Is buying now a mistake in my situation?

[XcaliburGirl]

I just got back from a cruise on Disney Magic and had a great time...however, I am freaking out a bit because I agreed to buy into DVC.

My husband thinks it's a great deal and would go to WDW every year if I'd agree. I want to go to various places around the country and world, but also like WDW, just not crazy about going every single year. We usually take turns picking the vacation.

I like the idea that we can do a week in WDW one year, followed by a cruise in Alaska the next year, WDW again, then some non-Disney location the next. I am worried since I haven't heard too many good mentions regarding the exchange system for other hotels. Also, I was told by the salesman that there were no other fees besides the dues and exchange fee, but it seems some of the locations are all-inclusives that have high fees for food, etc. That's not indicated in the brochures we have. (Maybe it's in the paperwork coming in the mail?)

We don't have the lump sum of cash free at the moment, but I anticipate being able to pay the loan off much sooner than 10 years. Also, the monthly payment (which I am viewing as a minimum payment) fits fairly comfortably into our budget.
I am nervous about any sort of debt and tying up money, though.

I haven't signed yet (paperwork is coming via mail), though we did provide our credit card for the down payment.(Not sure how binding that is.) I just want some idea as to whether I need to stop and reconsider before committing, or whether it's just my worrying personality.

 

[SSR]

Very bad idea IMO for your situation for a few reasons:

1. you're not willing to commit to going to WDW every year or every other year, where you get the most bang for your points. Under your plan, you wouldn't go to WDW except every 4 years.

2. you're considering buying direct from Disney even though the resale market is a much better deal

3. trading out to other vacations (exchanges) if you buy direct are sometimes difficult and hard to get exactly what you want. You also don't get good value.

4. You're considering financing a depreciating asset, which whole threads have been devoted to here.

I wouldn't, if I were you. Maybe you could try renting points for a year or two and seeing how you like it. As described above, it's akin to buying a $75,000 Range Rover to drive 1/3 of a mile to and from work, but only on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Not a good fit for your situation and needs.

 

[ccgirl]

I just got back from a cruise on Disney Magic and had a great time...however, I am freaking out a bit because I agreed to buy into DVC.

My husband thinks it's a great deal and would go to WDW every year if I'd agree. I want to go to various places around the country and world, but also like WDW, just not crazy about going every single year. We usually take turns picking the vacation.

I like the idea that we can do a week in WDW one year, followed by a cruise in Alaska the next year, WDW again, then some non-Disney location the next. I am worried since I haven't heard too many good mentions regarding the exchange system for other hotels. Also, I was told by the salesman that there were no other fees besides the dues and exchange fee, but it seems some of the locations are all-inclusives that have high fees for food, etc. That's not indicated in the brochures we have. (Maybe it's in the paperwork coming in the mail?)

We don't have the lump sum of cash free at the moment, but I anticipate being able to pay the loan off much sooner than 10 years. Also, the monthly payment (which I am viewing as a minimum payment) fits fairly comfortably into our budget.
I am nervous about any sort of debt and tying up money, though.

I haven't signed yet (paperwork is coming via mail), though we did provide our credit card for the down payment.(Not sure how binding that is.) I just want some idea as to whether I need to stop and reconsider before committing, or whether it's just my worrying personality.

IMHO, it is not a great deal at all. I can rent points for a fraction of the cost. Yes, I know it's not guaranteed and I don't own the reservation. PLus, I purchased a non DVC for a fraction of the cost and trade in. I can also trade that one to anywhere I want to go. I know it's not a guarantee to trade into DVC but I have no problem going off site either. DVC is not a great trader, IMHO. Do some research first. There are others looking to dump timeshares (non DVC) because they don't want to pay the maintenance/taxes. If you don't want to go to WDW every year, I wouldn't consider it. Just my two cents.

 

[dbs1228]

OP said she may like going every other year, not every 4th year.

If I were OP I would cancel the contract for the time being and do a lot more research and as PP said maybe rent points for your next WDW vacation before buying in. If you do decide to buy in I would buy resale with the ability of still trading out to RCI on occasions but using the bulk of the points for DVC. I would also buy a small contract knowing I would be using the points every other year (essentially buying 1/2 the amount of points you were thinking about) that way you can bank and or borrow points for the WDW vacations every 2 - 3 years. Once again since you are unsure cancel until you are sure, DVC will be here next week, month, year ect..... Good luck

 

[Andrew015]

I agree with the PP's. I think DVC only lends itself well to those that are WDW fanatics (frequenting the place at least once every 2 years), who know they will not grow tired of the place.

It sounds to me like half of your points would be used for non-DVC destinations, which already mentioned, are not a good "bang for your buck".

Personally, if I were you, I would cancel for the time being. Continue to research, and really try to determine what's right for your needs. If you're content doing WDW every 3rd or 4th year (I know your husband could go every other year, you might sway further him away from that in the future), I think you would do much better doing Disney with the regular resorts.

 

[ToddyLu]

I would agree with the PP. You sound young like you are just getting your feet on good financial ground--maybe no kids yet. I can understand the emotional buy--your on the boat, Mickey waves to you from the pool, DH looking lovingly into your eyes. DH and I have successful careers and are in our early and mid 40s. We could not have dome this in our earlier years. Heck I only went to WDW for the first time at 34. We purchased 210 points in June 2009 after me hinting around about it for years. We financed using the preferred plan for 10 years. Our monthly note is around $237 and our monthly MFs are $80. so that is a big hunk of change. I can't stress enough how improtant it is to do your research first--especially if this was your first look into DVC.

I have been on these boards looking at the DVC forums and still learn something new all the time.

Read all the stickies here--get the downloadable Passpaorter guide to DVC and read, read, read.

Dh and I know we are not going to have kids at our age, the hope is that we stay in these careers until we retire. We go to Disney every year and will not stop that pattern. It was more of a sure thing for us.

Cancel the contract, rent from David's Rentals or other owner and try it out first. Then if you really want it come back to it in a year and it will make more sense.

 

[DVCconvert]

#1 - if you can't or don't want to visit WDW every year - Don't.

#2 - if you have to fiance the purchase - Don't.

 

[XcaliburGirl]

Wow, thanks for the replies everyone. I was certain I'd get at least one "Go For It!" on these boards, so that really gave me pause.

I've discussed with my husband. We've decided to put it off for a year, save, and see how things look then. I'll also do research in the mean time about resale, renting, and buying fewer points.

 

[DizGirl20]

Put it this way... DVC isn't going anywhere. You can wait a few weeks, a few months, a year or 2 years to join. Only you know your financial situation. I would at least take some time to gather information and get comfortable with how DVC "works". Make the best decision for you and your family once you are better informed. We kicked the idea around for a year or 2 before we decided to take the plunge. I too tend to overthink things. After all the research I did (mostly here on the DisBoards), I was 110% committed when we called to purchase our points. I have no regrets and love being a member!

Wait until you are comfortable with your decision and Good Luck!

 

[shalom]

I'll also do research in the mean time about resale, renting, and buying fewer points.

You've gotten excellent advice, I just wanted to highlight something that's already been said. Buying a non-DVC timeshare might be ideal for you. If you aren't tied to the school year, and especially if you don't want to go every year and are fine with a 1 BR or studio, your odds of being able to trade into DVC are pretty good, and would cost much less than owning DVC. Also, if you buy a timeshare you can trade through RCI, you will have access to many more of the RCI resorts -- DVC owners can only trade into a smaller percentage of the RCI resorts (one sixth, I think it is).

If you want a lot of variety, I would look into one of the other points systems out there like Wyndham or Bluegreen or Marriott and buy resale. If DVC is really important to your husband, pick one that trades in both RCI and II (DVC has switched back and forth in the past). Trading within a points system is usually a lot easier than trading through RCI, and you don't have to worry about what RCI is going to pull in the future. Check out the TUG (Timeshare Users Group) or Timeshare Forums for more information; they'll give you the same advice to research first, but they'll also reply to specific questions.

DVC provides a fairly consistent product, but there's not much variety in terms of location. Some of the other points systems are less consistent (although it's pretty easy to research all the resorts in your system because there's usually an owner's group on the web), but they all offer more variety than DVC does. And it's a buyer's market with a vengeance right now, so you can easily pay cash upfront, and only have to worry about your yearly fees (which would likely be lower than with DVC).

 

[bwvBound]

Put it this way... DVC isn't going anywhere. You can wait a few weeks, a few months, a year or 2 years to join. Only you know your financial situation. I would at least take some time to gather information and get comfortable with how DVC "works". Make the best decision for you and your family once you are better informed. We kicked the idea around for a year or 2 before we decided to take the plunge. I too tend to overthink things. After all the research I did (mostly here on the DisBoards), I was 110% committed when we called to purchase our points. I have no regrets and love being a member!

Indeed! We waited 6 years from first review to (eventual) purchase and I don't regret waiting. By time time we purchased I knew far, far more about the DVC program and timeshares in general than our first meeting with a guide. In those years we researched and purchased other timeshare products that were a better fit for our travel patterns and could see where DVC fit as a niche product "just for Disney-resort travel." Thus, we bought fewer DVC points than we might have if we started with DVC from Day 1.

 

[lmshaggard]

I would have to say that I am probably on the other side than all of the PPs. My DH and I bought our 1st timeshare on our honeymoon. We got married in our late 20's after spending most of our time on our careers which allowed us the freedom to play a bit. We bought in 2002 with RCI weeks. We have LOVED our 1st property which is all inclusive - which we think is a super deal for what we pay!, but still felt Disney tugging on our heartstrings. Our only regret was not buying in 2001 when I was a store manager for Disney and would have bought at $65ish a point minus a 30% CM discount. Yes - you read that right! We have since bought 3 contracts since 2009 (420 pts) and I will say that we own where we want to stay. I also know we paid about double what we would have less than 10 year ago. I have REALLY mixed feelings about resale. Yes, there are lots of resorts you can buy at a pretty good price. But when you calculate it all out (years still available/purchase price/maintanence fees), it isn't always a better deal than buying direct - especially now with some of the limitations. Make sure you buy where you want to stay!!!!!! One of the biggest complaints I read is from owners of a resort that took 9-10 years to sell out not being able to book at a resort that took 2 years to sell out. There is an 11 month booking window for a reason - and that can be very important depending on when you want to travel to WDW or DL. December is a HUGE travel month for DVC members - Christmas is in full swing and points are the lowest of the year - if you don't have a booking window, you are not going to be able to get your first couple of choices. For us, DVC is the right choice - with our children and without our children. We are very happy with our long term plans with DVC and our other timeshare - we can't wait until we can spend more than 5-6 weeks a year at our favorite places!!!

 

[ssawka]

I think the first thing you need to do is sit down with DH and discuss your vacation planning. It sounds like DH is onboard with going to Disney every year, where as you are not. If you continue taking turns planning the vacations, would you be ok going to WDW every other year, if that's what he wanted? If so, you might want to consider buying half the number of points you need for your normal length of stay.

As for the waiting issue, I agree that you should be cautious and make sure DVC is something you really want before making the investment. However, if you decide it is something you really want, I would not wait too long. The buy in price for DVC has been rising at a rapid rate. When we bought into BLT in 2009, the price was $92 per point. Now, it is $140 a point. Even a year after we purchased, the price had risen over 20%. Had we waited, we would not own BLT, which we love! YMMV! It is possible that DVC has reached its equilibrium price for the time being.

 

[logan115]

#1 - if you can't or don't want to visit WDW every year - Don't.

#2 - if you have to fiance the purchase - Don't.

I know that by owning DVC we feel "married" to Disney, but isn't this a little extreme

Chris

 

[JimMIA]

I haven't signed yet (paperwork is coming via mail), though we did provide our credit card for the down payment.(Not sure how binding that is.) I just want some idea as to whether I need to stop and reconsider before committing, or whether it's just my worrying personality.

I have a couple of comments, and I'm going to flop a couple of your original comments so I can comment on them in order of importance.

First of all, you haven't bought anything yet. You've made a deposit, but you haven't signed a sales agreement to purchase. So if you ask for your deposit to be credited, it will be without any delay or fuss.

Second, under Florida law, even if you had signed the purchase documents, you would have ten calendar days to rescind your purchase.

My advice is not to sign anything further. DON'T go through with the purchase.

You need to get the pixie dust out of your eyes and take a long, hard look at whether DVC really fits your vacation plans. DON'T do anything until you take some time, do some research here on the DIS (and elsewhere, like TUG), and arrive at an objective, soundly-based decision.

There are several "Should I buy DVC?" threads running at the same time right now, and reading every word in each of those would be a great start.

We don't have the lump sum of cash free at the moment, but I anticipate being able to pay the loan off much sooner than 10 years. Also, the monthly payment (which I am viewing as a minimum payment) fits fairly comfortably into our budget.

I am nervous about any sort of debt and tying up money, though.

I think there are two things you should seriously consider before you go any further. The first is whether you should buy ANY timeshare, and, if so, the other is whether DVC is the RIGHT timeshare for you. Here's a link to a post I made on those issues on another one of the "Should I buy" threads: http://www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=42911860&postcount=10

IF you decide to buy DVC, or any other timeshare, you should really carefully consider two other questions.

One is: "Do the benefits of buying direct from Disney outweigh the large cost savings available by buying resale?" IMHO, they do NOT.

Buying resale, you will save 10%-50%, depending on what you buy...maybe more. The "benefits" you give up a) are not guaranteed and can be taken away from you at any time, and b) are not usually considered cost-effective uses of your points anyway. b) is particularly true of cruises, which you mention as one of the aspects of DVC that you like most.

The other issue is the effect of financing on the cost-benefit equation for DVC.

If you buy direct, you're paying too much -- maybe WAY too much. If you finance on top of that, you're compounding the felony. Disney's interest rates are HIGH, and they will greatly add to your overall cost.

None of us can tell you whether you should finance or not -- you know your finances, we don't. But there is no question that financing adds substantially to your costs.

 

[sweetdana]

I agree with PP and your 2nd thoughts.

DVC is great for annual and even semi annual visitors.
DVC is good if you get a good deal, and esp buying resale, and no interest (IE CASH). Paying driect prices, and interest makes it not much of a saving off the discounted prices you would pay every couple years.

I would save at least 1/2 the money, but 1/2 the points (YOU CAN ALWAYS ADD ON.) Buy resale, and rent until you get everything together.

I also think buying less points than you need is 100000% the way to go. It is easy to transfer more points in, or add on.. but much more expensive to fix over buying.

 

[JimMIA]

If you want a lot of variety, I would look into one of the other points systems out there like Wyndham or Bluegreen or Marriott and buy resale.

IF you decide to buy a timeshare (and that should not be a given for any prospective purchaser -- there are many, many other ways to get vacation lodging), you owe it to yourself to follow shalom's excellent advice.

I'll give you a specific example of one option. Last summer, we purchased a Wyndham points contract on eBay. It's next to impossible to compare one system to another, but we bought 501,000 Wyndham points which I would roughly equate to the purchasing power of 500-600 DVC points...maybe more. 500 DVC points, purchased resale would have cost us at least $25,000. We paid a little less than $2,000 TOTAL, including closing costs. Our dues are low (we selected our home resort for the low, stable dues) -- about $2,100 per year.

For that, here's what we get. Access to about 70 Wyndham timeshare resorts (we book either Wyndham or RCI directly online), plus limited access to some Worldmark timeshares and some other affiliated systems. The 70 Wyndham resorts are the key -- the others are gravy if you can get them. Wyndham is strongest in the Eastern US, but growing elsewhere -- for example, they have 10 resorts on three islands in Hawaii. (Also 5 in the immediate WDW area).

Next summer, we're going to our home resort (Wyndham Smoky Mountains), for a full week, 11 people, THREE 2 BR's during peak season, for 498,000 points.

We also have full RCI membership included in our annual fees. With DVC, you get indirect (through MS) access to about 600 RCI resorts. With Wyndham, we get full, direct online access to the entire RCI system. RCI claims 6,500+ resorts, but if you take the duplicates out, I think there are actually around 4,000. In addition, we get full access to other RCI "perks" like Extra Vacations and Last Calls (greatly discounted cash reservations). One of our regular posters here recently got a full week at Wyndham Bonnet Creek -- in a 2 bedroom -- for Feb 2012...for less than $500 total with an Extra Vacation booked about 5-6 months out.

Also, although Wyndham is not a particularly strong trader, Wyndham owners have been reporting a fair degree of success exchanging into DVC through RCI.

I'm not saying Wyndham would be right for you -- you'd need to spend significant time researching that as well. I spent about 3 months researching, with a LOT of help from some very knowledgeable people here on the DIS and on TUG.

But there are other timeshare options out there, and one of them may be a better fit for you than DVC -- given the fact that you want variety.

 

[disneyofcourse]

I'm not sure that buying direct and financing a DVC membership is right for your situation. At one point a couple years ago I considering financing 160 points with Disney and then really started doing research. I found out about buying resale and ended up being able to purchase my first 200 points at the resort I liked for MUCH much less than I was originally looking at. I just couldn't see myself paying that much in interest! If you do plan on only going every two years I say go with a smaller contract and don't overbuy for your needs. Personally, I wouldn't use points for a cruise or trade them to use at non-disney resorts. I would rent them out and pay cash instead. And yes you can rent out points if you won't be using them that year.

Remember this is something you really have to think about since its a pretty big commitment. Factor in the costs of getting to Disney and the other costs of going to Disney such as food. Those are things people sometimes don't think about.

I was 20-21(?) when I considered paying Disney my hard earned money and it took me til age 24 to actually get it. I really put some thought into things I knew I was going to continue going to Disney for many years and that my parents & sister would also benefit and not really have to worry about planning/ paying for vacations. I also knew that I would be ok with renting out points if need be. Especially if I move farther away and couldn't make it as often. (I'm *only* a 10-11 hour drive right now)


Good luck with whatever you end up doing. I can honestly say I'm very happy with buying resale!!


Oh yeah. Check out other types of timeshares and not just Disney. Friends of mine bought a contract (used) for Wyndham and seem pleased with it. Spent like 3k or something on it and use it while visiting family and Disney during the same trip. They are going to still buy a DVC contract just to stay extra close to the parks.

 

[chunkygal]

My opinion, in your situation I would not buy. The value for cruises...is not great. You actually would do better buying a cruise and for that matter unless you just have to have the mouse, other cruise lines can be a much better value. I certainly can't see it without kids, but I am sure there are those that do.

Secondly, financing is God's way of saying maybe you should think twice if it's not a necessity.

 

[taaren]

DVC is great for annual and even semi annual visitors.
DVC is good if you get a good deal, and esp buying resale, and no interest (IE CASH). Paying driect prices, and interest makes it not much of a saving off the discounted prices you would pay every couple years.

I would save at least 1/2 the money, but 1/2 the points (YOU CAN ALWAYS ADD ON.) Buy resale, and rent until you get everything together.

I also think buying less points than you need is 100000% the way to go. It is easy to transfer more points in, or add on.. but much more expensive to fix over buying.

This, agree completely. It sounds like DVC is a good fit for your husband who wants to Disney every year. If you purchase 80 points, bank them every other year so you have 160 points (or however many you would like) in the even or odd years in which your husband picks, then he will be a happy camper and in the non-Disney years you can use the $$ you saved on the other half of the points (or perhaps look at another EOY timeshare to trade - though that gets complex). One of the advantages to DVC is that it is flexible and the banking is so easy (with no fees) by comparison to some other timeshare companies.
I'm against financing personally but it works for some people, particularly if you know you'll be able to pay it off early.