Buying DVC - but have questions...

[rljslo]

hi all... We will most likely be buying into DVC in the next few months and we have a few questions:

We are currently looking to buy a resale property...

For the next 7 - 8 years, we will for the most part only be able to travel to Disney in June, July, and August. Does the use year month matter? Is there a month that we should be looking for?

If we decide to add on points down the road, can we add it to our existing contract or do we end up with a new contract and use year for those points?

I know the recommendation is to buy where you want to stay (which for us would be the Beach Club). However, I can probably get more points if I buy into a porperty like Old Key West. My question is this - how difficult is it to get a property that is not your home property at the 7 month window?

Thanks in advance for any advice...can't wait!

 

[chalee94]

For the next 7 - 8 years, we will for the most part only be able to travel to Disney in June, July, and August. Does the use year month matter? Is there a month that we should be looking for?

june is ideal, march and april are also good choices.

1) remember that UY month has nothing to do with when you can call to book
2) UY month tells you when your banking window closes and only becomes an issue if you have to cancel (after your banking window closes).

here is a recommended thread for learning more about UY:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1942668

If we decide to add on points down the road, can we add it to our existing contract or do we end up with a new contract and use year for those points?

either way (at this point - DVC is offering 50 pt contracts directly - which is an issue since you would need to buy a new master contract if you buy a different UY month).

the add-on can be willed or sold separately from your original contract but - if the UY is the same and it is titled the same - will function as one contract with your original contract (if it is the same home resort - if you get a different home resort, the pts can only be pooled at the 7 month window.)

I know the recommendation is to buy where you want to stay (which for us would be the Beach Club). However, I can probably get more points if I buy into a porperty like Old Key West. My question is this - how difficult is it to get a property that is not your home property at the 7 month window?

depends on which property and what time of year - for the summer, i'd say you'd have very good odds trying other resorts (but not sure about BCV since SAB is pretty popular).

edited to add: here is a good thread to check out

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2522767

in short: if you are happy just being on property, buy at OKW or SSR and save a few bucks - book at your home resort at 11 months and see what works out at 7 months or ride the waitlist if needed. but if it will frustrate you to be "stuck" at one of the larger resorts should your waitlist never come through, buy where you want to stay.

 

[JimMIA]

For the next 7 - 8 years, we will for the most part only be able to travel to Disney in June, July, and August. Does the use year month matter? Is there a month that we should be looking for?

June would be ideal if you don't later change to April/May trips. August UY would be the worst for June or July trips, perfect for August trips. September would be less bad for June/July, the worst for August trips. After that, probably anything from October to June would work fine.

IMHO, UY is not the deal-breaker some think. It is simply one of the aspects of your account you have to manage. The risk with UY is that your plans change within the last 4 months and you are unable to bank points.

Although that is a potential problem you need to be aware of, it's one of those little details that sometimes get overblown. My two adult daughters vacation exclusively in June, July, and August (both on vacation right now) and we have an October UY. In 29 trips over five years, by three families, we've never had an actual UY issue.

If we decide to add on points down the road, can we add it to our existing contract or do we end up with a new contract and use year for those points?

Yes, it can be added to your existing account (not contract), provided the add-on has the same UY and is titled exactly the same way as your original contract. You'll have two contracts in one account and they'll be numbered like xxxxxxx.000 and xxxxxxx.001. Doing the add-on that way eliminates the need to transfer points between contracts, which you can only do once per year.

I know the recommendation is to buy where you want to stay (which for us would be the Beach Club). However, I can probably get more points if I buy into a porperty like Old Key West.

Couple of factors to consider.

1. "Buy where you want to stay" has value ONLY if you can reliably plan and book reservations more than seven months in advance. If you can't (and many people can't because of family or work limitations), then home resort advantage really means nothing.
2. The other factor is how badly you really need to stay at a particular resort. For some folks, where they stay is everything -- they'd be miserable anywhere else. They NEED home resort booking advantage. For others, it's not a big deal -- "If we don't get BCV this time, we'll get it next time." You need to figure out which group your family falls into.

I personally think "Buy where you would not be disappointed to stay" is applicable to just about everyone, but "buy where you want to stay" is not..

Two other things to consider are dues and points costs for stays. Some resorts have both higher dues (which will outweigh your purchase price over the life of your contract) and higher costs per night in points. In your example, BCV is about 40% more expensive in points per night than OKW for units that are substantially smaller...and the dues are somewhat higher But you have to weigh that against the location, "feel" of the resort for your family, etc.

We keep returning to OKW, primarily for the spacious villas, but other families would cancel their trips if they couldn't get their favorite resort. That's why each DVC resort is different -- different folks, different strokes.

My question is this - how difficult is it to get a property that is not your home property at the 7 month window?

That depends. We own OKW and SSR, and have booked at BCV, AKV, HHI, VB, and VWL inside seven months -- all of those have been during June, July, and August, and we've also gotten BCV for May at 4 1/2 months. Your success depends greatly on the time of the year, what size villa you want, how early you call, and whether you are willing to waitlist.

Research carefully and good luck!

 

[Mtnman44]

I'll just throw this out there as well, just in case. Have you traveled there in the summer before? If not, the weather could be quite a shocker so I'd make sure you will be happy with that plan. For some, the summer temps/humitity are quite difficult to deal with, impossible for some.

 

[nytimez]

I'll just throw this out there as well, just in case. Have you traveled there in the summer before? If not, the weather could be quite a shocker so I'd make sure you will be happy with that plan. For some, the summer temps/humitity are quite difficult to deal with, impossible for some.

It's an absolute furnace. It's a huge consideration, especially if your body is not acclimated to Florida weather.

 

[rljslo]

Actually - we just came back from a week at the Beach Club 07/24 - 07/31. The heat was BRUTAL - sweat running down our backs as we waited for the park to open..... However - we knew that going in and planned accordingly. Our kids are still in school and my wife is a teacher so we are pretty locked in to summertime travel (we live in the Northeast) for a number of years. This will change in years to come but for now we can live with it. We still had a blast - and it was hotter than usual that week.

 

[AirGoofy]

My 2 cents - UY is not as big an issue. Buy where you want to stay.

In 2008, we bought a small resale contract at SSR . We liked the low resale cost and proximity to DTD. We had a June year and planned a fall break - October - or maybe, a December trip. Then we liked DVC so much that we added on to it. Then, we started going Fall Break (October) and Spring Break (April), so my UY is really wrong for Spring BReak. We even had to cancel a Spring BReak trip with emergency, and did the Holding Point thing and went Memorial Day Weekend - and yes, had the children miss school. But, 5 years from now, maybe we will want to go in December. There are always times to go to WDW.

Also, we just bought a new BLT contract. We find ourselves spending the most time at MK, Epcot, and the MK Resorts. So, BLT was great for us. Now, we have enough points for a BLT trip once a year, and a SSR (or other resort trip) in Spring Break.

Good luck with your decision.