Need Some Opinions for New Member

[boxer]

We recently bought direct (195) VGF points on our trip a couple weeks ago. Before I go any further, I will say that we LOVE the VGF, and do not regret buying there even for one instance. With that being said, I will also admit (lol) that I did not do enough research into the whole DVC program, and what could have been purchased for that same amount of money. This is where I have the questions--I have been scouring this board, and on the DVC website researching things, and came to some conclusions. Here are my options as I see them:

1. We have (195 +139) points currently at the VGF. Our Use Year is in October, so we will get an additional (195) at that point. I think everyone is fully aware of what the VGF is selling for right now, so it is not hard to figure out what I spent on this. We are NO loan, so any selling/buying transaction should be easier. My fear is the VGF will become difficult to book for a Studio at our usual time of vacation (early November), and I will get stuck moving to a different resort, or having to borrow for a bigger accomodation. This is not the case now, but the VGF popularity seems to be growing by the day, and I'm worried we just won't have enough points.

2. My further research shows that 1-beds seem to almost always be available at resorts (for the most part), but require obviously more points. I'm THINKING it may be more prudent that have MORE POINTS, rather than a smaller amout of points at a resort we love. With the $30k I invested in the VGF, I can buy other contracts (BWV, SSR, etc) for contracts of over (300) points. These extra points can be used as a back-up should I need to move to a 1-bed accomodation for the resort we desire.

We are able to easily plan our trips at the 7mos/11mos mark, so this is not a problem at all. I was playing around on the DVC site yesterday, and there is almost every Epcot/MK resort available (right now) at the 7mos mark, for either Studios or 1-bed, for several days at a time. With the flexibility of the extra points, that would allow me to shoot for the VGF, even at the 7mos mark, and in most cases get at least a 1-bed (even though we would be more than happy with the Studio). With this being said, there are other resorts we wouldn't be 'disappointed' with if we couldn't get the VGF.

Does any of this make sense? I need to make a decision soon whether to sell my VGF points, before the market gets flooded with other VGF contracts. PLEASE give me some advice (that I SHOULD have asked before my purchase, lol).

 

[Sur]

Wait and see how well it works out. Don't sell yet based on speculation...you'd take a pretty good hit financially.

 

[boxer]

Wait and see how well it works out. Don't sell yet based on speculation...you'd take a pretty good hit financially.

I agree, but the longer I wait, the more of a hit I will take since the price per-point will decrease--right? I would think VGF resales will be at the highest for the next several months--then will drop off probably around this time next year.

 

[CarolMN]

Wait and see how well it works out. Don't sell yet based on speculation...you'd take a pretty good hit financially.

I agree with Sur - just wait and see. It's too soon to be thinking about selling due to availability. AFAIK no one has ever been completely shut out of any resort at 11 months - unless they absolutely have to have a specific booking category, like club level or BWV Standard for Food & Wine, etc.

Don't be so sure it will be hard to get a VGF studio at 11 months for early November. Remember, you are only competing with other VGF owners, so it really doesn't matter if the resort is popular with non-owners if you book at 11 months.

Just plan to be online at 8 am Eastern to book. You should be fine.

Welcome home!

 

[rkold]

Hi Boxer,

Just like you, we just bought 200 points at the VGF in October. And like you I'd done some research but probably not enough, though also like you, we're happy with our purchase because we actually really want to stay at the VGF and want it as our home resort. Right now, we go to MK a lot, and every time I had to take a bus back to YC/BC it was miserable, including one time the bus got lost.

At the GF, I can always take the monorail to the TTC and walk back to the resort or hop on the resort monorail, either one is much much easier with a stroller.

I can't speak for the future, but our 11 month booking window for Oct 2014 just passed a few days ago. I wasn't on at 8 am, I forgot until 10:00 am and had no problem booking our usual 5 night stay at the VGF. We have a standard view studio which is just what we wanted. Who knows if it will be harder to book next year, but for now, I had no problem.

I admit we're thinking of buying some more points in the future as well, but more because we want more points to use.

 

[kristenrice]

1. We have (195 +139) points currently at the VGF. Our Use Year is in October, so we will get an additional (195) at that point. I think everyone is fully aware of what the VGF is selling for right now, so it is not hard to figure out what I spent on this. We are NO loan, so any selling/buying transaction should be easier. My fear is the VGF will become difficult to book for a Studio at our usual time of vacation (early November), and I will get stuck moving to a different resort, or having to borrow for a bigger accomodation. This is not the case now, but the VGF popularity seems to be growing by the day, and I'm worried we just won't have enough points.

If you book at the 11-month mark, you should have almost a 100% chance of getting what you want. I booked a value studio at AKV for 5 nights over the last weekend of F&W and I got it without waitlisting. There are less than 20 available in the whole resort and that is a busy DVC time to book. If you own at VGF, you should be just fine.

2. My further research shows that 1-beds seem to almost always be available at resorts (for the most part), but require obviously more points. I'm THINKING it may be more prudent that have MORE POINTS, rather than a smaller amout of points at a resort we love. With the $30k I invested in the VGF, I can buy other contracts (BWV, SSR, etc) for contracts of over (300) points. These extra points can be used as a back-up should I need to move to a 1-bed accomodation for the resort we desire.

We are able to easily plan our trips at the 7mos/11mos mark, so this is not a problem at all. I was playing around on the DVC site yesterday, and there is almost every Epcot/MK resort available (right now) at the 7mos mark, for either Studios or 1-bed, for several days at a time. With the flexibility of the extra points, that would allow me to shoot for the VGF, even at the 7mos mark, and in most cases get at least a 1-bed (even though we would be more than happy with the Studio). BUT...7 months from now is June...not nearly as busy for DVC as early November...take that for what it's worthWith this being said, there are other resorts we wouldn't be 'disappointed' with if we couldn't get the VGF.

Does any of this make sense? I need to make a decision soon whether to sell my VGF points, before the market gets flooded with other VGF contracts. PLEASE give me some advice (that I SHOULD have asked before my purchase, lol).

If you choose to resell your VGF contract now, you will take a substantial hit. Here's two reasons why: First, Disney has inventory of their own to sell so your selling price will have to be VERY low in order for Disney to exercise ROFR. A buyer would (should) know that and probably offer much less than you would be willing to accept. Second, your selling price will have to be low enough to entice a potential buyer to sacrifice the direct-purchase benefits that they could get by buying from DVC. I wouldn't expect a contract of 100+ points to sell for much more than $120/pt on the resale market, but that is purely an opinion.

I would hang on to your VGF contract...use it...LOVE IT...and maybe think about adding on more points down the road if you need to upgrade or go more often.

 

[boxer]

Hi Boxer,

Just like you, we just bought 200 points at the VGF in October. And like you I'd done some research but probably not enough, though also like you, we're happy with our purchase because we actually really want to stay at the VGF and want it as our home resort. Right now, we go to MK a lot, and every time I had to take a bus back to YC/BC it was miserable, including one time the bus got lost.

At the GF, I can always take the monorail to the TTC and walk back to the resort or hop on the resort monorail, either one is much much easier with a stroller.

I can't speak for the future, but our 11 month booking window for Oct 2014 just passed a few days ago. I wasn't on at 8 am, I forgot until 10:00 am and had no problem booking our usual 5 night stay at the VGF. We have a standard view studio which is just what we wanted. Who knows if it will be harder to book next year, but for now, I had no problem.

I admit we're thinking of buying some more points in the future as well, but more because we want more points to use.

Glad to see someone else jump into this with limited research, lol! I just am getting greedy when I see what we spent for (195) points, could have got me over (300) points by buying resale. The booking availablity is also making me nervous, but it is mostly understanding now that I could have ALOT more points by buying resale.

I guess the good thing is the value of the VGF should remain steady, so if I want to change out later, I should be able to.

 

[drusba]

Welcome Home. VGF is an ideal choice despite the expense.

1. As to getting a studio at VGF annually, usually early November, your chances will likely be good as long as you book exactly 11 months out.

2. As to buying 300 or so points at another resort, I would probably not do it if the only reason was to get a back-up in case VGF is unavailable. Look instead for another where you might actually want to stay. I am assuming you are aware that the 11 month ressie window is resort point specific and you cannot mix VGF points and points from another resort to reserve one of them at 11 months out. You can do that only at 7 months out.

3. You note how many things are open right now at 7 months out. You need to be aware of current DVC reservation patterns at WDW:

(a) DVC's highest demand quarter by far is the period running from end of Sep, when Food and Wine begins, through Marathon Weekend in January. It is during that period when you will find it difficult to get rooms at near park resorts (BLT, BWV, BCV, and likely VGF) at 7 months out, Your "early November" time is included in that. VWL is often open much of October through third week of Nov but once Thanksgiving season begins it will also be quite difficult at 7 months out. Also be aware that the highest demand weeks of the year are not what you would initially think. No. 1 is first week of Dec. No. 2 is Dec 23-Jan 2. No. 3 is second week of Dec. and No. 4 is a tie between days around Thanksgiving and the middle weeks of Oct. The why for this is mainly the fact that during most of that quarter points are the lowest or second lowest seasons of the year, weather is ideal most of that time, Food & Wine is extremely popular, huge numbers of DVC members have been so for many years and can now easily travel without being limited by school schedules, the Halloween party is also a popular event, and once Food & Wine is over everything Christmas begins. There are three periods during that quarter when demand is lighter and near park resorts are easier to get at 7 months out: just past mid-Nov to Monday before Thanskgiving, third week of Dec, and time between Jan 3 and the Wednesday before Marathon Weekend.

(b) In comparison to that high demand quarter, the entire rest of the year is like off-season at 7 months out. It is far easier to get reservations at 7 months out at near park resorts for Presidents week, Easter time, Memorial Day time, and July 4 time than during any time in that high demand quarter including Marathon Weekend in Jan. In fact, the hardest time to get near park resorts at 7 months out from mid-Jan through just before end of Sep is the Princess Half-Marathon Weekend in latter part of Feb.

(c) There are certain classifications of rooms ("Usual Suspects") that can be difficult to get at 7 months out much of the year both because of popularity of the room category and the fact that there are a low number of rooms in the category: AKV club level, BLT standard view, AKV value rooms, BWV GVs, the OKW GV in the Hospitality House booking category, BWV standard view, and BWV boardwalk view. I believe once VGF gets close to selling out, its studios will join that group. BCV studios and BLT theme park view studios can also be gone at 7 months out not just during the high demand quarter but also a few times, such as holidays, during the rest of the year.

(d) Studios tend to fill before 2BRs, which tend to fill before 1BRs. 1BRs can often be found at near park resorts even during times in that high demand quarter; also 1BRs in the Usual Suspect categories can often be found at 7 months out a number times of year when no other room size is available.

(e) SSR is always open at 7 months out year round except that Tree House Villas can disappear before 7 months out Thanskgiving time, first half of Dec, Christmas week, and marathon weekend, and GVs may be gone for days during that first week of Dec and time around NYE (the highest demand night of the year). AKV standard and savanna view and OKW are also usually open most the year at 7 months out except some risk otherwise around Columbus Day weekend, the weekend after that, first week of Dec and time around NYE. SSR is usually the resort that is the last to reserve (OKW second to last and AKV third to last) and is often open even 2 months out (except that during the high demand quarter it can even disappear at times by five months out).

 

[kristenrice]

Glad to see someone else jump into this with limited research, lol! I just am getting greedy when I see what we spent for (195) points, could have got me over (300) points by buying resale. The booking availablity is also making me nervous, but it is mostly understanding now that I could have ALOT more points by buying resale.

I guess the good thing is the value of the VGF should remain steady, so if I want to change out later, I should be able to.

Don't let booking availability make you nervous. As AKV and BWV owner's can tell you, we own some of the hardest to get reservations (AKV concierge has only 5 2BR lock-offs...AKV value has only 10 2BR lock-offs...and I believe that AKV has ONE standard view GV) Then, you can go to the VB owners who have, what, 6 Beach Cottages available?? And HHI which has a mere 21 2BR lock-offs making it hard to book a 1BR or studio.

I own at AKV and I have been able to book our preferred rooms in the value category at the 11-month window. I won't get into the whole "walking" debate, but I admit, I did do that for our most recent vacation since the value studio was our ONLY option. I have been 100% successful at the 11-month window and you will too. Remember, at 11 months, you are only competing with the other GFV owners. DVC can grow and expand, but your competition at 11 months is finite.

Your other worry (regret) about buying more points resale is common. Take comfort in knowing that you can stay at the GFV without having the stress of trying to book the leftovers at 7-months. Look forward, not backwards. Heck, I bought AKV resale for $92/point. Had I waited three years, I could have got it for $70/point, but I would have missed out on three years of great vacations. I do not regret it one bit! Enjoy your DVC...no worries.

 

[Breyean]

If you choose to resell your VGF contract now, you will take a substantial hit. Here's two reasons why: First, Disney has inventory of their own to sell so your selling price will have to be VERY low in order for Disney to exercise ROFR. A buyer would (should) know that and probably offer much less than you would be willing to accept. Second, your selling price will have to be low enough to entice a potential buyer to sacrifice the direct-purchase benefits that they could get by buying from DVC. I wouldn't expect a contract of 100+ points to sell for much more than $120/pt on the resale market, but that is purely an opinion.

I would hang on to your VGF contract...use it...LOVE IT...and maybe think about adding on more points down the road if you need to upgrade or go more often.

Also just wanted to add a third point - the 10% or so commission you'd incur on your sales price by selling through one of the major brokers.

 

[boxer]

Kind of surprised by the replies I'm getting on this! I figured since most of you here bought resale, that would be the concensus. I did get a quote for selling through one of the major brokers, and his resale price on the VGF was higher than I thought--that is why I started this post.

I'm looking at what $30k 'could' have bought, and I probably should not be doing that, lol.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Kind of surprised by the replies I'm getting on this! I figured since most of you here bought resale, that would be the concensus. I did get a quote for selling through one of the major brokers, and his resale price on the VGF was higher than I thought--that is why I started this post.

I'm looking at what $30k 'could' have bought, and I probably should not be doing that, lol.

Hindsight is 20/20. If you had thought this way immediately after your purchase, you could have rescinded the purchase and spent more time thinking. But as long as you are past the 10 day rescission period, VGF is your home resort and you might as well enjoy it. Selling will be expensive.

Book your stays at 11 months out and maybe even consider walking the reservation. So in December, when you are looking at your Nov reservation, check what is going on for a week out from your stay. If all seven nights are available, you could go ahead and book those seven nights. Then call MS the next morning and drop the first night and add the last night. Do this until you get all seven.

You might even want to start looking now to see what you see for 11 months out from now.

We've sold two of our smaller contracts and I kind of wish we had kept those two and sold two other small ones instead. But I still have three which gives me enough points for one longer or two shorter trips each year. And I'm not going to buy any more points, no matter what.

 

[rkold]

Glad to see someone else jump into this with limited research, lol! I just am getting greedy when I see what we spent for (195) points, could have got me over (300) points by buying resale. The booking availablity is also making me nervous, but it is mostly understanding now that I could have ALOT more points by buying resale.

I guess the good thing is the value of the VGF should remain steady, so if I want to change out later, I should be able to.

I admit, for us, the Guide got us when she offered us the deal sweetener of a BLT Lake view studio for the Princess 1/2 We were looking at spending around 400-500 a night. (Yes, I know long term, DVC is more money, but at this point in time we like to go to Disney 3-5x a year for 4-5 night stays.) So unlike you, we're only banking around 25 points this year, we're also staying at AKV in Jan. >>; Our UY is April to April.

Sometimes I think, well we could have had 300 points at AKV for the same price as we got our points at VGF, but then I think to myself, would I really want to do 3-4 stays there every year? I love AKV, don't get me wrong. If we buy more points it will be either BW, BC or AKV, but I think overall the resort I want to spend my points on is VGF, even if the points don't go as far. Yes, I could buy somewhere "cheaper" and get more points, but I know I want to stay at VGF times you need to book 11 months in advance, and if they're that hard to book at 11 months, even if I have a lot more points, will they really be open at 7? I personally would rather have fewer points, but have points where I want to stay.

We'll see how things go in January when I try to book a studio for one of the first 2 weeks in December lol Just wanted to add, we booked middle of Oct. Our 2014 trip starts Sunday the 19th.

Good luck and be happy, VGF looks gorgeous and I know we will both have wonderful times when we stay there!

 

[EEGRAM]

I think a little buyer's remorse is natural. I bought a fixed week (week 48; standard studio) and after the excitement wore off and I read many of the posts regarding fixed weeks, I began to second guess my decision and wondered if I should not have just bought the equivalent number of points. All the what ifs can drive you crazy. But you know what, I have ownership in a resort that I really wanted during the week of the year that we love to travel.
I say, try it out for a few vacations. If you are still disappointed after a couple of years, look into selling. I agree with the other posters, you will take a bath if you sell now which will more than negate any extra points you may be able to buy on the resale market.

 

[DizBub]

I have a slightly different take on this.

My daughter and her husband bought 210 points at BLT in 2009. Figured this would get them a 1 bedroom pretty much anywhere. In fact, they have only stayed at BLT once but have stayed at BWV twice, BVC once and a couple of times at AKV.

They recently decided they need more points and bought 60 at VGF. They did not want to buy resale so it had to be direct. They LOVE AKV but did not need the 11 month booking window and they know that if they need to sell AKV is selling at 50% less than direct. Now if they need to sell VGF, it's a small contract that they could get nearly what they paid for it, making VGF the better choice.

They will probably only stay at VGF for a long weekend once a year or every other year and primarily use those points to supplement their BLT points at 7 months.

 

[JimMIA]

You say you bought "...a couple of weeks ago." Depending on the exact details of that transaction, you might have a couple of options for getting out of the purchase.

First, under Florida law, you have a right to rescind (cancel) any real estate purchase within 10 days of purchase. The exact definition of the purchase date depends on the specifics of the transaction. For example, if you agreed to buy and made a deposit, and later received your purchase paperwork for signature, etc, you might still be within your ten-day recission period depending on the exact timing. The devil is most assuredly in the details with situations like this. If you are within the recission period, you will get all of your money back.

The second option is that Disney might let you out of the purchase just because you made a mistake. They certainly are not required to do so, but if you call Member Administration and tell them you simply think you made a mistake, they might be able to help you. Obviously, you would not tell them you just want to get out of the purchase because you found out you can save money buying resale!

Either of those two options, it seems to me, would be far preferable to selling your newly-purchased VGF contract.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

If you could still recind your contract I would recommend that action but if it would be a sale then I also think you should wait awhile. It's a bummer to learn about these options or really have the realities of how much you can get resale vs. what the cost of what the guide served up bright shiny and new but at this point you would be paying quite a big fee for that lesson. If the fear is about getting a studio at VGF in early November then owning resale elsewhere isn't going to help improve that and it's hard to say how any size accommodation is going to go at 7 months on a regular basis. If you can book right at 11 months I think you'll be fine and if not then since you were considering other resorts then you're still in that same camp of booking elsewhere at 7 months.

 

[Dean]

We recently bought direct (195) VGF points on our trip a couple weeks ago. Before I go any further, I will say that we LOVE the VGF, and do not regret buying there even for one instance. With that being said, I will also admit (lol) that I did not do enough research into the whole DVC program, and what could have been purchased for that same amount of money. This is where I have the questions--I have been scouring this board, and on the DVC website researching things, and came to some conclusions. Here are my options as I see them:

1. We have (195 +139) points currently at the VGF. Our Use Year is in October, so we will get an additional (195) at that point. I think everyone is fully aware of what the VGF is selling for right now, so it is not hard to figure out what I spent on this. We are NO loan, so any selling/buying transaction should be easier. My fear is the VGF will become difficult to book for a Studio at our usual time of vacation (early November), and I will get stuck moving to a different resort, or having to borrow for a bigger accomodation. This is not the case now, but the VGF popularity seems to be growing by the day, and I'm worried we just won't have enough points.

2. My further research shows that 1-beds seem to almost always be available at resorts (for the most part), but require obviously more points. I'm THINKING it may be more prudent that have MORE POINTS, rather than a smaller amout of points at a resort we love. With the $30k I invested in the VGF, I can buy other contracts (BWV, SSR, etc) for contracts of over (300) points. These extra points can be used as a back-up should I need to move to a 1-bed accomodation for the resort we desire.

We are able to easily plan our trips at the 7mos/11mos mark, so this is not a problem at all. I was playing around on the DVC site yesterday, and there is almost every Epcot/MK resort available (right now) at the 7mos mark, for either Studios or 1-bed, for several days at a time. With the flexibility of the extra points, that would allow me to shoot for the VGF, even at the 7mos mark, and in most cases get at least a 1-bed (even though we would be more than happy with the Studio). With this being said, there are other resorts we wouldn't be 'disappointed' with if we couldn't get the VGF.

Does any of this make sense? I need to make a decision soon whether to sell my VGF points, before the market gets flooded with other VGF contracts. PLEASE give me some advice (that I SHOULD have asked before my purchase, lol).

You're likely past your cancelation deadline, if so, you're in already. Selling and buying back doesn't really make sense in your situation. You could consider is adding on at a lower resort and then renting what you don't want. However, I like to keep things simple when I can so I'd just see how it goes the next couple of years and see how you feel at the time, how you're using it, etc.

 

[Breyean]

Just so happens a VGF contract just popped up for sale at one the broker's sites.

ID: 1311074
Resort: Disney's Grand Floridian Resort
Points: 125
Use Year: April
Points Status: 0 2013, 125 2014
Price Per Point: $150.00
Purchase Price: $18,750.00
Special Conditions: None

Isn't that price about what DVC is currently asking, or did I miss a price increase or two along the way?

I post this just to show the OP that while the idea of selling is feasible, to get someone to buy resale at VGF now might require a somewhat lower asking, and acceptable to the seller, price than what DVC is getting.

 

[DizBub]

Just so happens a VGF contract just popped up for sale at one the broker's sites.



Isn't that price about what DVC is currently asking, or did I miss a price increase or two along the way?

I post this just to show the OP that while the idea of selling is feasible, to get someone to buy resale at VGF now might require a somewhat lower asking, and acceptable to the seller, price than what DVC is getting.

Looks like the seller used the 2013 points. Considering that they will have to pay the 10% broker fees, I guess they feel like they got a vacation at VGF for around $15 pp. Now whoever buys that contract at that price will have to pay an additional $450 to $550 in closing costs. They will have to take a lower price. I'd rather buy direct.