Having a hard time deciding--BCV or resale

[4greatboys]

I just got my packet in the mail today with all the dvc info. We are going in the end of Sept and I want to have my mind made up--or close to being made up by the time we get to Disney. I really want BCV cause its so close to everything and my teens can just go down to SAB and hop over to Epcot if they want. But the with the resales I can get more points--which I will need. We are a family of 6 so we will be looking at plenty of 2 bdrms. Plus I would like to splurge occasionally with maybe a Poly or YC conceirge. What if we got our minimum 150 BCV and then also got a resale of 150 or 200 and trans my points over to the BCV?

 

[Granny]

The most agreed upon advice you will hear from those on this board is that you should buy where you want to stay most. If SAB is important to you, you should buy at BCV.

If you buy a resale at another DVC resort, you cannot "transfer your points over to BCV". You can book at BCV at the 7 month window, if that's what you mean. So if you had a BCV contract and an OKW (for example) contract, you could only book with the BCV points at the 11 month mark and then have to wait until the 7 month window to book the rest of the trip.

If you save $10 a point on 150 points, that's $1,500. That may seem like a lot, but it's not that much of a premium if you are sure that BCV is where you would want to stay the most.

No matter how you decide to purchase, you would be wise to break the 300 or so points into two contracts of roughly equal points. Even if you buy all the points at BCV, you can get two contracts. The reason is that if you want to sell your membership, it is easier to sell smaller contracts. Also, you could sell one contract and still have membership. And lastly, you could give the contracts to two different people in a will or a gift...you cannot split a contract to do that.

Good luck in your decision.

 

[kem330]

We have two contracts- one for 200 @BWV which we bought resale because we couldn't wait for BCV to become available and then 200 BCV. We were surprised how much we liked BWV since BC had been a longtime favorite of ours. Essentially they are in the same neighborhood, so you can bank points and alternate your stays every year between resorts, as long as you'd be happy at staying at either resort.

 

[SlyHubby]

I would say go for the resale and use the 7 month window to book at BCV. Over time, you are going to want to stay at many of the DVC resorts and paying a premium to have BCV as your home resort doesn't sway me.

If you are set on buying and know you're going to do it, I would do a little extra legwork over the next week or two, and try to make your purchase immediately - cancel whatever cash arrangements you've made for your Sept. trip, and stay on DVC points. Another alternative, if you are set on buying and decide you will be buying at BCV or other resort from DVC, call and speak with a guide now - tell them you are coming down in Sept. to buy, and see if they can arrange discounted pricing for you to stay at BCV or another DVC property - again, I would think you would be able to do your Sept trip for very low cost.

Though it makes sense to buy contracts in smaller amounts (as many folks here say), if you are buying the resale, you will pay closing costs once for each contract. I forget how much the fees come to with DVC (or if they're included), but with a resale, guaranteed you're going to be paying a couple hundred dollars on each one - so, you will need to look at the tradeoffs of a large contract vs. smaller contracts and more closing costs.

I've learned that the best benefits come from DVC if you are flexible. At times, you might not be able to book at BCV with the 7 month window, but, right now, there is no problem. Whenever DVC opens a new resort, people get fanatical about that property and owning there. Overall, I think it's a moot point. Your DVC membership allows you to stay at any of the DVC resorts. We bought at OKW, sight unseen. Turns out we love OKW, but also enjoy VWL. We adore the times we've stayed at the Beach Club for cash in the past, and will no doubt enjoy our stays there in the future on DVC points. We're flexible, we've always gotten to stay where we want, and we're not overpaying for our DVC membership.

Lastly, just keep in mind, that long term, your DVC membership will be worth absolutely nothing. DVC gets it back, and you get nothing (unless you sell before that happens). So, consider the amount of money it will cost to purchase, the annual dues, and that at the end of it all, you will not have anything left. My personal advice to DVC purchasers - don't finance. It makes little sense to finance a depreciating asset - especially when you're not getting rock-bottom pricing.

Good luck however you decide. We'll look forward to giving you a round of "Welcome Homes" in the near future.

 

[4greatboys]

Thanks so much for the info guys, it was reallya big help. I am still leaning toward the 2 contracts. That way I can sell one if we end up not needing as many points. I think I would use each contract every other yr. Say we have BCV 150--bank the points for everyother yr--giving me 300 to use for the 2 bdrm. And many have an OKW for 150 too--using it every other yr. This way I can have 300 points a yr and still make ressies in my 11 month window. I'm still checking out the resales to see if there is one that really suites us. Hope to be a dvc family member VERY soon!

 

[DeeP]

If you really like BCV and having use of SAB is important to you then you should buy at BCV. If your main preference is the location of the Epcot resorts then look into a resale at BWV so that you will still be in the location you want but can also save some money. IMO, buying a DVC membership with a home resort in a location you do not like is not a good idea just to save money, because the money saved will not be worth it if you can not stay in a resort that you will be happy with. I did basically the same thing with my purchase at BWV. BWV had just opened and I could have bought a resale at OKW much cheaper than what I paid to buy through Disney at BWV but I knew I would not be happy with staying at OKW so I bit the bullet and paid the higher price to have the home resort I preferred and for me this was the best decision I ever made regarding my DVC membership. I have never been sorry about this decision at all, to me it is well worth the money I paid and then some.

 

[Cruelladeville]

Closing costs are included in the $80 per pt cost thru Disney. On a resale you pay the closing costs, about $400, but it depends upon the cost of the contract. If you are thinking of resale for one of your contracts, check out the Timeshare Store. This week's board lists several contracts of 150 pts at BWV and one at OKW for $10,500. Except for OKW, they are not particularly desirable due to borrowing this year, however if you weren't planning on using it till 2004, it might be worth it for $60 or so per pt. Of course, a negative with any resale is that there is only limited financing, usually 5 years or less, thru the timeshare company, and some companies don't offer any at all. And while it is true that eventually our points will not be worth anything, in the 10 years that DVC has operated, those who bought in at $48 per pt back in 1992 have seen their "investment" appreciate quite a bit for something that's going to be worthless someday. If my stocks and retirement fund had become worthless in the DVC manner, I would be one happy camper right now!!

 

[SlyHubby]

Originally posted by Cruelladeville
And while it is true that eventually our points will not be worth anything, in the 10 years that DVC has operated, those who bought in at $48 per pt back in 1992 have seen their "investment" appreciate quite a bit for something that's going to be worthless someday. If my stocks and retirement fund had become worthless in the DVC manner, I would be one happy camper right now!!

Yes, Cruella, we've seen our DVC "investment" appreciate quite a bit over the past couple years as well, due to the Disney machine artificially keeping the price on the upswing. For anyone to think that their DVC purchase will continue to appreciate is foolhardy - and specifically one of the reasons we have already decided to sell once the price tops out - which will eventually happen.