Good deal at BLT?

[tjmaxwell]

Hello,

I decided recently that I wanted to join the DVC and have been researching and scouring the resale marketplace looking for a good deal. After much deliberation, I decided I wanted to make BLT my home resort. I see that during the slower periods, I can get a two bedroom there for around 250 points for a week, so I decided I wanted to have between 160 and 220 points.

The deal I found was at $110 per point with 200 points and a September use year. I tried to negotiate the PPP down, but that was the seller's final offer. The upside of the deal though was that there are already 200 points banked from 2014, and all points from 2015 are still coming on September 1. I figure that those extra 200 points (that I also do not need to pay dues on) is worth roughly $3,000 based on rental pricing, so if you factor that in, the PPP is only around $95 per point. Do you think this is a good deal? I'm a serious bargain hunter and considered just renting from Saratoga Springs, but I decided that I'd most like to stay at BLT and paid the extra for that.

One last question for those of you who are experienced with this sort of thing. Assuming this passes ROFR, I assume I'll be able to make a reservation starting in July or early August. Since the banked points will expire in September of 2015 and I don't really want to go in the summer, I'd like to book a Disneyland trip at the Grand Californian sometime in January or February. Dates are pretty flexible and I likely won't be staying over any weekend dates. Ideally, it would be a Sunday - Thursday night or something along those lines. If I book at exactly the 7 month mark, do you think I'll be able to get a 1 or 2 BR at GCV at that time?

Thanks in advance for your advice!

 

[Deb & Bill]

You might be lucky to be able to make a reservation in August. It takes about 90 days to complete the purchase. If you don't own at GCV, it can be hard to get nearly any time of the year at seven months or less. it's a really small resort.

 

[Minniesgal]

I wouldn't value the 200 points from 2014 very high as once you own them they are already distressed points and could be quite difficult to use. You may only have 6-8 weeks to use them and it could be hard to find anywhere to stay in that timeframe. If you do it will be OKW or SSR.

There is no way those particular points could be rented for $3000 since you won't own them until they are distressed.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

If it's a Sept UY and has banked 2014 points then those are valid for stays from Sept 1, 2015 to Aug 31, 2016. There shouldn't be any expiring this year. Originally the 2014 points would have been valid from Sept 1, 2014 thru Aug 31, 2015.

And yes, these days I'd say that's a good deal if it does indeed have all 2014 points. So many contracts now are sold stripped. That one you described is actually current and all going forward. Not a killer deal or a steal but sounds decent.

For VGC I think you have a good likelyhood of getting a reservation in Jan or Feb at 7 months for a 1 or 2BR, especially since it sounds like you are very flexible on the dates. I think the most difficult thing is going to be getting the points in time for the 7 month mark though. At best you might have it for booking at the end of Feb but there's next to no chance to have it for early or mid January.

 

[DVCcurious]

If the 2014 points are banked into 2015 then you should see that there are 0 points for 2014 and 400 points for 2015. The banked points will be available for stays 9/1/15-8/31/16.

So the first thing I would do is confirm they've been banked. There's a 4 month deadline to bank, meaning those points needed to be banked by 4/30/15 in order to go into the next Use Year. So go ahead and confirm they've been banked.

Now, on to the "good deal" question. As one who has been following DVC since 2011 and reading this website quite a bit (even though I didn't create a username for awhile) it is my opinion that one should ONLY buy contracts with a full slate of banked points.

The banked points are indeed worth at least $13 per point, as that's the amount David's Vacation Rentals will pay you for your BLT points if you choose to rent through them (which is exactly what I did with the banked points I got when I bought a contract).

So a $110 per point contract with a full slate of banked points is like paying $97 per point vs a $110 per point contract with no banked points.

The $110 price point is also pretty good. I bought a 250 pt BLT last October with full banked points for $105 per point, and I had looked for a few months before finding that one. And your $110 deal is pretty much the same as my $105 deal, I mean in the end $5 per point is kinda irrelevant over the next 45 years of ownership.


So I say "good deal" for this contract.

 

[tjmaxwell]

Thank you all for your replies. The 200 points from 2014 are indeed banked, so I have until August 31, 2016 to use them. I feel pretty comfortable with the deal. Now we'll just see if it passes ROFR and then I'll try to book my GCV trip. Thanks again!

 

[Deb & Bill]

...Now, on to the "good deal" question. As one who has been following DVC since 2011 and reading this website quite a bit (even though I didn't create a username for awhile) it is my opinion that one should ONLY buy contracts with a full slate of banked points.....

And if that's all you are going to buy, you might be waiting a long time to find that perfect contract. Sometimes you take the one with the UY you want, the resort you want, the base number of points you want, the price per point you want and then you think about a loaded contract. Any smart owner who is thinking of selling is going to use up as many points as possible before selling. Unless an emergency hits and they need to sell suddenly.

 

[Minniesgal]

Thank you all for your replies. The 200 points from 2014 are indeed banked, so I have until August 31, 2016 to use them. I feel pretty comfortable with the deal. Now we'll just see if it passes ROFR and then I'll try to book my GCV trip. Thanks again!

Ok sorry I got confused as you said the banked pointed expired in September 2015 so my advice is useless

 

[Snurk71]

I saw that contact (I have a Sept UY at blt), and thought that looked like a good deal on that contact and might have acted on it had we not just got another one. My only worry was it passing ROFR with that point setup. Having all of 2014 scared me a little.

 

[DVCcurious]

And if that's all you are going to buy, you might be waiting a long time to find that perfect contract.

When I'm spending $25,000 I'm willing to wait to get what I want.

 

[apv7]

I just closed on BLT. I spent $102 p/p for a 100 point contract (this years points were used by prior owner). I have been looking when I have a chance and it does seem like BLT has gone up in price the last few months. It wouldn't surprise me if you can do a little better since its a 200 point contract but if this fits your need well maybe its nice just to grab the sure thing

 

[pangyal]

I just paid $4/pt. more than your contract for the exact same setup, except that there were also 48 2013 points included. We've been looking for BLT for a few months and it is amazing how the prices have skyrocketed! We had difficulty finding non-stripped contracts too.

 

[davidl81]

It looks like a pretty good deal. With the way prices have been rising lately it may look awesome a year from now.

 

[mtm65]

Why have the BLT prices risen so quickly this year? Is there a logical explanation?

 

[suebeelin]

I've seen a few reasonable to low prices pass in the last few months ($81.25, $85 and $90pp). But generally they are over $100.

 

[supersnoop]

Why have the BLT prices risen so quickly this year? Is there a logical explanation?

Because a new Monorail resort opened up at $170/point. And BLT is closer to the Magic Kingdom.

 

[dundey]

Its a good deal. I paid $105 pp for 100 points with a loaded contract a few years ago. You will be able to rent the banked points for $2600 without an issue.
If you want to be at BLT I think this is a decent deal.

 

[skateshome]

What about this deal.....I'm thinking about offering $110 per point (listed at $115) for 165 points. 103 points banked which most all have to be used by Feb 2016 (2014 points). Then 165pts new in Feb 2016. Closing cost around $550.
No dues owed on current points. Looks high to me now that I'm looking at the rofr thread or maybe just average.

 

[pangyal]

What about this deal.....I'm thinking about offering $110 per point (listed at $115) for 165 points. 103 points banked which most all have to be used by Feb 2016 (2014 points). Then 165pts new in Feb 2016. Closing cost around $550.
No dues owed on current points. Looks high to me now that I'm looking at the rofr thread or maybe just average.

Are there any 2015 points available? If not, I think that's very reasonable. I would offer $108 on that setup, personally...

 

[n2mm]

Just curious OP. When you looked at the point cost of a 2 bedroom, was that based on a standard 2 bedroom? As a BLT owner too, just wanted to warn you that even at the 11 month window you may have trouble getting that standard room. You should base the cost of the room on the lakeview room. There are very few standard rooms at BLT. I purchased points at BLT because I wanted a shot at reserving the standard rooms, but not always successful at the 11 month window @ 8:00AM.