Choosing Home Resort

[Ginar695]

Hi,

We just joined DVC yesterday and haven't received our paperwork yet in the mail. I was looking on the boards and saw that we will need to choose a home resort? Just wondering if this is still valid since that wasn't mentioned at our meeting yesterday.

Thank you!!

 

[Cindyel]

Welcome home! You do not "choose" a home resort, you purchase points which are a real estae interest in a particular resort. Did you buy direct or resale and which resort are the points from that you purchased? That is your home resort.

 

[Ginar695]

Okay, I'm looking at the sheet they showed us and up at the top it lists Aulani, so I'm assuming that's the one we bought into. We bought direct on the Disney Wonder cruise yesterday. Funny though that they didn't mention that we could choose our home resort....

 

[disneynutz]

Okay, I'm looking at the sheet they showed us and up at the top it lists Aulani, so I'm assuming that's the one we bought into. We bought direct on the Disney Wonder cruise yesterday. Funny though that they didn't mention that we could choose our home resort....

Cancel your purchase and take the time to learn about the DVC before you put your hard earned money down. Legally you have 10 days from the date of signing and people cancel all of the time. They by law they should have included in your paperwork instructions on how to cancel. The only reason to buy Aulani is if you vacation in Hawaii each year and you can't find an Aulani resale listing.

DVC isn't for everyone and many get caught up in the magic during the sales meeting. It's hard to think sometimes with all of that pixie dust in your eyes.

Bill

 

[DVC Mike]

Take a look at the posts in the DVC Information Center, starting with this one:

• A Comprehensive Introduction to DVC - Perhaps you have wondered whether buying into Disney Vacation Club is actually a good idea for your family. We can't give a definitive answer to that question that fits everyone, but we can supply you with the information you'll need to make an informed decision.

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[butsy113]

I completely agree with Bill!! You have 10 days, get it done ASAP!! Home resort is a BIG decision!!!!!!! Research here on the boards for honest opinions and suggestions. Ask questions of people who don't have anything to gain from the answers. Like Bill said, unless you go to Hawaii each year that is not what you want. Not all home resorts are available through Disney. For some you have to go the resale market, which actually may be the better way to go anyway.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Your home resort is where you can book at 11 months out, any other resort you can book only 7 months out. The mantra I agree strongly with is "buy where you want to stay", that is pick your home resort based on your favorite resort, if possible. We even did the "sell/ buy" thing when we discovered that the resort we loved best wasn't the one we'd picked as our home resort, and the home resort we'd chosen, the one we thought we'd love, we didn't really like once we stayed there. So I say- if possible, stay at a few DVC resorts before you buy. Not always possible due to cost, I know, but we wish we had.

 

[MPS516]

If you do go resale, know what benefits given direct sale are not available to you. If you use your points strictly at Disney resorts probably won't matter unless you need a concierge or non DVC hotel stay.

 

[DisneyRegulars]

Cancel your purchase and take the time to learn about the DVC before you put your hard earned money down. Legally you have 10 days from the date of signing and people cancel all of the time. They by law they should have included in your paperwork instructions on how to cancel. The only reason to buy Aulani is if you vacation in Hawaii each year and you can't find an Aulani resale listing.

DVC isn't for everyone and many get caught up in the magic during the sales meeting. It's hard to think sometimes with all of that pixie dust in your eyes.

Bill

This is great advice. While we love love love our DVC membership, I highly recommend canceling your purchase. Learn more about it. It just might be perfect for you, or you might find your money is better spent elsewhere. Either way, there is no rush to buy and you can still buy direct or resale after you learn more. Good luck and happy learning. Lots of great people here to ask questions too.

Ps. If you plan to primarily use your membership at Walt Disney world, you'd be much better off with a WDW home resort.

 

[bwvBound]

Add me to the growing list of "cancel, study up and then make a more informed purchase decision!"

Edited to add: Welcome! Glad you are here!

 

[Judique]

Hi,

We just joined DVC yesterday and haven't received our paperwork yet in the mail. I was looking on the boards and saw that we will need to choose a home resort? Just wondering if this is still valid since that wasn't mentioned at our meeting yesterday.

Thank you!!

Congratulations on your purchase!

That said, what did you intend to do with your points?

If it is to visit Hawaii every year, then fine.

If you want to come to WDW every year, than back up and cancel because you made the wrong choice.

For WDW, the 11 month window is VERY important in getting reservations at many times of the year.

You can only do that with a WDW home resort, such as Polynesian Villas, Grand Floridian Villas, Animal Kingdom, Saratoga Springs. Where do you want to stay? That should help determine where you buy. Some home resorts are only available as resales.

Cancel. They will always take your money! The minor incentives given on cruises are nice but don't make up for 50 years of the wrong choice.

 

[Ginar695]

Thank you so much again for all of your responses. After looking at the prices of flights, it's obviously much less expensive to fly to Florida than to Hawaii, although I'd love to vacation in Hawaii every year! But, of course, Florida has all of the WDW attractions! So, what I'm getting is that I cannot make a a WDW home resort in Florida through the direct sales? For instance, I haven't signed the contract yet, it's all coming in the mail in about 7 days. I was wondering if I could call my Disney sales guy and ask him if I can redo the contract with a WDW resort in Florida versus Aulani?

 

[crisi]

Thank you so much again for all of your responses. After looking at the prices of flights, it's obviously much less expensive to fly to Florida than to Hawaii, although I'd love to vacation in Hawaii every year! But, of course, Florida has all of the WDW attractions! So, what I'm getting is that I cannot make a a WDW home resort in Florida through the direct sales? For instance, I haven't signed the contract yet, it's all coming in the mail in about 7 days. I was wondering if I could call my Disney sales guy and ask him if I can redo the contract with a WDW resort in Florida versus Aulani?

You could. They are likely to sell you the Poly, which is what they are actively selling. Which is a very expensive proposition. Cancel. Spend the next sixty days reading the threads. Consider resale. Understand why would probably be better off not using your points to cruise (since you bought on a cruise, I'm betting that was a selling point). Understand what dues are going to be for each resort. Know what each resort is going to cost you per night in both points and dues. Understand booking patterns - availability at some resorts can be tough. Know how far in advance you are likely to book. Understand that while DVC locks in room pricing - dues will go up every year - and so will food and tickets (right now, the boards are buzzing with the latest ticket increases, some will sell because of it because DVC suddenly doesn't work as well as it did last month). Figure out what is the best home resort for you and if resale makes sense for you (for most people - resale makes a lot more sense than direct).

 

[disneynutz]

Thank you so much again for all of your responses. After looking at the prices of flights, it's obviously much less expensive to fly to Florida than to Hawaii, although I'd love to vacation in Hawaii every year! But, of course, Florida has all of the WDW attractions! So, what I'm getting is that I cannot make a a WDW home resort in Florida through the direct sales? For instance, I haven't signed the contract yet, it's all coming in the mail in about 7 days. I was wondering if I could call my Disney sales guy and ask him if I can redo the contract with a WDW resort in Florida versus Aulani?

I would give up buying from Disney unless you need a high rate loan to buy. They only want to sell the new resorts where they make the most money and they will pretty much tell you things that makes it seem like a good deal. I can't blame them, that's their job. It's you job to know what you are buying and what the pros and cons are of buying and owning a deeded real estate interest. Each resort is different and each has different good and bad things about them. I took a couple of years before we bought, we visited the different resorts and read about owning and we talked to several owners at WDW.

Even with all of my due diligence, there were still things that we were not expecting.

If you don't need a Disney loan, you can save a few thousand dollars buying a contract from an owner who has decided to sell, (resale) and there are other resale loan companies.

Bill

 

[chalee94]

You lose nothing of value if you buy resale. Definitely rescind your current purchase and take some time to see if it's a good fit for you.

 

[Popouri DVC]

I've only been a DVC member for one year. I bought my first contact direct from Disney for VGF this month last year.
That being said, I'm buying my add-on contract at VGF this month via resale.

Take the time to learn what the people on these boards teach/ talk about. 50 plus years is a long time to spend money on something unless it's EXACTLY WHAT YOU WANT!!!

I knew what I wanted. But even before buying from Disney I did a ton of reading to make sure I indeed knew what I was actually buying.

 

[Judique]

You could. They are likely to sell you the Poly, which is what they are actively selling. Which is a very expensive proposition. Cancel. Spend the next sixty days reading the threads. Consider resale. Understand why would probably be better off not using your points to cruise (since you bought on a cruise, I'm betting that was a selling point). Understand what dues are going to be for each resort. Know what each resort is going to cost you per night in both points and dues. Understand booking patterns - availability at some resorts can be tough. Know how far in advance you are likely to book. Understand that while DVC locks in room pricing - dues will go up every year - and so will food and tickets (right now, the boards are buzzing with the latest ticket increases, some will sell because of it because DVC suddenly doesn't work as well as it did last month). Figure out what is the best home resort for you and if resale makes sense for you (for most people - resale makes a lot more sense than direct).

Following on what Crisi said....are you aware of ending dates for different resorts? There are resorts that end as early as 2042, such as Boardwalk Villas and others that are ending in 2057. Not sure when the newer ones end as I am blissfully not intending to buy any of the newest resorts, but I will stay there with my less expensive points on your dollar.

When you buy you are locked into an end date. I have all 2042 resorts, which suits my future needs at this moment.

Are you aware that some resorts at WDW have studios, 1 bedrooms, 2 bedrooms, 3 bedrooms and others such as the Polynesian have ALL studios with the exception of 20 high priced (100 points or more per night) villas over the lake?

You must consider so many things with this purchase. It can be the best thing vacation wise you do for your family, or it can be one huge mistake money wise if it doesn't meet your future needs.

Many people have jumped in and bought not knowing what they were buying and had to turn around and sell, then rebuy to get what they really wanted, that's why we are trying to tell you to do some research, since your statement of 'now I have to choose my home resort' tells us it was an uninformed (not stupid) decision. MOST people don't know what they are buying, not just you. You are the lucky one who has found some good advice - not to not buy - just to buy with your eyes open to the product.

Ask us questions. People here will tell you what you need to know.

 

[michelleiada]

Wow...it amazes me that Disney sold you a contract without informing you of how the DVC program works. That is unacceptable. I agree with all above who say cancel this contract. Read about the program and how it works. If you can, rent points for a few vacations to get a feel for the different resorts that are offered at WDW (if that's where you plan to visit mostly). And then buy where you prefer to stay. The biggest complaint I hear from DVC members is that the resort they desire is not available at the 7 month window. Home resort is becoming more important than ever. When you are comfortable with the program and are sure of what you are buying, consider the resale market. It is a huge cost savings.

 

[SarahInMN]

Hi,

We just joined DVC yesterday and haven't received our paperwork yet in the mail. I was looking on the boards and saw that we will need to choose a home resort? Just wondering if this is still valid since that wasn't mentioned at our meeting yesterday.

Thank you!!

Add me to the list of "cancel your contract." I recognize that buying DVC can be exciting and you can get swept up in the excitement but I am kind of appalled that Disney wouldn't have made sure you knew the basics of the program and most importantly what home resort you were buying into.

Do not buy if you do not understand the program.

We love DVC and have no regrets with our purchase. In 2008, we almost made the mistake of buying BLT new (it would have been a mistake due to location and we really don't like the rooms/style of the building). We did a lot of thinking about what parks we like and where we wanted to be: we ended up buying BCV on the resale market (prior to restrictions on resale purchases). For us, it was all about "buy where you want to stay" and being able to be near EPCOT during F&W.

Home resort advantage is so important: people who buy at X resort expecting to be able to book at BCV or BWI during F&W will more often than not be disappointed.

I would buy resale again in a heartbeat and agree with another poster upthread who said:

You lose nothing of value if you buy resale

We did buy VGF direct when it first came on the market. We love the GF and wanted a resort near MK but weren't "into" the other options. I recognize that we paid way more to buy it direct than resale. But we wanted the points and didn't want to wait for a resale.

Make sure you understand DVC before you buy (highlights of what people seem to not understand based on prior posts on these boards):
1) understand home resort advantage and the 7 month vs 11 month window (i.e. I booked our Nov 2015 trip in Dec 2014 and still had trouble with BCV availability. Another example: we decided in Aug 2015 to go in Jan 2016 and our home resorts were totally booked)
2) a DVC room is not like a regular hotel room: you don't get housekeeping daily for example
3) understand annual dues
4) do not buy for the perks: Disney can taketh and giveth away perks (i.e. AP pricing/discounts, TiW pricing/discounts, etc, etc, etc, etc)

Things that I hear/read most often is being upset that they don't get housekeeping daily, that DVC members are not treated similarly to other customers (lets be honest: Disney knows they "have us"), and disappointment with having to plan so far ahead (see my examples above).

 

[DVC Mike]

Thank you so much again for all of your responses. After looking at the prices of flights, it's obviously much less expensive to fly to Florida than to Hawaii, although I'd love to vacation in Hawaii every year! But, of course, Florida has all of the WDW attractions! So, what I'm getting is that I cannot make a a WDW home resort in Florida through the direct sales? For instance, I haven't signed the contract yet, it's all coming in the mail in about 7 days. I was wondering if I could call my Disney sales guy and ask him if I can redo the contract with a WDW resort in Florida versus Aulani?

Have you read the Comprehensive Introduction to DVC thread yet?

I strongly recommend you do.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Got questions about DVC?
★ ☆ ★ THE DVC INFORMATION CENTER ★ ☆ ★
in the DVC Forums has the answers to your questions about the Disney Vacation Club.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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