Buying DVC at Saratoga, why not?

[Deb & Bill]

Can I ask why you fell in love w/ it? We're going to see it in a few weeks along w/ the AKV and BLT models. We KNOW we love AKL. No doubt there. I perosnally am a horse NUT (I paint them for a living) so any horsie stuff on SSR is just going to make me smile, but I know zippo about it other than where it is. I'd REALLY like to hear what people think that had formerly thought "Meh", and then said "YAY!" The ony think I KNOW I like about the other 2 that SSR doesn't have (?) is indoor corridors. I just love them. I guess I feel like I'm at a motel if I open my door and I'm outside immediately. BUT SSR may not do that to me. I don't know.

TIA for any info!

The "open corridors" are not that noticable. There is a wall on the outer side and some places it is completely enclosed. But it is more like OKW than the hotel based resorts. And we love the community feel to SSR and OKW - plus the parking close to the villa at these two locations is nice.

 

[ppony]

Okay. I've been reading up on SSR. Like a few PPs said, this place wasn't even on my radar... BUT, something seems to be throwing me signs. Like, well, I'm a equine artist, the theme is horse related; their CS eatery is "Artist Palette". Uh oh. Anyone else think something short of a neon sign saying "buy here" is telling me at the very least to take a close look? We still LOVE AKL, but always wonder if we always will when the kiddos are out of the house. We KNOW w/o a doubt we love DTD and shopping. One of our favorite things about WDW when we first went was a boat to DTD. THANKS to the OP for posting this thread! I think.

 

[Jason@dvcstore]

Another worst case scenario item is any DVC resort can pull out of the system, although unlikely, it is possible none the less. Those who own at that resort that pulled out would be limited to just that resort and no longer eligible for trade to other resorts.

Again, this is a highly unlikely scenario, but think if DVC pulled out SSR because the resale rates were too low and it was dragging down other resale rates, those members would be stuck there, they couldn't trade out.

Wow!! If this happens The Timeshare Store, Inc.® might have to be open 24/7 to handle all the calls from potential sellers.

Jason

 

[js]

My sentiments exactly. We got the free upgrade from POP to SSR.

Now we are waiting for ROFR for a SSR resale.

I look forward to staying at all the DVC resorts over time, but I wont mind one bit if I am back at SSR - its pristine and has an excellent pool... top 3 or 4 in all of WDW.

What a wonderful upgrade! Can I ask you how/why you were booked at POP and got the free upgrade to SSR. That is great!

 

[silmarg]

What a wonderful upgrade! Can I ask you how/why you were booked at POP and got the free upgrade to SSR. That is great!

While I normally do mods, we booked at POP as we were doing the grand gathering and some of the others were on a tight budget - and Pop aint that bad for a value. We had free dining (this was late Aug-Labor Day 09) and had a retired military person with us (stars and stripes discount tickets) - so we were really taking a bargain trip.

I think around early Aug one of the parties in the GG got an email offering a free upgrade to OKW or SSR. And we ended up in SSR.

We were not the only ones to get the email (these very boards were buzzing with folks that did - or did not get the email). These upgrade rooms were gone very quicky.

My sense that they either over booked the values during free dining or that they wanted to open rooms in the values so they can continue to sell them (as they were sold out). Better to sell a cheap room and get folks into the parks than have people not come if they wouldnt pay up for a mod or higher. So we ended up as a beneficiary - which was great as I was already toying w buying SSR via resale... so to actually stay there (at $82per nite w free dining - no less) was a great benefit to me.

 

[Dean]

Wow!! If this happens The Timeshare Store, Inc.® might have to be open 24/7 to handle all the calls from potential sellers.

Jason

With far fewer buyers and at lower prices, I doubt it'd matter.

 

[pinnocchiosdad]

Hello! I am a long time Disney fan and a long time lurker on the Dis Boards! Our last trip a couple weeks ago, I looked at the DVC Kindani Village and was in love Now we are thinking about buying into DVC, and resale really seems the way to go. My problem is, I cannot justify buying at Animal Kingdom when Saratoga can be $20 less a point. I know that you can book at your home resort 11 months out and anywhere else 7 months out, this shouldn't be a problem since we are DINKS and are pretty free to travel whenever we want, usually in off seasons. So my question is, is there any reason to buy at Kindani, which we plan on staying more often, instead of Saratoga? Thanks!

erica

Remember that everytime you see DVC advertisements, that is because they are still selling dozens of memberships a day. With time it will become harder and harder to get a reservation at a resort other than, your home resort. It will actualy also get harder to reserve at your home resort too now that I think about it.

 

[Dean]

Remember that everytime you see DVC advertisements, that is because they are still selling dozens of memberships a day. With time it will become harder and harder to get a reservation at a resort other than, your home resort. It will actualy also get harder to reserve at your home resort too now that I think about it.

While I agree in large part, I suspect it's for a different reason. The truth is that there will only be X units at or after the 7 month window for a given resort. The relative percentages of each resort will be a very good representation of the overall demand of that resort. A resort with a larger % of points at 7 months will be considered a lower demand resort and a resort with a smaller % of points will likewise be a high demand resort. The actual size of the resort will not matter much because if a larger resort is high demand it would likewise soak up a lot of those other 7 month points.

At the current time the line between high demand and low demand would give you BCV, BWV, VWL, BLT and AKV above and VB, HH, SSR and OKW below. Of course there are degrees for all of these if you want to get more technical and we could rank them specifically if we wanted. More sales doesn't matter if all the demand were balanced one resort to another because you have a certain number of new owners and a proportionate amount of new declared units. Comparatively, a sold out resort will be slightly harder to get than one in active sales because there's always a small amount of surplus availability that no one owns at a resort in active sales no matter how well it's selling or how high the overall demand.

HI is likely to be closer to the division line than many think due to distance and if it were on board currently it would likely be far below the line but that's due, in part, to the economy and hopefully that will change coming up.

It already is harder to get a home resort reservation now than it was before even for resorts that were already sold out and here's why I think that is. Many people in the past didn't reserve home resort until at or after 7 months. With more people now booking day 1 at 7 months out, some of those were shut out and others heard the stories about being shut out or the increased demand. So many moved inside the home resort window but that affected others in the same way so it marches back to the first day you can book, 11 months out. So yes, the low demand points (SSR being the big player) has affected other resort availability inside the booking window.

 

[eporter66]

We bought at SSR in 2003. We love the resort and stayed on our first two visits. We have not been back since, and have booked and stayed at 3 other resorts with no problem (BWV's, OKW, AKV's). We usually travel in the fall (October) so maybe that has helped us.

I guess I am in the camp that we are staying in deluxe accomodations IN Walt Disney World. We figure how can we go wrong, we love to vacation at WDW, and we get deluxe accomodations, honestly, I am not concerned about which resort. We have enjoyed trying the others, and will continue to do so. If we have to stay at SSR, we have no problem with that, it is a lovely resort. I like that we saved money on points ($79 when we bought), and I enjoy the location and theme. We always book at the 11 month window, and then at 7 months call and try to book a resort where we have not stayed. This is part of the fun of DVC, trying the other resorts. Honestly - we figure we can't go wrong whatever happens.

I get buy where you want to own, it does make sense. I would never advise someone to do it they way we did. But for us the specific resort and/or location was not a factor. We do not stay in our room much, so getting preferred views is not an issue, and we have saved points that way. At AKV last week, we spent a lot of time out in the resort areas, so we saw plenty of the animals during our stay. By the time we got back to the room it was dark every evening.

We do rent a car, so maybe that is the one advantage, if you have an issue with Disney Transportation, then you might not like the resorts that are a bit off the path.

SSR is a great place, and we are more than happy with our home. But the fun of DVC is trying them all, and having that option. So far it has worked very well for us.

 

[sweetdana]

Let's assume you will get a choice resort at least 50% of the time. I have had sucess even 3 months out most of the time. Unless you always go during super busy, holiday season you will have options because even people who own AK want to go to SSR when there are no kids around, or to BLT cause it is new ect.
However.. economically speaking..
4,000$ = about 57 extra points at 70$.
This means you can have 2-5 extra nights (depending on studio, 1-bed, weekend ect could be more at 12$ a day on low time). Would you take your fav resort 1/2 the time for an extra 2-5 days EVERY year, even when you get your fav resort sometimes too. Would you rather go more/ more days, or have for sure the AK, spend the 4K where you would want to.
Also theorys that they will all fill up and be at max compacity and stop building, is silly. Disney will just build one at Grand Flor or even better the POLY, or make an extra building at the Beach Club, or build something like treehouses somewhere else. They will never fully sell out, without something new coming. That is sales. There is a limitless amount of resorts they can build and they should keep getting better. They are in the art of making money and it is logical, after the market clears up and they sell out current inventories (not soon), they will start a new place somewhere else, and guess what people will want to stay there just like BLT is now.
I bought SSR, couldn't justify the price diff for BLT, or Beach club. We got 10 extra points every year, got 2008 and 2009 points included at 71$ a point and saved over 3,500$. (resale) More years, that Beach club, cheaper dues that almost all of them. It is a win win win win win. For maybe having the resorts we want to stay at be full, or having to go a different week. It was the rght decision for my family.

 

[Dean]

Let's assume you will get a choice resort at least 50% of the time.

I think that is optimistic overall unless one is looking at truly off season for BOTH DVC and WDW assuming one is looking at WDW and other than SSR or OKW. Still, if one is comfortable staying at those 2 resorts, 7 months out might work. The WL will improve the options somewhat if used correctly. However, if one owns at SSR or OKW, makes a reservation at 11 months out and then tries for other options 7 months out; the scenarios become more workable.

 

[Jason@dvcstore]

With far fewer buyers and at lower prices, I doubt it'd matter.

I think most people realize this would bring far fewer buyers so I assume the higher ups at DVC know as well. I don't think DVC is going to make a change to create fewer buyers.

Whatever changes do come about as always The Timeshare Store, Inc.® will continue to strive to help those that need to sell and those looking to purchase resale.

Jason

 

[Dean]

I think most people realize this would bring far fewer buyers so I assume the higher ups at DVC know as well. I don't think DVC is going to make a change to create fewer buyers.

Whatever changes do come about as always The Timeshare Store, Inc.® will continue to strive to help those that need to sell and those looking to purchase resale.

Jason

Assuming this would be a situation that would only occur as DVC moves past the sales phase and into management phase, I don't think DVC would care either way were this scenario to take place. At some point there will be no more resorts and therefore no need for a true DVC sales force or many of the DVC higher ups for that matter. ROFR would then cease or be significantly curtailed and prices would assume a more market based level likely about half or just over what they have been the last year or so. Obviously speculation but just carrying the issue (DVC sells off the management contract) to it's logical conclusion. No more billboards, no move booths in all likelihood. DVC would likely take on more of a timeshare status than a Disney status at that point to those who are not already involved in some way.

 

[ppony]

I was looking through photos of SSR. And I noticed something... I remember having a dream YEARS ago about being at WDW. But the place we were staying didn't look like any place I had stayed before there, yet I called it the GF because I had no other fame of reference. Looking at the pictures, it was SSR! TOTALLY!!!! A yellow and white building near a river. Is that a sign?
Sitting on hands.

 

[mb168]

One thing I also considered when making purchases is buying value. While DVC should NOT be considered an investment, it made sense to me to buy ones that will be most likely to be wanted by others. BLT, BCV, and I believe AKV will be much more desirable because of their size, location, theming, and just overall interest. Right now I can sell both my BCV and BLT contracts for at least the same or more than I paid for them if I had to get out of some or all of the points. I don't think you could do this with SSR for quite some time if ever.

Again, don't even begin to think of this as an "investment," I never did from the beginning, I just used it as part of the overall decision.

 

[Deb & Bill]

One thing I also considered when making purchases is buying value. While DVC should NOT be considered an investment, it made sense to me to buy ones that will be most likely to be wanted by others. BLT, BCV, and I believe AKV will be much more desirable because of their size, location, theming, and just overall interest. Right now I can sell both my BCV and BLT contracts for at least the same or more than I paid for them if I had to get out of some or all of the points. I don't think you could do this with SSR for quite some time if ever.

Again, don't even begin to think of this as an "investment," I never did from the beginning, I just used it as part of the overall decision.

There are lots of people who love SSR and the THV could be a big draw.

 

[mb168]

There are lots of people who love SSR and the THV could be a big draw.

There are people that love all of the Disney resorts, including Value resorts, and I wasn't questioning this. Only what DVC resorts sold for direct vs what they are going for resale. SSR has not held value and will always lag the other more popular, better located, smaller, resorts. Its just not as desirable as some of the others. That doesn't mean its a bad place, it just means that there are a lot more people that would prefer others if the price was the same. If you read the OP's original post, the point was that they didn't want to stay there even. Hence the choice of value vs location. Would we be having this conversation if all resorts sold for the same price?

 

[FloFlo71]

I was tempted to buy at SSR because of the resale price but have plumped instead for AKV and BLT. AKV because the theming makes it special and looks like somewhere we could relax towards the end of a vacation. BLT because it simply has a wonderful location. Just need a Poly DVC and I would be in heaven.

 

[babbalooey]

I'm waiting for ROFR at SSR right now and bought there for some of the same reasons other's have said....cheap(relatively) points(seller accepted $65/point) and I didn't want to finance anything so I got the most points for my money there. Don't mind staying at any DVC resort. I don't know if this opinion has been expressed yet but while AKV is a beautiful resort, it is kind of isolated from all the parks and restaurants except those within the resort and at AK. If you will be at the parks a lot and use the bus system, it will be more of a trip. SSR is walking distance to Downtown Disney and it's restaurants, shopping and entertainment. And the opinions and experiences of others seem to indicate that the Treehouse Villas will more than likely be the most difficult of all the resorts to book at the 7 mo. window. Good luck with your purchase!

 

[silmarg]

I'm waiting for ROFR at SSR right now and bought there for some of the same reasons other's have said....cheap(relatively) points(seller accepted $65/point) and I didn't want to finance anything so I got the most points for my money there. Don't mind staying at any DVC resort. I don't know if this opinion has been expressed yet but while AKV is a beautiful resort, it is kind of isolated from all the parks and restaurants except those within the resort and at AK. If you will be at the parks a lot and use the bus system, it will be more of a trip. SSR is walking distance to Downtown Disney and it's restaurants, shopping and entertainment. And the opinions and experiences of others seem to indicate that the Treehouse Villas will more than likely be the most difficult of all the resorts to book at the 7 mo. window. Good luck with your purchase!

I am w you. Am also waiting for ROFR on a $65 SSR resale... it'll be a great deal - if it passes