Considering DVC

[islandtimect]

If you go every year, stay in deluxe resorts, and can afford to buy DVC for cash, then DVC can save you money. Factoring in our original purcahse cost and annual maintenance fees, each night costs us $140-$170 depending on the time of year we visit and type of accomodations we book. You can't book a deluxe room on property for near that price. But if you need to finance or stay in values or mods, it's not a good idea.

 

[rmcildw2m]

DVC can only save you $ over paying direct for a deluxe resort . If you are only staying value or moderate than it will not save $ for you .

 

[staceymay00]

Can anyone help me to understand if DVC saves money over booking direct?

To more directly answer this question, yes, DVC can absolutely save you money over booking directly with Disney paying rack rates. Rack rate for our upcoming 5 night stay in a 2BR villa at OKW is whopping $4,698 including tax (3 nights fall in the very highest pricing season). That 5 night stay is costing us 196 points. I put the cost of our points at around $7 per point (up front cost per point divided by number of years left on contract, plus MFs per point for this year), which totals $1372 for a 196 point stay. I ignore the opportunity cost if we had invested the money used for the initial purchase, btw, but still there is clearly a savings over rack rate. The thing is, we would never pay anywhere close to $4,698 for a five night stay at OKW, so I don't view that difference in price as money we saved. I think it is important to compare the cost of DVC to what you are actually spending on resort rooms, plus think about how owning DVC night cause you to take more frequent trips, stay longer, etc. Some people might be ok with DVC increasing their trip costs because they think what they are getting in return is worth it. Some, however, might not realize they are spending more each year, not less, and come to regret their purchase.

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[Mickey'sApprentice]

IMHO, a small contract for someone who loves staying deluxe at WDW is a good value.

We get to go to WDW 3X in 2 years by going in off season and staying in a standard boardwalk studio. That is pretty good mileage on 100 points.

However, we would have never gone that often, would have never bought APs and would have never spent so much money on food.

We are about to take our first cash trip since we bought in 2006. It turns out I've got a January conference in Orlando and will be able to borrow again in February. We took the AP deal and hope to take my nephews this Summer.

 

[KingRichard]

To more directly answer this question, yes, DVC can absolutely save you money over booking directly with Disney paying rack rates. Rack rate for our upcoming 5 night stay in a 2BR villa at OKW is whopping $4,698 including tax (3 nights fall in the very highest pricing season). That 5 night stay is costing us 196 points. I put the cost of our points at around $7 per point (up front cost per point divided by number of years left on contract, plus MFs per point for this year), which totals $1372 for a 196 point stay. I ignore the opportunity cost if we had invested the money used for the initial purchase, btw, but still there is clearly a savings over rack rate. The thing is, we would never pay anywhere close to $4,698 for a five night stay at OKW, so I don't view that difference in price as money we saved. I think it is important to compare the cost of DVC to what you are actually spending on resort rooms, plus think about how owning DVC night cause you to take more frequent trips, stay longer, etc. Some people might be ok with DVC increasing their trip costs because they think what they are getting in return is worth it. Some, however, might not realize they are spending more each year, not less, and come to regret their purchase.

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I second this and was about to post the same comments.

Our cost per point is $6(resale) at least for now(dues will increase every year).

We stayed at VGC for 150 points(our cost $900) at the time of the stay with discounts $3,000 + tax.

Just stayed at SSR 150 points(cost $900) and rack rates were $3,600 + tax.

No discounts for Christmas week!

These are apples to apples cost for the same room at the same resort for the same time period.

We could have stayed in a dump for $30 per night, so you can always go cheaper.

Might rent a house this summer for $100 per night(4 bedroom w/pool and hot tub) and go to the parks for free as we bought the premium park pass for $399(what a great deal).

So we will take advantage of being DVC and using other options that are available to us.

 

[Dean]

I second this and was about to post the same comments.

Our cost per point is $6(resale) at least for now(dues will increase every year).

We stayed at VGC for 150 points(our cost $900) at the time of the stay with discounts $3,000 + tax.

Just stayed at SSR 150 points(cost $900) and rack rates were $3,600 + tax.

No discounts for Christmas week!

These are apples to apples cost for the same room at the same resort for the same time period.

We could have stayed in a dump for $30 per night, so you can always go cheaper.

Might rent a house this summer for $100 per night(4 bedroom w/pool and hot tub) and go to the parks for free as we bought the premium park pass for $399(what a great deal).

So we will take advantage of being DVC and using other options that are available to us.

IMO, using the rack rates as the basis for savings is unreasonable unless one would have paid those costs anyway. that's true even if one uses a discounted rack rate. i would also suggest that there are ways to stay at nice timeshares off property for a much reduced fee> when i stay off property, my total costs are generally around $300 per week inclusive of indirect timeshare fees in resorts at least as nice as DVC.

 

[Caren90]

IMO, using the rack rates as the basis for savings is unreasonable unless one would have paid those costs anyway. that's true even if one uses a discounted rack rate. i would also suggest that there are ways to stay at nice timeshares off property for a much reduced fee> when i stay off property, my total costs are generally around $300 per week inclusive of indirect timeshare fees in resorts at least as nice as DVC.

I agree that using the rack rate as a comparison is not accurate to what someone would normally be willing to pay for his/her accommodations. On the other hand, you can get much cheaper (and sometimes nicer) timeshares off property, but then comparing them to DVC is not quite an equivalent comparison. Being on property is a major selling point of DVC and no other timeshare offers the same amenities for the location. It is somewhat of a unique timeshare product (Harborside at Atlantis is another that comes to mind).

Stephen

 

[BridgetR3]

IMO, using the rack rates as the basis for savings is unreasonable unless one would have paid those costs anyway. that's true even if one uses a discounted rack rate. i would also suggest that there are ways to stay at nice timeshares off property for a much reduced fee> when i stay off property, my total costs are generally around $300 per week inclusive of indirect timeshare fees in resorts at least as nice as DVC.

Honestly you can't spend a week at a moderate for $900 if we are comparing.

 

[Dean]

I agree that using the rack rate as a comparison is not accurate to what someone would normally be willing to pay for his/her accommodations. On the other hand, you can get much cheaper (and sometimes nicer) timeshares off property, but then comparing them to DVC is not quite an equivalent comparison. Being on property is a major selling point of DVC and no other timeshare offers the same amenities for the location. It is somewhat of a unique timeshare product (Harborside at Atlantis is another that comes to mind).

Stephen

Not everyone values staying on property enough to pay double or triple that a comparable off property timeshare. Roughly looking at buy in and yearly costs. IMO you can compare off property, you just have to assign a value to the various components inc on property, theming, pool and other common areas, room size/quality and activities plus any others important to you. while I enjoy the DVC resorts, we routinely drive over buses so it's not a big deal to us either way.

Honestly you can't spend a week at a moderate for $900 if we are comparing.

I routinely stay in DVC 1 & 2 BR for a week for $400 inclusive of all fees. The $900 number quoted ignores the up front costs and time value of money. The real cost for a single 150 point stay depends on when/how you bought and whether you financed. Assuming a current resale purchase, you've got an up front costs in the $8500 range. Depending on your assumptions, that's somewhere above $200 a year extra. One can routinely get a moderate for the $1100 real cost or less for 4 though some views, times and unit types will be modestly more. IMO a DVC studio is the best value and is worth it compared to a moderate but there are real costs

 

[KingRichard]

I really wish someone could provide proof of a DVC 2 BD for a week at the cost of $400!

It always seems the numbers never add up. Please tell us how when most other timeshares out there have $800-1000 dues every year plus membership cost.

 

[bighoo93]

I really wish someone could provide proof of a DVC 2 BD for a week at the cost of $400!

I wouldn't hold my breath for proof, but even an explanation would be nice. The cheapest week and resort in terms of points for a 2 BR DVC resort is 141 at HHI in Adventure Season.

 

[zavandor]

I think it's probably a trade in using another timeshare with low MF and RCI.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I wouldn't hold my breath for proof, but even an explanation would be nice. The cheapest week and resort in terms of points for a 2 BR DVC resort is 141 at HHI in Adventure Season.

Dean is the King of Timeshares. He states facts.

 

[crisi]

I think it's probably a trade in using another timeshare with low MF and RCI.

That's pretty much it.

My sister does the same thing - five trips to Disney and once they ended up over at Bonnet Creek instead of at a DVC resort and had to drive. But they drive anyway, buses aren't a big deal, and Bonnet Creek has very nice rooms and an excellent pool. Mickey and Stitch don't wake you up in the morning. She's stayed at BCV, BWV, VAKL and SSR. Plus she gets direct access to RCI and RCIs full inventory of resorts - unlike my DVC membership. And she does it for less - her buy in was less and her dues are less.

Bonnet Creek wasn't built when we bought - and we do like the buses especially with teenagers who get around on their own now. But Bonnet Creek is really tempting - very nice, close - especially for someone who isn't a Disney Transportation person.

ETA: There is risk to this sort of approach - once in a while you'll end up off site - you should always be able to get Orlando though because its a hugely overbuilt timeshare market. DVC used to be a lot harder to trade into and its possible that DVC could switch back to II from RCI and be removed from the system - or that the resort you buy into will switch. Being a timeshare person such as Dean takes a lot more knowledge, research and a little more time in booking than picking up the phone and calling member services. You have to know the rules - I don't - but I think that if you own an Orlando resort you won't be trading into DVC, so you need to understand what will trade in if getting into DVC is your goal and buy appropriately.

 

[bighoo93]

I think it's probably a trade in using another timeshare with low MF and RCI.

I see. Thanks.

 

[bighoo93]

Dean is the King of Timeshares. He states facts.

Umm..OK. Anyway...

I was just wondering how he got such great deals to stay at DVC. I didn't realize that was an unworthy question for message board royalty. Someone else already answered in a single sentence. Perhaps it was one of the King's subjects.

 

[Dean]

I really wish someone could provide proof of a DVC 2 BD for a week at the cost of $400!

It always seems the numbers never add up. Please tell us how when most other timeshares out there have $800-1000 dues every year plus membership cost.

We had this discussion here on DIS within the last year or so I believe and it was fairly extensive so I won't go into that with as much detail. My statement was that my fees were as stated, I would agree it's not possible to go out and buy a single timeshare week (or similar) and match those rates.

I went back to my RCI accounts and counted 9 1 & 2 BR stays at DVC locations. For II before that I count 22 weeks to DVC. Exchange fees are just under $200 and the resort services fee is $95. One quirk on the resort services fee is it's $95 for a stay to for multiple weeks at the same resort, it's one fee. I get 3 free weeks a year I can deposit and I get deposits that cost me in the range of $75-100 each. The RCI weeks account is included in my bluegreen account. Can anyone do it, the answer is yes but not for a single week. For a single week about the best you're going to get out for is $1000 a week, still far cheaper than owning DVC points though with some risk and hassle just like the reverse using DVC for exchanging. It is a moving target as a given timeshare system changes and as RCI changes, esp increasing the TPU for DVC. I'd venture that my costs are likely going up by about $50-100 per week going forward if the current systems remain stable.

 

[bighoo93]

I went back to my RCI accounts and counted 9 1 & 2 BR stays at DVC locations. For II before that I count 22 weeks to DVC. Exchange fees are just under $200 and the resort services fee is $95. One quirk on the resort services fee is it's $95 for a stay to for multiple weeks at the same resort, it's one fee. I get 3 free weeks a year I can deposit and I get deposits that cost me in the range of $75-100 each. The RCI weeks account is included in my bluegreen account. Can anyone do it, the answer is yes but not for a single week. For a single week about the best you're going to get out for is $1000 a week, still far cheaper than owning DVC points though with some risk and hassle just like the reverse using DVC for exchanging. It is a moving target as a given timeshare system changes and as RCI changes, esp increasing the TPU for DVC. I'd venture that my costs are likely going up by about $50-100 per week going forward if the current systems remain stable.

Very nice. Now I'm going to call you the King of Timeshares, too. I don't care what David Siegel thinks...

 

[Deb & Bill]

Very nice. Now I'm going to call you the King of Timeshares, too. I don't care what David Siegel thinks...

I told you.

 

[Dean]

Umm..OK. Anyway...

I was just wondering how he got such great deals to stay at DVC. I didn't realize that was an unworthy question for message board royalty. Someone else already answered in a single sentence. Perhaps it was one of the King's subjects.

Let me give you an extreme example. 3 years ago we stayed 2 weeks in Cabo at a resort on DVC/RCI's Registry Collection. Had we used DVC points it would have been 1500 points, our cost was $300 per week with FF miles or air and a rental car for 2 weeks about $250. We had 7 2 BR units at the Wyndham in Nashville last Dec for family, total cost about $1400 for a family get together. I can give you multiple similar examples both domestic and Aruba including HI. We were in HI this past summer for 3 weeks all OS/OF in resorts as nice or nicer than DVC resorts for 5 people.