DVC membership?????

[VisitingSince1982]

Maybe it's just me, but $23k plus $90 a month and the points you get don't even cover full week vacations at good resorts doesn't seem like a great deal to me. Unless I am totally looking at this wrong. I have booked the contemporary with a park view for 7 nights next year, plane flights for four and park hopper passes for the week and that's about 10k. It seems like they are asking for a hell of a lot of money up front and the point values are low plus no deed. Can a member please explain why it was a benefit to their family and how there vacations have been.

Thanks a lot

 

[Mhahnster]

I'll take a stab and share my thoughts on why we got in. We purchased our resale hilton head after looking at what we had paid for the room portion of our last two disney trips prior.

For what we usually paid for one week double bed room at a moderate resort (port Orleans) we could afford the annual maintenance on 200 points.

These 200 points got us a week at Hilton Head and a week at Bay Lake Tower last year. This amounted to two weeks of resort rooms and an upgrade of our usual disney world accommodations to a hotel on the monorail.

Obviously there are the trade offs of no daily housekeeping, but we barely noticed.

We keep our week trips at Disney to about 5k with dining, travel, tickets, and our portion of the annual maintenance.

For us it was mainly about the upgrade. The 9k we paid for resale points we considered an investment toward 30 years of cost control. Point contracts seem to have held value over the years and may be able to be resold without much of a loss if we need to.

 

[DizBub]

Maybe it's just me, but $23k plus $90 a month and the points you get don't even cover full week vacations at good resorts doesn't seem like a great deal to me. Unless I am totally looking at this wrong. I have booked the contemporary with a park view for 7 nights next year, plane flights for four and park hopper passes for the week and that's about 10k. It seems like they are asking for a hell of a lot of money up front and the point values are low plus no deed. Can a member please explain why it was a benefit to their family and how there vacations have been.

Thanks a lot

Are you already a member or contemplating becoming one?

What are the "good" resorts you are referring to? I'm assuming BLT and VGF. I assure you they are all good resorts with their own charms.

We have enough BLT points to get us a week in a 2 bedroom standard view in low seasons (Jan, Sept, and the 1st 2 weeks of Dec). We also have a resale contract at BCV, enough for a 1 bedroom for 6 nights at low season. By staying at resorts with lower point requirements like OKW, SSR and BWV standard and AKV standard views we can stay longer and go more often. Members get a very good discount on Annual Passes and can buy a Tables in Wonderland card to get discounts on meals. You can cook in your villa if you want to.

We manage 3 trips a year on our 470 points and we drive from IL. We like it so much we rent points for an extra trip each year. We like the variety of staying in all the different resorts.

It can be whatever you make of it.

 

[WDGPCFR]

I also debated buying a DVC but felt we would not get the use out of it. Living in NY we wouldn't go often enough. Even if you went every other year and used the money you would have paid in maintenance fees you could get a good vacation. Remember, DVC wont through in free meal plans or tickets. You can always rent DVC points if want to stay in a villa.

 

[robndani]

we love dvc. joined in 2012. we live in nj and go twice a year, always a 2 bedroom villa. this year we actually have points to bank!

 

[tjkraz]

Maybe it's just me, but $23k plus $90 a month and the points you get don't even cover full week vacations at good resorts doesn't seem like a great deal to me. Unless I am totally looking at this wrong. I have booked the contemporary with a park view for 7 nights next year, plane flights for four and park hopper passes for the week and that's about 10k. It seems like they are asking for a hell of a lot of money up front and the point values are low plus no deed. Can a member please explain why it was a benefit to their family and how there vacations have been.

Thanks a lot

The overly simplistic answer is this:

- You're spending $10K per year. Every year.
- DVC owners are spending $23K ONCE...plus $1k per year for the next 40-50 years.

Which do you think costs less in the long run?

 

[Dean]

Maybe it's just me, but $23k plus $90 a month and the points you get don't even cover full week vacations at good resorts doesn't seem like a great deal to me. Unless I am totally looking at this wrong. I have booked the contemporary with a park view for 7 nights next year, plane flights for four and park hopper passes for the week and that's about 10k. It seems like they are asking for a hell of a lot of money up front and the point values are low plus no deed. Can a member please explain why it was a benefit to their family and how there vacations have been.

Thanks a lot

The answer is "it depends". If you can afford it (pay cash, no consumer debt, etc), you have a habit of staying on property at least every 2 years, can plan at least 7 months out and the compromises of a timeshare fit your needs then it likely is a potential benefit, esp if you buy resale at a cheaper resort. Certainly retail for VGF is not going to save money for many people. Just spend enough time investigating to see if it's right for you or not. Once you get over the sticker shock and get a feel for the real costs and savings, it very well may be.

 

[disneynutz]

Maybe it's just me, but $23k plus $90 a month and the points you get don't even cover full week vacations at good resorts doesn't seem like a great deal to me. Unless I am totally looking at this wrong. I have booked the contemporary with a park view for 7 nights next year, plane flights for four and park hopper passes for the week and that's about 10k. It seems like they are asking for a hell of a lot of money up front and the point values are low plus no deed. Can a member please explain why it was a benefit to their family and how there vacations have been.

Thanks a lot

You need to study the DVC resorts, the room sizes and the up front cost for your deeded interest. You are basically pre-paying for your hotel stays and signing up for yearly dues for the life of the contract. The other costs, transportation, food, tickets, you have to pay for anyway.

For some what you get as a DVC owner can be worth it, for others, maybe not.

Bill

 

[MagicJourney]

Maybe it's just me, but $23k plus $90 a month and the points you get don't even cover full week vacations at good resorts doesn't seem like a great deal to me. Unless I am totally looking at this wrong. I have booked the contemporary with a park view for 7 nights next year, plane flights for four and park hopper passes for the week and that's about 10k. It seems like they are asking for a hell of a lot of money up front and the point values are low plus no deed. Can a member please explain why it was a benefit to their family and how there vacations have been.

Thanks a lot

Let me guess your cost breakdown roughly:
airline ticket: ~$2000(4*$500), park passes: ~$2000(4*$500), Hotel: ~$5000-$6000.

For a DVC member, a week in a park view studio @ BLT (~250pts at peak time) costs approximately $1200-$1500. 250pts does cost ~$20k on today's resale market, but most people believe they can retrieve most if not all initial investments if they sell the contracts 10 years later, and it was true in the past decades, few people even made profits. Does it make sense to you now?

 

[crisi]

Let me guess your cost breakdown roughly:
airline ticket: ~$2000(4*$500), park passes: ~$2000(4*$500), Hotel: ~$5000-$6000.

For a DVC member, a week in a park view studio @ BLT (~250pts at peak time) costs approximately $1200-$1500. 250pts does cost ~$20k on today's resale market, but most people believe they can retrieve most if not all initial investments if they sell the contracts 10 years later, and it was true in the past decades, few people even made profits. Does it make sense to you now?

The other factor in there is inflation - if Disney raises the room rate 10% on a $6000 stay - that's $600. If they raise dues 10% (which would be a HUGE single year increase historical), someone paying $1000 in dues will see a $100 increase. For longer term owners this has worked out well - an increase year over year in dues, but much smaller dollar wise than the compounded inflation in hotel rooms.

 

[rpk1951]

I think it also depends on how often you go, do you think you will continue to go every year or every other year, and where you like to stay. If you love the value resorts VS delux.

 

[DeeCee735]

Depending on your vacation habits, you could also consider the flexibility of being able to stay in studio's, one or two bedrooms, the banking/borrowing feature and the points cost for different seasons. This will help "stretch" your points, thereby making the intial purchase price go further.

We have been able to book multiple trips per year (at least 2, with 3 or 4 per year in the last few years) and have stayed in studio's, one and two bedrooms, or have booked 2 or 3 studio's to bring our adult children, friends and family members with us, giving all of us rooms of our own. We wouldn't have been able to do such things with cash per year vacations. Ownership allows for this and changes the calculations for the break even point.

It's not for everyone, with that I agree. But it's definitely a great fit for us.
Good luck with your decision and happy planning.

 

[VisitingSince1982]

Thank you all for your great replies. Of course I would love to go every year and stay on the monorail line with park views but that's not gonna happen. I want to splurge next year so my kids can experience what I didn't get to as a child. Be able to watch wishes from our balcony and not have to worry about renting a car or taking buses. We usually stay at the Caribbean beach for a week and it's normally in march due to my wife being a teacher and having 2 weeks off then. I understand the long term payoff but I don't know how so many family's can swing a $23k kick to the crotch. So are there different choices for where you buy? And does that change the up front cost, dues and points? Our normal cost per trip is appox $5,000 - $6,000 and we try and go every year. I remember I went on a sales pitch there about 10 years ago and it seemed much more reasonable. I still don't know how disney gets away with charging $750 a night.... Oh wait I know because people like me pay it!!! Lol

 

[Noelle]

You could buy resale. For example timeshare store has 120 points at SSR for $9600. A week in March in a studio at SSR is 120 points. The dues for 2014 on 120 points is $589.20. But then there are limitations to resale that you would need to consider before doing it.

 

[disneynutz]

Thank you all for your great replies. Of course I would love to go every year and stay on the monorail line with park views but that's not gonna happen. I want to splurge next year so my kids can experience what I didn't get to as a child. Be able to watch wishes from our balcony and not have to worry about renting a car or taking buses. We usually stay at the Caribbean beach for a week and it's normally in march due to my wife being a teacher and having 2 weeks off then. I understand the long term payoff but I don't know how so many family's can swing a $23k kick to the crotch. So are there different choices for where you buy? And does that change the up front cost, dues and points? Our normal cost per trip is appox $5,000 - $6,000 and we try and go every year. I remember I went on a sales pitch there about 10 years ago and it seemed much more reasonable. I still don't know how disney gets away with charging $750 a night.... Oh wait I know because people like me pay it!!! Lol

I suggest that you try renting a reservation from an owner to try DVC out and to maybe save you some money on your room.

Bill

 

[crisi]

Thank you all for your great replies. Of course I would love to go every year and stay on the monorail line with park views but that's not gonna happen. I want to splurge next year so my kids can experience what I didn't get to as a child. Be able to watch wishes from our balcony and not have to worry about renting a car or taking buses. We usually stay at the Caribbean beach for a week and it's normally in march due to my wife being a teacher and having 2 weeks off then. I understand the long term payoff but I don't know how so many family's can swing a $23k kick to the crotch. So are there different choices for where you buy? And does that change the up front cost, dues and points? Our normal cost per trip is appox $5,000 - $6,000 and we try and go every year. I remember I went on a sales pitch there about 10 years ago and it seemed much more reasonable. I still don't know how disney gets away with charging $750 a night.... Oh wait I know because people like me pay it!!! Lol

Enough can swing it that DVC keeps expanding - and the ones that can't swing it and buy anyway, Disney repossesses and resells to another person - who can either swing it or not and the cycle repeats.

There are lots and lots of people in the U.S. alone (not to mention all the people from other countries that own DVC) who make a lot of money. I'm frankly astounded at people on this board who stay in suites on the cruiseline, book the Poly every single year, or have taken SEVERAL Adventures by Disney trips.

Buying resale doesn't change your dues, but it gives you a LOT more flexibility in price - you might not stay at the Contemporary with a low cost resale - nor are you likely to save money over the Carribean Beach resort. In fact, its my position that most of us don't end up saving money over Deluxe resorts, because we fall for the lure of a one or two bedroom unit with a kitchen and washer and dryer. However, for those that can afford it - it can add value to your vacations (sometimes I say "its expensive nookie, but its nookie.....")

 

[VbChristy]

Buying resale doesn't change your dues, but it gives you a LOT more flexibility in price - you might not stay at the Contemporary with a low cost resale - nor are y)

Why do you say that? I'm missing the connection. Thanks everyone for you honest answers.

 

[bakerworld]

We didn't buy DVC until we started going more than annually. When our kids were small we looked into DVC but 1) we didn't like the venue and 2) we couldn't afford to go annually or even every other year consistently so we didn't buy. By the time we bought the costs were double BUT we were going 4x the amount and staying at deluxe resorts. This is when DVC saves $$$$.

IMO if moderate resorts work for you and you're going every other or third year than DVC is going to cost you $$ so don't buy.

 

[Noelle]

Why do you say that? I'm missing the connection. Thanks everyone for you honest answers.

Our dues are based on the resort you own and the number of points. Each resort has a different cost. If you go to the DVC resources stickie all of the dues are listed there.

 

[Dean]

Thank you all for your great replies. Of course I would love to go every year and stay on the monorail line with park views but that's not gonna happen. I want to splurge next year so my kids can experience what I didn't get to as a child. Be able to watch wishes from our balcony and not have to worry about renting a car or taking buses. We usually stay at the Caribbean beach for a week and it's normally in march due to my wife being a teacher and having 2 weeks off then. I understand the long term payoff but I don't know how so many family's can swing a $23k kick to the crotch. So are there different choices for where you buy? And does that change the up front cost, dues and points? Our normal cost per trip is appox $5,000 - $6,000 and we try and go every year. I remember I went on a sales pitch there about 10 years ago and it seemed much more reasonable. I still don't know how disney gets away with charging $750 a night.... Oh wait I know because people like me pay it!!! Lol

In your situation DVC will likely not save you money but it very well may give you more value for around the same money. I don't know your trip size but I'm assuming that it's 4 or under and that you're staying in a single room at CBR. You could buy SSR for maybe $10-12K, not pocket change but half what you were looking at. That would get you a week in a studio yearly or a week in a 1 BR EOY or maybe just a little more. Yearly dues would be around $750 roughly depending on specifics. Of course you could rent and get most of the benefits and savings without the commitment. You could always skip a year to help save up to buy in.