crazy question about DVC "home" resort

[cbonewjersey]

OK, so SSR is a great deal right now at $90pp with 2009 pts thrown in, etc. etc. you all heard this...but if I don't really want to stay there, and would rather be at BLT or BW, is it smart to save the money and buy SSR instead of the more expensive other properties that have shorter life deeds??

 

[cbonewjersey]

or better put, why would you pay more $/pt for one resort over another? Is it solely to get the 11 month booking window??

 

[corky441]

The adage is: Buy where you want to stay.

That said, finding a studio or villa at BLT or BWV at certain times a year can/will be diffcult if you're not booking with your home resort 11 month booking window.

Not to say impossible, but difficult at certain times of the year

 

[chalee94]

if I don't really want to stay there, and would rather be at BLT or BW, is it smart to save the money and buy SSR...??

IMO, no - it's not smart.

if you'd be happy at SSR but want to try other resorts, you'll often be successful at 7 months out...buy SSR and save some money - if you have to stay there, you're still happy to be at wdw.

but if you'd feel "stuck" and disappointed if you had to stay at SSR when nothing else came through, will you still be happy over the "savings?"

the 11 month window is no big deal? sometimes it matters:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2488740

 

[Crystal_27]

IMO, no - it's not smart.

if you'd be happy at SSR but want to try other resorts, you'll often be successful at 7 months out...buy SSR and save some money - if you have to stay there, you're still happy to be at wdw.

but if you'd feel "stuck" and disappointed if you had to stay at SSR when nothing else came through, will you still be happy over the "savings?"

the 11 month window is no big deal? sometimes it matters:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2488740

Yup - another recommendation for buying where you want to stay. If you think in terms of the long run, your BLT contract is "only" going to cost you a couple thousand more than SSR, yet *every single year* you are going to have to deal with the masses who want to book at BLT at the 7 month mark. Is a couple thousand really worth the headache and worry of you not being able to stay where you want to?? For us, the answer was a resounding NO! Either way, good luck with your decision.

 

[disneynutz]

OK, so SSR is a great deal right now at $90pp with 2009 pts thrown in, etc. etc. you all heard this...but if I don't really want to stay there, and would rather be at BLT or BW, is it smart to save the money and buy SSR instead of the more expensive other properties that have shorter life deeds??

Is it smart? No not IMHO.

Do people do it anyway? By the thousands.

Will they have problems booking and be disappointed, many yes.

Will Disney change the rules which could impact non home resort stays, probably.

Bill

 

[treehugnmama]

we bought a ssr re-sale last year. I bought because I thought the treehouses would be cool. we had only stayed at okw and loved it. We bought we were told ssr was similar. on a recent trip we stayed at okw again on points and visited ssr for the day....we really DISLIKED the resort....nothing wrong with it but we LOVE OKW..

right now it is not an issue as we don't need gv and okw has been available when we wanted to stay. we booked lv at blt 7 months out as well as kidani at 4 months out....vb at 7 months out so we are happy.

if they change home reort rules i would be disapointed but with our points we went 3 times in 13 months had we paid rack rate our membership was already paid for so I would be disapointed but still feel it was a good deal at the time.

had I been to ssr I wouldn't have bought there.

 

[crisi]

It depends on what $6 per point is worth to you (and don't forget the extra years, they might be worth something or not to you as well). And whether you'd be heartbroken not to get into a different resort or your attitude is "its Disney!"

A lot of people buy SSR and are really happy. Its a great value and more often than not they can switch and stay other places - especially if they are flexible - if they want to. Its a lovely resort that a lot of people love and WANT to stay at.

But people also buy SSR and are disappointed. And they discover that the home booking advantage is more important than they thought it would be. DVC gets bigger all the time - BCV doesn't. And there aren't many people paying a premium for BCV contracts resale so they can go stay at SSR.

 

[JimMIA]

I would NEVER purchase points at a resort where I would NOT want to stay.

However, whether "buy where you want to stay" is the perfect answer for every inquiry depends on your family, your vacation habits, your job situation, etc. IMHO, "buy where you want to stay" is very appropriate if both of the following are true:

1. You really care where you stay. That could mean resort, view, type of accommodation, etc...AND
2. Your work/family situation is such that you can actually make reservations at 11 months, or at least more than seven months from arrival. If you can't...home resort doesn't matter except in terms of dues.

I also think any prospective buyer should be aware that there is a very active resale marketplace - served by reputable brokers, and closely regulated by the State of Florida - which can save you thousands of dollars. And no...I don't work for them. You mentioned SSR at $90 -- how about SSR at $62-65?

Before you commit, look around. Check The Timeshae Store DVC Resale listing link at the top of this page and get the full picture.

 

[Sandisw]

DVC is a big investment and to me, it makes no sense to save a few thousand dollars now to own at a resort you are not planning on using.

We went through the same process last year and ended up with BLT because we knew that we wanted to be there, wanted the 11 month window, and would not be happy at SSR, even though it would cost us $5000 less.

We looked at it this way. Even if we owned DVC for only 10 years and it was worth nothing after that, we really only spent $500 extra per year to own at BLT, the place we want to be at most.

To us, spending an extra $500 a year to be at a place we love was well worth it. Of course, we will own DVC much longer so in reality, it is even less.

To me, buy at a resort you would be okay with if you can not trade out. While many have a lot of success, some do not and end up having to stay at their home resort.

Good luck!

 

[Havana]

We went throught this decision just last week! SSR for the cheaper points, or BLT for the location and "newness". We flipflopped almost every day. It was really hard to decide.

We ran the numbers over and over for days. We found that although SSR is less initially to buy in, BLT's fees are less(right now anyway). It takes awhile, but say over 25 years the cost breaks even.
I thought at first why not get the SSR price, it doesn't matter where you buy. You still have the 7 month opportunity.

But then I started thinking, Bay Lake has so many advantages. Walk to MK, Monorail to all the resort restaurants. Monorail to Epcot. It does cost a few more points a night to stay there, but it's close to BC points.

Then I thought if I bought SSR, every time i looked at BLT, I would regret it.
And with BLT being in such demand, I was afraid that when I did want to stay there at 7 months, we would not be able to get a room. I do not see demand letting up, with it being next to MK.

I do want to try every resort, especially if I need to "stretch" my point value.
Which actually might be more often than we will use BLT. But it's nice knowing we can get BLT at 11 months.

I am so excited to call BLT my home, although it did cost me a few more thousand $ up front. We just bought last week, and already talking of adding more points within the next year. Maybe we will buy SSR points then.
Good Luck !

 

[drusba]

or better put, why would you pay more $/pt for one resort over another? Is it solely to get the 11 month booking window??

Yes that is the main reason to own at a resort. I would probably not buy at BWV now as a new purchaser because of the 2042 end date. Nevertheless, buying where you want to stay will continue to be important if you want any holiday times, month of December, BWV at food and wine, boardwalk or standard view at BWV, MK or standard view at BLT. Moreover, are you prepared to always call exactly 7 months out because more and more that is becoming necessary to get something at another resort because there are so many trying to get it at 7 months out. In other words, forget to call and delay a week into the 7 month window and you may get nothing. That also demonstrates another benefit of the 11 month window -- peace of mind in knowing you can always get what you want at 11 months out and avoid the stress around the 7 month window when you are hoping you get lucky. It is also an airline issue. For flights on some airlines the bargain rates are ones bought long out and if you are counting on the seven month window, you need to avoid getting non-refundable flights before then.

 

[mdsd8700]

We just bought at BLT last week and went through the same process of deciding between points and cost. In the end we came to the conclusion that pretty much everyone has said here, buy where you want to stay. Over the course of the 50 year contract there most likely would be times the 7 month window wouldn't work and we didn't want to get "stuck" somewhere we really didn't want to stay. Even though we would be in Disney for us the resort is a big deal. That is not true for everyone. We are lucky that we can plan 11 months out for our vacations so we will at least always be able to stay at BLT which is just fine for us. I am still a newbie so my experience isn't vast, but many giving their thoughts here are veterns, so think it through with all of the points they are making and I am sure you will come to the best conclusion for you. Good Luck and looking foward to being able to say "Welcome Home".

 

[yekcoh_99]

We were in your shoes last July, only our debate was between SSR and BCV resale contracts throught the Timeshare Store. In the end we purchased a 150 point resale contract at BCV. We spent between $1,500 and $2,000 more at that time than we would have had we gone with SSR. It was a big enough chunk of change for us, but I felt it was worth it in the end for peace of mind. SSR is beautiful, but I would have been disappointed to stay there compared to staying at the BCV if push came to shove -- so in the end I followed my heart and bought where I "really" wanted to stay. Having 2 toddlers BCV offered so many appealing things: SAB, the movies on the beach, the boardwalk area across the lake, Cape May character meals, the location in general.

And the deed for BCV may be shorter than the newer contracts (we weighed this option as well) but for us, we'll be in our 70's when our contract ends. Who knows where we'll be in life at that point and if Disney will still be our vacation get-away spot then. 32 years from now we may be (if this is possible) Disneyed out. lol Sure, we can pass it along to our kids if they want it. Perhaps Disney will offer an extension like they did for OKW. If not, all good things come to an end and I think at that time we'll be ok with it. Besides, with Add-on-itis we'll probably have another contract or two to still use. So in the end we didn't let the contract end date weigh as heavily into our decision as "buy where you want to stay" did.

And yes - you never know if Disney will take away the ability to stay at other resorts. I hear talk of it on the boards, but am skeptical if it would actually really ever happen. Could it though --- yes, you never know. That possibility also tipped the scales for us to buy BCV. I would have kicked myself in the end if we always got "stuck" at SSR because we wanted to save a couple thousand dollars. Over the next 32 year a couple thousand dollars will probably seem rather measely compared to having the vacation of our dreams each time. We just booke at the 11 month window for BCV next May. I can't contain how excited I am. I know for sure now that I am SO HAPPY we put up a little more cash to buy where we really wanted to stay.

Good luck with your decision!!!!

 

[missycj96]

I went through this decision as well so I will share with you my considerations:

The short answer is yes, the advantage is the 11 month window (plus low dues for BLT)

Here is my long answer:

I chose SSR resale because I wanted a good amount of points. I bought last July - so far, I have stayed at VWL, BCV, BWV and BLT. The only peak type holiday period I stayed was President's week at BLT and I called at exactly 7 months out, and used a waitlist to get all the nights in the room I wanted. That said, I do like SSR enough that if I wanted a particular date and that was what was available, I would certainly stay there (we stayed at SSR for a week before I purchased so I knew what I was buying).

Note that at BLT, I have NEVER been able to get a MK view, and standard is very hard to come by. Will you be satisfied with a Lake View (which is beautiful but is not MK and does not save you points like standard). If you think you will want to regularly go over Christmas week, then absolutely buy where you want to stay.

SSR is a beautiful resort with one of the best pools and I would say the best activities. The only issue for me is that I don't really like to deal with a rental car and drive from the airport unless my husband is with me. So when I go down with my mom and DD4, I prefer to use magical express and stay at a resort where I don't feel I need a car (and for me this is BLT, BWV, BCV and VWL so I have some options).

The 11 month window for BLT would be fantastic, but I couldn't spend enough money to buy enough points to truly enjoy my membership. The flip side to this is that the dues at BLT are pretty low and over time the initial savings from buying at a lower per point price will be eroded by the difference in dues.

You have decide what is most important to you with your membership - for me it is the freedom to be able to go down to WDW when I want, stay as long as I want, share with my family (which requires more points).

If you only have a certain amount to spend you have to decide what is more important to you - the guarantee of the 11 month booking window and getting exactly what you want for the dates you want or getting more points, or saving money.

Another question that you have to ask yourself is can you plan more than 7 months out - if you can't then you may as well save the money because you will lose the advantage. I have planned a few trips on relatively short notice and been lucky (and flexible).

I hope this helps you in you. I have been happy with my decision to buy in at SSR - which offers a pretty low resale purchase price, reasonable dues and a late expiration date. But the choice is personal.

 

[TisBit]

When I bought SSR, I had a choice of SSR or AKV. I didn't really know anything about either resort, other than basics. The points cost roughly the same and MF's were higher at AKV. I really enjoy going to DTD and figured SSR was better for me. I really didn't care to pay for the animal feed at AKV.

I have no problems staying at SSR and wouldn't hesitate to stay there, plus now I have an advantage of 11 month window for THV's! We bought an add on last year and decided to buy BLT, more to have a different booking advantage somewhere else. I am not necessarily dying to go to BLT, but it has a good location and the financials worked out (slightly higher per point cost at the time and lower MF's).....if we didn't buy at BLT we would have bought SSR again.

I do plan on staying at all the other resorts, but don't mind doing that when there is availability, but I will always book my home resort first to ensure a room. It is a decision you have to make and if you detest SSR or listen to all the posts that SSR and OKW owners are second class, guess you should buy somewhere else. I personally love my home resort and have seen DVC making good changes to address any real issues there (new pool and quick service coming in, improved transportation a bit....which I think they will continue to tweak with THV's coming in).

 

[nickcapp]

Buy where you want to stay.

We have a BCV contract and I added on at SSR.

I bank and borrow and now can alternate longer stays at the Beach Club and the Tree House Villas every other year. This is exactly what I want to do.

Some years I may attempt to stay somewhere else for a change, but no sweat if I can't get it at the 7th month window. I have been very fortunate to have been able to already stay at EVERY DVC resort but VGF and WL oddly enough.

 

[Jason@dvcstore]

OK, so SSR is a great deal right now at $90pp with 2009 pts thrown in, etc. etc. you all heard this...but if I don't really want to stay there, and would rather be at BLT or BW, is it smart to save the money and buy SSR instead of the more expensive other properties that have shorter life deeds??

If you typically make reservations less than 7 months in advance in my opinion this is a great idea. If you typically make reservations more than 7 months in advance than you would want to own at the resort you like best as currently that is the only place you could stay.

In my opinion if Disney is going to make a change they will change it to 11 months and 10 months instead of 11 months and 7 months.

Jason

 

[yitbos96bb]

buy where you want to stay.

We have a bcv contract and i added on at ssr.

I bank and borrow and now can alternate longer stays at the beach club and the tree house villas every other year. This is exactly what i want to do.

Some years i may attempt to stay somewhere else for a change, but no sweat if i can't get it at the 7th month window. I have been very fortunate to have been able to already stay at every dvc resort but vgf and wl oddly enough.

vgf?

 

[nickcapp]

I meant VGC! Villas at Grand Californian! Is that the right acronymn?