Buying pionts from Disney

[princess012]

Does it take a long time to get points from Disney. I am new to this and am going to buy at HH but would like to add on at OKW or BWV. Is there a minimum purchase to add on points and does it take a long time?

Thanks for you help

Christine

 

[winniedapooh]

I am not sure how long it takes to go through Disney. I went through the Timeshare Store and it took about 7 weeks start to finish. I called them and told them what I was looking for and got a call within a day or so for what I was looking for. HTH

 

[TnRobin]

We bought from Disney and it was quick and easy. As for the minimum point add on, I think it is around 25 points?

But as for buying in at HHI, you will only be able to buy HHI via a resale. Also the same will hold true for BWV and OKW. Unless Disney has acquired a contract through thier Right of First Refusal or through foreclosure for failure to pay, then they will have no points to sell at HHI, BWV or OKW.

 

[tjkraz]

In late '04, DVC was sending mailers to current members indicating that points were readily available for OKW, HHI and Vero. Their price is a flat $89 per point for any contract size larger than 25 points.

You'll need to complete your resale contract purchase first, but DVC will then assign you a Guide (salesperson) who will happily help you with the add-on contract.

Oh, and note that prices for SSR are increasing in a couple of weeks. It's not unreasonable to think that the other resorts will go up as well. So you may end up paying more than $89 per point. Not much you can do about it, though.

 

[JimMIA]

But as for buying in at HHI, you will only be able to buy HHI via a resale. Also the same will hold true for BWV and OKW.

This is a common misconception. You can buy points at any resort directly from Disney at $89 per point. The only one which seems problematic is BCV, and that is only with certain use years.

For Hilton Head and OKW, you will probably save a considerable amount of money buying resale. Even paying closing costs on a small add-on, there is enough price differential that resale will save you money. The only good things about buying one of those resorts direct is you can get exactly the number of points you want to add, and you have Disney financing available -- but you'll definitely pay more. With resale, obviously you are limited to whatever contracts are available in the marketplace.

You won't save as much buying resale at BWV, because resale prices are higher there. You have to do the math separately on each contract, and you may find it's going to be a tossup whether resale saves you any money. Most people would say go direct if the price is within a few hundred dollars, just because of the slowness and unreliability of the resale process.

If you want to buy a resale contract of less than 150 points, I would call TTS or one of the other realtors and tell them specifically what you are looking for. You may be able to pick up a good contract before it ever gets advertised. Small contracts go very quickly on the resale market.

 

[princess012]

Thanks for all you input, but I have one more question.

I was thinking about buying at Vero Beach and then calling disney to add on at okw(if available), now would I have to make sure that they both had the same use month. Vero beach is April. My goal is to book at OKW 11 months in advance.

Thanks for all you help!!!

 

[tjkraz]

A few points:

1. If you have an existing contract with an April Use Year, generally speaking DVC will only sell you add-on points with that same Use Year. If you buy 150 or more as your "add-on", they will allow you to specify a different Use Year, but for any amount less than that, the UY must be the same.

2. Since you mentioned booking OKW at 11 months, just be aware that you can only use the number of points that you actually OWN at a given resort to book at 11 months. If you add 50 pts at OKW, you can only use those 50 pts to book at 11 months. You'll have to wait until the 7 month window to book with your VB points.

3. Just a word of caution regarding Vero points. If you plan on staying at VB, they can be invaluable. I've heard it can be very difficult to stay there during some of the summer months unless you are an owner. But, if you're just seeing Vero as potentially a low-cost way to get into the program, I'd suggest you look at the maintenance fees. While Vero resales may run several dollars cheaper than, say, OKW, their maintenance is about $1 more per point, per year. I suspect you'll make up that difference (and then some) in just a few short years.

Vero got hit pretty hard by a couple of the hurricanes last fall, and I've heard there may even be a special assessment charged to members to cover repair costs. Buyer beware.

 

[JimMIA]

Thanks for all you input, but I have one more question.

I was thinking about buying at Vero Beach and then calling disney to add on at okw(if available), now would I have to make sure that they both had the same use month. Vero beach is April. My goal is to book at OKW 11 months in advance.

Thanks for all you help!!!

Here's a thread you might want to read. Don't just read my initial post on this thread; there is a lot of good information from other posters throughout the thread.
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=778634

My basic comment to you would be if you really want to stay at OKW, and you are able to book 7+ months out, I would buy OKW resale.

Unless you also want to book 7+ months out at a different resort, why would you want to own at two places? Bear in mind that you can only book in the 11-month window with points you have available at that resort - not total points.

If you're looking at Vero because of the lower per-point cost, you'd better take a closer look at the overall cost. Dues at Vero are currently $4.87, vs. $3.86 at OKW...and that's a big difference over time.