Hi there! So disney sent me a $25 gift card to look into
DVC. We are a family of four- 2 kids (2) and (5) and two adults. My DH is in the hospitality business, which means we never get to travel on prime time days/weeks/ holidays. Our vacations are always in January- March. If we were to purchase, how much would it cost to have our points at the poly, WL or contemporary? How many points would we need for 8 night stay? Thanks!
There are a lot of variables but I'll assume you're asking the question to get a rough estimate. Therefore, I'll present some scenarios to give you a ballpark idea.
To start, the Poly's DVC is being built. No one knows what it will cost to buy yet. The Contemporary's DVC is called Bay Lake Tower (BLT). At the Wilderness Lodge, it's the Villas at the Wilderness Lodge (VWL).
All DVC memberships have an expiration date, a date when your purchase ends. At VWL, it's 2042. At BLT, it's 2060.
When you buy into DVC, you purchase a certain number of DVC points at a specific resort. When you book your DVC room, you use your DVC points (not money).
However, your DVC points can be thought of in terms of money.
Your DVC points have a purchase price. In addition, every year you pay an annual Maintenance Fee (MF). Purchase prices and MFs vary from resort to resort. There are some closing costs (typically a few hundred dollars) but the purchase price and MF are the 2 major costs.
All DVC resorts are purchased from Disney ("direct') or from another DVC member, typically through a real estate broker ("resale"). This affects the purchase price only. Whether initially purchased direct or through resale, the MF cost the same.
A DVC purchase from Disney always is more expensive, sometimes significantly more expensive.
Since you are a family of 4, I'll assume you'll stay in a Studio (basically a hotel room) and give you some rough prices, based on a 8-night stay some time in mid-February to late-March, with 3 weekend nights and 5 weekday nights.
BLT Standard View Studio
Points needed: 161
Direct Purchase Price @ $165/point: $26,565
Resale Purchase Price @ $100/point: $16,100
2014 MF @ $4.78/point: $770
VWL Studio
Points needed: 148
Direct Purchase Price @ $130/point: $19,240
Resale Purchase Price @ $80/point: $11,840
2014 MF @ $5.93/point: $878
I emphasize these numbers are rough, just to give you a ballpark idea. Direct prices are based on Disney's current prices. Resale prices are based on the median current resale market. (Note there are some other costs that can be negotiated when buying resale that also affect the price.)
Direct or resale, you pay the purchase price once. And you pay either the direct price
or the resale price,
not both.
You pay the MF every year and these increase every year, averaging about 3%-to-5% increase annually.
In general, the number of points needed does not increase every year, although there are some special cases.
The more years you visit WDW, the more years you have to spread out the cost of the purchase price.
If in a few years you decide you want to get rid of your DVC, you have the option of selling it. Usually you pay a 10% commission to the broker.
All this is just a rough guide. There's tons more to learn before buying DVC.
Hope this helps!
