Intrigued by DVC ... but ...

[rinkwide]

The value resorts are cheaper in the short run AND the long run. If I were on a strict budget that's definitely what I would do.

Oh sure, that's easy to say when you've got an OKW Grand Villa reserved.

 

[vascubaguy]

Oh sure, that's easy to say when you've got an OKW Grand Villa reserved.

TOTALLY agree! If those are the accommodations you are booking then of course a value is cheaper!

In the "long run", I happen to believe that DVC is a MUCH better deal than the value resorts. If you calculate the cost (per point) over the life of the contract and factor in the increasing MF's most members will see a lifetime per point cost less than $10 (some of us even less). I figured mine to be around $6-7... so a studio at OKW in October would cost me 8 points ($48-56). Most likely that will not change over the life of the contract. I don't see many discounts at the values that would bring it down the cost that low (especially when you add in the taxes). Now if I include the weekends that throws the figures off some, but if I spread out the point calculations over 7 days, it is still around $70 per night... not bad for a deluxe!

Did I mention the AP savings and other DVC discounts and perks?

 

[Corwin12]

I appreciate all the answers that have been given to this thread. I had not been to Disney in 16 years (when I was a kid) and over those years, pretty much decided I hated it there. This past March I took my wife there and loved it. This trip in December (notice the two trips in less than a year) will decide, for me, if I can picture myself heading to Disney every year. The initial investment does not scare me off. I'd like to think if I spent around 12,500 - 15,000 for a modest 150 points, the points would retain there value in 8 - 10 years. Contrast that with 35,000 my wife spent for a new Jeep last year. What will that be worth in 8 - 10 years?? However, all my life I had been taught that timeshare is about the stupidest investment one could make. Even financial books share that opinion (such as Dave Ramsey's) But Disney timeshare does not follow the same structure traditional timeshares follow. Has anyone had experience with being called "crazy" or "stupid" for even considering the idea? I told my brother I was looking into it and I got a mouthful. I honestly think I would have to keep it a secret from my family for fear of never ending ridicule. Sorry for the long message, but, I have no one else to raise these concerns to. Thanks for listening.

 

[Micmaniac]

Keep in mind also that although maintenance costs will increase over time, so will rack rates on rooms. The price of staying at a Disney resort is not likely to go down over the years, so DVC, to me, makes sense. We have gone to WDW nearly every year for the past 26 years and only now are waiting to close on a VWL contract so we can continue doing that. A studio will suit us just fine as we enter the life without kids phase.

 

[Dina]

I appreciate all the answers that have been given to this thread. I had not been to Disney in 16 years (when I was a kid) and over those years, pretty much decided I hated it there. This past March I took my wife there and loved it. This trip in December (notice the two trips in less than a year) will decide, for me, if I can picture myself heading to Disney every year. The initial investment does not scare me off. I'd like to think if I spent around 12,500 - 15,000 for a modest 150 points, the points would retain there value in 8 - 10 years. Contrast that with 35,000 my wife spent for a new Jeep last year. What will that be worth in 8 - 10 years?? However, all my life I had been taught that timeshare is about the stupidest investment one could make. Even financial books share that opinion (such as Dave Ramsey's) But Disney timeshare does not follow the same structure traditional timeshares follow. Has anyone had experience with being called "crazy" or "stupid" for even considering the idea? I told my brother I was looking into it and I got a mouthful. I honestly think I would have to keep it a secret from my family for fear of never ending ridicule. Sorry for the long message, but, I have no one else to raise these concerns to. Thanks for listening.

Everyone in our families thinks we are crazy and stupid for doing it-- however they don't mind staying in our two bedroom with us on our points. My husband and I know that we are not making a good financial investment, though we do think after 10 years we'll be saving money. That's not at all why we bought into DVC though. We hate the values-- I know this is rare, but I'd rather not go to Disney then stay at All Star. Our son has very mild autism, and we NEED to relax on vacation. We cannot stay at the parks all day-- a few hours a day (sometimes only 2 or 3) is fine for us. We love to just hang out at the resort and the values (and even the moderates) just don't allow us to relax the way we want. We love the Disney atmosphere, but don't love being at the parks all day. We bought because we want a vacation where we can relax with the conveniences of home and some extra space (I want a separate bedroom and kitchen for breakfasts and lunches). Just going to a loud crowded food court can overstimulate my son. I absolutely think that if you love the values and don't mind vacationing there-- that's probably the better financial move-- to me, its just not a vacation there (no offense to anyone who loves them, they just don't work for our family). But I wouldn't go into this thinking its a wise financial investment-- it has to be something you truly want for your family. We don't expect a return on our "investment."

 

[DVC Grammy]

I think one of the most important questions you said you needed to answer was whether you could picture yourself going to Disney every year. IMO, most of us DVCers, were going, or intended to be going to Disney pretty much every year, even before we considered buying in.
In our case, we've done a lot of world travel over many years, and now, WDW is where we vacation (don't let my kids know that their homes come second ). So it really was the least crazy and stupid thing we could do..............in fact, we feel it was an incredibly SMART choice!

 

[corpcomp]

Prior to DVC we stayed at deluxe, moderate and value resorts but mostly moderate for the last ten years. Putting aside the downpayment for DVC, the maintenance fee on 210 points (six nights in BCV during Spring Break) is about what we spent for a room at Coronado for a week. The tradeoff is that for the same cash outlay we get a great location, fantastic pool much larger room, kitchen, easy transportation, etc...and actually look forward to going back again to relax, rather than marathon park hopping. We have really discovered Disney now.

Best move we ever made.

Now if we could just regulate the airlines again.

 

[Buckalew11]

About what people think of timeshares. You are right. I caught a lot of flack over that too. A lot of it from my parents.

My parents own a week in a timeshare and have since the 80s. As a family, we have done some wonderful, wonderful trips with that timeshare. So, I sat down with them and talked about their concerns and also about the treasured memories that we made on those vacations at the different timeshares we traded to.

After all was said and done, I think they are fine with our decision. Of course, fine or not, it was our decision. They were just trying to make sure we covered all the bases and thought it through.I think it was more about spending the $$ on Vacations compared to saving and investing (which I promise I am also doing ).

Good luck. It is a big decision.

 

[Granny]

However, all my life I had been taught that timeshare is about the stupidest investment one could make. Even financial books share that opinion (such as Dave Ramsey's) But Disney timeshare does not follow the same structure traditional timeshares follow. Has anyone had experience with being called "crazy" or "stupid" for even considering the idea? I told my brother I was looking into it and I got a mouthful. I honestly think I would have to keep it a secret from my family for fear of never ending ridicule.

Many people here have reported family and friends giving them grief about buying a timeshare. Most of those same people won't take the time to understand the difference in the DVC plan. But you shouldn't base your decision on what those other people say.

Many here have also indicated that they keep their DVC membership a secret for two reasons:

1. Fear of being blasted for buying a timeshare.
2. Fear of family and friends mooching "free" vacations. This is actually the bigger problem as people just assume you have a large condo and so it's no big deal to bring a bunch more people, right? Of course, DVC doesn't work that way and the larger accommodation you get, the more points you use. And that doesn't even touch on the problems with people cancelling out at late dates and leaving you hanging with points spent uselessly!


There is a flip side to the "timeshare issue", and that is from those who do own or like traditional timeshares. They often point out that Disney's version of a timeshare is not a real timeshare because it has an expiration date while traditional timeshares do not. So those people will point out that you pay all those dues and then after 35-47 years you have nothing to sell or show for it.

Most DVC owners will agree that they find the expiration date attractive, as the resorts will be 50 years old at that time and who knows what the entire Disney enterprise will look like at that point. We like the fact that we aren't going to burden our offspring with an asset that will continue to cost money and would be difficult to sell.

The funny thing is, the people who ridicule a timeshare often have no problem returning year after year to the same vacation spot (lake house, ski lodge, etc) but seem to think multiple trips to WDW is a crazy idea.

And guess what? If you buy DVC, your brother (if married) will probably be first in line to see if he can come along on a trip with his family.

 

[rinkwide]

Whenever one of those "amateur financial advisers" questions my DVC purchase I simply explain to them what I paid 3 years ago and then show them this page:

http://www.dvc-resales.com/dvclisting.cfm

They usually get very quiet for a few minutes and then ask, "How many points would I need?"

 

[S. C.]

I use to wonder the same question as you. Why buy DVC and pay maintence fees when i can just stay at a regular disney resort. And we stayed at the values, moderates and several deluxe resorts and enjoyed everyone of them. This year we stayed at SSR rented thru cro....well now I get it. We loved staying at DVC, we had a one bedroom villa and would not want to go back to a regular resort.

 

[flechette]

It does. I think you are right on the money for your needs. But don't ever try out a DVC studio. It might be painful to go back.
......
And don't get me started on what happens when a DVCer tries out a one bedroom. We did it. My partner won't even hear the word studio when I'm planning the next trip. It's so frustrating.

Humans. Give them more. Want more. Scary!!!

LOL at least you got to start in a studio, we aren't even owners yet and Tim's already said - studios are last resort; 1 bedroom please!

I can see at HHI and Vero beach we'll be likely to cook dinner but all we need is a refrig at WDW - we got hooked on the dining plan and aren't big on breakfast...

To the OP- Good luck deciding! I made the mistake of not hiding the pretty purple book so most of our friends are already asking "didja buy yet? heh at least they are enthusiastic about it compared to our families going - huh? timeshare not so bad- but Disney? every year? are you feeling alright? Disney every other year? Are you sure your feeling ok? What can you do but grin and bear it?

 

[Jeremy&Susan]

We just joined and haven't yet closed - I know it won't be long till I'll be home again!

WELCOME HOME

 

[DonnaL]

I definitely agree with what Boas says......we bought DVC in 2001 and prior to that would visit WDW maybe every four to five years. Now, our entire way of vacationing at WDW has changed.......we do things we would never consider before (relaxing things) just because we know if we miss something else this time we'll catch it next time. One of our most enjoyable afternoons was renting a pontoon boat at WL marina and just driving around Bay Lake.
We did it spur of the moment and didn't take anything but water with us, but, you could take a picnic lunch with you and have a wonderful relaxing afternoon. We would have NEVER done something like WASTE an entire afternoon cruising Bay Lake prior to purchasing DVC.........we would have been out there charging the parks commando style so we didn't miss anything and we wouldn't be back for five years.