Confused about use year

[disneyjunkie]

Can someone please explain why use year is so important?

I've been reading as much as I can(hope to buy this August or September)however, I'm just not completely understanding the whole use year thing.

I know that use year determines when the points will be released each year.

What I don't get it how or if the use year plays a role in when we'll be able to vacation.

When you purchase, do you get to pick your use year or do you go with what's available?

Which use year works best for those who only travel when school is out?(February, April, August, maybe Christmas)

I know that December/Christmas is a busy time for DVCers, but what about August?

Sorry for all the questions. I'm just trying to find out all I can before I take the leap.

Oh, I'm hoping to purchase at AKV.

 

[Mtnman44]

Use year has no role in determinging WHEN you can vacation. It only comes into play with banking deadlines. You can only bank 100% of your points during the first 6 months of your use year and then only partially thereafter for a few months.

So, if your vacationing habits normally fall into a certain time of the year, the best advice is to have a UY month such that your vacation is in the first six months of your use year, that way if plans change or you need to cancel, you could still either bank the points and/or have a lot of time left in your UY to use them up.

However, obviously you won't travel at the exact same time every year for the next 40 years so it's not THAT big of a deal. No need to stress too much over use year. If you mostly travel when school is out (I assume summer and an occasional Christmas), then perhaps June would be a good use year for you.

 

[wildernessDad]

I know that use year determines when the points will be released each year.

What I don't get it how or if the use year plays a role in when we'll be able to vacation.

When you purchase, do you get to pick your use year or do you go with what's available?

Which use year works best for those who only travel when school is out?(February, April, August, maybe Christmas)

I know that December/Christmas is a busy time for DVCers, but what about August?

I am sure that others will add in. As you know, your use year (UY) determines when in the year you receive your annual allotment of vacation points. For example, if April were your UY, then you would get your annual allotment of points on April 1 of every year and you would have up to and including March 31 of the following year to use them or lose them UNLESS you bank them to the next UY.

If you are purchasing from Disney, you would be able to select your UY subject to availability.

You have 6 months from the time you get your points to bank 100 % of them. So, if you knew that you were going on vacation every August, for example, a July or August UY would be good for you since you would then have time to bank your points if for some reason you could not go. I did not cover banking in detail and there are other particulars. Since your question is UY, we can save banking for later.

Since it looks like you may vacation at many different times of the year, it probably does not matter what your UY is as long as you are aware of the banking deadlines for your particular UY and what that all means. Also, if you feel like once you've book a vacation, you would most likely not have to cancel, then it probably does not matter what your UY is.

UY is not really that big of a deal if you can plan and go when you want or if you feel like there might be several times that you would be able to go throughout the year.

 

[hellerjw]

I agree with the other posters. UY doesn't really matter if you can be flexible. It is mainly discussed because of its role in determining when you can bank your points for future dates.

You have 6 months from your UY to bank 100% of your points. For this reason, most recommend a UY at or slightly before the times you travel most. This way you get the most flexibility should you need to cancel a reservation and go a few months later and/or bank your points into the next UY.

No single UY will cover you February through December (in terms of your 100% banking window), so it isn't something to get hung up over. Depending on availability when purchasing, you usually have a choice of several UYs to choose from. If you can be flexible in your scheduling then UY is really nothing more than the date your next point allotment comes available.

Your vacation habits and schedules will change over time, and since the newer resort contracts (SSR & AKV) are for 47 & 50 years, there is no single UY that works in all cases. It is just a banking issue for the most part, so there is no need to worry too much about it.

 

[CarolMN]

Here are two threads that will be of interest to anyone who is having a bit of trouble understanding use year:

Use Year?

Understanding Use Year

 

[disneyjunkie]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to clear things up for me.