Buying DVC...

[doubletrouble_vb]

I'm on the verge of buying DVC via the mail. In fact I went home today and saw that FedEx had been by and that could mean only one thing!

So before I jump in & mail that final check off to Disney shoud I buy from a reseller? I only want 150 points and have noticed that smaller amounts of points command a higher price. It seems to me that with Disney picking up closing costs & giving me last year's points the $72 per point is about the same as the $68 per point most people are asking for an account with banked points (I'm figuring it will cost $400 to close or $2.50 per point.)...maybe a touch more but not enough more for me to suffer the hassle...

Can anyone help me?

If I were looking for a larger amount I'd definitely go the re-seller route...inkbounc

 

[Tiggeriffic]

As most people here will probably tell you, the most important issue is where do you want to stay most of the time. If you want to stay at BWV or OKW, then you have no choice but to buy a resale. If you want to say at VWL, then you will almost definitely have to buy from Disney because they haven't been selling there long enough for resales to show up. If you want to buy HH or VB, then you should look into a resale and see if you can get a better deal than direct from Disney, but make sure that you factor everything into it including closing costs, if you're going to sell back your first years points, etc.

 

[DVCDAVE]

Just a thought, you don't say where you are buying. You can save money buying resale. But, if you are buying VWL, it is too new and as such has not yet developed a resale market yet. So, basically you can only buy VWL through Disney at this time.

 

[dvc1995]

I think that you are right about the smaller packages commanding higher per point prices. The larger point packages are less expensive because there is a smaller market of people who can afford to buy them with upfront cash on resale. Disney does not allow an original point allocation to be sold off in smaller segments. Accordingly, the larger point packages will be harder to unload on the resale market if you ever do resell. I own two separate packages at OKW and I just purchased my smaller contract of 150 points on the resale market because I wanted OKW. Otherwise, I would have seriously considered buying directly from Disney. What you might try to do initially is to go to "atimeshare.com" or "The Timeshare Store" (both reputable DVC brokers) and make low offers on 150 point packages as they become available. You might get lucky and save yourself a grand or two. Also, remember, OKW has lower maintenance fees and commands a higher per point resale price than HH or VB. WDW is still the center of the universe. By the same token, a VB or HH resale is a good value to get you in as long as you are okay with making your reservations out in the 7 month window, as opposed to the 11 month timeline for your home resort. I have not had a problem making reservations at OKW on relatively short notice. I would think that seven months could always get you in on most dates to WDW. Also, the cruise point requirements do not differentiate between home resorts. For that reason, VB or HH resales may be the best value (except for the higher maintenace fees over the long run).

 

[TnRobin]

you really need to check all options - DVC and resales.

Our intial purchase was 180. We found that small resales were hard to come by and the closing cost made a large impact on the final cost per point. But a resale could have a larte number of bank points which you will not get with a DVC purchase (the contrary could hold true with a resale - all points borrowed from the next year.)

As said before, buy at a location you want to spend most of your vacations at. Sometimes that 11 month window is crucial.

 

[TrudyZ]

Before I just bought I asked the same questions. Here's what I found (thanks to many posters on these Boards):

1. Buy where you want to stay (I learned this from Rich). Just because you can get in now, doesn't mean you will be able to 5 years from now. Take the time to look them all over and pick the one that best suites you.

2. Just because the asking price is $68 pp doesn't mean the selling price is $68 pp.

3. Who pays closing costs and maintenance fees is always negotiable.

4. A contract with banked points is your best buy.

5. The annual maintenance fees also factor in. You will be paying those for 41 years--no use paying higher dues if you really don't want to stay there. For example, you may be able to buy at Vero cheaper per point now, but in a few short years you will make up the difference in maintenance fees. Back to buy where you want to stay.

6. If you are looking for VB or HH, I think you can definately get it cheaper thru resale. Just a week ago, Saw a VB contract listed for $57 pp and it had all points in place for this year. (I ended up buying OKW for more pp because that is where I wanted to be).

7. If you are financing, Disney may be better. You will have to get input form others on that one.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me direct,
Trudy