Help with DVC points rental?

[Christinaxo]

Hello,

We are looking to book a WDW visit and I was looking into renting DVC points. I have been doing some research and am trying to familiarize myself with how to go about this but it is ALOT and the clock is ticking! Can anyone direct me to where I can find availability for my time frame if any? Also is there any KEY tips anyone would like to offer? It would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!!

 

[chalee94]

best bet is to check with david:

http://www.dvcrequest.com/

once you get comfortable with the idea of dealing with a DVC owner directly, you can do so here on the DIS:

DIS rent/trade board

but you cannot post "reservation wanted" posts anywhere but the rent/trade board. there are a lot of FAQ threads stickied there that you need to read carefully before posting.

David offers some protections and is used to dealing with new renters, so IMO, that is the best way to go. and be very careful if you get messages from "DVC owners" offering to hook you up...

 

[MAO]

I think that the best tip anyone could offer is: be absolutely, positively CERTAIN of the dates you want. DVC is not a regular hotel and it's practically impossible to change even one day of a DVC reservation. If you go this route (and I believe it to be a very good idea for most people) you need to recognize that you won't be able to cancel or reschedule the trip if something comes up. Of course, there are caveats to that: you *might* find an understanding owner, they *might* be able to change something for you, but then you *might* win the lottery tomorrow as well.

 

[fireflyer]

For a non-DVCer who would like to rent a DisWorld villa, are there minimum stays? (I probably could never stay 7 whole days.) Also, I'm much more likely to attempt booking on short-notice, to get a deal. Am I being realistic?

And, can I purchase points from several owners separately, until I've accumulated enough for the place I'd like?

Thanks for any help you can provide...

 

[delmar411]

For a non-DVCer who would like to rent a DisWorld villa, are there minimum stays? (I probably could never stay 7 whole days.) Also, I'm much more likely to attempt booking on short-notice, to get a deal. Am I being realistic? And, can I purchase points from several owners separately, until I've accumulated enough for the place I'd like? Thanks for any help you can provide...

You can do a single night stay. Renting points is not really what you are doing. You are renting a reservation that has been booked for you. You have no say or control over this reservation and no one at Disney will talk to you about it. Last minute is not recommended and you wont find any deals unless someone has distressed points. Those get snatched up very quikcly and resort available is very limited if anything is available at all.

 

[okw2012]

For a non-DVCer who would like to rent a DisWorld villa, are there minimum stays? (I probably could never stay 7 whole days.) Also, I'm much more likely to attempt booking on short-notice, to get a deal. Am I being realistic?

And, can I purchase points from several owners separately, until I've accumulated enough for the place I'd like?

Thanks for any help you can provide...

If you want to book on short notice then DVC is probably not your best option, except that if you like David's FB page you will sometimes be offered very sweet deals for last minute stays, generally at SSR and off-season.

 

[bellablue2]

i believe daddio books small-point reservations. some owners will not do this.

 

[Chuck S]

If you want to book on short notice then DVC is probably not your best option, except that if you like David's FB page you will sometimes be offered very sweet deals for last minute stays, generally at SSR and off-season.

i believe daddio books small-point reservations. some owners will not do this.

Just to clarify for some potential renters who may not know...David (of David's Rentals) posts on the DISBoards under the username Daddio. They are the same person.

 

[MAO]

For a non-DVCer who would like to rent a DisWorld villa, are there minimum stays? (I probably could never stay 7 whole days.) Also, I'm much more likely to attempt booking on short-notice, to get a deal. Am I being realistic?

And, can I purchase points from several owners separately, until I've accumulated enough for the place I'd like?

Thanks for any help you can provide...

Just to be sure your questions were addressed: as Delmar pointed out, you are basically buying a reservation - the member makes the reservation after consultation with you (and, usually, a down payment from you) and your name is put down on the reservation as the person who will be staying at that resort. Though you could technically 'rent' (we don't like the word 'purchase', as that tends to have more permanent connotations that just one reservation) from multiple people each person only has control over their own points. So you'd have to rent from person 1 for as many nights as they had points, and then get a second reservation from person 2 for as many nights as they had points, then a third reservation from person 3, etc. Like eating a piece of pie, but only from someone else's pie and only allowing yourself one bite - you'd have to find enough people to share their pie with you before you ate enough to say you had an entire slice of pie! In short, there's no way for you - as a non-DVC member - to "pool" those points from various members to make one reservation. There is nothing to prevent you from making multiple reservations, however, except for the hassle of dealing with them once at the resort.

As far as short-notice booking, I don't know what you mean by that. Short notice for me is 7 or 8 months notice! Technically, however, sure. If you can find someone and get an agreement in place, DVC members can make reservations 1 day in advance. The likelihood of having a room open, of course, just like at any hotel is lessened the closer you try to book the stay but there's nothing preventing you from trying. It's the finding someone who still has points available and who is willing to make a reservation for you in exchange for something (usually money) that will be the difficulty. You can check the Rent/Trade boards here on Disboards and there are at least two places where a middleman will attempt to help you find someone with points.

And, yes, in certain situations you will likely 'get a deal' - as long as you understand it's not YOUR short notice that matters, it's a question of whether the points an owner has are about to expire or not. In other words, you might say "I'd like to go to WDW this weekend" and think that's short-notice. It's only if you find someone who's points are expiring within the current month or so who will consider a "deal" - if they've still got 6 months before their points expire, they've still got plenty of time to find someone to sell a reservation to.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

i believe daddio books small-point reservations. some owners will not do this.

Actually I think it may be the opposite - or at least David's has a minimum number of points that an owner must commit to rent. Best to just check with them but there are lots of owners who will rent reservations for just a few nights.

 

[abner1776]

There is no minimum number of points that a DVC owner will rent as it all depends on the owner and his/her contract.

You could find an owner who has 20 points remaining from his use year and is willing to rent them out for one night, or you can find an owner who has 500 points and wants to get rid(sell) all of them. DVC owners rent our their points for various reasons...maybe they booked an Alaskan Cruise in 2015 and won't be using their points this year, so lets rent them out.

Many potential renters fuss and worry about losing their money by renting points and sending their $$$ to a complete stranger, but keep in mind that the owner has a substantial investment(cost) associated with their points and most of us DVC owners did not purchase our points simply as a place to vacation, but rather to vacation at Disney World. We look at Disney differently than other people...Disney is not just another Marco Island or Miami Beach as a place to vacation.

When I rent out my points, I only rent to people I know or family members because I am taking a chance that the renter could trash the room and then I am on the hook for the damages.

Renting is a two way street with benefits and associated perils on both sides.

 

[fireflyer]

I appreciate everyone's comments, including delmar411, okw2012, bellablue2, Chuck S, MAO, KAT4DISNEY, & abner1776. Very good info from all of you.

I live only a few hrs away, so DisneyWorld is accessible, as well as loveable, desirable, etc. and I understand why people buy into DVC. I also understand why most people make housing arrangements well in advance. Everyone loves this place!

But the DVCrenting process seems a little difficult for both owners & point-renters, so it seems like the only true beneficiaries are:
1. the original property seller (Disney)
2. the condo manager (Disney)

I'll continue to look into this and to watch the DISboards. But because vacations are only possible for me on short notice, a DVC rental might not work for me.

Somehow, sometime, I will still make it happen.

 

[Minniesgal]

I appreciate everyone's comments, including delmar411, okw2012, bellablue2, Chuck S, MAO, KAT4DISNEY, & abner1776. Very good info from all of you.

I live only a few hrs away, so DisneyWorld is accessible, as well as loveable, desirable, etc. and I understand why people buy into DVC. I also understand why most people make housing arrangements well in advance. Everyone loves this place!

But the DVCrenting process seems a little difficult for both owners & point-renters, so it seems like the only true beneficiaries are:
1. the original property seller (Disney)
2. the condo manager (Disney)

I'll continue to look into this and to watch the DISboards. But because vacations are only possible for me on short notice, a DVC rental might not work for me.

Somehow, sometime, I will still make it happen.

Firstly Disney gains nothing from the rental process, in fact they probably consider it a loss as someone who would have paid them for a room is now paying an owner for the use of their points.

Secondly I agree the rental process is a little complicated at first. However, it simplifies greatly once you get to know it. That is why for your first rental it is ideal to go with a broker who can guide you through the process then later if you want to do it another way it is easier.

Thirdly for DVC rentals it is best (not always essential) to be booking between 7 and 11 months before you travel. Any shorter notice and availability will be lower sometimes challenging. If you cannot work within these timeframes it is unlikely DVC rental will work often for you.

In responce to your original question where can you go to check availability. The answer is you cannot check availability yourself. You will need to go to David's (broker) and have him do it for you, however, I'm fairly sure he requires a deposit to do that. Or you can go through an owner on the rent trade boards. however, i wouldn't do that until you were serious about booking.

If I were you i'd confirm my dates then contact David's. worst that can happen is you have to get your deposit refunded because there is no availability.

 

[fireflyer]

Pretend an owner has 100 points. The points are expiring 2/28/2015. If the owner doesn't find someone to rent his 100 pts, then they expire. The owner takes a loss. BUT the villas don't sit vacant... Disney-the-property-manager still sells those vacancies for a much larger sum. (Disney.com rents the villas for triple the points' value.) Wouldn't you call that a gain for the manager (Disney)?

That's why I think the seller of DVC (Disney) AND the manager of DVC (Disney) comes out ahead on every square footage.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Pretend an owner has 100 points. The points are expiring 2/28/2015. If the owner doesn't find someone to rent his 100 pts, then they expire. The owner takes a loss. BUT the villas don't sit vacant... Disney-the-property-manager still sells those vacancies for a much larger sum. (Disney.com rents the villas for triple the points' value.) Wouldn't you call that a gain for the manager (Disney)? That's why I think the seller of DVC (Disney) AND the manager of DVC (Disney) comes out ahead on every square footage.

You can get on an email list for last minute rental specials with David's. Those are almost always for SSR. Otherwise you just have to check either with owners or by putting on a request with David's. It may or may not take a little more time compared to booking thru CRO but that will depend on what your requirements are.

Regarding your supposition about rentals being difficult I'd have to disagree and also with the thought that last minute rentals are difficult. Not too long ago Daddio posted that they have never had points go unrented -even so called last minute.

 

[cmrdgrs]

I appreciate everyone's comments, including delmar411, okw2012, bellablue2, Chuck S, MAO, KAT4DISNEY, & abner1776. Very good info from all of you.

I live only a few hrs away, so DisneyWorld is accessible, as well as loveable, desirable, etc. and I understand why people buy into DVC. I also understand why most people make housing arrangements well in advance. Everyone loves this place!

But the DVCrenting process seems a little difficult for both owners & point-renters, so it seems like the only true beneficiaries are:
1. the original property seller (Disney)
2. the condo manager (Disney)

I'll continue to look into this and to watch the DISboards. But because vacations are only possible for me on short notice, a DVC rental might not work for me.

Somehow, sometime, I will still make it happen.

I'm unclear why you think the rental process is difficult. The process is pretty simple and straight forward.

1) Go to the Rent/Trade/Transfer board and find an owner that is on the board who has points for rent at a resort or price that is in your budget
2) Contact the owner and ask them if the dates you want to travel are available
3) If they are the Owner holds the dates and they send you a confirmation
4) If everything looks good, the owner should at that point send you an Agreement of some type outlining the terms of your rental (I send all of my rental contacts using DocuSign for electronic signature via email)
5) Sign the document and pay the owner
6) Go on your vacation happy knowing that you saved money on a great deluxe accommodation at WDW

Brokers are working basically the same way.

 

[Lynne M]

Pretend an owner has 100 points. The points are expiring 2/28/2015. If the owner doesn't find someone to rent his 100 pts, then they expire. The owner takes a loss. BUT the villas don't sit vacant... Disney-the-property-manager still sells those vacancies for a much larger sum. (Disney.com rents the villas for triple the points' value.) Wouldn't you call that a gain for the manager (Disney)?

That's why I think the seller of DVC (Disney) AND the manager of DVC (Disney) comes out ahead on every square footage.

That's not what happens. It would be thoroughly illegal for Disney to do what you describe.

Villas that are part of member inventory (as in your example), if not booked by the member, are indeed rented out by Disney, acting as the members' agent . The proceeds of that breakage inventory come back to the membership - Disney can't just pocket that money. That would be like you saying, "Hey, Lynne, would you do me a favor and sell my car for me?".....and me keeping the proceeds.

Disney does retain ownership of a small percentage of inventory at each DVC resort (< 10%). When they rent those out, they can keep every dime of what they make. They're selling something they own.

 

[Minniesgal]

Pretend an owner has 100 points. The points are expiring 2/28/2015. If the owner doesn't find someone to rent his 100 pts, then they expire. The owner takes a loss. BUT the villas don't sit vacant... Disney-the-property-manager still sells those vacancies for a much larger sum. (Disney.com rents the villas for triple the points' value.) Wouldn't you call that a gain for the manager (Disney)? That's why I think the seller of DVC (Disney) AND the manager of DVC (Disney) comes out ahead on every square footage.

No that's just it Disney do not rent out the villas owned by DVC members for cash. Villas available for points are not sold by Disney for cash just like that. You don't quite understand how the system works.

Disney retain some points themselves so those villas are sold for cash. members trade out of the DVC program some years to do other things and those points return to Disney who sell those villas for cash.

However the inventory owned in points by the members are not sold by Disney for cash. Unless villas are left Unbooked at the last moment but as the program runs at 100% occupancy mostly this is rare. In this case any cash made is returned to the membership.

Also it is pretty rare for a member who wants to rent points to not be able to. I rented mine this year and could easily have sold them 4 times over. Renting benefits the renter and the owner not really Disney

 

[crisi]

Also, if what you are looking at is rooms through cash - most of those rooms were rented by members - the members are using those rooms - they are just using them on the Disney Dream or on an Adventures by Disney trip. In order to pay DCL or ABD for their services, DVC resells the points that were used to book that for cash. They aren't available to members (or their renters) because members have already used them - just not at WDW.

 

[disneynutz]

That's not what happens. It would be thoroughly illegal for Disney to do what you describe.

Villas that are part of member inventory (as in your example), if not booked by the member, are indeed rented out by Disney, acting as the members' agent . The proceeds of that breakage inventory come back to the membership - Disney can't just pocket that money. That would be like you saying, "Hey, Lynne, would you do me a favor and sell my car for me?".....and me keeping the proceeds.

Disney does retain ownership of a small percentage of inventory at each DVC resort (< 10%). When they rent those out, they can keep every dime of what they make. They're selling something they own.

What % of the proceeds are paid to the association, is it the same for trades as for inventory moved to Disney at 6 weeks?

Bill