Looking for advice: Own at CCV, considering adding on resale

[princesslover]

Hi everyone,

We purchased CC in April of 2018. We LOVE the Wilderness Lodge, and are kicking ourselves we did not do this earlier. We had FOUR previous resort stays at the Wilderness Lodge before buying DVC. We have never stayed anywhere else. Suffice to say, we love this resort. It is our home.

That said, as I am thinking about adding on resale, I have a lot of concerns about availability of the studios. At 11 months, we had no issues. But the purpose of adding on points is to increase the length of our stays, or go during premier seasons where the points are higher. My plan initially was to book what we can with our "home advantage" points at 11 months and add on what we need at 7 months. Now I am not sure that is such a great idea and could actually be a risk. On the other hand, we would not be disappointed if we had to choose a 1 bedroom, but I am wondering if even that is risky.

There is no other reason for me to buy resale other than to add on to CCV. Would I be better off to just bite the bullet and buy a small contract direct to have the peace of mind of staying where we want, no matter how long the stay. Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[TexasChick123]

I know you said you’re looking at resale, but have you considered buying a direct guaranteed studio week? I know a handful of people on the boards have purchased them this week at CCV.

 

[princesslover]

I know you said you’re looking at resale, but have you considered buying a direct guaranteed studio week? I know a handful of people on the boards have purchased them this week at CCV.

I have not considered that. Does that mean you need to choose the same week each time?

 

[TexasChick123]

I have not considered that. Does that mean you need to choose the same week each time?

It does, but you can convert it to points should you decide that you don’t want to go that particular week one year. It’s the cost of the week +10%. For example, if the week costs 100 points for a studio, you have to buy 110 points. If you convert your week into points, you still get the 110 points in your account for that year. A lot of owners decided they wanted to do this because of the reallocation last year to hedge against that threat in the future. Also, at places like CCV where studio competition is so fierce, it guarantees your week in a studio for the life of the contract.

 

[starry_solo]

I have not considered that. Does that mean you need to choose the same week each time?

Yes, so if you go during the busy times (October-January), you are guaranteed that week every year in the studio and don't have to get up at the 11 month mark to book it. If you decide not to use it, you would get the points equivalent (there's a 10% premium in points that cover the fixed week that you would get back if you converted it to points). Not sure of the deadline though.

 

[chicagodisneyguy]

If I understand you correctly you want to buy a resale contract at another resort and then use those points to add on a few days to a reservation you booked at 11 months using CCV points? If yes, you will probably have issues adding to the existing 11 month booked reservation. Competition is getting more and more fierce at the 7 month mark and CCV studios are in high demand. If I was you I would not go this route. I think you will be disappointed a majority of the time.

If you are talking about a resale contract at CCV then you will be able to pool those points at 11 months with your direct points and should not have an issue booking a longer stay or one during a higher season.

 

[princesslover]

If I understand you correctly you want to buy a resale contract at another resort and then use those points to add on a few days to a reservation you booked at 11 months using CCV points? If yes, you will probably have issues adding to the existing 11 month booked reservation. Competition is getting more and more fierce at the 7 month mark and CCV studios are in high demand. If I was you I would not got this route. I think you will be disappointing a majority of the time.

If you are talking about a resale contract at CCV then you will be able to pool those points at 11 months with your direct points and should not have an issue booking a longer stay or one during a higher season.

The first one is what I am trying to do. I am glad I did some research before going this route. We have enough points for a week-long stay, during off peak times, about every two years. We'd like more points to either increase the length of our stay or try a one or (maybe) even 2 bedroom at some point. We just need more points.

I have looked at resale CCV but they seem to be hard to come buy and often times not much cheaper than direct right now. At least from what little I have seen. I am still very new to this, but if I am going through the hassle of resale, I'd like to think I am getting a pretty good bargain.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Make sure you match Use Year, whichever path you choose.

 

[chicagodisneyguy]

I think if you are buying a small contract (anything less that 100 points) I'd probably just go the direct route. There doesn't seem to be too much inventory on resale sites for CCV so you might be waiting awhile for the right contract and then hopefully be able to be quick enough to snatch it up. Also, isn't CCV close to selling out with a price jump following immediately after? If that is correct and you want to add direct I'd probably do it sooner than later.

One thought I did have was have you considered buying a resale contract at BRV? They are considered two separate resorts in regards to 11 month booking window so you can't combine those points to book at the 11 month window. But what you can do, via banking, is one year use two year's worth of points at CCV, then the next year use two year's worth of points at BRV. Rinse and repeat. But this suggestion is based off the assumption that the Wilderness Lodge Resort as a whole is what draws you to CCV and not only the beautiful rooms. BRV has a lot less time life on the contract, but looks to be trading $85-$100/pt resale....much cheaper than CCV.

 

[princesslover]

I think if you are buying a small contract (anything less that 100 points) I'd probably just go the direct route. There doesn't seem to be too much inventory on resale sites for CCV so you might be waiting awhile for the right contract and then hopefully be able to be quick enough to snatch it up. Also, isn't CCV close to selling out with a price jump following immediately after? If that is correct and you want to add direct I'd probably do it sooner than later.

One thought I did have was have you considered buying a resale contract at BRV? They are considered two separate resorts in regards to 11 month booking window so you can't combine those points to book at the 11 month window. But what you can do, via banking, is one year use two year's worth of points at CCV, then the next year use two year's worth of points at BRV. Rinse and repeat. But this suggestion is based off the assumption that the Wilderness Lodge Resort as a whole is what draws you to CCV and not only the beautiful rooms. BRV has a lot less time life on the contract, but looks to be trading $85-$100/pt resale....much cheaper than CCV.

That's not a bad suggestion, actually. If I alternated, it would give my points at CCV more time to build rather than continually playing the "shell game" of borrowing points (which is what we are doing now). We do prefer CCV just because we like the connection to the lodge/lobby/roaring fork, etc. But not overly so.

If we do CCV direct, we would only do 50 points. With BRV, we may be able to purchase more. It's something to consider. So many variables make my head spin! Thanks.

 

[Katie L]

That's not a bad suggestion, actually. If I alternated, it would give my points at CCV more time to build rather than continually playing the "shell game" of borrowing points (which is what we are doing now). We do prefer CCV just because we like the connection to the lodge/lobby/roaring fork, etc. But not overly so.

If we do CCV direct, we would only do 50 points. With BRV, we may be able to purchase more. It's something to consider. So many variables make my head spin! Thanks.

If you are going to do CCV direct, I'd do sooner than later. They are about to go from $188 to $210 (I think) June 1.

 

[cvjw]

I would just buy a resale contract at boulder ridge and bank/borrow and switch resorts each year. Both are really nice and boulder ridge resale contracts are much cheaper than copper creek direct contracts.

I agree with prior poster - buy the same use year and save yourself some headaches!

 

[princesslover]

Thanks everyone. I am still pondering. With the BRV idea, I'd pretty much have to commit to going to Disney every year (hey, not a bad thing!) but since I live in New England, paying for flights every year might not be in the budget when we still have kids in the house. And we are tied to school breaks, which makes EVERYTHING more expensive, including flights. I am wondering if for now, I should take advantage of the lower price for CCV direct, and later on still add on with BRV when we are in a better financial situation to go yearly.

Right now, I just want extended trips when we go, and I think 50 points is really all I need for that. You have all been so helpful in helping me wrap my brain around all this.

 

[CarolynFH]

Thanks everyone. I am still pondering. With the BRV idea, I'd pretty much have to commit to going to Disney every year (hey, not a bad thing!) but since I live in New England, paying for flights every year might not be in the budget when we still have kids in the house. And we are tied to school breaks, which makes EVERYTHING more expensive, including flights. I am wondering if for now, I should take advantage of the lower price for CCV direct, and later on still add on with BRV when we are in a better financial situation to go yearly.

Right now, I just want extended trips when we go, and I think 50 points is really all I need for that. You have all been so helpful in helping me wrap my brain around all this.

Having read your responses to the various other posts here, I think I’d buy the 50 points direct now at $188 pp. Then you have time to contemplate the all-CCV vs. part-BRV resale idea, plus more time for more CCV resale contracts to hit the market.

 

[princesslover]

Having read your responses to the various other posts here, I think I’d buy the 50 points direct now at $188 pp. Then you have time to contemplate the all-CCV vs. part-BRV resale idea, plus more time for more CCV resale contracts to hit the market.

You must have been inside my head today. This is exactly what I have been thinking of doing. I have been crunching the numbers for the 50 pt. contract at CCV and I am almost ready to make the call after discussing with hubby. I won't lie, the price increase June 1 (or sooner) is really playing a role in my decision. I don't want to regret not doing it. At some point, I do think I would like to add on with BCV. It might be fun to alternate, give us something a little different to look forward to every other trip, while still feeling like we are "home." In the meantime, it would be great to have 150 points at CCV to give us the flexibility until that happens. With banking, we could even skip a year and stay in a 2 bedroom, depending on the season. I love the flexibility of DVC.

Thanks again.