DVC - How much does it cost?

[fulles]

Can anyone explain to me the costs involved with DVC?

I understand that you buy points, and pay an annual fee. Approximately how many points would I need for say 2 weeks at Saratoga (probably a studio) in September? How much would that cost up front and how much each year?

Also, is it just accomodation or do you any other benefits such as discounts off park tickets, dining etc.

Thanks in advance,
Steve

 

[crabbie1]

There is a DVC section in the uk forum so they will be able to answer you properley in there.When we went last year we did the DVC tour and the minimum points then you could by were 160.This was going to cost us around £9000 and we could pay that over a long period of time.On top of this each year you have annual dues which at AKL were around the £350 for a studio.Depending on what season you go in for instance
in september at SSR it is 95 points a week (1-30th sep) so you would have to borrow some from the next year or buy off another dvc member to get 2 weeks at that resort if you bought 160 points.If you did 2 weeks at old key west then at 80 points a week you would be ok.You can mix and match any resort as they have single night points but are always dearer on fri and sat.
AKL value studio is only 72 a week and there normal standard studio is 83
.It is quite complex.
we decided not to buy but have rented 74 points for 6 nights at old key west for christmas costing us £370 This person charged £5 a point.As we are both students at the mo didn't want the commitment.
there are befefits but I am not sure.Someone else will advise.
hope this helps a little

Oh I think there are several ways to pay.Up front or you can pay a deposit(about £1800 on the 160 points).

 

[pennst8r]

Hi!

There are quite a few threads on the DVC board that would probably answer this a little more clearly, but here are some quick answers.

The type of room you choose (and dates) depends on how many points you need. Again..the DVC Planning board has a little points calculater in the header. For example, Sept 6-20 in a studio is 190 pts, 1 bdrm is 364, 2bdrm is 486 pts.

Your cost would depend on how many pts you buy--I'm not sure what they cost now, but somewhere naround $100 US/pt. Plus closing costs. Dues vary with each DVC but are per point each year.


Happy to help more, if I can. Just PM me. (I accidentaly clicked on the UK board, and saw your question! )

 

[Revtel]

Two week in a studio at Saratoga Springs in September would cost around 190 points.
The points would cost you about $100 each direct from Disney, although there may be some deals available. There would be no further closing costs involved.
Annual dues increase every year, and are about £2/3 per point.

So about £10,000 should buy you the points you need, and annual costs thereafter would begin at around £400/500 and increase with inflation each year.

Enjoy.

 

[AlanUK]

Hi just moving this over to the UK DVC Boards.

 

[Pootle]

Also, is it just accomodation or do you any other benefits such as discounts off park tickets, dining etc.

Currently you get $100 off the cost of an AP. When you check in you are given a Portable Perks booklet detailing the current offers. Often they have 10% discounts on selected dining venues. The perks do change though, so not a good idea to base any decision on benefits.

You get free valet parking at all the resort hotels which have DVC attached to them, so AKL, WL, BWV and BC. Just show membership card and remember to tip

Only DVC members get to 'legally' pool hop to other resorts - but there are some exceptions: SAB at the Beach Club and the feature pool at AKL, plus there are blackout periods (main holiday times) for all pools.

HTH

 

[Claire L]

Don't forget the Member Fees ie Annual Dues can vary due to exchange rate, as it is nearly $2 to £1 at the moment they are very reasonable but if it went the other way would cost a bit more.

Also get free internet in the DVC accommodations when staying on points.

Claire

 

[paulh]

if you stay in a moderate would say it takes 7 visits to start being worthwile,cost comes down if staying delux to about 5-6 visits
If you love disney and know your going year atfer year,its worth it we have been going since 92,
we bought dvc in 99 so for us our investment has paid off cost us £7,500 for 200 points
We now get to stay in a delux for our dues of around £500 a year.
only regret not doing it sooner

 

[Boss Hogg]

We've got 180pts and budget £35 per month for dues - last year we were "in hand" when it came to pay them.

As someone has said, clearly the exchange rate makes the biggest difference to what you pay. I think that there is a cap on how much the dues can go up year on year, and AFAIK it is always less of an increase than it could be. Needless to say Disney cannot arbitrarily increase dues, they must be spent on the upkeep of the resorts.

 

[fulles]

if you stay in a moderate would say it takes 7 visits to start being worthwile,cost comes down if staying delux to about 5-6 visits

Paul,

I'm interested to know how you work that out.

Two weeks in Sept in a moderate resort is approx £1050 (direct from Disney). At £450 per year dues, that means a saving of £600 per year (air fare, car hire, park tickets etc all stay the same).

On a saving of £600 per year, it would take 17 years to get back the initial outlay of £10k.

I appreciate that I could be clever about buying park tickets by buying an AP and making sure both trips are within 365 days, but I can do that without DVC. Also, if I can get free dining (and I appreciate there is no guarantee of that), I can claw back all of the £600 saving for a given year (maybe even slightly more).

Am I missing something?

Thanks,
Steve

 

[Claire L]

Paul,

I'm interested to know how you work that out.

Two weeks in Sept in a moderate resort is approx £1050 (direct from Disney). At £450 per year dues, that means a saving of £600 per year (air fare, car hire, park tickets etc all stay the same).

On a saving of £600 per year, it would take 17 years to get back the initial outlay of £10k.

I appreciate that I could be clever about buying park tickets by buying an AP and making sure both trips are within 365 days, but I can do that without DVC. Also, if I can get free dining (and I appreciate there is no guarantee of that), I can claw back all of the £600 saving for a given year (maybe even slightly more).

Am I missing something?

Thanks,
Steve

I am getting a moderate at rack rates to be $2391/£1226 (at current exchange rate) for two weeks. Take off the £450 saves you £775. Plus with DVC you get a bigger room and extra facilities.

Also free dining as you say may not be offered every year and it is only selected dates.

To be honest the best savings are when you compare DVC to deluxe as it is more like for like then.

Claire

 

[Revtel]

Hi, Steve.

The £10,000 initial outlay will buy you two weeks at Saratoga Springs, Boardwalk, Old Key West or similar.

I suggest you cost out what two weeks at those places from Disney direct would cost and work out the savings.

By the way, there are NO "moderate" DVC resorts!

 

[crux]

.... I think that there is a cap on how much the dues can go up year on year, and AFAIK it is always less of an increase than it could be. Needless to say Disney cannot arbitrarily increase dues, they must be spent on the upkeep of the resorts.

The maximum increase allowed in Annual Dues is 15% in one year and, as stated, Disney can only charge the costs of maintenance as dues and cannot make a profit from this.

Ian

 

[UKDEB]

To understand the true value of DVC, you have to see it as a long-term investment. As others have mentioned, there's a cap on the annual dues, so that outlay should never increase in real terms. If you were to compare like with like, i.e. the cost of booking the same accommodation directly with Disney (and they do offer DVC units to the general public for cash), break-even at current exchange rates is around 5 years. At SSR that then gives you 40 years' vacations for the equivalent of £500 a year. Assuming rack rates rise in line with general inflation, that's a saving of around £1500 a year equivalent in years 6 - 45. Admittedly, these are crude calculations, but I'm convinced that buying DVC is a no-brainer, at least at current exchange rates. And, unlike most time-shares, you won't lose out if you need to sell - DVC historically has held its value in the re-sales market.

 

[paulh]

Paul,

I'm interested to know how you work that out.

Two weeks in Sept in a moderate resort is approx £1050 (direct from Disney). At £450 per year dues, that means a saving of £600 per year (air fare, car hire, park tickets etc all stay the same).

On a saving of £600 per year, it would take 17 years to get back the initial outlay of £10k.

I appreciate that I could be clever about buying park tickets by buying an AP and making sure both trips are within 365 days, but I can do that without DVC. Also, if I can get free dining (and I appreciate there is no guarantee of that), I can claw back all of the £600 saving for a given year (maybe even slightly more).

Am I missing something?

Thanks,
Steve

inital cost of our points £7,500 dues average over the first 7 years around £480 per year
Total for 7 years (we would have gone to disney anyway) works out to £1,551 per year
If you do it for longer weve been menbers since 99 so 8 years average comes down to £1357
Over the 42 years that we bought in say average dues over that time £600 comes in at £778 per year fo 2 weeks accomadation
As deb says its a long tearm thing
But were not staying at a moderate were at a delux
Paulh