Looking for Reassurance

[BFraid]

Life is chaotic, now probably more so then in recent history, however my husband and I are discussing DVC. In an ideal world we would have a minimum of 300 points (but I think any DVC member would agree you could always use more). However, it is a big expense that is truly not a NEED. I am a nurse and my husband is retired military, so our budget isn't great, but has weathered the pandemic. We have two children who are relatively young and years of enjoyment ahead, so travel as a party of four. We are thinking of getting 150 points and making it work. Banking and borrowing, but still enjoying.

We plan to use mainly 1 bedroom options for about a week at a time. We want to buy direct (so Riviera) for the perks and the flexibility, even though the cost is more. Will this work for us?

Some other details that might be helpful: It takes a day for us to get to Disney World (by airplane), though only a couple hours to Disneyland (by airplane), so I do not see us making multiple trips in one year (though I can dream). We went to WDW last year (Feb 2020) and stayed in the Royal Rooms, which we stayed in also back in 2018. We stayed for a little under a week each time. Prior to that trip we did a shorter trip (around 4 nights) in 2015 with a SV room at AK. We have already booked to stay next month in AOA suite for 10 nights. Clearly we are spending the money, but we were only able to as we budgeted and used military discounts. We also prefer to use the dining plan, as I am a planner and ensure we get bang for our buck.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I’ve literally typed three responses before this, then deleted them.
Bottom line... you said your “budget isn’t great”.
If that’s the case, think long and hard before purchasing (especially direct). It’s not a cheap vacation that you are locking yourself into.
Truly consider resale. You may not visit enough to make the single perk (singular...as in AP discount) worth your while.

I do wish you well.

 

[AliceIn]

We love Disney, and we have been where you are now. My husband and I looked into DVC a few times over the years, but deep down we knew we couldn’t commit. We waited until we saved enough to buy points in full without financing. We would only have dues to pay going forward.

If you are able to buy with cash, and you can swing the monthly dues payment without worrying where that money is coming from, then you are likely in a good position to buy. If you need to finance and you would need to pinch pennies to pay both loan and dues, now is probably not the right time.

 

[RoseGold]

This is not just not a need, it is an extreme luxury that is locking your family into thousands of dollars of theme park tickets a year.

The piece missing from this post is your exit strategy. If you plan to hold for six years and sell, I would have different comments than if you plan to retire and spend as much time possible at SSR.

With military tickets, I’m not even sure what “perks” you think are worth thousands of dollars.

This is math and a huge real estate commitment. You need to know the numbers.

 

[Carol_]

You can buy direct at other resorts, so if you need to sell in the future the contract won’t have the same restrictions as a Riv contract would. If I were you, I’d wait for that new thing going up at Disneyland to be built and buy in there.
If I were me, and I am, I’d buy more points at SSR because I actually like the place, it’s cheaper, and points work everywhere at 7 months. So sometimes, I’ll be using them elsewhere.
But then again the heart wants what the heart wants... and the skyliner is a game changer... Good luck!

 

[Ruttangel]

You can buy direct at other resorts, so if you need to sell in the future the contract won’t have the same restrictions as a Riv contract would. If I were you, I’d wait for that new thing going up at Disneyland to be built and buy in there.
If I were me, and I am, I’d buy more points at SSR because I actually like the place, it’s cheaper, and points work everywhere at 7 months. So sometimes, I’ll be using them elsewhere.
But then again the heart wants what the heart wants... and the skyliner is a game changer... Good luck!

me, myself and I

 

[EM Lawrence]

I think the option you mentioned, buying direct at RIV, is the highest risk DVC purchase you can make right now. If you are financing, you may find yourself needing to sell in 3-4 years and be underwater on the loan. Resale values there have been higher than expected, but RIV is still the shiny new toy in the DVC playpen. What will happen in the future when it is not? And will booking there be difficult as more direct points are converted to resale? Everybody has an opinion, but nobody really knows for sure.

I would strongly consider a small resale contract that you can either pay for upfront or pay more than half the cost in cash upfront and finance only a small amount. You can always do split stays between a cash room and your DVC points if you initially purchase less than you want.

Saying your “budget is not great” can mean all kind of things and only you truly know what you meant by that. Can you really afford the purchase? With two young kids, you have many budget busting possibilities ahead in the next two decades.

Continuing to stay at a Moderate resort on cash leaves you the most flexibility for the future. Bumping up to a 1 BR is going to cost you more money over time with less flexibility. A better option might be to choose a resort that has great studios. Poly has great studios, and a stable history on the resale market. GFV also has great studios but its more expensive. RIV also has very nice studios, and you can get away with fewer points to stay in those. The 1BR at RIV and VGF are very point hungry, but you could always add on in the future as you can afford it and bump up to those 1BR.

Good luck! I know its a lot to consider!

 

[JETSDAD]

I'd probably just recommend renting for now or buying a smaller resale contract to see how it goes. If it doesn't work that will be a much safer bet for getting your money back. There's also nothing stopping you from adding on later if you do find it works well for you. Any direct purchase that needs to be sold in the next few years will take a big hit, not just Riviera.

 

[HappyDisneyWife]

We plan to use mainly 1 bedroom options for about a week at a time. We want to buy direct (so Riviera) for the perks and the flexibility, even though the cost is more. Will this work for us?

Answering strictly to the points Q (since only you can determine the financial side- and if it’s something which can be afforded without any financing or strain)... if you truly want to stay in a 1-bedroom for a week every year, 150 points is not going to work with Riviera as your home resort. Not only are the point costs high, but RIV’s points chart is much higher than many others. I love owning at RIV, but the 1-bedrooms are a real points hog... one week during the cheapest season, in a standard view room will run you 220 points!

Another resort I own at is AKV. We bought there bc we love it, but also bc I wanted my points to stretch further... and AKV is the only resort where your plan would work- and even then, that’s only if you’re planning 11 months out and are able to consistently snag value 1-bedroom rooms (they are the easiest value rooms to get, but still generally require jumping on as soon as the booking window opens). You’d have more seasons to book from within your points budget and it’s a wonderful resort!! Remember- you can buy “sold out” resorts direct from Disney as well. So, you could pay less up front per point, your points would stretch much further, and you would still be able to book at any resort (inc Riviera) at the 7-month mark. I would also recommend buying slightly more to give yourself more options & wiggle room to try other resorts (doing a split-stay btw value 1-bed @ AKV & a standard view 1-bed @ anywhere else!), like 160 or 175 points.

Another point to consider is direct vs resale. I know you want unrestricted points, and I totally understand that... but it’s a huge difference in price for that added luxury. Most of my points are resale... which has allowed us to buy more. If you feel you’d really benefit from the discounted APs, then buying enough direct for blue-card benefits could be smart, but in that case, I’d wait and see what they do about that particular perk (since AP’s are currently unavailable).

AKV direct: $186 x 160 = $29,760
AKV resale: $110 x 160 = $17,600

$17,600 + ($186 x 65) = $29,690 ... gives you 225 total points, with 65 being direct, unrestricted points!! (& you could buy even more if all were resale )

There are a few other resorts that would be under 160 points/wk in a 1-bed (OKW, BWV, & SSR), but again, only during the cheapest season. I would encourage you to go to the DVC website & really look into the points charts and your travel times.

Bumping up to a 1 BR is going to cost you more money over time with less flexibility. A better option might be to choose a resort that has great studios. Poly has great studios, and a stable history on the resale market. GFV also has great studios but its more expensive. RIV also has very nice studios, and you can get away with fewer points to stay in those.

100% agree. The 3 studios mentioned here are the very best, and allow you to be more conservative with points. That way you could stay at Riviera a whole week in nearly every season for less than 150 points! As was mentioned- there’s a lot to consider. I hope this helps. Best of luck!

 

[limace]

I agree with all of the above. With one trip a year, direct perks aren’t going to make financial sense for you-if you can afford to buy, buy resale at a resort with better point charts than Riviera.

Here’s the thing. Research until your eyes bleed. I spent years studying, and rented points once, before I pulled the trigger. DVC isn’t going anywhere, and it gives you time to learn and save.

 

[cruisehopeful]

You need to do what works best for your family. If I were in your situation, I wouldn't buy right now. The truth is, even with owning, Disney vacations are extremely expensive. You may find in a few years that you'd rather use your travel money to go somewhere else. While it's true that you can trade your DVC points for other vacations, the trade level is often going to be a down trade. You'll likely end up paying a lot more than if you didn't trade and just paid with cash.

You've probably already thought about this, but you can always have a sub-savings account for Disney or vacations in general. Put all the money in there that you would have been spending on a purchase and keep a good budget going for vacations. When I do this, I always have the funds available for my hotel stays, etc and it takes the away the feeling that I need to buy in to save money, when it's not really a good choice for my family.

 

[BFraid]

We love Disney, and we have been where you are now. My husband and I looked into DVC a few times over the years, but deep down we knew we couldn’t commit. We waited until we saved enough to buy points in full without financing. We would only have dues to pay going forward.

If you are able to buy with cash, and you can swing the monthly dues payment without worrying where that money is coming from, then you are likely in a good position to buy. If you need to finance and you would need to pinch pennies to pay both loan and dues, now is probably not the right time.

We are able to buy the 150 points direct without financing. This is why we decided against 300. While it was possible we could pull it off it was a much higher burden.

 

[BFraid]

This is not just not a need, it is an extreme luxury that is locking your family into thousands of dollars of theme park tickets a year.

The piece missing from this post is your exit strategy. If you plan to hold for six years and sell, I would have different comments than if you plan to retire and spend as much time possible at SSR.

With military tickets, I’m not even sure what “perks” you think are worth thousands of dollars.

This is math and a huge real estate commitment. You need to know the numbers.

With 150 points we intend to keep them for their life worth and if we use them perhaps buy others over time we could pass down or use for larger family get togethers.

Perks are consistently changing, so it would be nice to know that whatever is offered we have the option to get. Military tickets are a good deal, no doubt, but we can use those with DVC. The room rates also are very good, but they are opened in September and not always available when we go. We also have discovered we like one room suites better, so DVC made sense for that.

We are really wanting to buy direct knowing that we could use the points at any dvc resort, versus buying resale after the restriction. Especially as if they open more resorts it would continue to allow us the flexibility. I am also excited for little things like no fee for overnight parking

 

[Grumpy Mouse]

Uh - there are NO direct perks for new members at the moment (and maybe permanently).

Oh wait - I can buy discount Merch between tomorrow and next Thursday...

 

[EM Lawrence]

If you can afford to pay cash for 150 points direct at RIV, you can afford to get enough points on resale to actually stay in a 1 BR every year.

Resale does get the free parking. I’m sure you realized that!

 

[Yinn]

I am a nurse and my husband is retired military, so our budget isn't great, but has weathered the pandemic.

This is the piece that really needs to be talked about.
DVC can be a liability, it can be an asset. It's all about how you use it and how you manage it.

We are able to buy the 150 points direct without financing. This is why we decided against 300. While it was possible we could pull it off it was a much higher burden.

This is a good first step. Would you be pulling from anything else to do so? (ie, putting off other debt) Or are you financially in a good place debt wise and it's more a month to month cash flow issue?

Then there's the question of, if you don't use your contract; are you in a place where you can either manage the rental process or are you willing to have a broker do it for you?

Aside from what you want, it's entirely possible to manage DVC in a way where the dues are paid for by your contract rentals. If you are disciplined enough to have the contract pay for itself you can have it, use it, and have it cost you a minimal amount.

Then when you get into it, pick the contract from a financial sense rather than a desire sense. That might be the compromise you might have to make. Pick long term contracts with high depreciation and low dues and importantly, ease of rental. PVB is a good buy for such a reason.

For reference I've owned DVC for 2 years and my net dues have been $0 due to rental. I'm actually cash flow positive and eating away at my initial costs. At the same time, we've also visited Disney 3-4 times. It's possible but requires discipline and compromise if finance is the primary concern.

 

[Dano the Pirate]

It is a tough call now... I hope the pandemic is over but who knows what happens next... the bottom line is you are committing to a long term expense, if you have the disposable income go for it!

I am encouraged by the news of the 50th anniversary planned events

 

[JETSDAD]

We are able to buy the 150 points direct without financing. This is why we decided against 300. While it was possible we could pull it off it was a much higher burden.

While I would lean towards resale, if you're paying cash and really want to be able to use the points at any future resorts and take advantage of whatever perks may come along, go for it. We all took the plunge at some point.

 

[BlackTea]

Based on what you described, you can easily afford the initial purchase of 150 points, maybe even consider 200 to have some flexibility?

Just make sure you are fully aware of the implications signing up for the 'happy obligation' going to Disney every year for a family of 4, 4AP ($4K), 4 flight tickets ($1.5K), one week emotional spending ($2k), then adding annual dues, it could mean setting aside $800 every month for next many years. From budgeting perspective, it is better you are comfortable with it.

Yes there are many ways to reduce spending, for example, alternating travel time so that one AP can cover 2 years, but there are even more ways to increase spending, for example, "oh, that lovely beer stand!" but anyway, just make sure you think through...

 

[Bobby2443]

I’ve never bought a contract without money that wouldn’t otherwise have been used on a vacation or some other luxury “for fun” item. You can view this as an investment but really this is for fun, it’s a hobby, it’s not something anyone needs. If it’s going to spread you thin financially then I wouldn’t advise doing it