantime they have association fees, insurance, taxes - those were the expenses that renting was supposed to help out with.

Then when they do rent it out, they have to risk it won't get trashed and they won't be picking up maintenance.

Mrs. Pete has a great suggestion - DVC is an expensive timeshare, but there are plenty of respectable timeshares out there which would allow you to stay offsite.

My sister owns Marriott points and trades into DVC every year - they've stayed at AKL and BCV. She might not be able to trade exactly what she wants (she wanted BCV the first year, but it disappeared before she grabbed it). But she hasn't had an issue staying on property.

 

[ilovefh]

One thing to remember with most condos are the high fees. There is one place in Davenport that is nice, Regal Palms at Highland Reserve and there are many condos on the market there for less than 100k. However, the fees per month are close to $500. On top of a mortgage that is EXPENSIVE!

There are definitely fantastic deals to be had! But make sure it is something you can swing even if you don't rent it out.