Good reason to buy direct?

[KAT4DISNEY]

People who bought BLT and VGC at the start direct didn't lose out by not buying resale.

Resale prices have taken a jump up again but there was a time not that long ago that both BLT and VGC owners were selling at less than they purchased. Both were selling in the $80's resale.

 

[bakerworld]

The forums will cause you to think that buying direct is a 'fools' game - you're trading a bit of time for a huge price increase (usually double). People go on and on about SSR, which is a very nice place but I view it as a 'park-less' option, along with OKW and AK (which we'll be staying in March ... park-less).

We bought direct. We've never regretted it. Both of our first purchases (AK & BL) were bought before there were any resales because of the incentives. We financed. We've used cash reserves when we were young and discovered that once used replacement took time and patience. We're not very patient - the kids (32, 29, 26) use what patience we process.

Last year we bought BC DIRECT. We talked about resale, stalked resale (as much as we could - we're 'employees' so the ability to 'jump' on a deal doesn't exist for us), contacted brokers, etc. but when we pulled the trigger we bought direct because trying to find the pt amount (55) and UY just wasn't working, plus DH was irritated with the 'kibitz' factor. We ended up buying BC because we want to stay in walking distance to Epcot during the F&W and the closest we could get during October was BLT and cash stays at the Dolphin (2012 & 2013). I can switch into BC except October into the 1st week of January - for that, we needed to own.

 

[Dacky619]

Has anyone bought direct and not regretted it?

We bought directly from Disney for many of the reasons listed in the OP. We wanted BLT and since it was new there was not a huge benefit of buying resale.

 

[DizBub]

We bought directly from Disney for many of the reasons listed in the OP. We wanted BLT and since it was new there was not a huge benefit of buying resale.

Same here. We bought BLT in 2009. We didn't even know about resale then. We added on about 14 months later when the resales at BLT were few and the prices were the same as the incentives DVC was offering. Don't regret it for a minute.

However, we did want more points and really wanted an Epcot resort and found a nicely loaded BCV 160 point contract. Totally worth the effort, especially since we got it pretty much at the original price someone bought it direct for. BCV seems to hold it's value.

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

1st I want to say thank you to all the wonderful DISers offering their opinion..
My DH and I had only read a handful post from people who bought direct and didn't regret it..
Seeing there are others out there who love there DVC direct contracts, makes us feel a little better.

Cutting to the chase, you have to ask yourself: Can I afford it?

We will be able to afford it & put a few years of annual dues in the bank
If/when the sale of our current property goes through. It's looking like next month.. (Fingers crossed)


But for us it's never been a question of IF we can buy, but SHOULD we be buying resale or direct?
We could have bought in years ago, but had other thing took up our time and "fun" money.. Big Wedding, better house, kids, ect.ect.
Disney world has always been our vacation of choice.
my DH Wished we bought in when we 1st saw DVC, based off what we have spent on trips that last few years.

Our cycle:

When we did our pros and cons list, the pros for direct made it pretty clear..
than DH and I would read here on DIS how buying resale is much better, and how most who bought direct regretted it.

So we would go back to looking at the resale market:
We find that VGF
are still high,
no banked points,
and no Oct UY..
And knowing how well VGF are selling we would still have to through Disney right of refusal.. Which if Disney scoops it up, we start back at square one..

So in a sense wasting a lot of our time.. So than we start looking back at direct..

Starting the cycle all over again!

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

I think the first rule of DVC is to "buy where you want to stay". You have an answer to that.

We have been told this, and has been our main reason for not buying in sooner..

We are huge GF fans, with Polly being a close 2nd..
And it's didn't hurt that Mary poppins is my fav. Movie of all time!

I would have bought the 1st week VGF opened, but DH wanted to look at ALL the details.
Is it what we really want?, can we afford the MF it if we lost our jobs?,renting points vs buying ect. Ect.

And we wanted our current property sold 1st.
We knew this property would take up Most of our time and We didn't want to messing with both sets of paperwork at the same time.
It's just takin A LOT longer than we thought! Ooooo the headaches

Plus at this point we look at it like it's the prize at the end of tunnel..

 

[Msmithmd]

Lorilais-

Make sure you fully comprehend the point chart at VGF before you pull the trigger. It is a fantastic resort. We have stayed there twice so far. But be fully aware that you take a double hit if you own there. First, paying twice what you could at other locations for points by buying it direct, and second a fifty percent plus premium per night, versus similar size units elsewhere.

To be clear, I very much agree that VGF deserves a premium point chart per night. It is a premium product.

But do understand that you are paying a ton to purchase this DVC. If it is still right for you, then congratulations with your decision...just seriously consider the price differential versus other locations which are less than half this cost per point on the resale market.

 

[pharm55]

I actually went on the waitlist for GCV points a year ago and -- as far as I know -- we are still on it! We haven't regretted either purchase. -- Suzanne

We just bought resale at GCV because of not wanting to be on wait list etc. Just curious as to what use year you are on wait list for.

 

[Nabas]

We will be able to afford it & put a few years of annual dues in the bank. If/when the sale of our current property goes through. It's looking like next month.. (Fingers crossed)

But for us it's never been a question of IF we can buy, but SHOULD we be buying resale or direct?

Great.

You can afford DVC and love the Grand Floridian.

It will be years before VGF resale prices drop.

Sounds like a no-brainer to me, as long as you plan to visit WDW for years to come.

VGF resale prices won't drop for years. Pull the trigger and buy ay VGF.

 

[Dean]

Everyone on the DIS boards seems to think resale is better then buying direct..
Altho DH and I have gone through everything with a fine tooth comb, we are still stuck on buying direct or resale?
So maybe you guys can help..

Back info if needed:
My DH and I have been looking at DVC for three years. DH and I are in agreement that it's a good thing for our family and can make good use of it. (Once a year at least)
We are on the middle of selling a piece of property we own, and will be using some of the extra money from the sale to pay for DVC.. No financing



Here are our reasons for buying direct:
Pros:
-We LOVE the VGF! Other DVC resorts have never been such a draw to us.. In fact 3 years ago when look at the AKV I said to DH " I wish it was the GF instead."
-We want the full 50 years, we are young and with any luck would be able to use all 50 years..
- we want the paper work done FAST! Selling our current property has taken 6+ months and has taken an emotional toll on both of us..
- we want an oct Year use.. We hate to travel in June,July, Aug, and w/ kids in school sept. Is out of the question. We haven't seen many of those in the Resales.
- DVC is offering last year points..
- we can use our CC and get bonus points to use for air flights ect ect.
-we like to cruise (not has much as going to Disney) , and altho we probably never use our points for cruises(most the time NEVER a good deal)
We know is VERY RARE but I've noticed 1-2 good deals offered in recent years (transatlantic 2014 was one that we noticed. As well as the Alaska repo cruise)
This is not a deal breaker. If we really wanted a cruise, we would most likely bank our points and use them the next year.. Or rent them out.

Cons: it costs more money..


Reasons for buying resale

- saves A LOT of money.. No one has money to just throw around..

Cons:
-Would not buy at Resort we like.. We would buy in at SSR or AK (both of which are our LEAST fav.)
- would not get the full 50 years.
- takes more time..
- May not get an OCT. UY..
- May not get any banked points
- can't use CC
- would not be able to use points for anything else then DVC properties.. (But this is not a deal breaker)

Your choice of course, you'll have to decide what you're comfortable with and what works for you. i'll simply address some of the points I feel you need to really consider or be sure on. I'll likely be redundant but I'd rather put my thoughts together than try to hit the points piecemeal.

• If you're set on staying at GF most of the time AND DVC works for you otherwise, you should buy there. My concern is your enamored with it but will only use it a small portion of the time as you try all of the other resorts. Just realize you're paying more than double up front for this option.
• Related to cruises, while it's good to have choices, I don't feel it's reasonable to pay for the choice in this situation. You recognize you'll likely not use points for cruising and IIRC, you weren't looking at buying enough points to make cruising esp feasible anyway. Buying extra above your DVC needs to cruise would be nuts, IMO, given the current realities.
• The 50 years vs 40 really shouldn't be a significant issue, it's 40-50 years away and you never know what that will bring. IMO it's not a factor that's worth making a decision over. However, it is worth adding some value to the GF for that purpose, but not even 20% much less more than 100% as in this case.
• IMO there isn't enough speed difference to matter for a long term ownership, certainly not to spend thousands of dollars to save a couple of months. Being that impatient is not a good idea.
• As for points availability, you simply must compare contracts including the retail ones. It's actually possible to get more points resale than resale or less if you go with a stripped contract.
• October shouldn't be an issue for a larger resort like SSR, OKW, BWV, BLT or AKV, it might be for VWL & BCV.
• I think you mean that DVC is offering the current UY points, last years would mean the contract would have to come with 2012 points as well. It's not uncommon for resale, esp at SSR, to be able to find a contract with some or all of the 2012 points as well.
• I don't think CC perks should be part of this type of discussion, it's beans and would only be a reasonable issue if all else were the same.
• Some will tell you that up front costs are meaningless for DVC when you look at the dues, IMO that's a fallacy. Depending on home resort and considering the future value of what you invested or in this case, the difference, it'll be around or more than the total of the dues when you adjust for future value of future dollars.

There are other choice besides SSR and OKW and while the numbers shift somewhat, the principles being discussed still hold. The most comparable resort available resale is BLT and while you'll pay more, you get many of the same things most people like about GF including monorail access.

You'll have to decide for yourself, IMO the only reasonable issue related to your list that might push you to retail is that you WANT VGF and you've come to terms with the fact it'll cost you more than twice as much as buying SSR and that every time you use it for another resort, you've erased some of the financial value you spent going in. Personally, I'd look at a fixed week if I were going to buy GVF.

Has anyone bought direct and not regretted it?

Sure lots and some for resale as well. Some got themselves into financial trouble, some bought too many or too few points and some regretted their home resort choice. The largest group are likely the one's that either aren't on DIS or weren't at the time, those that made an impulsive purchase and DVC wasn't really a good fit for them at all.

 

[DizBub]

I just wanted to come back and clarify some things about our direct purchases.

While we do not regret them it has to be mentioned that it was a different time. When we bought BLT we paid roughly $100 per point then. Today they want $165 per point. Cost difference of over $21,000 for 310 points. We would never pay that today.

Our BCV resale cost us $72 per point. Direct from Disney then was $115 per point then, today it's $130. We saved nearly $7000 over direct pricing then.

We have been owners for 4 and a half years now and have discovered that we really like staying at all the DVC resorts and don't necessarily have to stay at our home resorts. I like to get as many trips out of our yearly points as I can so I have become a bit of a point miser.

My daughter and her husband bought a 60 point contract at VGF. Looking at the point chart this will get them only 6 nights every other year at VGF in standard studio at the cheapest time. They really love AKV and we tried to get them to buy resale there for half the price or double the points but they decided that if they ever needed to sell VGF would retain it's value better than AKV.

Basically, we do not regret our direct purchases because we do get to stay at our desirable home resorts at desirable times. But now we know that we would probably be just as happy had we bought SSR resale using the 7 month booking window to stay at other resorts. YMMV.

 

[TeresaNJ]

We bought direct VWL in 2001 for I think around $72pp, and bought BCV direct in 2002 for around $80pp. We've had more stays than I can count over the last 13 years, and used the heck out of it. Would I buy direct at today's prices? No way! We just sold our BCV contract for more than we paid for it pp, and we are selling our VWL contract, most likely for more than we paid for it. The only reason we are selling now is because we need the cash for property we are buying, and then we plan to buy another DVC resale in the next year or so. I can't justify at all buying direct, now that I know about resale.

 

[disneynutz]

We have been told this, and has been our main reason for not buying in sooner..

We are huge GF fans, with Polly being a close 2nd..
And it's didn't hurt that Mary poppins is my fav. Movie of all time!

I would have bought the 1st week VGF opened, but DH wanted to look at ALL the details.
Is it what we really want?, can we afford the MF it if we lost our jobs?,renting points vs buying ect. Ect.

And we wanted our current property sold 1st.
We knew this property would take up Most of our time and We didn't want to messing with both sets of paperwork at the same time.
It's just takin A LOT longer than we thought! Ooooo the headaches

Plus at this point we look at it like it's the prize at the end of tunnel..

My number 1 caution is to make sure that VGF is where you want to buy. Many combine the magic pixie dust feel of Disney and WDW with the DVC. They are separate, there is no magic with DVC, it's a pre-paid hotel room. Yes many of the properties are beautiful but don't confuse the Disney resort with the DVC resort, they are separate and they are maintained separately. Other than BWV, we like the DVC resorts because of the Disney resort that they are attached to and because of the extra space in a villa, not because of the DVC building. We love BWV because of the BWI, location, and BW view.

Without staying at all of the DVC resorts, you are assuming that you will love VGF more than other resorts. As I have posted many times we bought AKV, BCV and BLT assuming that we would love them but truth be told, we love BWV and VWL more. We also bought VGF direct and we are waiting for the bugs to be worked out before we decide on that one.

Bill

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

I can see how the resale math works out if were going to stay and different resorts each trip..

However at least for the foreseeable future GF is are one a only choice, we want.

The only reason I could see us switching resorts is if we did a last min trip and couldn't get in to the GF or had extended family coming
and couldn't get the 2 bedroom or grand villa at the GF..

Both these things do not happen very often.. I like to plan WELL in advance 1-2 YEARS!
Currently planning well into 2017.. 2014 DL, 2015 DCL (not w/ points) & WDWx2, 2016 WDWx2, and 2017 WDW possibly extend family trip..
These trips are planned to happen regardless of getting DVC or not.. Just would be nice to be able to buy into DVC, and use them for 2015 on..

 

[Deb & Bill]

We bought direct VWL in 2001 for I think around $72pp, and bought BCV direct in 2002 for around $80pp. We've had more stays than I can count over the last 13 years, and used the heck out of it. Would I buy direct at today's prices? No way! We just sold our BCV contract for more than we paid for it pp, and we are selling our VWL contract, most likely for more than we paid for it. The only reason we are selling now is because we need the cash for property we are buying, and then we plan to buy another DVC resale in the next year or so. I can't justify at all buying direct, now that I know about resale.

We also bought VWL and BCV preconstruction. And we also sold our BCV for more than we paid for it. But we're not getting any more DVC points, especially not direct.

...To be clear, I very much agree that VGF deserves a premium point chart per night. It is a premium product. ...

Personally, I don't think DVC does premium any more. OKW was built sturdy with good furniture. Then they renovated it poorly. VWL was just renovated and the renovations look like the standard mediocre hotel on the side of the interstate (except for the really poor quality tv stand with the stupid table/bed). BLT was built poorly with poor quality furnishings. And as technologically cute as the tv in the bathroom mirror might seem, it's really a poor use of money.

I don't think we are getting quality with DVC any more. Just cute. And cute shouldn't be so expensive.

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

My number 1 caution is to make sure that VGF is where you want to buy. Many combine the magic pixie dust feel of Disney and WDW with the DVC. They are separate, there is no magic with DVC, it's a pre-paid hotel room. Yes many of the properties are beautiful but don't confuse the Disney resort with the DVC resort, they are separate and they are maintained separately. Other than BWV, we like the DVC resorts because of the Disney resort that they are attached to and because of the extra space in a villa, not because of the DVC building. We love BWV because of the BWI, location, and BW view. Without staying at all of the DVC resorts, you are assuming that you will love VGF more than other resorts. As I have posted many times we bought AKV, BCV and BLT assuming that we would love them but truth be told, we love BWV and VWL more. We also bought VGF direct and we are waiting for the bugs to be worked out before we decide on that one. Bill

We fully understand this.. We have walked through most of DVC resorts. And any rooms we could not walk through, search out videos online.
We have even gone so far has map out rooms (based on measurements we found) in our back yard using rope! Just to make sure we would happy with the size.

I have to disagree a little bit with the magic comment.. There is still a little magic just being in Disney.

I agree that services and maintenance have no magic, like you would get a Disney resort. (This is not a biggie for us) I don't expect DVC do to anything different than what we have experienced through my mother'a WorldMark time share. (Which is check you in, give you keys, and check you out) Anything more than that is bonus!

I want to be able to walk into our home resort and truly feel "welcome home" not "wish I spent the extra to stay at the DVC I wanted"

 

[Dean]

I can see how the resale math works out if were going to stay and different resorts each trip..

However at least for the foreseeable future GF is are one a only choice, we want.

The only reason I could see us switching resorts is if we did a last min trip and couldn't get in to the GF or had extended family coming
and couldn't get the 2 bedroom or grand villa at the GF..

Both these things do not happen very often.. I like to plan WELL in advance 1-2 YEARS!
Currently planning well into 2017.. 2014 DL, 2015 DCL (not w/ points) & WDWx2, 2016 WDWx2, and 2017 WDW possibly extend family trip..
These trips are planned to happen regardless of getting DVC or not.. Just would be nice to be able to buy into DVC, and use them for 2015 on..

Then you should buy VGF IF you buy at all. Just run the numbers compared to a hotel room at VGF discounted at around 20% and adjusted yearly for inflation compared to DVC at VGF with the buy in and points. Take into account the real cost of the upfront money and the yearly fees. Don't forget there are other ways to get into the DVC resorts without owning there including cash and renting privately.

We fully understand this.. We have walked through most of DVC resorts. And any rooms we could not walk through, search out videos online.
We have even gone so far has map out rooms (based on measurements we found) in our back yard using rope! Just to make sure we would happy with the size.

I have to disagree a little bit with the magic comment.. There is still a little magic just being in Disney.

I agree that services and maintenance have no magic, like you would get a Disney resort. (This is not a biggie for us) I don't expect DVC do to anything different than what we have experienced through my mother'a WorldMark time share. (Which is check you in, give you keys, and check you out) Anything more than that is bonus!

I want to be able to walk into our home resort and truly feel "welcome home" not "wish I spent the extra to stay at the DVC I wanted"

IMO this would be a bad reason to buy DVC and a worse reason to buy retail. Just realize you're buying a timeshare to stay at, don't put too much stock in Disney and definitely not go in assuming it'll all be perfect or warm and fuzzy. If the numbers, limitations and restrictions work for you, that's good but don't buy if they don't and esp not for the emotional feeling.

 

[yitbos96bb]

Has anyone bought direct and not regretted it?

I did and don't take issue with it. If all things are equal (like buying he same resort and no lost of perks) then resale will probably be cheaper and better (unless you finance then I think it's probably easier to get it fromDisney).

Now it's a trade off between perks and cost. Have to determine what's more important to you as well as if you want so specific resort and can afford it, if VGF is your favorite, it makes sense to buy that resort. If you want it now,then direct is probably best. If you can wait, you'll probably get a better price on resale but with a loss of certain perks.

 

[yitbos96bb]

I would buy enough VGF direct for every other year with Oct UY. Since you get last year's points, you have enough to book your 1st trip without borrowing points. When you have your points, during the year, look at availability for times you might want to go. If you can usually get it at 6-7 months, then no need to buy more VGF.
Also, tastes change. We bought VWL thinking that VWL was "it" and that we would want to go at Christmas and "needed" that 11 mth booking window. We went 1 Christmas and it was great, but then after staying at some other DVCs, our kids really liked the pools at other DVCs. Now we rarely go at Christmas and I really wish we had AKV. We even thought about selling and rebuying. If you buy direct, make sure to split your points into 2 contracts, so that you can resale 1 contract if you plans change over the years and you don't want to go to DVC every year.

I think that's what I'm going to do with my Poly addon

 

[Lorilais_mommie]

I would buy enough VGF direct for every other year with Oct UY. Since you get last year's points, you have enough to book your 1st trip without borrowing points. When you have your points, during the year, look at availability for times you might want to go. If you can usually get it at 6-7 months, then no need to buy more VGF. Also, tastes change. We bought VWL thinking that VWL was "it" and that we would want to go at Christmas and "needed" that 11 mth booking window. We went 1 Christmas and it was great, but then after staying at some other DVCs, our kids really liked the pools at other DVCs. Now we rarely go at Christmas and I really wish we had AKV. We even thought about selling and rebuying. If you buy direct, make sure to split your points into 2 contracts, so that you can resale 1 contract if you plans change over the years and you don't want to go to DVC every year.

Way ahead of you...
We plan to buy one 100, and two 75 point contracts..
Or 100and 50 x3
Or 100x2 and one 50

Which ever works out best in closing costs