Debating whether to get back in to DVC or not

[glamdring269]

Hi all, having a bit of a friendly family debate over DVC and just looking for other opinions here.

2 Adults / 0 kids. Late 30s/Early 40s. We tend to travel to WDW/Universal every other year for a week combined. I don't foresee this pattern changing anytime soon as we really enjoy traveling to different locations.

So here's the deal. We bought a BRV 75pt contract back in 2012 and just sold it off during early-Covid uncertainty. No regrets there at all really as we basically stayed 4 times on that contract for near free given what we paid vs. what we got for the contract a few months back. The plan was to get out of the 2042 contract and buy back in on an even smaller point contract at a resort that's still TBD for us.

I'll be honest. Part of me is leaning towards just avoiding the attachment since, as of the moment, we could always just stay at the Swolphin and get all of the Disney amenities we care about plus still have walking advantage to Epcot and DHS. I have a feeling that most of you would probably agree with me given the dynamics of our WDW travel style. On the other hand, we could get a small 50-60 point contract at a place with some type of advantage like BLT or completely punt and go cheapish with either SSR or AKV. I know we like staying at AKV as we have done so 3x before. Have never stayed at SSR but we like going to Disney Springs at night and would consider that to not be a terrible pro if we had to stay at SSR. We'd also consider Poly as we love that location but I have a (perhaps irrational) fear of studio point cost increase there.

Anyway, longish post and thanks for reading. Would appreciate some other opinions on this.

 

[sethschroeder]

Originally when we bought in we were looking at an every other year. I don't see an issue with going every other year just a little more risk since all your banked points have to be used in a certain year.

I had looked at Swan/Dolphin a couple times but couldn't get over the cost for a non Disney resort. I would think DVC would save you money off that especially when times are good.

Another option might be renting DVC but you really need to do the math yourself and ask yourself if you would rather own and have more control over your reservations or rent and possibly have a more varied cost each trip.

 

[CarolMN]

For your pattern, every other year for 3 or 4 nights, my advice is to rent. I don't think you will save much, if anything by buying - the break even is probably several years.

To me, the flexibility and lack of a long term commitment more than offsets any future savings.

 

[MICKIMINI]

It's an emotional thing and if you want it buy again! I'm seeing more small contracts out there recently so start stalking the resale listings again. Happy hunting!

 

[RoseGold]

It was a good run, but sounds like renting points might work fine for you. You understand the system and should be able to do that without locking yourself down. Add in closing costs on a small resale contract and renting looks even better.

There are some nice Universal resorts as well, off site properties, all kinds of things that don’t require you to be locked into Disney.

I might reconsider this answer if you have someone you want to pass DVC to AND your estate wants to deal with probating land in Florida.

Edit to add re Poly: They can only reshuffle points, not just make studios cost more. Poly can't really change the chart much, since it's pretty much all studios. If they made the bungalows cheaper (why?), even that wouldn't impact the studios much. I can see the highest peak -- spring break, holidays -- keep elevating, but that only makes the chart cheaper off peak.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I sold my DVC a few years back. Several times I have toyed with the idea of rebuying a small contract at BCV specifically for F&W. So far I have opted against it for a few reasons.

That said, if you are happy staying at the Swan/Dolphin, at least right now there are deals to be had. Not sure how long that will last once things start returning to normal.
I just booked one night at the Dolphin for an excellent price. I also looked at resident special for BCV, but was blown away by the price for one night.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

Logically, you are fine just booking at Disney hotels. But it sounds like you may want to buy just because. No harm either way.

 

[kboo]

I agree - I would mix it up between Swolphin and renting if I were you. For about 3-4 years before buying DVC, we rented points and used Starwood/Marriott points to stay at the Swolphin. Like PPs, I think the flexibility and freedom from MFs would be nice to have, and it's a renter's market for now, especially if you would like to try various resorts. By the time we bought DVC, we had 2 small kids and "needed" more space and a kitchen, although we have also taken several split stays at the Swolphin to stretch our points since then.

 

[upritbass]

So here's the deal. We bought a BRV 75pt contract back in 2012 and just sold it off during early-Covid uncertainty. No regrets there at all really as we basically stayed 4 times on that contract for near free given what we paid vs. what we got for the contract a few months back

This!

the break even is probably several years.

How do you define ‘break even’? If it is ‘use the points and throw them away’ then break-even may be several years, but after that you are golden. If it is ‘use the points, then sell them’ the break-even could be immediate depending on the property. For example, we bought VGC at $185/pt eleven months ago — it is now selling for $225-$245/pt.

You also should take into account that hotel prices will continue to rise, whereas if you buy into DVC your costs are very nearly fixed.

 

[RoseGold]

You also should take into account that hotel prices will continue to rise, whereas if you buy into DVC your costs are very nearly fixed.

I mean, the room cost is, I guess. But this is still three days of Disney tickets and food, which have only gone up. And competing products have improved (Universal, parks abroad). Add in some changes to Fast Pass and things like hard ticket events, and staying on site might have less and less appeal. I wouldn't lock into a timeshare plus closing costs to lock in a few days of a hotel every other year. Just pay cash or rent points. Little Mermaid rooms are on the Skyliner too.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

You also should take into account that hotel prices will continue to rise, whereas if you buy into DVC your costs are very nearly fixed.

Well, over the life of your contract the annual dues are by far the most expensive part of your membership, and annual dues certainly are not “nearly fixed”.

 

[Stargazer65]

If you’re contemplating, then you probably really want to do it, so you should definitely buy your way back into DVC. I had a small contract for a long time, and I felt like adding on. But I hem’d and haw’d over the cost for years. Finally I realized if I didn’t buy more points, I’d just ending up wasting the money elsewhere on something else, like soap and toothpaste. So I finally jumped in and added on this year. It was inevitable anyway. Buy back in, that's my 2 cents.

 

[Lumpy1106]

It depends on your motivation to buy. One of the greatest benefits we've found is that it commits us to the trip - we ARE going. If we had booked our last trip in August any other way we would have cancelled FOR SURE. But because we had already paid our MF dues and had already committed the points, the trip was a go NMW. SO glad we did! I'm sure other circumstances will arise in years to come, PRAYING it won't be anything like COVID! We will be going, whatever it is - that much we know. Can't really put a price on that...

 

[RoseGold]

One of the greatest benefits we've found is that it commits us to the trip - we ARE going. If we had booked our last trip in August any other way we would have cancelled FOR SURE. But because we had already paid our MF dues and had already committed the points, the trip was a go NMW.

Renting points has the same benefit, though most people would consider it a major downside. You can also book cash rooms even further out than DVC.

 

[glamdring269]

Thanks all. Good discussion and good points all around. To kind of answer some of the comments/point...

- Why would we want to buy? This is a good question. To be honest I think it's basically a two fold response. First, I guess there is some emotional attachment there. Second, and this is the more important one I suppose, we would have greater flexibility vs. renting. Then again this is somewhat of a mirage because it only provides flexibility in terms of changing our mind. Renting actually offers greater flexibility when it comes to resort choice and lack of an ownership anchor.

- Rent vs. Buy? I guess this one was answered above. Our first DVC experience was via rental. The only negative there was the fear of having to cancel. It's been awhile since I've looked at rental but assume there aren't a lot of good outs in place there. Perhaps renting privately via the boards offers a bit more flexibility than a place like David's (pre-Covid rental)

- I guess one other point is that prior to renting DVC we stayed at Port Orleans - FQ. That was actually a really nice stay and the room was just fine for our style. I would never choose to stay there over some of the location benefits provided by BC/BWV or the on-site awesomeness of a place like AKV. With that said, the Skyliner has piqued our interest in a place like Caribbean Beach. Sure the rooms are what they are but outside of that you basically get the same benefits as Riviera for moderate pricing.

The more I type the more I think we'll hold on to our cash for now and consider renting, Swolphin, Caribbean Beach, etc.!

 

[poofyo101]

when in doubt, just buy it.