Is dvc membership a value at the proposed increased prices?

[pinnocchiosdad]

There has to be a point break where you really have to ask yourself is this really worth it. Between interest, principle, and MF's, I pay over $6500 a year for my 320 BLT points. Current prices are more than double the introductory DVC prices at some resorts. When you boil it down, your points get you a hotel room for a couple a nights a year with no maid service. I don't think I would do it over at today's prices.

 

[disneynutz]

You would have to compare the cost to buy a DVC interest and what a room would cost direct from Disney.

Renting a reservation from a DVC owner would also need to be considered.

You have to remember that less than 1% of DVC owners post on the DIS and the majority of direct buyers don't know about resale.

Bill

 

[pinnocchiosdad]

the majority of direct buyers don't know about resale.

Bill

I have mentioned the resale market to several prospective DVC buyers. They all give me the deer in the headlight stare.

 

[JimMIA]

Is dvc membership a value at the proposed increased prices?

No.

 

[heynowirv]

No.

At those prices ,agreed

 

[Caren90]

No.

I agree. The prices are way out of whack, but it is Disney and people will not want to miss out on these great low prices before they are increased.

I have brother who, during the real estate boom, was listing condos on the Florida market. If he received no offers within the first few weeks of listing, he would RAISE the listing price and eventually sell them at the higher price. His philosophy was people would buy during the frenzy of the boom if they saw the prices increasing rather than decreasing. They wouldn't want to miss out on a good deal. Genius!

Stephen

 

[Dean]

There has to be a point break where you really have to ask yourself is this really worth it. Between interest, principle, and MF's, I pay over $6500 a year for my 320 BLT points. Current prices are more than double the introductory DVC prices at some resorts. When you boil it down, your points get you a hotel room for a couple a nights a year with no maid service. I don't think I would do it over at today's prices.

I think they passed the reasonable level at the opening price for BLT for a full sized contract. One can certainly compare to Disney CRO hotel prices but if you do, you should include at least come discount. I'd say 20% is most reasonable. You can always count on 10% discount and you can get up to 35% at times so I think you can assume 20% is a conservative average. IMO one also should at least consider the off property prices and benefits. So many people go into DVC thinking for DVC AND other trips. IMO it makes far more sense to buy off property for that group than to buy DVC if they want a single system for all their trips. More options and cheaper overall costs both up front and long term.

 

[ELMC]

Is dvc membership a value at the proposed increased prices?

No.

I would go one step further and say that certain resorts such as BLT, AKV, AUL, and VB are not worth it BEFORE the upcoming increase.

 

[chalee94]

I have mentioned the resale market to several prospective DVC buyers. They all give me the deer in the headlight stare.

buy from a stranger, like in some back-alley deal?

why do that when you can trust Mickey?

 

[tjkraz]

Sure it's still a value. If you look at rack rates--even with reasonable discount assumptions--DVC costs far less in the long run than paying cash prices.

Of course resale is a MUCH BETTER value, no question.

Direct buyers who later discover resale may end up kicking themselves for not paying resale prices in the first place. But they won't regret the decision to buy DVC rather than remaining a cash guest.

 

[gdrj]

Sure it's still a value. If you look at rack rates--even with reasonable discount assumptions--DVC costs far less in the long run than paying cash prices.

Of course resale is a MUCH BETTER value, no question.

Ok I'm a DVC owner and verry happy with it for longer than I can remember. We primarily vacation at Disney, but saying it is a value against inflated rack rates to me isn't accurate. I think new purchasers will be looking at the price vs. other uses of their funds. Of course the pure Disney fans, with the resources will continue to buy.

 

[erikawolf2004]

I'm still very happy with our purchase. We bought 80 points at BCV for $9200and are using 2 years of points for a week at Aulani starting next Friday. Rack rate for the week would be $4500, plus we get free parking that others pay $35 a day for. I realize we pay annual fees, but 3 stays and it will more than pay for itself.

Erika

 

[ELMC]

I'm still very happy with our purchase. We bought 80 points at BCV for $9200and are using 2 years of points for a week at Aulani starting next Friday. Rack rate for the week would be $4500, plus we get free parking that others pay $35 a day for. I realize we pay annual fees, but 3 stays and it will more than pay for itself.

Erika

I'm sorry but these numbers don't make sense to me at all.

 

[tjkraz]

...saying it is a value against inflated rack rates to me isn't accurate.

Not sure what you mean by inflated. The rates are the rates are the rates. If you want to discount by 25-30% to mirror frequent WDTC prices, go for it. Over the long haul, I suspect you'll still find that DVC owners are vacationing for about $.35-.40 on the dollar (aka 60-65% off discounted cash prices.)

I think new purchasers will be looking at the price vs. other uses of their funds.

Buyers would (and should) do that regardless of the price. But obtaining a room through Disney is still the only way to stay "on site." And DVC is a better vehicle for recurring Deluxe resort stays than PIN codes and promotions.

Sure there are other options available--off site hotels, vacation home rental, etc. But Disney does a pretty good job of filling their 30,000 hotel rooms and villas with guests willing to pay that premium price for "on-site Disney magic."

 

[tjkraz]

I'm sorry but these numbers don't make sense to me at all.

Sounds like the poster bought 80 BCV points direct at $115 each or $9200.

Two years worth of points (approx 160) are being used for an Aulani stay valued at roughly $4500. Dues on the 160 points are about $900 so poster is vacationing at Aulani for $3600 less than cash rate. Three trips with similar savings (6 years worth of points) and the $9K upfront purchase is offset.

There is absolutely no question that a resale purchase would yield even greater savings. But there is still tremendous value in DVC to those who naively (or even knowingly) pay the direct prices.

 

[ELMC]

Sounds like the poster bought 80 BCV points direct at $115 each or $9200.

Two years worth of points (approx 160) are being used for an Aulani stay valued at roughly $4500. Dues on the 160 points are about $900 so poster is vacationing at Aulani for $3600 less than cash rate. Three trips with similar savings (6 years worth of points) and the $9K upfront purchase is offset.

There is absolutely no question that a resale purchase would yield even greater savings. But there is still tremendous value in DVC to those who naively (or even knowingly) pay the direct prices.

Thanks for the explanation, but that wasn't really what I meant when I said I didn't understand the numbers. Perhaps I should have been more specific. I understand what she is saying, what she bought and how the points are being used. What I am saying is that the numbers don't add up, and that was my subtle way of asking her to be a little more forthcoming with information. The issue is that there is no way that 160 points equates to a room that costs $4,500 rack rate for those dates. If you go to the Aulani booking site, $4,500 gets you an Ocean View room for those dates. The equivalent in points for that stay is 203 points. The only room that 160 points gets you for those dates is a standard view room. Unfortunately it is not available so it is hard to obtain an accurate cost for that stay.

I have no doubt that the poster is happy with her purchase. And BCV at $115 is one of those gray areas in which the numbers still might justify a direct purchase. But I am challenging the validity of the claim that three trips will pay for this purchase.

It's also important to mention that the same stay could be had by renting points through David's at a cost of $2,002. I would use this information as a reason to disagree with your statement that there is tremendous value in a direct DVC purchase. I think "tremendous" might be overstating things a bit.

 

[erikawolf2004]

Thanks for the explanation, but that wasn't really what I meant when I said I didn't understand the numbers. Perhaps I should have been more specific. I understand what she is saying, what she bought and how the points are being used. What I am saying is that the numbers don't add up, and that was my subtle way of asking her to be a little more forthcoming with information. The issue is that there is no way that 160 points equates to a room that costs $4,500 rack rate for those dates. If you go to the Aulani booking site, $4,500 gets you an Ocean View room for those dates. The equivalent in points for that stay is 203 points. The only room that 160 points gets you for those dates is a standard view room. Unfortunately it is not available so it is hard to obtain an accurate cost for that stay.

I have no doubt that the poster is happy with her purchase. And BCV at $115 is one of those gray areas in which the numbers still might justify a direct purchase. But I am challenging the validity of the claim that three trips will pay for this purchase.

It's also important to mention that the same stay could be had by renting points through David's at a cost of $2,002. I would use this information as a reason to disagree with your statement that there is tremendous value in a direct DVC purchase. I think "tremendous" might be overstating things a bit.

We are actually staying in a Pool View Room for the week...sorry I forgot that we paid for 22 single use points so we could upgrade to a pool view. I have compared the rack rate to our DVC several times over the last 10 months to compare our cost and the rack rate cost. My mom is staying in a pool view hotel room and paying for 3 adults in the room(something else DVC members don't have to deal with) and her cost with tax and fees is around $4900 and if they had to pay for the parking it would be another $245. I do realize that we won't have housekeeping and they will, but I think it is still a good way to judge the value of our DVC purchase. We can stay in a studio at BCV for anywhere between 107-134 points except for the Christmas and Spring Break when we would never go anyway, so for for less than 2 years of points we can stay for a week, which would cost us approx $2600+ rack rate, so yes I think 3-4 stays justify the purchase, especailly after staying at Aulani just once.

Could we have saved money by buying resale-sure, but we looked for a contract that fit our needs for several months, even started on a contract but then issues came up with the seller and it didn't go through, so we went direct. I would also like to have the contract and not deal with Dave
or renting from some else which I'm sure alot of people would agree with if they plan to really use their DVC contract. Is it a tremendous savings maybe not, but I think there is still value in DVC even with the increase in cost. Since the price is going up soon, we will be getting our name on a waitlist for more BCV points while we are at Aulani next week.

Erika

 

[lodge]

oops, question answered

 

[DizBub]

I'm still very happy with our purchase. We bought 80 points at BCV for $9200and are using 2 years of points for a week at Aulani starting next Friday. Rack rate for the week would be $4500, plus we get free parking that others pay $35 a day for. I realize we pay annual fees, but 3 stays and it will more than pay for itself.

Erika

I'm not a "numbers" person and I tend to see the perceived value in the actual use of your points. You are already aware of resale and I would urge you to take another look in the future. We bought 160 BCV points for $11520 ($72pp) and I know many have gotten better deals. Of course, your MFs are half of what I pay .

Now, if you feel you must buy direct and only want a small number of points you would be wise to get on the waitlist before the rate increase.

 

[McCrae]

I would go one step further and say that certain resorts such as BLT, AKV, AUL, and VB are not worth it BEFORE the upcoming increase.

I disagree and expect further price hikes in the near future. Unless we see a fundamental change in how people view Disney, staying on site will always attract a premium.

Disney have a limited potential supply of DVC units and will want to sell points for the highest price they can. They don't have a problem in selling points now.

Now that the economy is showing signs of recovery and the stock market is at a new all time high conditions for selling DVC are getting better.

DVC have recently been focusing on higher value luxury resorts and I expect that to continue, the older DVC properties were aimed at a different consumer.