how are use years determined?

[alisonslp]

Does each resort have several use years? If so, what determines what use year you get? Can you request a particular one? Can you change your use year without selling your contract?

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Does each resort have several use years?

Yes.

If so, what determines what use year you get? Can you request a particular one?

You can request a UY for a current resort (Poly or Aulani), or look for a specific UY when buying resale. I believe UY is distributed through the available resort points as part of the load balancing for banking/borrowing.

Can you change your use year without selling your contract?

No.

 

[disneynutz]

Unknown how Disney assigns UY's to points. If you looks at the list, it isn't evenly distributed. I remember that when they were selling BLT they offered February for the longest time.

I might be an accounting thing.

Bill

 

[drusba]

Each resort will have eight use years, Feb, March, April, June, Aug, Sep, Oct, Dec. If your next question is why is there no January, May, July or Nov use year, the answer is Disney has never revealed why. Once you buy points in a use year, the month that use year begins cannot be changed, but at time of purchase you may be able to get a different use year from the one Disney is offering.

When a resort is constructed and sold, it is divided into "units" which are typically a combination of two or more rooms and when you buy from Disney you own a small percentage of that unit (but there is no rule that you must stay in your unit and it is happenstance if a member ever does). Each unit will have its own use year month and that month cannot ever be changed for that unit or its applicable points. For a new resort that is already up and running, Disney is often selling to new purchasers a use year that begins 4 to 5 month before the month of purchase. That gives the buyer an immediate set of points that can be used before the end of the use year or banked, with a new set of points coming in 7 to 8 months, To a certain extent it is done that way as a selling tool. Many purchasers buy while at Disney and likely will not come back for 9 months to a year and thus the sales rep can show them via banking the first set of points, how they will have a double set of points to use for their first DVC trip.

For a resort that is being sold but is not yet open, Disney will usually be selling a use year that begins some months before the resort is open, but how long has varied.

New purchasers from Disney can request and get a different use year from the one Disney is selling but doing so could shorten what you get, e.g., if in March Disney is selling a December use year and you want October, Disney may not be willing to sell you a contract that starts the prior October but instead you will get your first set of points only in the upcoming Oct.

An existing owner can buy add-ons of 25 points or more and Disney will sell to that member only his existing use year unless he agrees to purchase the minimum number of points a new purchaser can buy, in which case he can choose another use year if desired.

As to what use year you want, be aware it does not control when you can go, which is any time of year, or when you can call to reserve, which is always up to 11 months out for home resort and 7 at others. In other words do not think of use year as something that dictates the month of the year you can reserve. Many recommend that, if you have a usual time of year that you go, you should get a use year that begins shortly before you usually go. The reason for that has to do with the risk of cancellation and then being able to bank points that come out of the reservation into the next use year. For any given use year, you can bank up to all of your points into the next use year and use them for a trip in that next use year, but you must do that act of banking by no leter than the end of the eighth month of your use year. By example here is the risk you have:

Assume a March use year. Now assume that you set up a trip for Feb 2017 using your March 2016 points. That Feb trip is in your March, 1,2016 to Feb 28, 2017 use year, and thus those March 2016 points are "current" use year points for that trip. Now assume come Dec 2016, you have to cancel. The points go back into your account as current use year points. However, the Oct 31,2016 banking deadline will have passed so you will not be able to bank them into the March 2017 to Feb 2018 use year. You now how every member's worst nightmare. You had to cancel a Feb 2017 trip but those points have to be used for a trip that ends no later than Feb 28, 2017 or you lose them.

Assume instead with a March use year you reserve a trip for April 2017. The "current" use year points you use for that trip are those coming March 1, 2017. Once again, come Dec 2016, you have to cancel. Those points go back into your March 2017 use year. You have until Feb 2018 to use them, or by Oct 2017 you can bank them and use them in the March 2018 use year. Thus, because your use year began shortly before your usual annual trip, you avoid that member's worst nightmare.

Realty is that any use year that begins 6 months or less before your usual annual trip avoids the risk that a cancellation will rsult in not being able to bank points. Thus, if you have a usual time of year to go and Disney is offerring a use year month that is shortly before or up to six months before your usual month that you travel, you may just want to take the use year being offered.

Note that if you decide to buy resale rather than from Disney, you also do not have a required use year that you must buy, but the applicable month you can get depends on what is available in the market at the time for a contract that has the amount of points you would like to buy.

 

[alisonslp]

Thanks everyone. The main reason I asked is that we have a dec use year and we often vacation in sept-nov, which obviously can be a dangerous timing in terms of cancellation. We have owned going on 8 years now and so far have not lost points due to this but there have been some close calls. I really wish I would have known when we bought that we could have chosen the time, though honestly, I am not sure we really knew at the time that sept-nov would become our favored time.

 

[princessfionasmom]

Thanks everyone. The main reason I asked is that we have a dec use year and we often vacation in sept-nov, which obviously can be a dangerous timing in terms of cancellation. We have owned going on 8 years now and so far have not lost points due to this but there have been some close calls. I really wish I would have known when we bought that we could have chosen the time, though honestly, I am not sure we really knew at the time that sept-nov would become our favored time.

When we bought we really didn't know much about the use year either and we just lucked out that we got an October use year. Now October/November is our favorite time to go but we also like going in May which cuts it close to banking deadline. I'm glad you've been lucky so far and I'm sure your luck will continue. We did have a September vaca once that made me nervous but it worked out and didn't have to cancel. Best of luck!!