How important was contract length to you?

[jerseygal]

We weighed several resorts resale and combination of AKV Kidani incentives with 12 more yrs of contract length was a consideration when analysis of "value" for us! AKV Kidani will be a beautiful resort which will undoubtedly appeal to many families..both young with the interactive water area for younger children and slide and pool for older folks...Samawati Springs Pool looks like it will be awesome! Can't wait!

Am I saying that I will always stay at my home resort? No way!

I firmly believe in the premise that I'll be able to choose most resorts within reason at 7 mos out...If I can't, then a basic decision of why I bought DVC would be violated and I would be selling quickly!

Good luck in your decision making!

 

[PIERCEDRN]

This is the decision I am going through right now. Since I can get a CM discount, i can get AKV for cheaper and BLT for about the same price as I can get a BCV resale. So logically, AKV would be the best choice since it is the cheapest and I got more years, BUT I only want to stay at BCV? I have lost sleep recently over this decision, not sure what to do.

For the next few years, BLT points will likely rent for around $15 a point, and dues are super cheap, and will stay that way. Add that into your calculations when considering resale! I'm sure a lot of people would trade their 11 month window at BCV to stay at BLT in a direct trade. You may not have that flexibility with AKV.
BOB

 

[Terry S]

Thanks Bob. Those are some good points and I will add them into my considerations. We absolutely love BCV and would stay there every vacation if we could. I just can't see paying $89-$94 a point for a resale that has 15 years (I think that is right) less on the contract when I can get BLT for $90 per point. I think we have ruled out AKV as I really don't like the decor there or the distance from everything. BLT I would stay at if I couldn't get BCV, although, as I said, I would prefer to stay at BCV.

Hmmmm.... sounds like I am talking myself into BLT.....

 

[Draiocht]

Great response so far thanks folks!

I've read so much about buying where you want to stay but just want to see what the general opinion on length was.
Going through the tricky process of trying to decide a home resort now and no matter how attractive some are to me the shorter contract length are definitely a key factor that dissuade me from them both in terms of amount of years I will get out of them and as a previous poster mentioned Resale value should I go crazy and decide I no longer vacation at Disney!

 

[PrincessNewsie]

It's a big one for us, DFi and I will be 76 and 73 when the BLT contracts expire. If we bought at BWV or VWL (which we still may do), we would be 61 and and 58... Way too young to watch our magic expire.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

We recently realized that our BWV points will expire 2 months before our 50th wedding anniversary. We'll be 73 & 76 by then.

We may add on eventually, maybe BLT. I think downsizing in the later golden years sounds pretty prudent.

 

[Laneychris]

It was important to us, more bang for your buck

 

[Buckeye Fan]

Yes...When we purchased initially, we were only looking at OKW and SSR. There was no hint of OKW extensions at the time, so we purchased SSR because of the extra years. We could have purchased OKW for about $15 less per point via resale, but figured that our kids could use the points even when we can't. MFs were lower, the resort was newer, and it had a 2054 expiration date. We felt if we ever wanted to sell, this would be an advantage down the road.

No...I turned right around this year and purchased 150 points at Vero Beach for $60 per point. There were no beach locations offering anything beyond 2042. I fully understand that VB's maintenance fees are the highest, but we love the beach. VB's point structure is also a great value if you travel June/July/Aug time frame. If/when we're finished with the beach, we can still use the points at WDW (at least the way the system works today), so it was a win-win for us.

Good luck with your decision. We definitely wrestled with it prior to purchasing. I will say the bulk of our points expire in 2054.

 

[DVCSAMNH]

We never book more than a few months out(and don't anticipate being able to anytime in the near future) so the 11 month home resort advantage has never been a consideration for us when buying.

We went for the length of contract and the best deal at the time.

 

[fadedgirl]

Then again, buying a resort with a 2042 end date could be a good thing. One might not want to be paying the MFs for fifty years. One might not want to hassle with selling an exp 2059 resort at the age of 75+! One might want to retire to one's porch with a shotgun and a Schlitz, and not have an almost two-decade-longer commitment.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

This is the decision I am going through right now. Since I can get a CM discount, i can get AKV for cheaper and BLT for about the same price as I can get a BCV resale. So logically, AKV would be the best choice since it is the cheapest and I got more years, BUT I only want to stay at BCV? I have lost sleep recently over this decision, not sure what to do.

Terry, if I recall correctly from years past, your heart was really with BCV.
I don't think you would be happy with anything else.

34 years is still a long time..

MG

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Oh yeah... For us the end year didn't mean a thing. Than again, most of our points were purchased before anyone knew there would be resorts with later expiration dates.

MG

 

[Terry S]

Terry, if I recall correctly from years past, your heart was really with BCV.
I don't think you would be happy with anything else.

34 years is still a long time..

MG

My heart, soul and everything else is with BCV! (Good memory!)

 

[Buckeye Fan]

My heart, soul and everything else is with BCV! (Good memory!)

Then I would recommend buying there. Though I posted that expiration date was a big deal to us, had I prefered a 2042 resort and wanted to spend most of my time there, I would have purchased there. I know none of us knows what the future holds, but if you plan on holding on to your points, go for BCV. I don't regret buying SSR points, but I do regret the UY. I will take a pretty hefty hit to sell and repurchase, so you definitely don't want to put yourself in that position. Lastly, with BCV being such a small resort, it will be the hardest to book, even at off times. As more and more people filter into the system, I feel BCV will be harder to book without the home resort advantage.

FWIW, my guess is if you buy BCV points, the 2042 expiration will be a blip on your radar after the deal is said and done. I can honestly say that was true with my VB purchase. What won't be a blip on your radar...the first few times you go to book BCV, and it's not available when you want to travel. Wishing you the best with your decision.

 

[kimberh]

Location, Location, Location! I have bought where I want to stay.

 

[mgilmer]

We very briefly considered length of contract but quickly dismissed it as an issue. At my age, there is a very good chance I will expire before the BCV does Now, that being said, if DVC does offer an extension at BCV (or VWL where we will buy next), I would jump on it in a heartbeat as I would like to leave our interest in DVC to my son so he can enjoy DVC into his old age.

 

[ILuvMulan]

It was a definite consideration, especially when we considered buying re-sale. We, too, felt that with the longer contract and the incentives that AKV was the better deal. My grandkids can push me around Disney when I am 90.