Need some help with UY....

[Dagny]

I talked to my guide today, Michelle, who is awesome, btw. Since SSR is in phase II, currently, they are only offering use years for June - December 2005. I was really hoping for a February or March use year since we tend to vacation in May or early June.

I am concerned about taking a June use year due to cancellation penalities if we had to cancel within 30 days. With my daughter's soccer schedule, it is truly possible that we would have to reschedule. I am not excited about a December use year since we would always be borrowing points to go on a vacation in May/June (although I wouldn't owe hardly any maintenance fees until 2006). Michelle said I could take a February 2006 use year, but then I would be giving up a full year's worth of points with the only advantage that I wouldn't pay dues until February 2006

I don't know what to do.... any suggestions from the experts would be appreciated.

 

[PamOKW]

The only time Use Year really becomes a factor is if you have to cancel a reservation that is late in your Use Year and you do it close to the date of travel (especially if you cancel during the last 60 days). That said, over the life of your membership the "ideal" time may change and your Use Year may not be the terrific match it once was.

However, I can understand your point about being reluctant to take a June Use Year when your current cycle has you vacationing at the end of May. It's probably not a bad idea to choose a different month.

December isn't too bad a choice. You have until May 31 every year to decide on banking 100% of your points and can still bank up to 50% of the total through August. This would give you an escape valve if you had to cancel in May (no problem) or June (could be tougher). Chances are you would know your plans by the end of May and could use the 100% banking.

I'm not sure why you would have to borrow to schedule your May/June vacation with a December Use Year. In December 2004 you would receive points good through November 30, 2005. You could use these points for a May/June 2005 trip without having to borrow. Your Use Year is not related to when you make the reservation. You just have to have the points in your account at the time of travel.

 

[Dagny]

Pam, thanks for your quick reply. However, since we are buying Phase II of SSR the points would not be available until December 2005 so we would be on the borrowing pattern immediately which I am not crazy about

Another quick (and probably stupid) question... if I took a December UY and made a reservation for May and had to cancel say in April, would I loose points for cancelling within 60 days even though I have until May 31st to bank them??? We still have school age children and will for quite some time so it is likely that our travel patterns will remain the same for at least another 13 years so UY is fairly important to me right now.

Also, in talking to DH about it, he suggested that we should take February 2006 Use Year and take the developers points - while we would be paying more per point, we would not technically loose the points for 2005 and we wouldn't have to start paying until February 2006. That may be our best option. What do you think?

Also, assume that we took the Feb 2006 use year, would we have to pay the full downpayment now or would it be due in February 2006 with just our $500 deposit due now. The more I think about it, the more I am not crazy about Disney having $2850 of my money sitting there idle for over a year Ahhh, the decisions one has to make

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

No matter what use year you end up with, having to cancel at the last minute due to your daughter's soccer schedule could leave you with a problem.

If you are going to buy and you are sure that May will be a vacation month into the future, then given the choice, a December use year is okay. But there really wouldn't be a big difference for you between a December 2005 use year and a February 2006 use year. You would still have to borrow points to go next May or June. What about the June 2005 use year and an early June reservation? That way if you have to cancel, you have until the end of May 2006 to use the points.

But given the fact that your daughter is playing soccer and you may have to cancel at the last moment for the forseeable future, maybe it would be best to wait a while and not do DVC at this point? The cancelation penalties for the regular resorts are much easier to deal with for those who have to do last minute cancelations with DVC.

HBC

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

Originally posted by Dagny
Another quick (and probably stupid) question... if I took a December UY and made a reservation for May and had to cancel say in April, would I loose points for cancelling within 60 days even though I have until May 31st to bank them???

There are no stupid questions. If you cancel your reservation 31 days or more before your arrival, your points go back into your account and you could still bank them. If you cancel within 30 days the points go into a holding account and there are all kinds of rules that go with that, one of which is they can't be banked.

HBC

 

[Dagny]

HBC - I understand where you are coming from about having to cancel, but it usually wouldn't be at the last moment. We usually have a least a month's notice of a soccer tournament if not more, but it has happened that our team decided to do one at the last moment, and you know what, she missed, LOL. Our our family vacations are VERY important to us. We hardly see our children enough as it is with school and sports so I am not willing to give up the family vacations. Second, I finally got hubby to agree to purchase DVC so I want to strike while the iron is hot

Also, thanks for the information on the cancellation policy - can I assume that any points in holding, must be used within the 12 months?

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

Originally posted by Dagny
can I assume that any points in holding, must be used within the 12 months?

They have to be used within your use year but you can only make a reservation with them within 60 days or less of your arrival.

We have four kids and our life revolves around "THE SCHEDULE" but we too always find time for family vacations.

Good luck deciding.

HBC

 

[PamOKW]

If you cancel at 30 days or less from check-in, the points go into the "holding account". You can only use them to make reservations 60 days or less from the start of your vacation. They can't be banked and will expire at the end of the Use Year.

There is a seperate restriction that sometimes comes into play in these situations. During the final 60 days of your Use Year, you can't make a reservation at a non-DVC option. You can travel during this time period (if you previously made a reservation), you just can't book something new. This allows DVC to find someone to "use" your points for cash.

 

[rigsby25]

Wouldn't it be almost advantagous to start out borrowing? I am worried about not being able to use points at the end of the use year when you can bank less. It seems to me that if you start out borrowing - that will probably never happen.

 

[SamR]

Since SSR is in phase II, currently, they are only offering use years for June - December 2005.

Is this also true for add-on contracts? I took the tour at SSR back in June, and the recent incentives have me giving consideration to an add-on contract at SSR. (Of course, it doesn't take much to get me thinking about an add-on. ) My current use year at BCV is March. If I wanted to do an SSR phase II add-on, would DVC require my add-on to be a March use year (starting in 2006)? Or could I choose a UY in the June-December range?

If I end up with a March UY (phase II), and I finance my purchase through Disney, would my payments start in May (phase II opening) or in March of 2006? Likewise, when would the payment of dues start (assuming monthly dues payments)?

 

[DebbieB]

I'm not sure you could borrow December 2005 points for a stay in May 2005. Those points probably cannot be used until your building opens which may not be until later in the year.

 

[Dagny]

Not really worried about May 2005 as much because we will have the option to get the developers points which we can use at a different property.

Does anyone know if my full downpayment will be due now if I choose the February 2006 UY or will the remainder be due in February 2006?