Need purchasing advice...

[Magic Fanatic]

We just returned from the Disney Cruise on Saturday April 12. While we were on board we signed up for Saratoga Springs. 200 points at $94.00/point (there was a $10.00/point discount. There was also a $500.00 ships credit that we ended you applying to the down payment. The contract month would be be June 2008 and the also were including the 2007 points with Disney paying those dues. We were happy with this and signed.

Now, since we returned home, I have do a little research and a couple of things concern me. The first is the lay out of the studio rooms. It looks as though all of the different Villa's offer this set up with one bed and a sleeper sofa. My kids are at the age now (13 and 8) that a sleeper sofa simply would not work. The fighting would be continuous.

My second concern is around booking away from Disney. I have scanned several other boards such as this one and cannot get a good feel for how others others use the Passport Collection or the Concierge Collection. Is it difficult to book? Do you have to plane years in advance...etc.

I have now gone back and researched the different Villa's and learned that Old Key West has two rooms in their studio's so that would address my first problem. In addition someone was kind enough to refer me to one of the resale companies and I have found an opportunity to purchase 250 pts at Old Key West for $71/point with the full 250 available right now and another 250 pts in April 2009.

My final question is why would I not by the resale? Is there anything I am missing? I am gaining 50 pts and spending $650.00 less. The only thing that I can see that I am giving up is the shorter contract. As far as the resorts go, I know Key West is the oldest property, but I have been told that it has been well maintainted. I would appreciate any feed back as the document arrived via fed ex today and I need to make some decisions.

 

[lmhall2000]

I'll try to help, I'm in the same boat as you..

The advantages for buying from Disney are:

1. Quicker access to your points...if you are wanting travel relatively soon or for summer months, the weeks/month waiting for your resale points to show active may mean risking room availability.

2. Longer contracts.

3. Some incentive plans may be more advantageous to you depending on when/how you travel.

The advantages for buying resale:

1. Costs less...

2. You can pick whichever Home resort you wish to stay at and which month you'd like to be your "use year"


AK has the only set up where a 1 BR can fit up to 5 people...it's still a couch sofa but there is also a twin pull out...this might be an option for your family and still use fewer points than going to a 2 BR...also they are offering concierge at AKL, no others (yet) have this option...that would be an advantage for buying through Disney, but I've even seen resales on AKL!

I've checked them all and I think Sarasota Springs offers our family the most value, longer contract for about $2-3 more per contract points (we're only going for 150 points so that's about $450 more for 12 more years...I see more value in that than buying OKW) also the annual dues are less at Saratoga Springs than other resorts...we are able to travel at any time of the year so if we're really stuck on trying a hard to get resort we'll just keep calling until it comes available (at the 7 month mark) and then go for that. We aren't going to use our first travel until 2010 so we are actually looking for stripped contracts to be able to vie for a lower contract bid.

Hope this helps!
Tara

 

[dianeschlicht]

We just returned from the Disney Cruise on Saturday April 12. While we were on board we signed up for Saratoga Springs. 200 points at $94.00/point (there was a $10.00/point discount. There was also a $500.00 ships credit that we ended you applying to the down payment. The contract month would be be June 2008 and the also were including the 2007 points with Disney paying those dues. We were happy with this and signed.

Now, since we returned home, I have do a little research and a couple of things concern me. The first is the lay out of the studio rooms. It looks as though all of the different Villa's offer this set up with one bed and a sleeper sofa. My kids are at the age now (13 and 8) that a sleeper sofa simply would not work. The fighting would be continuous.

My second concern is around booking away from Disney. I have scanned several other boards such as this one and cannot get a good feel for how others others use the Passport Collection or the Concierge Collection. Is it difficult to book? Do you have to plane years in advance...etc.

I have now gone back and researched the different Villa's and learned that Old Key West has two rooms in their studio's so that would address my first problem. In addition someone was kind enough to refer me to one of the resale companies and I have found an opportunity to purchase 250 pts at Old Key West for $71/point with the full 250 available right now and another 250 pts in April 2009.

My final question is why would I not by the resale? Is there anything I am missing? I am gaining 50 pts and spending $650.00 less. The only thing that I can see that I am giving up is the shorter contract. As far as the resorts go, I know Key West is the oldest property, but I have been told that it has been well maintainted. I would appreciate any feed back as the document arrived via fed ex today and I need to make some decisions.

First of all, I think with a family the ages of yours, you would want to look at a 2 bedroom villa just for the extra bathroom alone, unless you were planing on purchasing AKV, which has 2 batrooms in the 1 bedroom (or will when Kidani is finished).

Secondly, indeed why not buy the resale at OKW if that is where you want to have the 11 month booking window, and if that is where you prefer to stay. The only thing you need to be aware of is that most resales for OKW are going to have a contract end date of 2042, while buying OKW direct from Disney will get you an extra 15 years. This is only important if you feel you are young enough to benefit from the added years.

As for the exterior trades like Concierge Collection, Disney Collection, and World Passport Collection...It is generally thought that DVC is too expensive a timeshare to use for trades out of system. You don't get as much "bang for the buck" if you trade out. That being said, if you plan to use it for an occational trade, there is certainly nothing wrong with that, as long as you understand what it is costing you. Passport collection is trading through Interval International, and requires both patience and being very open to waiting for your trade. Concierge and Disney Collections can be booked directly, so that is not as diffiuclt, but is MUCH more costly point wise than even an II exchange.

 

[Buckeye Fan]

The first is the lay out of the studio rooms. It looks as though all of the different Villa's offer this set up with one bed and a sleeper sofa. My kids are at the age now (13 and 8) that a sleeper sofa simply would not work. The fighting would be continuous.

I feel your pain. Have a DS that's 12 and DD is 6. 'Nuff said.

My second concern is around booking away from Disney. I have scanned several other boards such as this one and cannot get a good feel for how others others use the Passport Collection or the Concierge Collection. Is it difficult to book? Do you have to plane years in advance...etc.

Most will tell you trading out is not a good idea. You can purchase a cheaper timeshare with lower MFs for less money with more trading power. With that said, if you're not planning on using your DVC at WDW most of the time, it's probably worth reconsidering. If you already own and want to trade out on occassion, my BIL/SIL have done it several times and have had great luck. You just have to put in a search. The downside? There's an automatic confirmation. So, if you tell DVC you want to search Hawaii for the month of July and there's a match, it automatically books. What if you can't get flights for the week it books? It's just something to be aware of, as it's not quite as they make it sound.

I have now gone back and researched the different Villa's and learned that Old Key West has two rooms in their studio's so that would address my first problem. In addition someone was kind enough to refer me to one of the resale companies and I have found an opportunity to purchase 250 pts at Old Key West for $71/point with the full 250 available right now and another 250 pts in April 2009.

OKW studios are 1 room with 2 queen beds. You're right, OKW studios are nice and overall, all rooms at OKW are noticably larger than the other WDW resorts. If you haven't been, OKW is a beautiful resort. The other thing...check out the 1-BRs. They have two rooms with a full kitchen and a queen size pullout in the living room. After staying in the 1BRs, I'm not sure I could go back to studios!!!

My final question is why would I not by the resale? Is there anything I am missing? I am gaining 50 pts and spending $650.00 less. The only thing that I can see that I am giving up is the shorter contract. As far as the resorts go, I know Key West is the oldest property, but I have been told that it has been well maintainted. I would appreciate any feed back as the document arrived via fed ex today and I need to make some decisions.

Just remember, unless you're negotating closing costs, you've got to add those in there as well (not sure if you did in your calculation above). With that said, you can buy resale cheaper and if you're not in a hurry to get your points, it's worthwhile. Also, if you're financing, I think that factors in for some people. Dis offers financing, where with resale, you've got to figure out how to cover the price of your contract. Some brokers do have people they work with that will help out with financing as well.

Lastly, make sure the contract has the UY you want. Others will say it's not a big consideration, but we bought an Aug UY, and I hate it. We always travel in the summer, as DH is a teacher. We bank points every year and it forces us to travel by the end of July (points expire 7/31). If we would ever have to cancel or need to reschedule, there's no time. Just thought I'd mention it, as it's one of those lovely "lessons learned!"

 

[Magic Fanatic]

I feel your pain. Have a DS that's 12 and DD is 6. 'Nuff said.


Most will tell you trading out is not a good idea. You can purchase a cheaper timeshare with lower MFs for less money with more trading power. With that said, if you're not planning on using your DVC at WDW most of the time, it's probably worth reconsidering. If you already own and want to trade out on occassion, my BIL/SIL have done it several times and have had great luck. You just have to put in a search. The downside? There's an automatic confirmation. So, if you tell DVC you want to search Hawaii for the month of July and there's a match, it automatically books. What if you can't get flights for the week it books? It's just something to be aware of, as it's not quite as they make it sound.


OKW studios are 1 room with 2 queen beds. You're right, OKW studios are nice and overall, all rooms at OKW are noticably larger than the other WDW resorts. If you haven't been, OKW is a beautiful resort. The other thing...check out the 1-BRs. They have two rooms with a full kitchen and a queen size pullout in the living room. After staying in the 1BRs, I'm not sure I could go back to studios!!!


Just remember, unless you're negotating closing costs, you've got to add those in there as well (not sure if you did in your calculation above). With that said, you can buy resale cheaper and if you're not in a hurry to get your points, it's worthwhile. Also, if you're financing, I think that factors in for some people. Dis offers financing, where with resale, you've got to figure out how to cover the price of your contract. Some brokers do have people they work with that will help out with financing as well.

Lastly, make sure the contract has the UY you want. Others will say it's not a big consideration, but we bought an Aug UY, and I hate it. We always travel in the summer, as DH is a teacher. We bank points every year and it forces us to travel by the end of July (points expire 7/31). If we would ever have to cancel or need to reschedule, there's no time. Just thought I'd mention it, as it's one of those lovely "lessons learned!"

Thank you for your response! You, and the others that responded, have given me alot of insite and I am a lot more comfortable with going with Key West. Thanks again!

 

[Buckeye Fan]

Thank you for your response! You, and the others that responded, have given me alot of insite and I am a lot more comfortable with going with Key West. Thanks again!

Best of luck. I know it's a big decision, but I love our DVC ownership! It's so much fun to visit and we love the resorts. I haven't ever regretted buying.