Looking for Honest Opinions.

[cs2sgrl]

Hi, My husband and I were married in WDW last year, when we were in WDW for our planning session last summer we went and toured the DVC, My hubby's bestfriend and her hubby and I always vacation together, we have been doing this since my husband and I began dating. We have been to WDW four or five times together, it is our yearly tradition to go to WDW, this year we went to DL and I have even been to Euro Disney, I have no doubt that the DVC is for us, especially since we are young married couple and we plan on having children someday. What I would like to know is if is really econmoically worth it. My parents tried to talk us out of it, but then again they were never really into going on vacation. Hubby and I love to vacation, Disney, Cruises, getaways. He is in the military and works really really hard, we are always trying to see if we have enough money to steal away to WDW for a holiday weekend. Our friends live in Tampa and have Season Passes so they go more often then hubby and I.. I am very "pampered" I guess you could stay, I dont like to stay in motels or very cheap places, Hubby says pampered I say paranoid. I love staying at Disney Resorts because of how clean and wonderful they are. So I would also like to hear how much you all love it or hate it.

PS. I also remember from our visit that the down payment was a percentage of the cost, is that correct or has it changed, and is the price of 14 and the price or is there a percentage off of that..

Sorry if I was all over the place..

 

[CarolMN]

Without knowing your financial situation, I'd side with your parents. DVC and Disney vacations should come from discretionary income - money you don't need for the basics. Some things to consider:

Do you already have an emergency fund - at least 2 or 3 months of income set aside for emergencies?

Are you saving for a home (or comfortably able to pay the mortgage on the home you already own)?

Are you saving for retirment?

Have you considered the costs involved in having children?

If you have a credit cards, are you able to pay it off every month?

Do you and your DH have adequate disability, health and life insurance?

DVC is essentially a pre-paid vacation program. To use it, you will also have to pay for transportation, tickets, food, etc. It's not economically "worth it" unless you know you will go to WDW at least evey other year and stay on site in at least a moderate resort when you do. Only you can honestly say whether you have the economic where with all at his stage of your life to say yes to that question.

My advice is to listen to your parents - especially since your DH is in the military. (I'm assuming he doesn't have much control over his assignment or schedule). You can still visit Disney without the up front commitment. In your situation, it might be better to rent points or pay cash or even to take less costly vacations while you take care of higher priority financial goals.

Maybe not what you want to hear - Others may have a different view. Please forgive any incorrect assumptions I may have made.

Best wishes-

 

[dianeschlicht]

Think of it as a pre-paid vacation at today's rates for 48 years (assuming you buy SSR). If you are prone to staying on-site and in moderate or deluxe resorts, it definitely is worth it! The beauty is the flexibility of the program. You can use studios for just the two of you, or get a 1 bedroom if you need more space for a visiting couple. When you have children, the 2 bedroom will be ideal for giving the kids a seperate place to sleep. The whirlpool and laundry in your room are VERY handy, as is the full kitchen. That being said, if you are prone to travel and stay off site or at the value resorts, it might not make as much financial sense right now. We didn't purchase DVC until our children were grown. We have owned 380 points at OKW for going on 9 years. We consider it to be one of the best purchases we ever made!

 

[spiceycat]

if you are currently staying in a moderate or deluxe for each of your trip then yes DVC could save you money in the LONG run.

Now this doesn't work if you decide you must have a 1 or 2 bedroom for each trip. the 1-bedroom is twice as many points as a studio.

yes it is that much nicer - but I like going most often than using all my points for 1 or 2 bedroom.

lots of people have a problem going back to a studio after they have stayed in a 1 or 2 bedroom. With children you will at some point in your life need the 2-bedroom - so until then I would stick with the studios.

I save money - but I am pretty sure it is because I go with studios and don't eat out at WDW restuarants often.

 

[WorknFires]

You & your hubby sound very similar to me & mine. I wish I could say we're as organized as CarolMN obviously is but we do fairly well. DH & I both work an incredible number of hours (me more so than him) but he has night school added on to his time. We live for vacations! My signature doesn't even begin to show all of our trips but DVC has allowed us to take more trips to nicer places and to take family and friends with us many times. DVC is kinda like children, if you wait til you can "afford" them, you'll never have them. (Must be why I don't have kids... all I want to do is buy more points. LOL)

Cheryl

07/89 Off site
07/91 Off site
07/95 Contemporary
09/00 PO-FQ/Dis Wonder *Joined DVC @ OKW*
10/01 ASM/OKW/Wonder
01/02 FtW Campgrnds
03/02 Off Site
09/02 WL/OKW/POR/Wonder *Bought OKW Re-sell*
01/03 FtW Campgrnds
06/03 CBR
10/03 OKW/7day East Caribb Cruise/Disney Magic/AKL
01/04 FtW Campgrnds
05/04 Off site *Bought SSR unseen*
09/04 OKW/7 day West Caribb Cruise on Disney Magic
01/05 FtW Campgrnds
06/05 FtW Campgrnds
09/05 DL/Alaskan Cruise
11/05 SSR for the F&W Fest
01/06 FtW Campgrnds
09/06 7 day West Caribb Cruise on Disney Magic again

 

[mydogdrew]

Speaking for myself I would not finance any timeshare purchase. Strike one if you would.

You can get a great military deal at shades of green. It's not DVC but very nice - very cheap. Strike two.

Are your friends buying in as well? If not, strike three.

I'm kinda kidding - really need to decide based on your finances. Most would agree that DVC doesn't save a lot of money. You tend to go more often, stay at better resorts and bring friends & family.

 

[cs2sgrl]

Thank you for your suggestions they are great things to think about, it keeps me from calling and scheduling something right now.

We were not planning on buying on just yet. There is a possibility that we will be moving to FL sometime next year, so it would be pointless to buy one( we are looking at a base 2 hours away). We were actually thinking of taking that opportunity when we are down there to start saving for our DVC. We have money put away for when we want to buy a house and Hubby and I are not ready for children just yet. I have a pretty good job and even though we will be moving, I hope to get a job that pays the same or better. We do like to stay in Moderate or Delux resorts. We have been fortuante with Hubby's discount to stay in nice resorts along with our friends being florida residents we stay for FL prices. We have not stayed in Shades of Green yet. I had the pleasure of staying at the GF for my honeymoon and I am wondering how I am going to be able to stay someplace else ever again. I do know however, the chances of staying there again are slim and might have to wait for the 25 wedding anniversary. I will take all of these suggestions and talk to my hubby as well as some of my relatives who have done this sort of thing. Thanks again..

one more thing, does anyone regret getting a DVC?

 

[wtpclc]

Sounds like you're thinking thing through very well! There is a poll around here that I will try to post a link to for you re. satisfaction with DVC. IIRC, about 4% were not thrilled with their purchase, but non of them posted a reason. If you will be in a delux or mod very year or every other year, I know it is worth it for non-FL residents. Not sure what the break even is for FL residents. The reason some say that it doesn't save money is because wonce you get DVC, you tend to take more vacations or stay in the 1 and 2 BRs instead of the studio. Good luck in your decision and with your potential move!

ETA link:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=823764

 

[Granny]

If you are going every year anyway, and are staying in moderates or deluxes, DVC can save you money over time. I emphasize "can" because most of the breakeven analysis assumes staying in studios, which admittedly are nice and work well. But we found that we stay in a 1BR minimum and often a 2BR suite so we are paying more than we would for a regular resort room. And of course, going more often and staying longer than we would have otherwise.

You won't find many people here who regret their DVC purchase. Otherwise, why would they hang out around this board?

If you like to be "pampered" when staying at WDW, then DVC is definitely a possiblity. Good luck in your decision.

 

[spiceycat]

look for that post.

there were a few - I don't think they said the reasons.

most of the posters here love DVC and have no regrets.

I certainly don't.

and back in 93 I financed my points - still no regrets.

 

[Susieab]

My husband and I bought into DVC in 2002 I think....time flies. Anyway at that time he was AD AF and I was a nurse. So we had a nice income but also some of the bills that come with it. We had 2 children both under 3. So life was busy. I disagree somewhat with those that say that DVC money should be "extra" money. I think that we all have to prioritize what we want to spend our money on. In our case we already had a house and still have a fair amount of money left over at the end of the month. We did finance DVC and paid it off in about 1.5 years, so not a bad deal.

We have not regret it. As a matter of fact we just did an add on to our account. So long story short you have to do what is right for you. If you can buy DVC with the intentions of paying it off quickly without taking a second job or causing your blood pressure to rise then I say go for it!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Thank you for your suggestions they are great things to think about, it keeps me from calling and scheduling something right now.

We were not planning on buying on just yet. There is a possibility that we will be moving to FL sometime next year, so it would be pointless to buy one( we are looking at a base 2 hours away). We were actually thinking of taking that opportunity when we are down there to start saving for our DVC. We have money put away for when we want to buy a house and Hubby and I are not ready for children just yet. I have a pretty good job and even though we will be moving, I hope to get a job that pays the same or better. We do like to stay in Moderate or Delux resorts. We have been fortuante with Hubby's discount to stay in nice resorts along with our friends being florida residents we stay for FL prices. We have not stayed in Shades of Green yet. I had the pleasure of staying at the GF for my honeymoon and I am wondering how I am going to be able to stay someplace else ever again. I do know however, the chances of staying there again are slim and might have to wait for the 25 wedding anniversary. I will take all of these suggestions and talk to my hubby as well as some of my relatives who have done this sort of thing. Thanks again..

one more thing, does anyone regret getting a DVC?

You are smart to save up and pay it in full so you don't have interest payments. Don't worry about staying at the Grand Floridian....DVCs are nicer (in my opinion).

 

[Dean]

I agree you should not finance. My guess is that DVC is not for you but I'll expand on that. It sounds like you want to use DVC not only for WDW but other options. And it sounds like you may go for long weekends at times. Both cases quickly turn DVC to a VERY costly venture. Your cheapest option will be off site timeshares, some are as nice or even nicer than DVC, even if not on property. But if you normally go and stay in moderates or higher, can avoid or go light on weekends and only use points at DVC, it may be a good choice for you. Even if you have other things planned, you may want to buy less DVC points and use other options for the non DVC stays.

 

[linco711]

We are very happy with DVC. That being said, we paid cash. Did not need to finance it, and would not advice you to. Disney is exspensive. With DVC you still need to pay for food and tickets, that alone is exorbitant. Also, paying the yearly dues is no fun. Actually, the yearly dues we pay would pay for a vacation week at a nice Disney resort! I agree with the gentlemen that said DVC is for those with discretionary income.

 

[crisi]

That is sort of my take on it, too.

When deciding DVC is for you, look at your annual (bi-annual) DISNEY vacation patterns. Throw in a risk factor - if you have kids, daycare or switching to stay at home momhood will change your disposible income - if your job is not predictable, that is worth noting. Budget any financing payments (I wouldn't recommend financing to most, but it will work for some), all maintance fees and - most importantly - the rest of the vacation costs. Will you be able to pull this off every year (or every other, or every third year)? And - perhaps most importantly - what will you give up to do it?

 

[fun2bmomof3]

I don't believe that DVC is just for those with discretionary income. We just financed our DVC and I estimate it will take me 3 years to pay it off. Even if I had financed it for longer the monthly payments including the yearly dues add up to less than what I've been spending the past few years on a deluxe or moderate rooms. In fact my money set aside for this year's hotel was enough to pay the 20% down. With a family of six this is the most logical way for us to go. By looking at most of these guidlines alot of you have posted you would tell me I couldn't afford it. I feel I can't afford not to. It is money I would be spending anyway and I feel that in a few years I will be coming out ahead with alot of years of prepaid lodging there for my family. I look forward to being able to give my children a honeymood at WDW or a Disney Cruise or where ever they might want to exchange it for. Instead of paying out cash for the lodging I can give that same amount for spending cash. Or being able to treat my Brother in law and his family to a trip to WDW because I know they would never be able to take their children otherwise.
There are many reasons for buying a DVC membership. For each person it is different. For us it will save us a ton of money in the long run and let us be more generous with our family.
People finance boats, motorcycles, atv's, swimming pools, and other recreational items. This is just another recreational item but with bigger benefits in my opinion. Having to finance something is not a sin or a crime. Not all of make 3 figure incomes, but still have full and rich lives that include Disney.
Just my opinion.

 

[fun2bmomof3]

I don't believe that DVC is just for those with discretionary income. We just financed our DVC and I estimate it will take me 3 years to pay it off. Even if I had financed it for longer the monthly payments including the yearly dues add up to less than what I've been spending the past few years on a deluxe or moderate rooms. In fact my money set aside for this year's hotel was enough to pay the 20% down. With a family of six this is the most logical way for us to go. By looking at most of these guidlines alot of you have posted you would tell me I couldn't afford it. I feel I can't afford not to. It is money I would be spending anyway and I feel that in a few years I will be coming out ahead with alot of years of prepaid lodging there for my family. I look forward to being able to give my children a honeymood at WDW or a Disney Cruise or where ever they might want to exchange it for. Instead of paying out cash for the lodging I can give that same amount for spending cash. Or being able to treat my Brother in law and his family to a trip to WDW because I know they would never be able to take their children otherwise.
There are many reasons for buying a DVC membership. For each person it is different. For us it will save us a ton of money in the long run and let us be more generous with our family.
People finance boats, motorcycles, atv's, swimming pools, and other recreational items. This is just another recreational item but with bigger benefits in my opinion. Having to finance something is not a sin or a crime. Not all of us make 3 figure incomes, but still have full and rich lives that include Disney.
Just my opinion.

 

[cs2sgrl]

It is not that we only want to go for short weekends. Right now because I used up almost all of my vacation time for my wedding last year and the year before I was saving time for my wedding we ended up only going for long weekends. I was talking to our friends lastnight and we were discussing how the short trips or our "Disney Fix" is just not cutting anymore, we would like to go and not have to rush everything into 4 days, well 3.5. Hubby gets a lot more vacation than I do at this particular time. I just used a bunch when we went to Disneyland. I am in the process of saving more time right now to try and go for a bit longer for our one year anniversary. I know that eventually DH and I will have a DVC, just dont know how soon.

 

[cs2sgrl]

I appreciate all of the advice that has been given. Dh and I will discuss it and make an educated decision. I wanted to get really opinions, I know that when I call DVC everything is going to sound so great and I may get overwhelmed, you have all been very honest with me and I appreciate it. This will help us figure out if DVC is right for us. Thanks again

 

[conciergekelly]

Have you ever considered resale? You can buy as little as 25-50 points for cash (a little more than 1 week vacation at a deluxe) and bank and borrow. Then when you have kids you can add on. A studio at OKW in value season is 80 points a week. 40 if you go Sunday to Friday. If I were starting out that is what I would do. Best of luck!