DVC Newbie really needs help!

[disneyfan551]

I have been wanting to buy into DVC for a while, but my dh will never understand. He thinks that he has "done Disney", and only tolerates going occasionally to see our 4yo dd enjoy the Disney magic. Regardless of his thoughts, I am considering making a purchase and just need some basic info. I have read alot of the DVC threads, but have not taken a DVC tour. I'll be going again in May & had planned to do the tour then, but I'd like to possibly get in on the current SSR offer. These may sound like crazy questions, but how do you justify the large initial investment? At what point/year, would the 'trade off' balance out? I just need some info. to give my dh, as I know he will not be happy at all, knowing that we are in the middle of building a house currently. But, the money would not be an issue, since he'd think it was coming from my mother as a gift. Also, is there any reason NOT to pay in cash, at once rather than financing? Does anyone buy extra points just to rent out? I'm wondering if there is a possibility of actually using this as an investment as well. Of course I would use my share of the points though!

I would love any advice. Disney is my life, and I WANT to be a part of the DVC family!!

 

[spiceycat]

DVC is NOT an investment!!!

the sales guide will be very quick to tell you that.

it is pre paid vacation time.

where do you stay now? a moderator or deluxe WDW resort. then DVC is a great value.

just do a worksheet with the current cost of the resort you are staying in now. add the taxes and the number of days.

if you need a price list
http://www.mousesavers.com/roomrates2006.html

then increase the price 5% each year.

you are comparing it to the purchase price + annual fees. the annual fees also need to go up at 5% each year.

now some year one or the another may go up more or less - 5% is an average.

I would not be surprised if you break even year is 10 years or sooner.

Now some people will claims this is not right....you are forgetting the cost of money and etc.

but if you are going to spend the money anyway on vacation. the other stuff (my opinion) does not count. It is not as if you saving this money - you are spending it now on a WDW hotel.

 

[vascubaguy]

I have been wanting to buy into DVC for a while, but my dh will never understand. He thinks that he has "done Disney", and only tolerates going occasionally to see our 4yo dd enjoy the Disney magic. Regardless of his thoughts, I am considering making a purchase and just need some basic info. I have read alot of the DVC threads, but have not taken a DVC tour. I'll be going again in May & had planned to do the tour then, but I'd like to possibly get in on the current SSR offer. These may sound like crazy questions, but how do you justify the large initial investment? At what point/year, would the 'trade off' balance out? I just need some info. to give my dh, as I know he will not be happy at all, knowing that we are in the middle of building a house currently. But, the money would not be an issue, since he'd think it was coming from my mother as a gift. Also, is there any reason NOT to pay in cash, at once rather than financing? Does anyone buy extra points just to rent out? I'm wondering if there is a possibility of actually using this as an investment as well. Of course I would use my share of the points though!

I would love any advice. Disney is my life, and I WANT to be a part of the DVC family!!

Well, being able to determine your "break-even" point is tough. It depends on where you would stay, the size accommodations, how long you stay, etc.... you also have to factor in the "quality" of your stay. For those, like me, that would typically find the cheapest place to stay (or at a value resort on-site), the quality of the vacations went up exponentially. However, if I strickly look at the financial aspect, it could probably be 10 or more years before I 'break even'.

For me it wasn't as much about the upfront investment, it was what I was getting for that investment... 50+ years of vacataions. Additionally, I purchased a few more points than I would really need so I do intend to rent points each year. This will help offset the cost of the annual dues, and years when I might take along family and/or friends and need larger (or additional) rooms, i can just use those points for that purpose instead.

Umm... in regards to reasons for not paying cash outright... well... I'm not a huge fan of paying interest on things. I paid cash for my first contract and then put the add-on on a 0% interest for 12 months credit card. I hope to have that paid off before the 12 months expires, otherwise I will put it on my home equity line of credit. The major benefit of using the HELOC is that I can deduct the interest. Personally, if I had the cash and could afford to spend it all on DVC instead of other things, I would do that before I financed.

HTH

 

[sleepydog25]

I agree with spiceycat that DVC is not an investment. Sure, there have been those who likely made a little money by selling their points or their whole DVC membership at some point, but viewing a timeshare as an investment is generally not a good idea.

Further, I don't know that anyone can truly "justify" the initial investment. Justify is one of those words that implies one must prove something is worthwhile or ethically okay. And we often want to use the term justify to make ourselves feel better about a decision. The basis of this decision for anyone should be "is it what my family and I want?" and "can we afford it?" In other words, we should worry less about justifying things and more about truly thinking them through. But, I digress.

Naturally, only you can answer those questions, but I will offer this anecdote as advice since you broached the topic originally. My in-laws recently moved into a house they built near us in a fairly rural part of Virginia. Their house wound up going about 25-30% OVER budget despite their careful planning. Personally, I'd be a bit frightened about coming up with the money for DVC while still building my home. Yes, the current offer ends soon, and there is a chance there won't be any more offers given as part of buying into DVC. However, Disney usually has been good about offering some attractive incentives through the years, so I'd be surprised if they didn't continue to do so with SSR.

Finally, and once again this is obviously your call, but is it wise to have a DH who "will not be happy at all" and who will be deceived--based on how I'm interpreting your post ("he'd think it was coming from my mother as a gift")--where the money is coming from to pay for this luxury? Based on what you've written, you plan to buy into DVC while building a house (a real investment I might add), at the displeasure of your spouse, and while not being forthright about the source of the funding. If I've misunderstood your post, my sincere apologies. I do not mean to offend in the slightest. However, I'd hate someone who is so excited about DVC as yourself wind up jumping in before the timing is right for you and your family. . . for what my advice is worth. It and a dollar will buy you a cup of coffee somewhere. Good luck in your decision.aw: