Buying DVC... HELP!

[summerlandjeff]

Well, after 4 Disney vacations in 5 years, we've decided to jump right in and buy a DVC this fall!

Now the big questions....

1. New or pre-owned?
2. How many points is good for a family of three, one (1) week vacation and one "get away" per year?
3. Where? (NEW) Do we buy SSR now, wait for AKL, or hope for a new project? (Pre-owned) OKW, BW, YC?????????

4. Finance? Is it worth it to pay up front?

Thanks in advance for any input........

 

[BCV23]

Get thee to the DVC forums. There are some real experts over there. Be sure to read the stickies at the top of the forums too.

Many of your questions will come down to personal preference. But as to #4, personally, I would not finance.

Good luck and welcome home!

 

[kkmauch]

You should for sure get over to the DVC boards for these questions. I'll do my best to give you my perspective on these questions though...
1. New or pre-owned depends on what you want to pay, how many points you want and where you want to stay. For me, I own one new (SSR) from Disney and one pre-owned from Disney (BCV).

2. This really depends on when you want to go and what size accomodations you want. I am able to get two-three vacations a year using studios to 2 bedrooms at SSR, OKW and BCV. I have 200 points.

3. Where is really up to you. I wanted to get in on the deals with SSR and liked the resort as well. AKL is going to be wonderful. But, BCV is one of my favorites now too and I am glad I own there as well. It's really going to e up to you and your preferences. There is a huge debate about wheather or not to buy at the place you want to stay most. IMHO, it's best to buy where you want to stay.

4. Finance...I am a poor recent college grad. For me, financing was the only option. If you can pay it off all at once, then I would just do it that way. No need to finance if you don't have to. But, the financing is easy too.

 

[spiceycat]

OKW, BCV, BWV, VWL quit Jan, 2042

SSR Jan, 2054

AKL, Jan, 2057

3) depends upon you - if you only Want BCV because of SALB or walking to Epcot - then buy BCV - if you will be happy anywhere then OKW or SSR are pretty great resorts.

1) resale can be fine - but remember when you buy from DVC then you get this year points and next year points. when you buy from a resales you may get some banked points - but most of the time they are borrowed. So you might not get in points to use until next year.

2) points vary greatly with the resort, season, Sun-thur, fri/sat. here are the points chart.
sun-thur are less points than fri/sat
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-vacation-club/DVCpoints.shtml

4) - well I also financed going to college (went to college in my 40's)- but if you have the money I would stay yes pay the whole thing now (if it doesn't put a strain on your budget)


disney information
http://dvc.disney.go.com/dvc/guest/resorts/resortOverview?id=ProspectsResortsOverviewPage

 

[summerlandjeff]

Thanks All! And thanks for the redirect.... all great suggestions and now I'm diving into the info boards......... see you at DVC next year!

 

[Amy5000]

Thanks All! And thanks for the redirect.... all great suggestions and now I'm diving into the info boards......... see you at DVC next year!

While you are at it, here is an older thread which contains a good discussion regarding where to buy....

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=778634&page=1&pp=15

 

[coloradodad]

From a recent purchaser, direct from DVC was the best route for us for a few reasons - the main on was that we already had booked a trip and the direct purchase allowed for us to book prior to 7 months and to use points from the prior year.

Had we gone with resale we would be up in the air for the next 8 weeks and I personally cannot stand that.

Between the extra points, lower closing costs, and ability to charge the full amount on a credit card for miles, we ended up at about a push with the resale market and reservations the day after we made our deposit.

We also had to re-arrange travel for two other groups so that meant the need to get this expedited as well.

With a group of three, and no timetable, I would have had no problem going resale. Another factor is points - we are a family of 4 and we bot 220 so we really ended up with 440 which we burned through a major chunk of with a 2 br and a studio in the same week in December - the value time.

btw, the planning is really fun and I can see how addonitis strikes already.

mg

 

[Shenandoah Mickey]

We purchased our DVC directly from Disney early last year. I actually wasn't aware of the resale market at the time, but it worked out great for us. We purchased 200 points and received points for 2005 in addition to 2006. With borrowing, we were able to immediately book a 2-bedroom and 1-bedroom in VWL in November. We took MIL, FIL, BIL, SIL, DD, DS, DN(ephew) and DN(iece). What a great trip! I felt like we got a lot of value for out of our purchase the very first year.

 

[summerlandjeff]

While you are at it, here is an older thread which contains a good discussion regarding where to buy....

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=778634&page=1&pp=15

Awesome info (I'm almost on over load!) This really gives me alot to think about (in a good way). I especially liked the comments on the financial aspects. These are the little tid-bits I hoped I would find here!!

 

[mikeandkarla]

The best deal offered is with SSR. You recieve 2006 points and 2007 points. minnimum 160 points @ $94 ppt (I think that is what it is now). Termination year of 2054. If buying AKV you recieve this years points for $96 ppt., or take 2007 and 2006 developer points but pay a higher $104 ppt price. Good luck.

 

[MUDisneyCouple]

The best deal offered is with SSR. You recieve 2006 points and 2007 points. minnimum 160 points @ $94 ppt (I think that is what it is now). Termination year of 2054. If buying AKV you recieve this years points for $96 ppt., or take 2007 and 2006 developer points but pay a higher $104 ppt price. Good luck.

We are also looking to purchase this Aug (fingers crossed), so if we buy at AKV this year we only will get 2006's points? If we want 2006 and 2007 points we will pay $104 a point? I just want to make sure I am following this...

Why is SSR so much cheaper?

On a seperate but slightly related note, I haven't seen anything about WLV??? Heard anything good or bad? How would you purchase WLV - only through resale? Thanks!

 

[LisaS]

We are also looking to purchase this Aug (fingers crossed), so if we buy at AKV this year we only will get 2006's points? If we want 2006 and 2007 points we will pay $104 a point? I just want to make sure I am following this...

AKV's first Use Year is 2007 so every contract starts with 2007 UY points. There are no 2006 UY points. If you want points right away, you can get a set of "developer" points instead of taking the $8/pt discount. The developer points expire in 7 months and cannot be banked or transferred so you should only go this route if you have plans to use them within their lifetime.

Why is SSR so much cheaper?

The list price of SSR and AKV is the same but with the incentives currently available, SSR is $2/pt cheaper. It also has a shorter contract. SSR contracts expire Jan 31, 2054. AKV contracts expire Jan 31, 2057.

On a seperate but slightly related note, I haven't seen anything about WLV??? Heard anything good or bad? How would you purchase WLV - only through resale? Thanks!

You can purchase VWL via resale or directly from Disney for $98/pt. They often have VWL points available immediately, if not they will put you on a waiting list.

 

[Jaaron2]

Speaking of financing though Disney...dont. The rates are on the high side and you can certainly get it cheaper somewhere else (refinance,personal loan)The best way to do it is to pay cash obvioulsy. If you cant pay it all with cash you could get a 0% credit card and put most if not all of the purchase on that (or combine with cash). That would give you 12-18 months to pay it off (and you could possibly hit two tax return cycles to assist).

SSR and AKV offer the longest contracts and newest resorts. We just recently purchased 200 pts at AKV and already are looking to add on another 100. We have a familiy of five and AKV is one of the few places that offer basic accomodations for 5 (which saves us money since we dont have to rent accomodations for 8). AKV also offers accomodations for 12 so if you are looking to have a large party that would be the place to stay (most others only accomodiate 8 in one room).

It is Disney so all resorts are going to be nice. We just liked some of the things AKV had to offer that the others didnt. That being said we are staying at SSR for 10 days in November this year Cant wait

 

[mikeandkarla]

Speaking of financing though Disney...dont. The rates are on the high side and you can certainly get it cheaper somewhere else (refinance,personal loan)The best way to do it is to pay cash obvioulsy. If you cant pay it all with cash you could get a 0% credit card and put most if not all of the purchase on that (or combine with cash). That would give you 12-18 months to pay it off (and you could possibly hit two tax return cycles to assist).

SSR and AKV offer the longest contracts and newest resorts. We just recently purchased 200 pts at AKV and already are looking to add on another 100. We have a familiy of five and AKV is one of the few places that offer basic accomodations for 5 (which saves us money since we dont have to rent accomodations for 8). AKV also offers accomodations for 12 so if you are looking to have a large party that would be the place to stay (most others only accomodiate 8 in one room).

It is Disney so all resorts are going to be nice. We just liked some of the things AKV had to offer that the others didnt. That being said we are staying at SSR for 10 days in November this year Cant wait

The only Disney resorts that DON'T offer a 12 person villa is BCV and VWL. All other resorts offer Grand Villas or Beach cottage at VB.

 

[Disney Doll]

Well, after 4 Disney vacations in 5 years, we've decided to jump right in and buy a DVC this fall!

Now the big questions....

1. New or pre-owned?
2. How many points is good for a family of three, one (1) week vacation and one "get away" per year?
3. Where? (NEW) Do we buy SSR now, wait for AKL, or hope for a new project? (Pre-owned) OKW, BW, YC?????????

4. Finance? Is it worth it to pay up front?

Thanks in advance for any input........

1. Depends. Where do you want your home resort to be? If you want oneof the older properties, then they would probably be pre-owned points. Keep in mind that points in OKW, WLV, BWV, BCV expire in 2042. SSR and anything coming after it will expire in 2054 or maybe even later...I am not sure if the expiration date has been changed for the impending VAKL offering.

2. Depends on the time of year you go and the size unit you want. I probably wouldn't go less than 150. When DH & I first bought in, we bought 200. It was a manageable amount of $$ for us and gave us a bit of leeway with point usage.

3. Buy where you want to stay if where you stay will have a huge impact on your enjoyment of your vacation. By that I mean, if you are the type of person who just doesn't enjoy thier vacation unless they are looking at Cinderella's Castle, then wait for the CRVs to be announced. If your life isn't complete unless you can walk to Seashores Sweets on the Boardwalk for your breakfast danish, then buy at BWV or BCV. If you are happy to be at WDW and don't really care where you stay, then I would suggest buying where you can stay the cheapest.

4. We financed for 10 years, paid it off in about 3.5-4 years. It wasn't the worst thing we ever did. Made for about a $200/month payment, and we pretty much threw more money on it each month to buy it down more quickly. I have known people who have charged it on their Disney VISA, gotten Rewards points, and then paid it off the next month with a home equity loan, and then gotten the tax benefit of that. Obviously the sooner you pay it off the more cost effective it becomes.

Good luck. DH & I have never regretted our purchase.

 

[Honeypaw]

Hello,

We are thinking of purchasing 175 points at AKV from Disney DVC for $96.00 per point (Disney promotional rate right now instead of $104.00).

First, what do you think of AKV? I have read a lot on the boards, but never been there.

As for our DVC purchase, it would come with these possible perks:

Usage Date starting in "April, 07", but obviously we are not buying until September, 07 -- so we get the six months extra usage!

If we use are "Chase Disney Card" for the down payment we get a $500 Disney gift card. Note, we intend to finance, but pay off the loan within 3-4 years.

If we go to Disneyland (80 miles away) to sign up, wifey and I get annual premium passes with parking.

We intend to purchase 175 pts. If we do, we get an extra 175 for a total of 350 points for the first year -- may be because contruction going on until '09 but not sure. (Note, we would have to use the 175 points the first year and other 175 points could be banked)

Any thoughts on this promotion or resort would be greatly appreciated. If you can think of any other suggestions or things we need to consider it would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[Maistre Gracey]

The Animal Kingdom Villas, in my opinion, are the nicest, most themed (interior) of any of the DVC Resorts. My jaw hit the floor when I saw the model.
Some may not like them because they are not a "light & airy" decor.
There are also some great selling points about AKV, such as concierge and value level rooms.

I assume you know about the animals...

MG