Buying DVC at Saratoga, why not?

[elcodfish]

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

 

[disneynutz]

So my question is, is there any reason to buy at Kindani, which we plan on staying more often, instead of Saratoga? Thanks!

erica

You answered your own question. You plan to stay more often at AKV. If that is really what you want to do then you should buy there to guarantee availability. If you don't really care where you stay and you don't mind moving mid vacation to another resort, then buy at the cheapest resort.

If buying cheapest really worked, no one would buy anywhere else.

Bill

 

[Coach81]

Not really. you should probably not have a problem booking at Kidani at the 7th month window.. besides SSR is great as well!!!!

Good luck with your decision.

 

[chalee94]

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 Kidani, which we plan on staying more often, instead of Saratoga? Thanks!

when is the "off-season?" early december is one of the busiest seasons for DVC...even though (partly because) it is an off-season for the parks in general. so be aware that "off-season" can be different for DVC.

on the bright side, if you plan to stay at kidani, you are not looking at the "value" or "concierge" accomodations at AKV, since all of those are at jambo house. "value" and "concierge" rooms are more limited in number, so they might require owning at AKV to consistently book.

i hear a lot of people saying that they intend to buy at SSR and never stay there...the math on that just doesn't work out. some of those SSR owners are statistically likely to wind up staying at SSR when other options are all booked up. it might not be you...you might be lucky...but there is a basic problem with the math that might bite you.

if you don't mind staying at SSR, buy SSR and book SSR at 11 months. if you get lucky at 7 months and can cancel and rebook at kidani, great...if you call at exactly 7 months out and are willing to be patient with waitlists, i'd bet it would work out 90% of the time.

but if it's going to frustrate you if you get "stuck" at SSR and AKV never opens up...then "buy where you want to stay"TM and pay extra for AKV.

 

[Crystal_27]

It's all about home resort. Even though you love AKV, unless you buy there, there is absolutely no *guarantee* that you will get to stay there. If you would be happy staying at SSR every trip (if your AKV requests don't come through), buy there. Keep in mind, though, that you will be rolling the dice every single year at 7 months (and then possibly having to deal with waitlist issues or moving multiple times during your vacation) if you are trying to buy in at your non-preferred home resort. Also, do the real math to ensure that you are comparing apples to apples. If, say, an 200 point SSR contract via resale is $80/point and you can get AKV through Disney with 2008 and 2009 points at $100/point, that is "only" a difference of $4,000 *and* you get to stay at AKV *and* you have 2008 points *and* you will get your points within days of closing. It might be that the $4,000 is worth it to avoid the hassle every year.

We were in the same boat when we were debating on how to buy in, and ended up biting the bullet and buying in at BLT because it was where we wanted to stay and I knew I didn't want to deal with having to fight with everyone else at 7 months to stay there every single year. Either way - - good luck!!

 

[DenLo]

I understand what you are saying about the dollar difference between AKV and SSR. We just purchased resale 100 points at AKV for $84 a point (and more $84 contracts are available). I also just checked the current availability listing at the Timeshare Store and saw many SSR contracts for about $76 a point. So that's only a $8 difference, not $20. So do you really feel the same way about AKV and SSR now?

We purchased our first contract using mainly logic. However, we purchased our latest contract at AKV strictly from the heart. We are so comfortable there and just love it.

Only you can decide which resort is the one for you. But keep in mind that there might come a time in which you decide you want to stay at WDW during a peak DVC season (early December or the holiday week at the end of the month) and find that you really want to stay at AKV but those rooms may or may not be available at 7 months. Will you be disappointed or will your reaction be just oh well, we can always stay at SSR? If you are really that flexible in your mind set, you'll do fine what resort you choose.

Good Luck and hope to welcome you home soon!

 

[jharrowell]

Assuming the $20 difference then the SSR deal sounds good except...

You need to be happy that if availability doesn't open up, that you'll be staying at SSR.

I'm an SSR owner and I love the place. However a bit of variety is great and I do stay at other resorts, I've done OKW (loved it, I'm hoping that it's the same feeling SSR will get once it's more "lived in"), I've transfered out points to Stay at the Poly and GF, I've even booked a cruise. But all of that asside, if I was told there was no availability and it was SSR or nothing I'd be more than happy to stay there. If you're of the same oppinion, then the SSR deal may be for you.

However if really want to stay at AKV but want to save a bit of cash, I'd say bite the bullet and get the AKV points.

Because, though you are more than likely to get into AKV (In fact I'm staying at Kidani Village myself in March, can't wait!) it's not guarenteed.

 

[windi622]

Most people will tell you, buy where you want to stay. That's a good, safe, logical approach to it. As the PPs have said, if you are set on staying at AKV every time...or you would be unahppy staying at SSR, then you need to buy at AKV. However, just because you don't own at AKV, doesn't mean you won't be able to stay there. I actually own AKV, and have never stayed there. I've stayed at BWV, SSR, and OKW. My initial contract was for AKV, but my favorite resort is BWV. We've taken about 10 trips since owning, and have been able to book BWV about half of the time. Not bad. With that said, I broke down and added on BWV points to make sure I will be able to stay at BWV when I want to in the future. I guess that doesn't clarify much- but just wanted to share my personal experience.

Good luck to you Anyway you slice it, you're owning DVC, you can't go wrong!

 

[epress]

This runs contrary to many of the opinions out here but I agree with you 100%. We recently purchased a SSR resale for $72 a point, vs. mid to upper $80's that was available at that time for AKL. I was just able to book a 10 day May 2010 trip, 2BR at BCV at the 7 month window with no problem. I fully realize that depending on when we go and where we want to stay we will not always be able to get our 1st choice. But we would still be happy to stay at SSR even if it will usually be our last choice resort. Buying at SSR allowed us to purchase significantly more points than we could have afforded elsewhere. If flexibility is not in your repertoire by all means buy where you prefer to stay but if you are willing to stay anywhere my opinion is that SSR is the best deal around.

 

[PIERCEDRN]

I did not buy where I wanted to stay when I bought my SSR points, as I dislike the total lack of themeing at SSR. I bought SSR with the intention of staying everywhere else, and paying low dues and 12 more years at SSR. We have young school age kids and they get pulled out of school for our trips in the off season, so the travel situation is similar to yours in flexibility.
You are on the Disboards so it's likely you are pretty savvy and wont expect to get BLT two months out. If you call at 9am on the 7 month window you will likely be happy with the result, we were only unable to get 2 days out of the 25+ in three yrs we tried for. The booked nights were b/c of the marathon and a DVC cruise arrival which can load DVCs. AKV is quite huge so unless you demand concierge it will be unnecessary.
I have had no regrets NOT buying where I wanted to stay because the extra few grand I saved plus the lower dues allow me to buy more points and afford more disney trips.
If you are a planner like we are you will do just fine, just don't jump at the Vero points even though they are cheap because the dues make that contract much more pricey.
BOB

 

[disneynutz]

And what happens as more and more members buy at the cheaper resorts with the intention of staying at the more popular ones? What happens when Disney creates additional theme periods like F&W and F&G.

What was true in the past or present, will probably not be true in the future and you will own your membership for many years.

Only you can decide if it's worth the risk.

Bill

 

[PSC]

You might consider buying less AKL points via resale right now than the number of SSR points you could get, and then add on more AKL points via resale a year or two down the road. You will likely be able to get those add on points for less in a year or so than you can right now.

For what its worth, I did a small add on at SSR a few years ago with the intention of banking and borrowing those points to stay somewhere else every few years. I found that I really loved SSR when I stayed there just to try it out, and now own as many SSR points as I do BWV points. Don't expect to love or hate a resort just because other people here on the DIS boards feel that way.

 

[Deb & Bill]

SSR is a wonderful resort and we'd be happy staying there. Would you? If your heart is really at AKV (and you think you'd want a value room or an AKV Concierge room), you really need to by at AKV. Those points would be good at both Jambo House (home of the value rooms and concierge rooms) or Kidani Village which has the villas with the extra bathroom and dedicated two bedroom villas (neither found at Jambo House).

If you don't think you can make reservations at 11 months out, at 7 months out, all points are equal.

Just don't buy DVC and plan on getting the villa you want at one or two months out because that's not going to happen often if ever.

 

[littlestar]

I think Animal Kingdom is big enough that as long as you're not going at holidays or wanting concierge or value on a regular basis, you're safe to buy SSR. Besides, if you buy SSR, you'll be able to book a treehouse with the 11 month window!

 

[Sandisw]

We went through the same thought process last winter and ended up buying BLT because we knew that we would be disappointed if we couldn't stay there. It did cost us about $5000 extra, but really, about $100 more a year over the length of a contract--well worth it to pretty much guarantee we would be happy.

While owning at SSR might save you money, you also have to remember that you are getting 3 additional years with AKV.

And, as Bill said, as more and more people buy home resorts with no intention for staying there, the demands for rooms at the 7 month mark is going to increase and you may find it difficult to get exactly what you want.

Good luck!

 

[thelionqueen]

Many, many good posts on this already. I agree with the "buy where you want to stay" aspect listed, but in this particular instance, I might say buy SSR. This is just recent, current experience of mine, which could totally change in the near or distant future (disclaimer). I've found availability at AKV for every reservation I was looking for over the past months. AKV is a very large resort, and I feel that it will be available in the future, much like SSR & OKW seem to be right now.

That said, I was never a fan of SSR until I stayed there on DP's (would have never stayed there otherwise). Once I stayed there, I was HOOKED!! It is AMAZING!! If I had the extra money, I'd buy an SSR resale in a heartbeat!! Even if it were the same or more of a cost than AKV. But that's just me. You need to analyze your situation and see if saving the extra money now will be worth the possible headaches in the future.

 

[Dean]

Actually the price difference may be even more than $20 a point even after you factor in closing costs. Still, for AKV most visits, it may or may not be worth the hassle. If you truly are flexible and travel off season for DVC (Jan, early Feb, May, Sept and the like) any plan will work and SSR will likely be the perfect choice. If you end up not being as flexible as you state or want concierge, SSR will not work out for you. Many who post they are flexible and travel off season really aren't as flexible or off season as they state when it comes down to it so look at your patterns and future likely changes carefully. And as noted, the 2 are not exclusive of each other, you could buy less at each resort. For the stated goal and assuming I didn't want a 3 BR or concierge; I'd buy SSR. Even if I couldn't get exactly what I want every trip, I could get AKV most trips other than the high demand units I mentioned and the more like $25-30 a point difference for 200 or more points would be worth the minimal risk and hassle, IMO.

 

[Mickey527]

I guess I am in the minority here.
I bought at WLV because I loved WL and thought I would enjoy the WLV too. It just wasn't what I expected. In the years since I have owned there I have only stayed there once. And I got the studio with no balcony. Maybe that was it. Not really...
I also used to own at SSR but took the loan with Disney and just couldn't afford it when i became disabled. They tried to talk me into selling my WL but I had more points there.
I love OKW. I have stayed at OKW almost every trip since I bought, except for once at BCV the day they first opened and twice at SSR when they didn't have any availability at OKW.
I should sell my points at WL and buy at OKW but I just haven't really looked into it. Maybe I will call soon. I might even be able to get more points at OKW.

 

[crisi]

We went through the same thought process last winter and ended up buying BLT because we knew that we would be disappointed if we couldn't stay there. It did cost us about $5000 extra, but really, about $100 more a year over the length of a contract--well worth it to pretty much guarantee we would be happy.

This is another part of the equations - for some people dropping an extra few thousand to get the resort where their heart is is worth it. For other people, it really isn't. DVC is an expensive proposition, and I don't think you should buy it if its a stretch, but honestly, people do. And if its a stretch to buy it, you certainly shouldn't stretch farther than you must or you might pull something... Being comfortable with your financial situation - for me - is as important as being comfortable with your "home resort."

 

[cayman01]

You don't want to pay $20 more per point and i would agree with that, but would you pay $5? Looking at the spread between actual sales AKV gets about an average of $84/point resale, and SSR about $70. Since AKV is your first choice I would look for a resale contract with a year's worth of banked points with it. Buy it. Rent the extra points out for $10-12 point and you'll end up paying only $2-5 more per point for the resort you want

MF's will cost you a bit more, because you are paying the vet bills and feeding the animals, but right now the spread is only about 50 cents/pt.