Fixed week- any downside I am not thinking of?

[Kebby]

We had planned on getting 130 points at the poly, and have a contract as such we will be signing next week. However, now that I am reading about fixed week, I am intrigued.

We always travel first weeks of december or September. We would get fixed week number 49 in a studio at PVB. Without critiqing my plan to buy at PVB, can someone play devils advocarte for the fixed week 49? As I understand it, we can pull the points out and still use them any other time, we will pay a 10% premium, but we were going to get 130 points anyways so thats a wash. We can trasnfer the points, bank and borrow them as needed, still sell it as a fixed week if we ever wanted to sell. We are garunteed this week which falls starting between the 3-9 which works for us.

The downside we see is:

1. sun-sun flights are a bit more expensive
2. will it be less attractive for resale?

Am I missing anything? We have until 31 days before to not take the fixed week, which works for us. And as my hubby pointed out, we could always pull the points and use the 130 points for a reg studio and have extra points that we could bank to the next year. Anything else I am not thinking of?

 

[gdrj]

A couple of things from my perspective.
1- I don't believe first weeks of Sept or December to be hard to book (unlike XMAS week or New Years weekend). With the 11 month window booking should not be an issue. I would save the 10% premium or buy extra points with the difference.
2- Having the flexibility to breakup your points or arrive on different days would be my personal preference (and not pay a premium for Sun-Sun).
3- Your vacation habits may change so while you could still bank etc, you are paying a premium for something you are not using.

 

[Reighngold]

Ok, you asked for devil's advocate...

With so many studio apartments available to rent, (they pretty much just made studios and a handful of those two bedroom over lake bungalows) why do you need to secure the week? It seems as if you know which week you like and could easily book it ahead of time. Add that to to the fact that there are a plethora of studio units and that these weeks fall on a not so busy time and I doubt you would have the issue of it booking up before you could get to it.

Also, you list two different times of year you like to go, September OR December, you can't buy both weeks so this guarantees you will have to pay fees should you chose to go on the time other than the one you booked but which you are already accustomed to going.

So, given that you like to go at different times, both of which are not busy, there is a large volume of studio units, and DVC contracts last a LONG time, I see no need to get the fixed week. Not saying it's not a cool idea or that it would necessarily be bad, I just don't see why you need it and think that the flexibility will be very welcome in 15-20 years time, maybe even sooner.

I think this fixed week really makes a LOT of sense for people looking to rent the two bedrooms, since there really aren't that many of those and those I'm pretty sure are gonna book up like wild, if you can even book them with points at all given that everyone will likely be getting the fixed week option.

 

[kristenrice]

Just FYI... The first two weeks of December are actually in the top five HARDEST weeks to book at WDW... Keep that in mind

 

[cvjw]

I would not buy the fixed week if you are looking at the first week of September - the crowds are low then as most kids have just gone back to school. If you are thinking about the first week of December - that is a totally different story. If you want to go then and want to guarantee a week at the Poly, then you may need the fixed week. First two weeks of December are very busy for DVC and getting harder and harder to book.

As some VGF owners have found out the hard way, the 11 month booking window is not always enough to be able to book a studio for the first of December. The Poly will have more studios, but will have lots and lots of owners who just bought enough points for a studio stay since the points required for bungalow stays are so astronomical.

 

[disneynutz]

We own a fixed week at VGF early December. The reason we bought is because VGF is a very small resort and we only want a lake view. I don't think that PVB will have as much of a booking issue due to the number of studios in inventory.

Disney is working to increase attendance and pack us in, based on the studio only PVB, it appears the DVC is doing the same thing.

Bill

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

Not trying to hijack the OP's thread on the PVB but have a related issue about the fixed week so when I saw the topic I thought I'd post it here.

We have been DVC members since 2013 and own at BCV. Stayed there during F&W last year and loved it. Now considering purchasing at VGF as well. Toured the VGF grounds & lobby in October and got a good vibe. Stayed at GF 20+ years ago and have good memories. We like a 1-BR for the space & w/d. We are thinking of purchasing enough points to stay for a week at VGF in a standard 1-BR during Adventure or Choice seasons every other year. This works out to needing a maximum of 268 points. We’d probably purchase 135 or 140 points (banking every other year) to allow for a slight point adjustment by DVD. We never considered a fixed week for a 1-BR since it would be too expensive but in looking at the fixed weeks points chart I noticed that a standard STUDIO during a number of the weeks throughout the year is 138 points. So we’re contemplating buying a fixed week studio. Now, we’d probably never stay in a studio and we’d almost certainly opt out of it each year and just use or bank the points. We’re thinking that if we purchased one of the 138-point weeks and ever wanted to sell the membership we’d get a good price since we’d have a fixed week in a standard studio @ VGF to offer to the buyer. Does this make any sense? Any downsides to doing it? Have others done this? WWYD?

 

[supersnoop]

If you're set on the Poly, buying a fixed week for the first week of December is probably the smartest thing you could do.

 

[wdrl]

We had planned on getting 130 points at the poly, and have a contract as such we will be signing next week. However, now that I am reading about fixed week, I am intrigued.

We always travel first weeks of december or September. We would get fixed week number 49 in a studio at PVB. Without critiqing my plan to buy at PVB, can someone play devils advocarte for the fixed week 49? As I understand it, we can pull the points out and still use them any other time, we will pay a 10% premium, but we were going to get 130 points anyways so thats a wash. We can trasnfer the points, bank and borrow them as needed, still sell it as a fixed week if we ever wanted to sell. We are garunteed this week which falls starting between the 3-9 which works for us.

The downside we see is:

1. sun-sun flights are a bit more expensive
2. will it be less attractive for resale?

Am I missing anything? We have until 31 days before to not take the fixed week, which works for us. And as my hubby pointed out, we could always pull the points and use the 130 points for a reg studio and have extra points that we could bank to the next year. Anything else I am not thinking of?

Yes, you can opt out of your Guaranteed Week each year if you so desire. When you do, then you will get the full amount of the points in your deed. You can then use the points to book a stay in September. Since stays in September 1-30 and December 1-14 cost the same, a week will cost you 118 points during either timeframe. A Guaranteed Week #49 deed comes with 130 points.

If you book a stay for 118 points, you'll have 12 points left over. You could add a day to your current year's stay, or you can bank those 12 points into the next Use Year and use them next year. But here is the downside when you opt out:

12 points won't get you another day at PVB. The cheapest villa costs 16 points. So you won't be able to book an extra day at PVB, at least not during the Home Resort period. Your only option is to wait until the 7-month window and either A.) try to find a single night at a resort that costs 12 points or less per night (SSR, OKW, AKV-Standard, etc); or B.) buy up to 24 One-Time-Use points from DVC and combine them with your 12 points to book a night or two at PVB or another resort. Both options A and B depend on villas being available at the 7-month window, which is usually not an issue in September but can be a problem in December.

If you bank your points into the next Use Year, you will have 12 extra points to use in addition to your Guaranteed Week for that year. But if you actually use your Guaranteed Week, then you will still have 12 points that also HAVE to be used before the end of the Use Year. Options A and B from the prior paragraph come into play again. Keep in mind that once points are banked, those same 12 points cannot be banked a second time.

If you opt out of your Guaranteed Week a second consecutive time, you'll get another 130 points. Combined with your 12 banked points, you will have 142 points to apply towards a reservation. This gives you a few more options, but there is always the chance that you'll have a few extra orphaned points at the end of the year. With good management, you won't have any points expire before you can use them. Worse case scenario, you might have a handful of points that might expire.

The first week in December is very popular at WDW among DVC members. Villas -- especially studios -- tend to be booked very quickly. In my opinion, PVB will be no different. If you want a studio at PVB for the first week in December on a regular basis, a Guaranteed Week is the best way to assure it.

If you decide to buy a Guaranteed Week for December, I strongly urge you to get a September Use Year, or perhaps even an August UY. This will cover your trips for September.

By the way, you actually have until the day before your check-in date to opt out of your Guaranteed Week. However, if you opt out 30 days or less before check-in your points will go into a Holding Account, which then places specific restrictions on the use of your points.

Good luck on making your decision.

 

[Dean]

We had planned on getting 130 points at the poly, and have a contract as such we will be signing next week. However, now that I am reading about fixed week, I am intrigued.

We always travel first weeks of december or September. We would get fixed week number 49 in a studio at PVB. Without critiqing my plan to buy at PVB, can someone play devils advocarte for the fixed week 49? As I understand it, we can pull the points out and still use them any other time, we will pay a 10% premium, but we were going to get 130 points anyways so thats a wash. We can trasnfer the points, bank and borrow them as needed, still sell it as a fixed week if we ever wanted to sell. We are garunteed this week which falls starting between the 3-9 which works for us.

The downside we see is:

1. sun-sun flights are a bit more expensive
2. will it be less attractive for resale?

Am I missing anything? We have until 31 days before to not take the fixed week, which works for us. And as my hubby pointed out, we could always pull the points and use the 130 points for a reg studio and have extra points that we could bank to the next year. Anything else I am not thinking of?

There really isn't a downside much to speak of if the number of points fits. You never have to use your week so the Sunday Tie in isn't really a negative. The only neg I can think of is you lose the ability to break up the contract into smaller segments. Make sure you undserstand how the fixed week works for the timeshare calendar. For example, I believe that in 2017 there will be an extra week at the end of the year and thus for 2018 week 49 will jump back to the the 9th of Dec. This happens every 5 to 6 yrs. The rule is that week 1 must start the first such date in Jan so the first Sunday in Jan will always be week one and when it wouldn't be, they add an extra week the year before to make it so.

 

[Kebby]

Thanks for all the replies! We will be getting an Aug use year so we cover our bases for those september trips. I appreciate all the tips and advice. I think we are going to go forward with the fixed week. Seems to make the most sense for us since we were going to buy 130 points anyways!

 

[wdrl]

Thanks for all the replies! We will be getting an Aug use year so we cover our bases for those september trips. I appreciate all the tips and advice. I think we are going to go forward with the fixed week. Seems to make the most sense for us since we were going to buy 130 points anyways!

Have fun using your PVB points! If we were in the market to add a week's worth of points at PVB, I would seriously consider getting a Guaranteed Week.

 

[drusba]

Kebby, if you want week 49, then a fixed week would be the way to go. Contrary to something mentioned above, that is the highest DVC demand time of the year at WDW and a fixed week gives the safety of not possibly being blocked out. Just understand that the actual dates for that week change a little annually since it always begins on a Sunday. As to early September, I see no need for a fixed week there since it is currently one of the lower demand times of the year (and that includes Labor Day weekend) and it is likely that you will not have any issue getting it at 11 months out. In other words, buy the Dec fixed week and then if you want to go in Sep, pull the points from the Dec fixed week and do Sep.

GrumpyinPhilly, in making your decision about VGF be aware of the following: during times in Oct, Nov, and Dec, studios at VGF have disppeared before 11 months out, and 1BRs did so for the first two weeks of Dec. And the resort still is not sold out. In other words, if your travel times are likely to be in Oct, Nov or Dec be prepared to face a risk of possibly being blocked out even at 11 months out for a studio or 1BR absent going to wait list.

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

Kebby, if you want week 49, then a fixed week would be the way to go. Contrary to something mentioned above, that is the highest DVC demand time of the year at WDW and a fixed week gives the safety of not possibly being blocked out. Just understand that the actual dates for that week change a little annually since it always begins on a Sunday. As to early September, I see no need for a fixed week there since it is currently one of the lower demand times of the year (and that includes Labor Day weekend) and it is likely that you will not have any issue getting it at 11 months out. In other words, buy the Dec fixed week and then if you want to go in Sep, pull the points from the Dec fixed week and do Sep.

GrumpyinPhilly, in making your decision about VGF be aware of the following: during times in Oct, Nov, and Dec, studios at VGF have disppeared before 11 months out, and 1BRs did so for the first two weeks of Dec. And the resort still is not sold out. In other words, if your travel times are likely to be in Oct, Nov or Dec be prepared to face a risk of possibly being blocked out even at 11 months out for a studio or 1BR absent going to wait list.

Thanks for your input. I'll keep that in mind.