Does Owning a Small DVC Contract Make Sense?

[Deb & Bill]

Studios are getting harder and harder to book.

Just a few details. BLT one bedroom has a king bed, queen sleeper sofa and twin sleeper chair.
If you are a DVC member and want to get extra points from another member, you don't rent points. You transfer points and you are limited to one transfer per year in or out. When you rent points, you actually rent a reservation, not the points and you have no control over the reservation even if you are a DVC member who owns at that resort. If you don't own the points, it's like you are not a member at all (no pool hopping for one thing). If you can wait until seven month to make your reservation, you can purchase one time use points for $17 a point. You cannot purchase them before seven months and you must call MS to make the reservation that needs them.

 

[Dean]

I have been looking at DVC Resale for a while, and both my husband and I have been on the fence about it. We always seem to find reasonable deals at the deluxe resorts, which is why we have been reluctant, but have not enjoyed the limited amount of space for our party size (2 adults & 3 kids, who are currently 8). We like the idea of extra space, laundry facilities, possibly kitchen access, and discounted annual passes. The one downside of the DVC resorts, though, is that some of the studios don’t offer enough beds for everyone. That said, I am curious if there are others out there who simply buy a small contract (25-50 points) and rent the remaining points needed for their trip? Have you always been able to get the resort you want doing this? For instance, if you bought a small contract at Saratoga or OKW, were you still able to rent enough points at Polynesian or BLT? If our main interest is staying at BLT, should we try to buy a small contract there or would be still struggle with being able to secure a reservation since we would have to rent additional points? Our travel dates are flexible, as we recognize they would have to be. Also, If we buy a small contract through resale, are we still eligible for discounted annual passes and other perks?

Lots of thoughts though I'm unclear what your preferences are and the reasons for looking small. The studios won't give you much more space than a hotel room but it will give you some additional amenities compared to some. The 1 BR that sleep 5 would give you more room and options but will be more expensive than what you're doing now though it will give you a better value. IMO one needs to meet certain minimum criteria to make owning reasonable. Those include be able to afford it (to me that's pay cash), be OK with the compromises of a timeshare, plan at least 7 months out and have sufficient knowledge/experience of DVC and Disney. It sounds like you have sufficient Disney experience but might be lacking on the DVC info. I'd do a trial run renting points. I would not try to buy small and then supplement as a routine by renting additional points or paying for a transfer. Once one has enough info to know that DVC makes sense for them, then one has to decide on use year, number of points and home resort. I tend to favor the cheaper options for most new to Disney/DVC but it sounds like you have sufficient deluxe knowledge to make a better decision in that area than most. I don't think you can count on owning SSR and getting BLT or Poly consistently without using the wait list but I think both are feasible much of the time owning SSR/OKW.

 

[jlovesee]

You could always buy 50 points at a resort you would want to stay at, and by default get 11 months at and bank and borrow. For a 1 bedroom with five I believe BLT, AKV and OKW work. If you bank and borrow with 50 points you get 150 points to work with every three years, and it might be a nice idea to get your feet wet. Husband and I started with 25 and now we have 216, so just be aware you probably wouldn't stop with just one small contract.

I wouldn't recommend doing what we did because I guess most people find it confusing, but we own four resorts and 50-60 points at each and rotate through them pretty much every three years. So for example we own 50 points at BLT and book a 1 bedroom standard view there every three years during marathon weekend (which we couldn't do without owning there), for five nights.

Jennifer

 

[lovin'fl]

You could always buy 50 points at a resort you would want to stay at, and by default get 11 months at and bank and borrow. For a 1 bedroom with five I believe BLT, AKV and OKW work. If you bank and borrow with 50 points you get 150 points to work with every three years, and it might be a nice idea to get your feet wet. Husband and I started with 25 and now we have 216, so just be aware you probably wouldn't stop with just one small contract.

I wouldn't recommend doing what we did because I guess most people find it confusing, but we own four resorts and 50-60 points at each and rotate through them pretty much every three years. So for example we own 50 points at BLT and book a 1 bedroom standard view there every three years during marathon weekend (which we couldn't do without owning there), for five nights.

Jennifer

Your plan is a good one. We own three resorts and have 8 contracts between them that we bought over time. It's always easy to add on over time and smaller contracts are more manageable to buy. It will end up costing more in closing costs but worth it to buy as you have the cash. Plus if ever you need to downsize, you can sell off one of two contracts. If one buys, say, 250 points all in one contract then they'd have to sell that contract and buy a smaller one if they needed to downsize. And, as Jennifer points out, you can buy more than one home resort and have 11 month booking advantage at each resort you buy. We have BWV for F&W, HHI for summer and OKW (to use at 7 month window for our other faves like AKV). I wish we also had one of the Wilderness Lodges for Xmas trips.

 

[jlovesee]

Your plan is a good one. We own three resorts and have 8 contracts between them that we bought over time. It's always easy to add on over time and smaller contracts are more manageable to buy. It will end up costing more in closing costs but worth it to buy as you have the cash. Plus if ever you need to downsize, you can sell off one of two contracts. If one buys, say, 250 points all in one contract then they'd have to sell that contract and buy a smaller one if they needed to downsize. And, as Jennifer points out, you can buy more than one home resort and have 11 month booking advantage at each resort you buy. We have BWV for F&W, HHI for summer and OKW (to use at 7 month window for our other faves like AKV). I wish we also had one of the Wilderness Lodges for Xmas trips.

We paid cash for all of them that was the reason behind it, and though we have 5 contracts, we only paid closing on two of them, and only paid over $100 per point for one (Polynesian), and if I had known then what I know now I would have just bought more BLT points at that time instead of Poly, probably the only regret I have.

Jennifer

 

[chadwick61]

We paid cash for all of them that was the reason behind it, and though we have 5 contracts, we only paid closing on two of them, and only paid over $100 per point for one (Polynesian), and if I had known then what I know now I would have just bought more BLT points at that time instead of Poly, probably the only regret I have.

Jennifer

Not to hijack the thread, but why do you say you regret Poly? We have a small contract at BCV that will allow us to go every 18 months or 2 out of 3 years. As our 2 daughters get older we were going to get a similar contract at a MK resort and then alternate longer stays or perhaps, at least at BCV stay in a 1 bedroom. Is it because Poly are all studios?

 

[iheartglaciers]

Not to hijack the thread, but why do you say you regret Poly? We have a small contract at BCV that will allow us to go every 18 months or 2 out of 3 years. As our 2 daughters get older we were going to get a similar contract at a MK resort and then alternate longer stays or perhaps, at least at BCV stay in a 1 bedroom. Is it because Poly are all studios?

Not jlovesee, but some of the things I dislike about Poly are:

- The resort is generally busy (a lot of people are obviously coming for the restaurants)
- The resort is spread out and DVC buildings are a little far from the feature pool and main building (although closer to the TTC)
- If it's raining, it'll be an especially long walk to get food

That said, I do love Poly and may buy in there for my MK-area resort. But those are the downsides for me.

 

[jlovesee]

Not jlovesee, but some of the things I dislike about Poly are:

- The resort is generally busy (a lot of people are obviously coming for the restaurants)
- The resort is spread out and DVC buildings are a little far from the feature pool and main building (although closer to the TTC)
- If it's raining, it'll be an especially long walk to get food

That said, I do love Poly and may buy in there for my MK-area resort. But those are the downsides for me.

Don’t get me wrong I like Poly, the theme is awesome and the separate buildings don’t really bother me. I think a big part of it is that we stayed in a BLT 1 bedroom last January for the first time (other times we’ve only stayed in a studio), and it was AWESOME. I think a big part of it is that only in the last few years have we started staying in 1 bedrooms, because we reached enough total points to have enough to do that for a week. I guess that’s typical, you John thinking you’ll stay in studios and eventually work your way up to the bigger villas. I’ve been bitten pretty hard too we’re staying in a 2 bedroom this coming January!

Jennifer

 

[chadwick61]

Don’t get me wrong I like Poly, the theme is awesome and the separate buildings don’t really bother me. I think a big part of it is that we stayed in a BLT 1 bedroom last January for the first time (other times we’ve only stayed in a studio), and it was AWESOME. I think a big part of it is that only in the last few years have we started staying in 1 bedrooms, because we reached enough total points to have enough to do that for a week. I guess that’s typical, you John thinking you’ll stay in studios and eventually work your way up to the bigger villas. I’ve been bitten pretty hard too we’re staying in a 2 bedroom this coming January!

Jennifer

Yeah, the one and two bedrooms I have been in are quite nice! Because our daughters are just 1 and 4 we are planning on staying in studies for the next few years and then buy an additional contract to allow us to stay in 1 bedrooms when we need more space. We would love to stay in 1 bedrooms now, but can't swing that expense right now thanks to childcare costs! Thanks for your sharing your thoughts!

 

[frabjous]

I completely understand the renters perspective and feel they should keep something for the time they spent dealing with me and renting the points, however, I thought they were given ample time to re-rent the points and I don’t feel keeping half of what I paid (not half of what was due) when I canceled the reservation more than 11 months out is fair.

One other option you can do with your small contract strategy, that I just recently took advantage of for a stay at AKL, is you can book a DVC villa with just cash (provided there is availability), but as a DVC member you can get a fixed 25% discount off rack rate You then only have to make a partial deposit (one night + tax), which is fully refundable up to 5 days before the trip. You could combine this with your points by purchasing a day with points, and the rest with cash (provided they have inventory for both, its separate buckets).

 

[tasha99]

We have two small contracts (75 points at VGC and 75 at BWV). I think smaller than that would not work for us, because we like to get a room with a kitchen. This size allows us to go ever 2-3 years at each, though we sometimes rent out the BWV points. We ALWAYS use our VGC points, and I wish I had all my points there, but hindsight is 20/20.

Your idea of renting points to make up for being short is a little trickier than it sounds. To get the 11 month advantage, you'd have to get points from the same resort transferred in. Depends on when/how you travel, but sometimes it's hard to get certain rooms at 7 months.

 

[Deb & Bill]

One other option you can do with your small contract strategy, that I just recently took advantage of for a stay at AKL, is you can book a DVC villa with just cash (provided there is availability), but as a DVC member you can get a fixed 25% discount off rack rate You then only have to make a partial deposit (one night + tax), which is fully refundable up to 5 days before the trip. You could combine this with your points by purchasing a day with points, and the rest with cash (provided they have inventory for both, its separate buckets).

You need to know that some booking categories are never available for cash reservations.

 

[frabjous]

You need to know that some booking categories are never available for cash reservations.

Yeah I imagine it would be difficult to utilize this on the smaller properties, and in particular at prime time. When I was looking at ~6 months out for the week after thanksgiving, I easily found AK rooms and BLT rooms (studios, 1BR and I believe I saw 2 BR). Poly had nothing though.

 

[have2getaway]

Lots of thoughts though I'm unclear what your preferences are and the reasons for looking small. The studios won't give you much more space than a hotel room but it will give you some additional amenities compared to some. The 1 BR that sleep 5 would give you more room and options but will be more expensive than what you're doing now though it will give you a better value. IMO one needs to meet certain minimum criteria to make owning reasonable. Those include be able to afford it (to me that's pay cash), be OK with the compromises of a timeshare, plan at least 7 months out and have sufficient knowledge/experience of DVC and Disney. It sounds like you have sufficient Disney experience but might be lacking on the DVC info. I'd do a trial run renting points. I would not try to buy small and then supplement as a routine by renting additional points or paying for a transfer. Once one has enough info to know that DVC makes sense for them, then one has to decide on use year, number of points and home resort. I tend to favor the cheaper options for most new to Disney/DVC but it sounds like you have sufficient deluxe knowledge to make a better decision in that area than most. I don't think you can count on owning SSR and getting BLT or Poly consistently without using the wait list but I think both are feasible much of the time owning SSR/OKW.

We do have the cash to buy DVC, but are not certain it is right for us, which is why we wanted to start with a small contract. We only plan to do a Disney trip every other year, and so are skeptical about investing and paying fees for something that we might outgrow in 5 years. We like the idea of more space and kitchen and laundry facilities, but...to be honest, we like being on vacation and having daily housekeeping and dining out. We’ve always done the dining plan. What we really liked about the standard rooms at the Poly is that each of our kids were able to sleep in an actual bed. To spend the amount on some of the DVC resorts and have to have your kids sleep on a sofa bed or chair doesn’t appeal to us. We are planning another trip now for the Poly for next Jan (2019), and while it is expensive we really loved our experience at the Polynesian and with the agent who coordinated everything for us. The whole process made our trip completely stress-free. We’re just not sure we are ready to take on what is involved with the DVC process?? Did anyone else have these concerns before buying?

 

[Dean]

We do have the cash to buy DVC, but are not certain it is right for us, which is why we wanted to start with a small contract. We only plan to do a Disney trip every other year, and so are skeptical about investing and paying fees for something that we might outgrow in 5 years. We like the idea of more space and kitchen and laundry facilities, but...to be honest, we like being on vacation and having daily housekeeping and dining out. We’ve always done the dining plan. What we really liked about the standard rooms at the Poly is that each of our kids were able to sleep in an actual bed. To spend the amount on some of the DVC resorts and have to have your kids sleep on a sofa bed or chair doesn’t appeal to us. We are planning another trip now for the Poly for next Jan (2019), and while it is expensive we really loved our experience at the Polynesian and with the agent who coordinated everything for us. The whole process made our trip completely stress-free. We’re just not sure we are ready to take on what is involved with the DVC process?? Did anyone else have these concerns before buying?

I wouldn't buy small for this issue, I'd rent and use the to evaluate whether it's right for you. Or I'd buy like it is right making the best choices you can and sell if it isn't. That assumes you're not looking at enough points to do 2 full sized contracts of 150 or more each but I don't get the sense you are. You may find with the kitchen and W/D that you don't miss housekeeping, many go in thinking it'll be an issue and often it isn't. Still, if you just rent from time to time you'll enjoy some of the savings of DVC without the commitment and you'll still have options. I would not buy planning to pay routinely for housekeeping.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We do have the cash to buy DVC, but are not certain it is right for us, which is why we wanted to start with a small contract. We only plan to do a Disney trip every other year, and so are skeptical about investing and paying fees for something that we might outgrow in 5 years. We like the idea of more space and kitchen and laundry facilities, but...to be honest, we like being on vacation and having daily housekeeping and dining out. We’ve always done the dining plan. What we really liked about the standard rooms at the Poly is that each of our kids were able to sleep in an actual bed. To spend the amount on some of the DVC resorts and have to have your kids sleep on a sofa bed or chair doesn’t appeal to us. We are planning another trip now for the Poly for next Jan (2019), and while it is expensive we really loved our experience at the Polynesian and with the agent who coordinated everything for us. The whole process made our trip completely stress-free. We’re just not sure we are ready to take on what is involved with the DVC process?? Did anyone else have these concerns before buying?

From what you have written, it doesn't seem like DVC would be a good fit for you. Beds can be a problem, the sleeper sofas are not that good (even with the promise at the Annual Member Meeting that they have a replacement that will be much better). I'd try a stay in a DVC villa for a night or two just to try it out and see what it feels like before discounting it all together.

 

[frabjous]

FWIW the sofa beds at VGF are quite a bit nicer than a typical sofa bed. The mattress isn't the flimsy bendable material where you can feel springs. It's queen sized thick and padded (~5 inches are so) and it divides into 3 connected sections that allow it fold in and out. The built in fold out bed below the TV is a slightly smaller single mattress. My kids love the sleeping arrangements, and in fact have preferred those to the extra queen we have when staying in a 2BR. The nice thing is they are stored fully made and convert very quickly and you get that space back for a nice shared area.

 

[Deb & Bill]

FWIW the sofa beds at VGF are quite a bit nicer than a typical sofa bed. The mattress isn't the flimsy bendable material where you can feel springs. It's queen sized thick and padded (~5 inches are so) and it divides into 3 connected sections that allow it fold in and out. The built in fold out bed below the TV is a slightly smaller single mattress. My kids love the sleeping arrangements, and in fact have preferred those to the extra queen we have when staying in a 2BR. The nice thing is they are stored fully made and convert very quickly and you get that space back for a nice shared area.

You have pretty much described all the sleeper sofas and sleeper chairs with DVC. None are the old style mattress and springs. Every one that I've seen is the platform bed with the three section foam pad. And not very comfortable for an adult. The murphy bed is shorter and narrower than a twin bed. They call it bunk sized (single pull-down bed -29" x 67").

 

[frabjous]

You have pretty much described all the sleeper sofas and sleeper chairs with DVC. None are the old style mattress and springs. Every one that I've seen is the platform bed with the three section foam pad. And not very comfortable for an adult.

I didn't mean to suggest otherwise. However, since I was being pretty specific on details I did not to want be overly-broad and convey incorrect information since there are still some differences IIRC (e.g murphy bed not in copper creek studio/1 or ak value rooms still). My point was to address @have2getaway 's concern about using the sofa bed for their children (party = 2 adults + 3 8-year olds), that its actually better than the typical sleeper sofa, and worth trying out. I agree that with an adult its a different story.

The murphy bed is shorter and narrower than a twin bed. They call it bunk sized (single pull-down bed -29" x 67").

At VGF (and I assume many of the other resorts with murphy beds, (a quick search shows BW at 72x33), it was slightly bigger that those dimensions, 72x32. So we are talking ~ 6 inches shorter and ~ 3 inches narrower than a standard US single/twin mattress.