Minimum Purchase on OKW Direct is 125 Points

[DonMacGregor]

I have been poking around, looking to see what my best options are for adding a small (25-50) point contract at OKW (just to get the 11-month booking window). I was directed by several to the dvcnews.com website that indicates the minimum New Member Purchase price for OKW and SSR is $165.00 with a 50 point minimum purchase (25 point minimum for add-on purchases) at either resort.

Well, I just got off the line with DVC and the guide I spoke to, and the literature (available upon request) he sent me, lists a minimum of 125 points at $165.00 per point. For clarification, I specifically asked him if the 125 points was the minimum, or the minimum for full member benefits, making clear I did not want to get a Blue Card, and he very clearly stated that 125 was currently the minimum purchase for a new contract at ANY DVC resort.

Add-on purchases at either resort can be made with as few as 25 points, so that answer was consistent with what is shown elsewhere.

Collective mind thoughts?

 

[KeithSS]

That is true. I had gone all the way up the food chain to Terri Schultz and was told the same. New members are 125points since Oct 2020. Existing members can do 25 if paying cash or 50 if financing.

 

[MICKIMINI]

It's been 125 since last fall. Teasing a discount at 150 makes me think it will go up again. It has rapidly increased and was at 100 a year ago. It's been going up in 25 point increments since its lowest at 25 points.

We originally bought 230 points in 1996 (OKW) and that was at or close to the minimum at the time. We paid $62.50 PP, no closing costs, two years points and DVC paid for our on property resort stay.

You can either dive in at 125 or buy the cheapest, smallest resale you can, wait to close and then buy a small contract...however, the only way to get to the blue card is 125 direct.

Good luck!

Edit: I have seen a few 15 pointers around but not recently.

 

[DonMacGregor]

It's been 125 since last fall. Teasing a discount at 150 makes me think it will go up again. It has rapidly increased and was at 100 a year ago. It's been going up in 25 point increments since its lowest at 25 points.

We originally bought 230 points in 1996 (OKW) and that was at or close to the minimum at the time. We paid $62.50 PP, no closing costs, two years points and DVC paid for our on property resort stay.

You can either dive in at 125 or buy the cheapest, smallest resale you can, wait to close and then buy a small contract...however, the only way to get to the blue card is 125 direct.

Good luck!

Edit: I have seen a few 15 pointers around but not recently.

That was my original plan. I have a 200 point HHI in ROFR right now, but wound have bought a 50 point direct for cash to get an on-property home resort. Since it’s actually 125, then small resale up front makes sense. Don’t need the Blue Card.

 

[MICKIMINI]

Most people don't have much use for the "extras" which IMO don't even exist at this point to buy direct. There is hope AP's come back which is the primary reason most people justify the price. Get a Chase Disney card for some discounts...

HHI is a lovely, laid back resort if you ever happen to visit LOL! Congratulations and welcome to DVC!

 

[DonMacGregor]

Yeah, So Cal here. Zero need for FL AP. Same with most special events. Have Chase Disney, and usually have a family member CM with us anyway.

 

[DonMacGregor]

That is true. I had gone all the way up the food chain to Terri Schultz and was told the same. New members are 125points since Oct 2020. Existing members can do 25 if paying cash or 50 if financing.

Folks should be a bit cautious of linking to that web page. Over and over. Unless it’s about the clicks. Lol

 

[Sandisw]

That was my original plan. I have a 200 point HHI in ROFR right now, but wound have bought a 25 point direct for cash to get an on-property home resort. Since it’s actually 125, then small resale up front makes sense. Don’t need the Blue Card.

Once your contract passes and you are a member, you then qualify for the small add on

 

[KeithSS]

Folks should be a bit cautious of linking to that web page. Over and over. Unless it’s about the clicks. Lol

What webpage? All I posted was a response, no webpage link. There is an AD under my post but its not something i posted. It's something the board automatically puts between some posts

 

[sethschroeder]

Yeah, So Cal here. Zero need for FL AP. Same with most special events. Have Chase Disney, and usually have a family member CM with us anyway.

I mean if you go 1 time a year for a week you can use the AP and save money.

That seems to be the primary use case.

Simply alternate the trip by a week to get 2 trips per AP.

 

[DonMacGregor]

Once your contract passes and you are a member, you then qualify for the small add on

Exactly. I would have bought direct at $165 for 50 points and added on with 25 point increments if only to avoid the resale process. I can wait a few months. Not going anywhere.

 

[DonMacGregor]

What webpage? All I posted was a response, no webpage link. There is an AD under my post but its not something i posted. It's something the board automatically puts between some posts

I never said it was you, or anyone in particular for that matter. I just responded to you confirming that we had the same experience and happened to mention I’ve received a link to that page in other threads and two separate private messages in the last few days.
It’s no skin off my nose, just pointing out that it’s wrong.

 

[Sandisw]

I never said it was you, or anyone in particular for that matter. I just responded to you confirming that we had the same experience and happened to mention I’ve received a link to that page in other threads and two separate private messages in the last few days.
It’s no skin off my nose, just pointing out that it’s wrong.

If you are receiving PM from others regarding purchasing, please report it using the report feature.

 

[DonMacGregor]

If you are receiving PM from others regarding purchasing, please report it using the report feature.

Well, I didn't see it as a solicitation or anything bad, but rather a direct response to a question I had asked in an open thread, but I certainly will do so in the future. Live and learn.

Thanks

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Exactly. I would have bought direct at $165 for 25 points if only to avoid the resale process. I can wait a few months. Not going anywhere.

So your thought was you'd rescind the 200 pt resale if you could buy 25 pts as a new member? Even in the most desperate sellings days of DVC they didn't allow new members for 25 pts other than an odd report here and there where people talked their way in but that was when new members could buy 50 points. And that really screwed up the system when they did that. For the health of the system It's appropriate that new members have a higher threshold to buy in.

 

[Bjaiken77]

I think an OKW direct 125 point member buy-in is a great way to get your blue card. Good contract length, fantastic point chart, ok monthly dues, and no resale restrictions. At the prices of resale right now, I would do this instead of buying resale.

For me, since I wanted 50 years of blue card eligibility based my fiancé and my own age, I chose RIV. Also, being an SSR owner, I was looking for some secondary resort that gave me better access to the resorts than the bus. However, I think OKW and it’s 2057 expiration date is a great buy-in.

 

[DonMacGregor]

So your thought was you'd rescind the 200 pt resale if you could buy 25 pts as a new member? Even in the most desperate sellings days of DVC they didn't allow new members for 25 pts other than an odd report here and there where people talked their way in but that was when new members could buy 50 points. And that really screwed up the system when they did that. For the health of the system It's appropriate that new members have a higher threshold to buy in.

No, my thought was to keep the 200 points, and buy the minimum direct at either SSR or OKW to start building a little on-property home resort reservation backup, and avoid the hassle of buying 25 points resale (I'd just pay cash and be done with it that day). I assumed the DVCNEWS.COM site was accurate when it says

“$165 base price; 50-point minimum purchase” for new members

and

“$165 base price; 25+ points” for current member add-ons

since that site seems to be referenced quite often.

My question was whether to wait until the contract currently in ROFR was complete and buy the minimum add-on from Disney, just buy a small contract via resale, or go with the minimum new member direct sale from Disney. I never assumed I could just buy 25 points direct from Disney as a new member, but I did accept as accurate the representation that I could buy 50.

Had the DVCNEWS web site been accurate, a 50 point new member purchase direct would have been as or more appealing than a small contract via resale. At this point, I'll just wait for the HHI contract to finalize and get my membership started, then I'll start grabbing a few direct points.

 

[DonMacGregor]

I think an OKW direct 125 point member buy-in is a great way to get your blue card. Good contract length, fantastic point chart, ok monthly dues, and no resale restrictions. At the prices of resale right now, I would do this instead of buying resale.

For me, since I wanted 50 years of blue card eligibility based my fiancé and my own age, I chose RIV. Also, being an SSR owner, I was looking for some secondary resort that gave me better access to the resorts than the bus. However, I think OKW and it’s 2057 expiration date is a great buy-in.

I think if you're looking for a Blue Card as your primary goal, then yes that seems to be a pretty good deal. I don't really need or want one, just exploring the idea of a few points at an on-property resort just in case I decide to build up to a Blue Card later (and if, for example, I want to give then to my son/grandkids via gratuitous transfer, etc.). And, I may decide I want some of that 11-month flexibility down the road too, so having some unrestricted points in my back pocket wouldn't hurt.

I'm a life-long Disney fan (lived in or around Anaheim my entire life, former 10+ year CM, etc.) and I'm planning on staying one, but I'll be almost 80 in 2042, and 93 when theose 2057 contracts expire. LOL

 

[DonMacGregor]

So, in closing, the smart move is to wait until the current contract at HHI closes and then go direct with a small contract from DIsney at SSR or OKW. Guarenteed UY, 2057 contracts (at OKW), credit towards Blue Card, WAY less hassle, and the price isn't demonstrably higher than resale. There's a contract that just accepted an offer on https://www.dvcresalemarket.com for SSR, listed at $155 per point for 25 points. Obviously, we don't know what the offer was, but it had to be somewhere within 10% of that number.

Waiting until I can buy direct as a current member and get those same 25 points (or more) at $165 per point (assuming JUST for argument's sake that the direct price stays the same) makes more sense.

 

[Bjaiken77]

I think if you're looking for a Blue Card as your primary goal, then yes that seems to be a pretty good deal. I don't really need or want one, just exploring the idea of a few points at an on-property resort just in case I decide to build up to a Blue Card later (and if, for example, I want to give then to my son/grandkids via gratuitous transfer, etc.). And, I may decide I want some of that 11-month flexibility down the road too, so having some unrestricted points in my back pocket wouldn't hurt.

I'm a life-long Disney fan (lived in or around Anaheim my entire life, former 10+ year CM, etc.) and I'm planning on staying one, but I'll be almost 80 in 2042, and 93 when theose 2057 contracts expire. LOL

Interesting. I grew up in the City of Orange and went to Disneyland a lot. The job (and economic conditions of CA) brought me to the East Coast (Maryland), so now WDW is a closer trip (and much cheaper flight).

I’ll be 93 when my RIV contract expires, and I like that oddly. To me, it makes me feel like a time limited timeshare is for life. I know it’s probably something odd about how my brain works, but I’m more scared about a contract expiration date than I probably should be. It’s like a mental block.