HELP ME OUT! Newbie considering DVC with so many questions!

[Paul70]

@Lorana & @gmflash88:
For some reason I can't sign up for that other forum to ask Micah008 so I tried to recreate his spreadsheet.
1) No idea how accurate his info is but he's the bomb for compiling and updating it.
2) I probably made a few mistakes when typing it in just now so any eagle-eyes that see mistakes let me know and I'll fix.
3) There's a second tab with non-WDW resorts (Grand Californian / Vero Beach, etc) as well for those who would like that info.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UNkjoQOdh89IABlDNA6EfIAk6nuOjHrnuwhqdLqxJgI/edit?usp=sharing

Impressive. I think one edit might be that the new Preferred Deluxe Studios at SSR have pull-down Murphy queen beds.

 

[lovethesun12]

Not to hijack your thread, but since it's a newbie thread and I would still consider myself somewhat newbie I had a question to add.

Many mention MF's having to be paid late dec/early january. Is that payment for the upcoming 2021 dues? Or would it be for the past year of 2020 dues?

I'm thinking that would mean if you close around December, the buyer would be paying two sets of dues if the contract has 2020 points?

 

[CanadaDisney05]

The points don't automatically roll over. You would have to bank them in the first 8 months of your use year. And right now you are only allowed to borrow 50% of your points from the next use year. So, in your scenario, the most points you could have in one year would be 250 (100 points banked, 100 points current use year, and 50 points borrowed from next use year).

And just to add... If your using the go once every 3 year plan, that extra 50 points from next use year that you were not allowed to borrow can only be banked one year. Which means you cannot use them before your next trip. They are effectively lost unless you are able to rent them out.

 

[UrsulaWantsYourSoul]

Impressive. I think one edit might be that the new Preferred Deluxe Studios at SSR have pull-down Murphy queen beds.

Is everything else the same as their Studios numbers wise? And this would be instead of Queen sleeper? Thanks!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Thanks for this post. I'm also considering a small-ish contract - at OKW. We love that resort! so help me out here:
- If I buy through Disney direct, there are certain DVC perks (what are those?) that I wouldn't get if I bought "second hand".
- Let's say I buy 100 points. and I don't go every year. So if I want to go in 2023. The points from 2022 roll over (100) and I can borrow (100) from 2024. so I'd have 300 points to use. Am I correct?

With a small number of points, the biggest perk you can get with DVC (the Gold AP) won't be needed by you since you probably won't go that many times in a 12 month period. Otherwise, the other perk is a small discount on shopping and dining or access to the Epcot Lounge. You'd have to do a lot of dining and shopping to make up for the extra cost in points. And the lounge might be closing as they continue to renovate Epcot.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Not to hijack your thread, but since it's a newbie thread and I would still consider myself somewhat newbie I had a question to add.

Many mention MF's having to be paid late dec/early january. Is that payment for the upcoming 2021 dues? Or would it be for the past year of 2020 dues?

I'm thinking that would mean if you close around December, the buyer would be paying two sets of dues if the contract has 2020 points?

You pay the calendar year fees in January. So the 2021 fees in Jan 2021. Unless you have a US bank account and you can debit your account monthly for 1/12 of your fees every month (plus a bit different in Dec and jan). It's an automatic deduction from your bank account. 1/12 twelve times is a lot easier to pay than 12/12s at one time.

 

[LadybugsMum]

You pay the calendar year fees in January. So the 2021 fees in Jan 2021. Unless you have a US bank account and you can debit your account monthly for 1/12 of your fees every month (plus a bit different in Dec and jan). It's an automatic deduction from your bank account. 1/12 twelve times is a lot easier to pay than 12/12s at one time.

Is there a way to pay that off early if you do the payments? Say I get a bonus or by some miracle have extra money, can I make extra payments to get it paid off before the end of the year?

 

[Deb & Bill]

Is there a way to pay that off early if you do the payments? Say I get a bonus or by some miracle have extra money, can I make extra payments to get it paid off before the end of the year?

I've never paid the member fees early. They are set to come out automatically so you might wind up paying twice and then trying to get the overpayment back.

 

[Paul70]

Is everything else the same as their Studios numbers wise? And this would be instead of Queen sleeper? Thanks!

I think so. Yes, the Murphy bed replaces the sleeper-sofa. I’ve only seen videos of these rooms, but they look really nice. (We had plans pre-Covid for one.) I hope they do something similar to the BRV studios when they get refurbished.

 

[Paul70]

I think so. Yes, the Murphy bed replaces the sleeper-sofa. I’ve only seen videos of these rooms, but they look really nice. (We had plans pre-Covid for one.) I hope they do something similar to the BRV studios when they get refurbished.

...even though I have a soft spot for that little pull-down bed under the TV with the Bambi picture.

 

[Lumpy1106]

My best advice is to write yourself a spreadsheet. Lots of people say to compare to Deluxe rooms, but I think it is more realistic to use whatever accommodations you used last for comparison (since you would probably settle for that again if you did not purchase DVC), then factor in a small rate of inflation for the Maintenance Fees and a much larger rate of inflation on the rack rate of the accommodations you are comparing it to. You'll need to know how many points - that's easy. You can use the points charts, but there is a phone app I use that is great for doing "what-if" comparisons for different dates you may travel. I think it's "DVC Calculator"? Jump on the ROFR thread in these message boards to get a realistic estimate of what a resale contract will cost you. When I was purchasing I even factored in a "what if I rented out my points" option, but meh - not sure that held any value in retrospect. Keep in mind though, there are "premium" resorts that the rental places will pay more for (at least they did - EVERYTHING has changed since we closed on ours just one year ago).

Once you've done all of that, you will probably find that your "break even" is around 5-10 years if I remember right. What will really stick out as you do this is just how much you are spending every year on rack rate rooms, and just how big a factor the maintenance fees are in DVC costs.

If you are not buying AP's, I can't see how you would ever make back the difference in cost between Direct and Resale - it's HUGE! They were able to dangle the carrot of restrictions, but with Reflections on hold that means you are currently, and in the near future, only restricted from Riviera. Take a look at the points charts - if you like Poly, you probably won't care if you can't stay at Riviera - just too many points.

 

[lovethesun12]

You pay the calendar year fees in January. So the 2021 fees in Jan 2021. Unless you have a US bank account and you can debit your account monthly for 1/12 of your fees every month (plus a bit different in Dec and jan). It's an automatic deduction from your bank account. 1/12 twelve times is a lot easier to pay than 12/12s at one time.

Thanks! I do have a US bank account so that's really good to know =)

 

[i<3riviera]

͏

 

[RoseGold]

If you stay moderate, then you really need to work hard to make the math work. Especially if cash prices slide for a while, as has been predicted. Cash might be looking far better.

For a really long stay, like 14 days, the Good Neighbor hotels start to look much more attractive and you can get your own Uber from the airport. Some of the other properties, like Margaritaville are VERY nice and much cheaper than Disney, even if only for, say half the stay.

The other problem is that you can't really buy points for both scenarios of a 14 day studio vacation and a 14 day 2BR. This is a five figure discussion of difference. There are people DVC is a good fit for, but you really need to do the math in your situation.

 

[sbarisch]

@Lorana & @gmflash88:
For some reason I can't sign up for that other forum to ask Micah008 so I tried to recreate his spreadsheet.
1) No idea how accurate his info is but he's the bomb for compiling and updating it.
2) I probably made a few mistakes when typing it in just now so any eagle-eyes that see mistakes let me know and I'll fix.
3) There's a second tab with non-WDW resorts (Grand Californian / Vero Beach, etc) as well for those who would like that info.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UNkjoQOdh89IABlDNA6EfIAk6nuOjHrnuwhqdLqxJgI/edit?usp=sharing

Thank you!!!

 

[Red Dog Run]

1. Do people generally find that they get their value? Well, yes and no. Much depends on where you purchase, when you purchased, what you paid for your points and how you use them. I think that those who buy today will find that the “value” of their points is much less than those points which belong to members who purchased a decade ago. Not only have annual dues and purchase costs per point risen, but the point requirements are also much steeper at newer resorts.
2. Are there any real losses to buying resale as opposed to from Disney direct? Aside from the discount benefits that resale buyers do not enjoy, there are restrictions as to where resale points can be used. For instance, they cannot be used for the Disney Collection, ABD, DCL, Disney Resort hotel rooms or for any newly built DVC Resorts beginning with Riviera. Additionally, Riviera resale points can only be used at Riviera.
3. Is this the case that smaller rooms are nearly impossible to find or do people find room availability to be reasonable? Getting a studio at your home resort at 11 months is not normally a challenge unless you’re talking about very busy DVC times (mid Sept. thru early Jan.) or race weekends. Value and club level studios at AKV are always difficult even for members who own there. At 7 months, studios at CCV and VGF tend to get booked up right at 8 AM Eastern Time, if they are available at all. AKV, SSR, OKW tend to remain available much longer and since Poly is almost completely studios there tends to be some availability into the 7-month mark.
4. I appreciate that buying the resort that you want to vacation at most is helpful given the 11 month booking window, but is that worth the possible extra price? Yes. It can be important if you want that advantage to book your favorite resort at 11 months. You also have to consider the long-term cost of ownership. AKV annual fees tend to be higher than other resorts but if you want any shot at club level or value studios you pretty much have to own there. The general advice is to buy where you wouldn’t mind staying and you’ll never be disappointed with your purchase. If you see yourself wanting something bigger than a studio on most vacations, don’t buy at the Poly because the next step up there is the bungalows. If having to take a bus everywhere from your resort is a big negative, don’t choose AKV.
5. I assume all optional extras remain available? Never assume anything other than the fact that you have purchased accommodations. Everything else can change. At this time, you can still purchase MM just like any guest, whether you stay onsite or offsite. The dining plans are not currently offered to anyone and will probably return at some point but no one knows what form they may return in.
6. How many visits would you suggest to be minimum to make your most out of this? Too much hinges on how many points you buy, where you buy, where you spend them and on what level accommodations you choose. Your question is too broad for a good answer. Length of stays is not as important as where you stay. Spending your points for a week in a VGF GV every 2 years is going to provide a different value when compared to a week in an OKW studio every year. It’s best to put pen to paper yourself and apply the figures to how you anticipate using your points.
7. I keep hearing that your ownership / points keep their value and are 'inflation proof'. I don't really understand this. How can this be the case? I wouldn’t say that they are inflation-proof. And I don’t anticipate the 2042 resorts will hold their value for too much longer. But the reason that DVC retains its value, generally speaking, is two-fold. First, DVC exercises the right of first refusal on all resale contracts. This keeps the prices high even though some resorts have a shortened lifespan. Second, Disney hotel room rack rates have risen dramatically and will continue to rise in the future. This makes purchasing DVC appealing to those who anticipate regular visits.

Good luck with your decision making process. Keep reading and asking questions.

Excellent answers! I also had similar questions. Thanks!