My list of DVC questions

[darthspud]

So the other day I was proctoring the SAT's so that gave me a whole day with nothing to do so I decided to write down every question I had about buying into the DVC I have already made the decision that I want to buy in but I want to get these questions answer: and trust me theres a lot of them

Why are the maitence fee/annual fee higher at the wilderness lodge; why is Bay Lake tower cheaper since its brand new?

How do you find out about current incentives?

Can you purchase new points thru Disney for WLV or is it just for what they are advertising (DAK lodge BLT SSR)

Why does $ per point matter?

What does use year have to do with anything? Is it 11 months to make resseis from the 1st day of your use year month ie- I want to book 1 week in October (2011) when use year is Sept so I can book in August (2010) the previous year? What about at your non home resort?

If I go thru disney is it better to do it over the phone/email/or in person?

With the current financial issues how hard has it been for people to get approved for loans?

Can the points be used to stay at other resorts? Pop Century, FW campground - if yes how do you find out how many points per night they use?

Do you pay towards annual dues monthly or in one lump payment? If lump payment is it in your use year month?

If you buy resale why does disney do the ROFR thing? What happens if they refuse to allow the resale do you have to pick a diffrent property and start over?

If I know I can't go down this year would it make more sense to wait to or buy in and bank points?

How long can you bank points before you loose them?

Can you roll your closing costs into your loan? for both new and resale?

how long is the typical length of a loan?

why in resale do the price per point for the same resort differ?

and I think that much covers everything I need/want to know about DVC... so I thank you for being patient and helping me out!

 

[Sandisw]

Lots of great questions. Let me just take a few:

1. UY - Your UY is when your points become current every year. During the first 8 months, you are allowed to bank points from one UY to the next if you won't need them. When you pick a UY that happens right before your typical travel (if you have one), you will have a lot of flexibility if you have to cancel or change a trip. For example, I own a June UY and travel in August. If I ever have to cancel that trip, I can still bank my points, or reschedule my trip since I am traveling in month 2. As you said, this plays NO role in when you an book. You can always call 11 months ahead at your home resort. What points get used for the trip will be determined by what UY your travel falls in (not the time of the call).

2. Yes, you can buy VWL through Disney if you really want. It is much cheaper to go through resale however as I believe right now it is about $106.00 per point.

3. When Disney exercises ROFR, the sale is over for you as a buyer. You get your deposit back and have to start over. The benefits of resale are the cost savings, however, the drawback is that it takes time, especially if you get ROFR'd. With Disney, you are able to book reservations with your points within days (and typically close within a month). With resale, you are looking at about 2 months, longer if you get ROFR'd.

4. You can stay at other Disney resorts with your points. However, it is an additional $95.00 fee, and it is a lot of points. In some cases, a 2 bedroom DVC villa will be less than a room at the Poly.

5. The best thing to do is to call DVC and talk to a guide. Most will not respond to email, especially with specific information. Even my guide won't answer my questions related to buying, etc. email. If I have a question, I do send him an email, knowing that all it is doing is giving him a heads up to call me.

6. DVCnews. com does a great job, IMO, of keeping up on the incentives for the resorts. The other option is to simply call and ask.

7. Getting financing through Disney seems to be pretty easy and they work with a lot of people. Interest rate runs between 11% - 14%. You can go up to 10 years. You will be required to put down a down payment, but everything else can go in to the loan (closing on new contracts run around $300 - $400).

8. If you want to be able to take advantage of booking your trip 11 months in advance (and depending on when you travel could make a difference), you should buy with enough time to do this. If you won't typically be making your reservations before the 7 month mark, then you have more time. Same thing with choosing a home resort. If you won't be booking well in advance, where you buy becomes less important (although I still say buy at the place you would be okay with staying if for some reason you could not trade out).

 

[SFD998]

I'm not even going to try and answer all of these, because I know there are people out there with better info and I would probably just confuse the situation. However, I will try my hand at a few.

Why are the maitence fee/annual fee higher at the wilderness lodge; why is Bay Lake tower cheaper since its brand new? You answered part of this question yourself. Since, BLT is newer it does not require the same amount of maintenance and upkeep as VWL and therefore costs less. In addition BLT does not have the same amount of grounds to maintain, nor does it have any place to eat (I'm not counting TOTW lounge).

How do you find out about current incentives? You should be able to contact DVC and get them or I'm sure you can find a thread on here somewhere that has a pretty current list.

Why does $ per point matter? I'm not sure I understand the question, but the only difference in the per point cost is usually how new a resort is. For example the per point cost for BLT is much higher than OKW.

If I go thru disney is it better to do it over the phone/email/or in person? I have made 2 of my purchases through resale so everything was on the phone or email. I never had any problems. My final purchase was made directly through Disney in person, but all paperwork etc was mailed or emailed. In person is nice, but if you have all your questions prepared in advance over the phone is fine. Keep in mind that direct and resale are done a bit differently and thus would have different questions.

Can the points be used to stay at other resorts? Pop Century, FW campground - if yes how do you find out how many points per night they use? Yes, you can use the points to stay at other locations. This info is available to members on the DVC member website. However, Pop is not one of the options. In addition to a having to pay a $95 fee to do this the per night point charge isn't worth it. For example a water view room in the value season for CBR on a weekend is 32 points per night. This same time frame will get you a 1 bdr at OKW.

Do you pay towards annual dues monthly or in one lump payment? If lump payment is it in your use year month?
You can pay annual dues either way. I pay mine monthly, but I believe if you pay it in lump sum it is due in January regardless of use year.

If you buy resale why does disney do the ROFR thing? What happens if they refuse to allow the resale do you have to pick a diffrent property and start over? Disney doesn't want someone to get away with a steal. If the price is too low they will probably enact their ROFR and buy it back. If this happens then yes you would have to start over. In addition there is no rhyme or reason to why they buy back. At least to those of us on the outside. Sometimes they let a price go through for 1 resale and not another at the same price. It can also depend on what current DVC members are looking for. If I tell them I want OKW with an april use year and they don't have anything available they may buy it back through ROFR so it can be offered to me directly.

If I know I can't go down this year would it make more sense to wait to or buy in and bank points? This is more of a personal decision. However, you can never have enough points in my opinion so buying and banking isn't a bad thing. You can also look at the resale market where points may not be available until 2011 and you could get a better price. In addition you would not pay annual dues until 2011. If you buy and bank you would be paying the dues.


why in resale do the price per point for the same resort differ? The points vary because each seller is looking for a different bottom line. Usually you will find a lower per point price on larger contracts and a higher per point price on smaller contracts.

 

[hakepb]

While it seems BLT dues should be lower because they have less total roofing and landscaping, the real reason BLT dues are lower is the higher # of points needed to stay at BLT. What really matters is how much you pay in points to stay in a room.
i.e. SSR has a lot more roofs, pools and landscaping than BLT but is much more affordable in a dues sense:

For instance a 1 Week stay in a 1BR during 2010 Dream Season:
OKW
200 Points * 4.87 = $974

SSR:
224 points * 4.46 = $999.04

BLT Lake View
276 points * $3.78/point = $1043.28 dues spent for that stay
AKV Savannah view
233 Points * 4.95 = $1153.35

BLT MK View
334 points * 3.78/point = $1262.52 dues spent for that stay

BCV
254 points * 5.15 = $1308.10

VWL
254 points * $5.20 /point= $1320.8 dues spent for that stay

BWV Preferred
254 points * 5.36 = $1361.44

 

[DenLo]

So the other day I was proctoring the SAT's so that gave me a whole day with nothing to do so I decided to write down every question I had about buying into the DVC I have already made the decision that I want to buy in but I want to get these questions answer: and trust me theres a lot of them

Why are the maitence fee/annual fee higher at the wilderness lodge; why is Bay Lake tower cheaper since its brand new?
VWL is a smaller resort. Less points have been sold so less members are paying MFs. BLT is selling a lot of points, hence the high number of points per night to stay there. Because so many more points are being sold there are more DVC member to pay MFs.

Also all of the comments about landscaping, age of the resort, amenities in the building all affect the MFs. Also a single multi-story building is cheaper to maintain. It's concrete and no replacement of siding should be necessary, whereas VWL has wood siding and that needs to be resealed and varnished. Since BLT it hasn't had in increase in the MFs yet. Every year each resort has an increase depending on expenses and cost factors. When things cost more to replace or fix MFs go up.


How do you find out about current incentives?
Check out DVC.com http://www.dvcnews.com/index.php/dvc-program/financial/pricing-a-promotions They are pretty good about updating current promotions. Of course the best way would be to contact your DVC guide. And you can check the DISboards as people are always posting a recent quote.


Can you purchase new points thru Disney for WLV or is it just for what they are advertising (DAK lodge BLT SSR)
Disney will sell all of the DVC resorts. However, they do not always have the number of points you want or the Use Year you want. Then they have to wait until the ROFR a contract that fits your requirements. DVC.com also has the price for these resorts.


Why does $ per point matter?
So you pay less money initially. Wouldn't you rather pay $100 per point for 100 ($10,000) than $120 per point for 100 points ($12,000)? However, the resorts are not all sold at the same price, so sometimes you pay more to guarantee that you will be able to stay at the resort you prefer.


What does use year have to do with anything? Is it 11 months to make resseis from the 1st day of your use year month ie- I want to book 1 week in October (2011) when use year is Sept so I can book in August (2010) the previous year? What about at your non home resort?
No, Use Year has nothing to when you can book a reservation. The 11 month mark is 11 months to the day before you want your reservation to begin.

The best explanation of a Use Year is by a DISboard monitor. Here's the link: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1942668


If I go thru disney is it better to do it over the phone/email/or in person?
We buy via phone. It was a piece of cake. But we didn't finance so don't how that affects it.


With the current financial issues how hard has it been for people to get approved for loans? Don't know.

Can the points be used to stay at other resorts? Pop Century, FW campground - if yes how do you find out how many points per night they use? You will receive point charts as part of your Vacation Planner that comes with the paperwork . Or check out the DVC News http://www.dvcnews.com/index.php/dvc-program/points-charts/non-dvc-destinations You may not want to use points at a WDW cash hotel, it'll cost more than a DVC villa. There is also a $95 fee for non-DVC use.

Do you pay towards annual dues monthly or in one lump payment? If lump payment is it in your use year month? Either way, dues are payable by January 15th (but can pay as late at February 15th without being overdue).

If you buy resale why does disney do the ROFR thing? What happens if they refuse to allow the resale do you have to pick a diffrent property and start over? To get those points to sell at a higher price to someone else. If the total cost of buy the points is low enough Disney often ROFRs it. That means the closing costs and MF's that the buyer (Disney) would have to pay for the points. E.g. if a contract comes through for $84 per point but they have to pay MF and closing costs, they might instead ROFR the contract that costs $85 per point because they don't have to pay MFs and closing costs because the seller will pay for them. Disney also likes one that are fully loaded points for two years (2009 and 2010). Sometimes people try to sell a contract where they have used most if not all of the points for either or both years. Disney also want to prevent prices dropping too low.

You start over if you get ROFRd.

If I know I can't go down this year would it make more sense to wait to or buy in and bank points? That's a personal choice, but if you bank this year's points you can use them next year and then bank the 2011 points. Or if you really want to splurge use both years points and stay longer or in a larger villa. Or even take more than one trip or add a Disney cruise.

How long can you bank points before you loose them? You bank them into the next use year (2011). So if you have an August Use Year, you have until July 31, 2012 to use those points. You do not have to bank them until March 31, 2011.

Can you roll your closing costs into your loan? for both new and resale?

how long is the typical length of a loan?

why in resale do the price per point for the same resort differ? Members are trying to recover a certain amount of money. Or they purchased at a higher rate.

and I think that much covers everything I need/want to know about DVC... so I thank you for being patient and helping me out!

If I didn't answer the question, it because I don't know the answer. Do read the links I provided. They really are helpful. The DVC News also has some information on DVC for Beginners http://www.dvcnews.com/index.php/dvc-program/dvc-for-beginners

BTW, I recommend you buy at the DVC resort you want to stay at. That way you give yourself the best chance of getting the reservations you want.

 

[darthspud]

THANKS!!! all of your information was very helpful... I am still debating on whether I want to buy new or resale... I love love love the wilderness lodge which is why a lot of my questions dealt with the VWL.. what I hope to get point wise would be enough for approx 2 weeks worth I love Disney at halloween and by feb. living in New England I am ready for warmer climate... but also having a few points left over for a quick long weekend trip would be nice as well...

I have started a savings account to tuck away some money every month for my deposit (its also my usual saving for disney trip fund) I am hoping that the next time I go down it will be my welcome home trip... this year I probably will not be able to go down as much as I would love to but that also gives me a chance to save up more money for a deposit and more money to buy more souvies!

 

[Ericandjenng]

So the other day I was proctoring the SAT's so that gave me a whole day with nothing to do so I decided to write down every question I had about buying into the DVC I have already made the decision that I want to buy in but I want to get these questions answer: and trust me theres a lot of them

1. With the current financial issues how hard has it been for people to get approved for loans?

2.Can you roll your closing costs into your loan? for both new and resale?

3.how long is the typical length of a loan?


and I think that much covers everything I need/want to know about DVC... so I thank you for being patient and helping me out!

Hi, I deleted most of your other questions because others had already answered them. I can't give you definite answers about these since everyone's situation is different but I can tell you about our experience (and yes we financed).

1. We bought our DVC in Dec 2008 and even though the financial crisis had started we had no problem. BUT! we are very conscientious about paying our bills and we both work. Even though DVC does not report on your credit bureau, they do pull it before they approve your financing. And even after initial approval, you'll have more paperwork to complete and submit. It's a real estate transaction and although not usually as large as a home purchase, it's very similar in process. They look at your credit history, score and debt/income ratio. If you have been able to secure financing for anything else, you would probably have a good chance (IMO-but I'm not making the decisions.)

2. Yes you can include the closing costs but you do have to put a down payment....it was 10% of the purchase price when we bought.

3. I think the typical length is 10 years. Also, if you make your payments by automatic draft (direct debit), they were offering a 1% discount on the rate. This is also how we pay our MF. I don't have to think about it and neither payment is ever late.

One last note---I wish we had purchased when we first started going to WDW together instead of waiting--the $$ we spent on those trips (8 in all) would have paid probably half or more of the initial cost at that time. Now we still have 9 years of payments (although I do hope to pay if off before then)....

Hope this helps with some of your questions.

 

[es45]

If I know I can't go down this year would it make more sense to wait to or buy in and bank points? This is more of a personal decision. However, you can never have enough points in my opinion so buying and banking isn't a bad thing. You can also look at the resale market where points may not be available until 2011 and you could get a better price. In addition you would not pay annual dues until 2011. If you buy and bank you would be paying the dues.

A contract without points until 2011: is this what is known as a "stripped contract?"

 

[Sandisw]

A contract without points until 2011: is this what is known as a "stripped contract?"

Yes, any contract that does not have current UY or next UY points (or very few of them) would be a stripped contract.