Help Me figure out what to do~!!!!

[Be1021]

I am thinking about purchasing. I know I want to go the resale route if I find the right contract.
We typically are not long term planners for trips. We generally plan a trip 3-4 months in advance.
Our trips are typically 3-4 days.
We are Florida residents and live only about 3 hours away.
I do not have an alliegance to any one resort.
We are annual passholders.
Is DVC right for me?
Which home resort would you reccomend based on my travel style?
Thanks for your help!

 

[RobDoc]

If you can only plan 3-4 months ahead, then the resort does not matter since you will not have any Home Resort priority and will have limited villa choices available much of the year, with the possible exception of weekend nights.

Will you typically stay on weekends or weeknights? Weekend point requirements are about double those for Sunday - Thursday nights. If you will primarily stay on Fri/Sat then DVC may not be the best value for you.

There is a DVC discount for APs, but I don't think it is much better than the discount you already get as FL resident.

The answers to your questions will depend on how you plan to use the points. FL residents can certainly benefit from DVC ownership based on how you will travel, but be sure to do the math before making your decision.

 

[DVC Mike]

Since you won't be taking advantage of the 11-mo booking window, and since any resort is fine, then buy where you get the best overall deal for total cost of ownership. Recognize that the variables for that depend on purchase cost (price, closing costs and finance charges), annual dues, expected length of ownership and likely resale value upon disposition. Keep in mind that any savings in upfront purchase cost will probably be offset by the difference in maintenance fees.

I would consider buying SSR via resale.

 

[Be1021]

I was thinking SSR also.
What are the benefits and downfalls of buying HH or VB in a situation like mine?

 

[RobDoc]

I was thinking SSR also.
What are the benefits and downfalls of buying HH or VB in a situation like mine?

While you can probably find a low(er) purchase price for VB and HH, the dues are highest there and will offset the purchase savings over time.

Year OKW BWV VB VB(sub) HH VWL BCV SSR AKV

For 2008 dues are as follows - OKW - 4.56, BWV - 5.04, VB - 6.04, HH - 5.16 , VWL - 4.87, BCV - 4.80, SSR - 4.21 and AKV - 4.71 .


Here is the history of DVC annual fees at all of the resorts:

Year OKW BWV VB VB(sub) HH VWL BCV SSR AKV

2008 4.56 5.04 6.04 4.71 5.16 4.87 4.80 4.21 4.71
2007 4.40 4.85 5.63 4.39 4.98 4.73 4.63 4.12 4.62
2006 4.24 4.69 5.27 4.12 4.34 4.61 4.48 3.98
2005 3.86 4.41 4.87 3.84 3.86 4.35 4.27 3.83
2004 3.68 4.25 4.67 3.67 3.70 4.22 4.18 3.80
2003 3.49 4.11 4.37 4.37 3.69 4.05 3.97
2002 3.22 3.92 4.17 3.33 3.49 3.80 3.77
2001 3.13 3.83 3.98 2.70 3.32 3.63
2000 3.16 3.94 4.07 2.87 3.25 3.62
1999 3.16 4.02 3.99 2.82 3.18
1998 3.17 3.94 ---- 2.76 3.20
1997 3.14 3.84 ---- 2.90 3.16
1996 2.99 3.70 ---- 2.82 3.16
1995 2.84
1994 2.70
1993 2.63
1992 2.56
1991 2.51

 

[Dean]

As noted, it wouldn't matter which resort you owned from a reservations standpoint at this present time. However, you'll likely find that it is increasingly harder to get anything at WDW 3-4 months out for much of the year. Plus, if you're looking at mostly long weekends, DVC doesn't make sense to own to use for that purpose. Personally I question whether DVC is a good choice for you, we don't have enough info here to really know. Now if you can and will take advantage of some of the other DVC benefits, it still may be worth owning a small contract. And who knows, you may evolve to planning further ahead, actually I predict you will if you buy in. Thus I'd still buy on property and resist the temptation to buy at VB or HH due to lower initial costs unless you will visit one of those areas routinely.

 

[Deb & Bill]

If you think you will want to stay at an Epcot resort during Food & Wine Festival, you'll need to own at one of those resorts AND make your reservation much further in advance than 3-4 months out. You'll need more like 8-9 months out.

If you want any resort for Christmas or New Years, Easter or Spring Break, even Marathon week, you'll need to book further out than 3-4 months.

If you don't mind going in early May, September, early February, you probably can book at 3-4 months out.

 

[sajetto]

Since you mentioned that you don't have a resort preference and you book last minute (according to DVC) I would go with an SSR resale. SSR has a longer contract and lower operating costs