Considering DVC..Couple Questions

[EGLSMOMMY]

Hi Everyone,

We are considering purchasing into DVC and I have a couple questions I was hoping someone could help me with. I am probably driving my guide crazy with all the questions I've had for her.

I know your points can be willed to your children, etc, but is there some place you put them down as beneficiary or something like that or do you have to actually have a will with the DVC listed? I'm just curious if something were to happen to my husband and I, what would happen to our membership??

Also, did anyone purchase without doing a tour first? We haven't toured and I'm wondering if we should. My husband says, "Why bother? We know we'll like it anyway." I am undecided on Saratoga Springs or Animal Kingdom Villas, any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Deb & Bill]

You can't add minor children to the deed. Just leave your DVC membership in your will. Another thing, if you have more than one child, you will need to either purchase more than one contract or stipulate in your will that they will share it. You can't break up a contract into smaller ones. And your first contract directly from Disney (unless you buy one via resale first) will have to be 160 points.

If you do add your adult children to the deed (or any other person), you run the risk of your membership being part of any settlement that they may enter into such as a divorce or lawsuit. And it might count against them for college loans as assets.

We haven't stayed at AKV yet (we'll wait until Kidani village opens because of the difference in room layouts between Jambo House and Kidani Village), but we have stayed at SSR and thought it was very nice. We are partial to OKW (our first home resort) and SSR has a similar feel to it with the community-type layout versus the hotel environment.

 

[dnoyes]

I think you need to will it to your kids. As for buying without seeing the resort? That's up to you. We LOVE Animal kingdom so for us we would have never gone DVC if they didn't have it with AK. On our last trip we spent two days touring the resorts just to see where we would land next trip. We ended up where we started. Done deal for us. Hope that helps a little?

 

[GranddadTom]

I believe that the tour part is important - not to learn about how DVC works (you already know that) but to see which of the properties you'd like to have as your home resort. Remember you can buy at any of them through resale. My wife and I walked around each of the properties before we decided on the BWV. You'd be surprised at how different the resorts are and how each offers something a little different than the others. Disney knew what it was doing when it designed each. It just a matter of what strikes a chord with you. With the eleven month booking window becoming so important if you plan on going at busy times, the resort you select as home is also becoming important. Go luck.

 

[ucancallmeflower]

How can you tell on a resale how many years are left???

 

[msabol01]

All contracts will expire in the year 2042 except for Saratoga Springs (2054), Animal Kingdom (2057) and the extended contract Old Key West properties (2057). I haven't noticed any extended OKW properties on resale, I am guessing those with the extended contracts will be noted and command a high price per point.

 

[littlestar]

We didn't tour before we bought. We bought via the phone. AKL decor is a little dark for my tastes, but the different room categories (value, concierge, etc., is a nice option with that 11 month booking window advantage).

We actually like SSR's decor better (the grounds and trees, flowers, etc., reminds us of BWV). Our kids like that SSR is close to downtown Disney and offsite restaurants are nearby. We have listed our grown children as Associate Members (meaning they can call DVC and book vacations).

 

[Judy WI]

Also, did anyone purchase without doing a tour first? We haven't toured and I'm wondering if we should. My husband says, "Why bother? We know we'll like it anyway." I am undecided on Saratoga Springs or Animal Kingdom Villas, any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

We bought with out a tour. I had been to disney a few times and knew the area I wanted, BCV. Purchased 100 units resale to start, notice I say to start. Controling the add-ons is a everyday battle. Went to BCV and loved it, I like the hotel feeling not the apartment/condo feeling and being close to Epcot. But everyone has what they like and dislike.
Just a suggestion you may want to see if you can get your points in seperate amounts. Say if you buy 160 get two 80 units. They will be the same to use but easier to sell and give to 2 kids. I am sure you can do this, maybe someone with more knowledge can back that up. We have added our add-ons at 25 points at a time. That way we can pay it off as we purchase and if we have to sell those 25 units are very easy to sell.

 

[disfanforlife]

We were in the same position as you. I would have liked to tour first but decided to buy anyways without touring. We knew we wanted to go to WDW in November and just didn't want to stay in a moderate or shell out big $$$ for a deluxe again. So, we decided let's just do it! We bought 200 points at AKV. Part of our reason is we have a family of 5 and it will be nice to be able to stay in a 1 bedroom if we are short on points one year although hopefully we will plan well and stay in a 2 bedroom. We were happy with getting the developer points at SSR and are staying in a 2 bedroom in Nov. for 6 nights and are very excited!!! Our first trip "home" will either be in Nov. 09 or winter 2010. As far as the willing goes - I haven't checked into too much yet. We will probably have to call our attorney and ask him how best to go about it. We didn't get our contract broken up, but hopefully we will figure something out!

 

[joech]

We are heading down to the travel expo next week and most likely we will purchase DVC at AKV. We stayed at AKL twice last year and we just felt in love with the resort. We took the tour and we didn't like SSR all that much so we decided to either purchase DVC at AKV or nothing.

 

[EGLSMOMMY]

Thank you all for the responses and suggestions. After talking to my guide yesterday, I think I am leaning towards AKV. Now, I just have to decide if I'm really ready to take the plunge. I think I will be disappointed if I don't do it, but I am still a little nervous!! We have been going at least once a year, sometimes twice a year, but we usually stayed at the Value or Moderate resorts, since we were never in the room anyway. Now, we have a baby, so we will probably be in the room more often and appreciate the kitchen area.

 

[ucancallmeflower]

Having the kitchen and just more space to spread out with a little one is a BIG PLUS!!!