How old were you when you joined DVC??

[acejka]

I'm getting the feeling that it is a lot of people who are a lot older than me and I was just wondering if I was right. I feel a little judged because of my age and wanting to join.

 

[TisBit]

Don't get discouraged, I am relatively new to these boards and I have seen there are a lot of people in varying places of life on here. Unfortunately not everyone can see things through someone elses eyes. You know what is best for you and you can make your decisions.

As you explore the boards you will find that even the veterans on here often get into some heated debates. Understand you are posting to a public forum and you will get both positive and negative responses....take them for what they are worth! Also understand that there are people that own just a few points and people that own over a 1000 points, which means people do different types of vacations and have differing opinions on how to use them. I don't think anyone was trying to judge you, but don't want to give you bad advise or lead you astray! (I was lurking and saw your other posts and responses).

If you are comfortable buying DVC and feel that you and your husband will enjoy going to WDW about every year, then jump in and do it. My wife is not a Disney junkie, but she has come around and looks forward to our trips. Just digest all this info and decide what is best for you!

For the record we purchased DVC last year when I was 33 and my DW was 29....

 

[drusba]

One day older than God.


My mother, when she got to be a young old used to say that when asked her age. We joined when I was mid-40s shortly after BWV opened; considered it earlier but did not care for OKW. I don't think there is any lop-sided age group and I would consider any age where you feel you can afford it without real finacial strain is an age to consider buying. Ideally, I would have liked to have bought late 20s after all my schooling was over but it was not around then.

 

[lovinthemouse]

My DH and I were both 33 when we purchased 2 years ago. It was the best decision for us and our family. We love Disney. We took a lot of heat from our family and friends. Frankly, I did not care what others thought. If you have the means and want to vacation at WDW frequently then buy and don't worry what others think. Good Luck.

 

[Coach81]

I am 38

 

[dunbarfamily]

Hi! I just read over your thread that I think you are referring to. I don't think people were trying to judge, but to guide you. 99.9% of the people on DIS really do mean well and I think they are just trying to help you look at DVC in different ways. It might not be what you want to hear.

Just a thought: I would never, EVER finance a vacation. To us, a vacation is a reward for hard work and hard saving. Guess I'm a little old fashioned myself!

You know what will work for your situation. As Tisbit said, you will always get different responses. You need to take everything for what it is worth. If you are worried about what people will say and will be impacted by a negative comment, think twice about posting that particular topic.

Remember that most people are just trying to help and want what is best!!

Good luck!!

BTW, we purchased last year with CASH that we saved. My dh is 33 and I am 26. We have three wonderful children and no debt.

 

[CarrianneB]

Age is all a state of mind!

 

[dizzneebabe]

Age is all a state of mind!

Very well said!!!!!!!!!

But, to answer the OP's question: We just purchased in March 2007, when I was 37 and DH 35.

 

[acejka]

I agree, and in my mind I am oh mid to late 30's, but I feel like a lot of people are kind of passing me off as you should just wait you are only 23 and there is plenty of time for dvc in the future, just vacation normally until you are and whatnot, but I feel like I should live in the now and get it now. The future isn't promised and I want to start enjoying the dvc now while I can, with just me and my husband before I wake up and realize that I have kids and its not about us having fun together it is about us having fun with the kids. I want to enjoy it both ways.

I just feel judged for being young and wanting to finance and I feel like I am the only one wanting to finance.

Sorry for the rambling but I totally agree that age is what you make of it.

 

[KyleRayner]

Purchased in April 2005 when I was 34!

 

[TisBit]

Just a thought: I would never, EVER finance a vacation. To us, a vacation is a reward for hard work and hard saving. Guess I'm a little old fashioned myself!

I on the other hand have financed vacations, but usually just a short term to pay it off. We were fortunate and we initially financed and ended up rearranging things to have it paid off in no time (about 3 months). We had looked at DVC before, but didn't do it. I am happy and sad about that....lost so many memories that we could have had.....but also we were in a better place when we bought.

I don't think it is awful to finance, but I think it is something to think about. I spend about ten years in awful debt, due to unemployment and other things. I didn't stop having fun and vacationing some (small ones here and there) but we were fortunate to be able to get out of that debt and I work hard to stay out of it. I guess, the moral of the story is not everyone is fortunate enough to slap down the full amount, but it can still work and even provide savings for long term vacationing, if you do it right. But think real hard about it. And don't be discouraged by what others think you should do....remember you can't please all the people all the time......

 

[MILLZ]

Wife and i were 29 when we joined and as far as what other people think who cares do what YOU want to do.

 

[MineeBaby]

Hi there,
We purchased DVC in July of 06 when my husband and I were both 25 years old. At the time we had an 11 m old daughter and I was 8 weeks expecting our second. We were both working at the time, though I have since stopped working to stay home with our kids. Our thought was, and is for most things except buying our house, that if we have enough in our liquid account to pay something off, we will purchase it...so if we are ever in a bind and NEED to pay it off TODAY we can do that. What we ended up doing is paying the down payment and found a 0% interest credit card to put the balance on. We paid a good chunk of it off while I was still working, but now that I have stopped working our payments to the credit card are less. Our 0% for a year ran out last summer, but before it did, we were able to get another 0% offer (with no fee)onto which we could transfer the remaining balance. We have paid about half of it off and are going to need to either open ANOTHER 0% interest card this summer when the current offer expires, OR we will just pay it off (going back to the main reason why we always have the money available if we need it).

Lots may say our idea is foolish because our credit scores drop everytime we apply for a credit card. But, it didn't seem to have a HUGE impact because we were able to purchase a house this past summer even after all the new mortgage rules changed. So, my end thought is that your age doesn't matter! Bring it on! We are so excited to be able to take our kids to Disney on a frequent basis and then continue to go when we are retired because we will still have membership. I would advise, though, that you not finance because you don't want to pay someone to borrow money unless you really need to. Try the 0% interest thing or save your butt of for a year or two before you get it. Then again, if you can get an interest rate that is lower than your savings account interest rate, it would be better to keep that money in your account (making interest) and paying someone to borrow at a lower rate than it would be to pay it all out in cash.

Good luck making your decision!
Heidi

 

[wildernessDad]

I was 54 when we joined in year 2005. Does that help you out any?

 

[AnimalPrincess]

I agree, and in my mind I am oh mid to late 30's, but I feel like a lot of people are kind of passing me off as you should just wait you are only 23 and there is plenty of time for dvc in the future, just vacation normally until you are and whatnot, but I feel like I should live in the now and get it now. The future isn't promised and I want to start enjoying the dvc now while I can, with just me and my husband before I wake up and realize that I have kids and its not about us having fun together it is about us having fun with the kids. I want to enjoy it both ways.

I just feel judged for being young and wanting to finance and I feel like I am the only one wanting to finance.

Sorry for the rambling but I totally agree that age is what you make of it.

When my husband and I purchased a year ago we were both 24 and we financed. I know that a lot of people don't agree with that, and I as well feel judged on this board sometimes but it was what worked for us. We bought when we did because we were cast members and knew that we wouldn't be forever so we wanted to get the good deal when we could. Also, buying then allowed us to use points for a disney cruise line honeymoon that we wouldn't have been able to afford otherwise. Everyone is different, make different amounts of money and spends it differently. For us we would rather finance and we able to travel now. We will never be in a finacial situation where we could pay cash for DVC but we don't think that should stop us from buying. But that is our feeling. Just do what feels ok to you and your spouse and try not to worry about what other people think.

 

[dunbarfamily]

I on the other hand have financed vacations, but usually just a short term to pay it off. We were fortunate and we initially financed and ended up rearranging things to have it paid off in no time (about 3 months). We had looked at DVC before, but didn't do it. I am happy and sad about that....lost so many memories that we could have had.....but also we were in a better place when we bought.

I don't think it is awful to finance, but I think it is something to think about. I spend about ten years in awful debt, due to unemployment and other things. I didn't stop having fun and vacationing some (small ones here and there) but we were fortunate to be able to get out of that debt and I work hard to stay out of it. I guess, the moral of the story is not everyone is fortunate enough to slap down the full amount, but it can still work and even provide savings for long term vacationing, if you do it right. But think real hard about it. And don't be discouraged by what others think you should do....remember you can't please all the people all the time......

See? Everyone has different situations and ways of looking at things!! Your millage will vary! YOU know what is right, and who the heck cares what other people think!

 

[Quiksilvr]

My wife and I joined DVC this year. I'm 27 and she's 26. We bought the minimum 160 at AKV. We also financed. We have received strange looks from folks who we've informed about our purchase, but we don't care. We can afford it. They also give us strange looks for having purchased a house in downtown DC at our age. We don't care about that either. We've gotten used to it. I don't want to sound awful, but in the interest of full disclosure, I am well-paid for what I do. If we didn't have the amount of money coming in each month that we do, we would have reconsidered the purchase. We made quite certain that the monthly payment was not going to be a problem.

I know many would argue about the interest paid in financing versus the wisdom of investing and buying later, but for us the decision was easy. We wanted to purchase now so that we would get the greatest length of utility for the points and to lock-in today's rates. Our family situation makes me not too concerned over $15,000.

That said, you need to do your own evaluation. If you will get more personal utility out of owning now and you can handle the payments comfortably, then do it. Pure economics (dollars and cents) is not the only reason to take action in life. If that were the case, vacations would be out of the question because they are a waste of productivity. Society, however, realizes that vacations do have commercial utility (and an indirect effect on economics) because vacations can make people happy, and happy people make happy employees. Happy employees are more productive, which means more money in the company coffers. Personal utility is just as important. If it makes you happy and it won't be a strain on your finances, go for it. My wife and I love the idea of 50 years' worth of prepaid vacations that we will (God-willing) be able to enjoy until the contract expires.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[psu4glory]

we purchased almost exactly 2 yrs ago when i was 29 and my DW was 28. we also financed and pretty much fall into the same bucket as Quiksilvr...if our monthly financial state wasn't going to allow for a DVC payment, then we wouldn't have done it. as it is, we've been able to enjoy 4 DVC vacations already, with 2 additional scheduled, and it's been one of the most enjoyable purchases of our lives....

the decision is totally up to you. if you decide to go for it....enjoy!

 

[veenstra56]

We were 35 when we purchased.

 

[3DisneyKids]

There are definitely two camps on these boards...those who think it is ok to finance and those who think that the ONLY way you should buy DVC is if your can pay up front. You know what is right for you.

As for feeling judged on these boards because of your age and your decision to finance...I don't think you are being juedged so much as being offered advice. I also posted in your other thread....and you are asking for advice and opinions there. And often times, when we hear all of those opinions and pieces of advice, it sounds like we are being judged.

The vast majority of us are here to help one another. We were all new at one time and we all had the same questions.

I think you are getting opinions that sound a bit harsh because you seem a bit unsure as to whether or not you should buy in (and you stated that your husband was not on board).

And I think I can speak for many folks here...if you are unsure, then you should definitely wait. This is a major puchase and 50 year commitment (give or take) and one that should not be made lightly.

As for the topic of this thread...yes, most of us here are well past our 20s. There is an old poll/thread around here that was "how old were you when you purchased...." and if memory serves, the majority was in the late thirties-early forties category. But there are others like you on here...young 20-somethings who thought it was right for them for one reason or another.