New $500 Resale DVC Transfer Fee

[AstroBlasters]

nice try Andy … allowing someone to rip you off has never been, and will never be, an indicator of wealth.

“Rip off”?

 

[Genie+]

No typo. The general idea is that when DVC sells a direct contract they have it budgeted to set up an account for a new owner. What they don’t budget for is closing that account and creating a new one for the subsequent owner (and potentially doing that again and again each time that contract gets sold). They claim the set up work being repeated for the subsequent owners should not be paid for by the membership or through dues.

And potential costs of bringing a new owner up to speed that may not have been budgeted to cover beyond the initial direct sale. Each time a contract is resold, that may mean a new member. There’s a cost involved bringing them up to speed that probably was already spent on the original owner. All the newby questions and helping them understand how to use the product. Even rolling back their first ‘mistake’ - a typical practice whether a new member entered via resale or direct.

 

[juliebee]

And potential costs of bringing a new owner up to speed that may not have been budgeted to cover beyond the initial direct sale. Each time a contract is resold, that may mean a new member. There’s a cost involved bringing them up to speed that probably was already spent on the original owner. All the newby questions and helping them understand how to use the product. Even rolling back their first ‘mistake’ - a typical practice whether a new member entered via resale or direct.

Then be PROACTIVE rather than reactive. If education is a cost within this fee, then create an on-demand webinar that teaches new owners these things. How to book a stay online, 11 month window, 7 month window, etc. Honestly, I'm surprised they don't already have that.

It seems the average DVC owner doesn't know much about their contracts until they start watching DVC Fan or visiting boards or facebook groups. However, I see a lot of uneducated "long time owners" spout off incorrect info on facebook and I'm sure that confuses new owners.

 

[Genie+]

Then be PROACTIVE rather than reactive. If education is a cost within this fee, then create an on-demand webinar that teaches new owners these things. How to book a stay online, 11 month window, 7 month window, etc. Honestly, I'm surprised they don't already have that.

It seems the average DVC owner doesn't know much about their contracts until they start watching DVC Fan or visiting boards or facebook groups. However, I see a lot of uneducated "long time owners" spout off incorrect info on facebook and I'm sure that confuses new owners.

There are tools on the DVC website to help people get acquainted, and I’ve been invited a few times to some type of orientation webinar thing… I just learn here on the DIS though. To me it is easiest to follow along other people’s actual experiences.

The reality is how DVC intends the membership to work is at times different from how people are actually able to use it. Understandably DVC does not explain every possible way to use of holding points, 11 month fcfs, etc. It gets too lengthy and therefore confusing, but also sometimes not really the direction DVC wants to encourage use. They’re not going to tell people that 2 memberships means 4 waitlists instead of 2 and ability to buy 48 OTUP instead of only 24. It’s not integral to understanding the system.

But the details can be confusing! Even for the most experienced member or member services employee. That’s why I think they do strive for simplicity as much as possible.

 

[Leight19]

I’ve spent some time catching up on this thread but think I’m a bit confused. Can someone confirm what actions are being taken by whom that is being charged here? It sounds like this is outside any sort of fee for legal transfer of ownership as part of sale. Its a fee for them to create an account and load points for new member and deactivate account and remove points from previous?

If that is accurate isn’t the management of this system part of the 12% management fee we pay each year? What am I missing?

 

[Carouselofplanning]

I’ve spent some time catching up on this thread but think I’m a bit confused. Can someone confirm what actions are being taken by whom that is being charged here? It sounds like this is outside any sort of fee for legal transfer of ownership as part of sale. Its a fee for them to create an account and load points for new member and deactivate account and remove points from previous?

If that is accurate isn’t the management of this system part of the 12% management fee we pay each year? What am I missing?

This may fly over some people’s heads but most likely some digital marketing person at DVC had a Leroy Jenkins moment on rolling out a new $500 fee for resale transactions from 1/1/26 onward. The details of it are completely MIA.

 

[Sprinkles&Sprints]

Just listened to the MyDVC Points podcast this am where they had Andy Berry from the board sponsor (DVCRM) on to talk about this fee. Was an interesting discussion. Their take was:
1) In adding this fee they also removed language about the estoppel fee which suggests it’s now rolled into this $500 fee.
2) The DVC front line sales force was not given a heads up on this change before it was published in a Q&A section of the website which is atypical and suggests the Q&A was mistakenly updated before the scheduled rollout.
3) It was strongly implied they think this fee will not be imposed on contracts currently submitted to ROFR before the end of the year.
4) They think it’s reasonable to charge for this work since it was done once already when the points were purchased direct and is a misuse of dues to do it twice or more on the same already sold by DVC contract.
5) Their most objectionable take was if this fee bothers you then maybe you can’t afford DVC in the first place.
6) Since it’s likely the Q&A got ahead of the rollout we will know much more very soon.

My comment is directly related to point 5 caveated with my being biased towards sellers since that’s my role in my pending transaction: I sold my resale contract to buy MORE direct. So if I’m saddled with paying $500 on top of the 40k that I just dropped, I’m not going to be a happy camper purely on principle.

 

[Chili327]

I also was wondering if they introduced a new fee to distract from the fact they’ve made zero effort to follow through on curbing large commercial renters.

Like @mkatsy said earlier, Disney rolling out new fees instead of curbing spec renting has been a super effective antibody against my chronic addonitis.

But they asked me if it was personal last time i rented out points??

There is a tipping point where this treatment as a whole damages the core product and will start to limit their ability to increase pricing. That’s probably why the countermeasures happen gradually but persistently so the market acclimates to the product restriction with as minimal impact to pricing (and really, direct sales volume) as possible.

Indeed, i feel like they are flirting with it, but maybe feel confident in how far they can push without backlash.?

Unfortunately, that is the way life is and businesses get to charge what they want. Many say the % that resale brokers charge to sell contracts is too high for the work they do, or the amount of closing costs buyers have to pay for title companies to handle the sale, etc. and on and on.

So, while $500 is a pretty steep price, and maybe they should charge less, they get to decide what they charge. Now, owners who are bothered by this amount should defintiely be contacting DVC and sharing their thoughts....

The downside, or main issue is that we're already under contract, so we dont get to take it into consideration.

Well, the difference is that I am free to use or not use a resale company (if I don’t like their fees) while as an owner, who is now suddenly affected by this fee, I have to accept the resulting loss in value and cannot avoid it.

This!

Do you think it would be legal to charge $10,000 instead of $500?

Since we are already under contract, how would we be able to avoid it or get out of it, except to give away our contract... like a regular timeshare.

The Walt Disney Company has been shaking the money tree since forever. This $500 "DVC tax" is a new and relatively minor revenue stream to offset expenses. Stockholders should applaud this move. Also, the beauty of it is that this fee is totally avoidable.

I'm sure they do, until something pushes it over the line & people just abandon their contracts (or strictly rent them out) &/or stop going. lol

That being said I truly believe there is a line somewhere out there that at some point Disney will cross and they will have their own Vegas moment. They will have to scramble to try to win back not just us Disnerds but the average American.

Indeed, I haven't been to Vegas in over a decade.

“they will have their own Vegas moment” is well said. It really encapsulates what many of us are trying to express. There is a threshold that exists. Vegas is experiencing this.

Iger took a 1/2 step back from the line by eliminating the resort parking fee at WDW but I haven’t seen much walking back since. Most other moves are in the “parking fee” sort of direction.

Agreed.

Yeah broker service is here to stay but with this new fee it is easier to cut them out of loop than DVD lol, especially if costs are a growing concern.

Just like people do with rentals, they could copy existing contracts to follow. The title insurance and DVD does the heavy lifting where verification is concerned. DVD confirms the state and existence of the contract and handles setting up the transferred ownership. The title insurance confirms it is free and clear of defects, forgeries, liens, etc and handles escrow.

So lets say one could make a Facebook group for people to advertise their contracts, &/or a section here on the forums?

 

[CastAStone]

View attachment 1028488
https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/faq/reselling/information-required

Just sharing because I saw it on a DVC-related FB page and I don't recall reading this anywhere on these boards. Another fee to make resale less attractive over direct points. Will be interesting to see if brokers default to this being paid by the seller or the buyer. And, also interesting to see whether they continue the fast transfers we've seen this past month or revert to the slow transfer process, but now with a $500 fee.

I’m sorry, what now???

 

[VGCgroupie]

So let’s say one could make a Facebook group for people to advertise their contracts, &/or a section here on the forums?

Plenty of these exist. But most people stil opt to use a broker.

 

[SL6827]

I bet they will be messing with the rental aspect in some financial way soon as well. More than just asking if it is personal. $250 to change the name on the reservation?

 

[VGCgroupie]

I’m sorry, what now???

26 pages in. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

 

[CastAStone]

You know what’s coming next? … I bet it’s a fee to change the name on a reservation. They are trying to punish anyone making money off of their product, without them.

Here’s hoping.

DVC resale broker commissions are really high - like 9% - compared to the 5-6% for most real estate commissions

There’s brokers who charge less!

I think the emotions on this thread stem from everyone feeling like each of their contracts lost $500 overnight - either by the seller eating the fee, or buyers offering a lower $/pt offset the $500 fee if they have to pay it. We don't know *how* we're losing $500 per contract, but sense *that* it's happening.

I think it’s extremely unlikely that is going to be how it works in practice. If you think back to your supply and demand curves (nooooooooo!) a fee like this shifts the supply curve up. That shift splits the burden between buyers and sellers, because there’s a positive negotiating zone - most buyers are already finding a contract below the most that they would be willing to pay, and most sellers are selling for more than the absolute lowest they would take.

So yeah, it’s bad for sellers, but it’s bad for buyers too

 

[CastAStone]

26 pages in. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

I got to page 12 and then tapped out. It is frustrating and bad and mean. I don’t disagree with those who are saying of course Disney did this, they are profit motivated, but that doesn’t make it good or OK.

 

[CastAStone]

I feel the worst for people who split their contracts for no reason except to make them easier to sell.

 

[eticketplease]

Even rolling back their first ‘mistake’ - a typical practice whether a new member entered via resale or direct.

I can't unborrow points?

 

[eticketplease]

But they asked me if it was personal last time i rented out points??



Indeed, i feel like they are flirting with it, but maybe feel confident in how far they can push without backlash.?



The downside, or main issue is that we're already under contract, so we dont get to take it into consideration.



This!



Since we are already under contract, how would we be able to avoid it or get out of it, except to give away our contract... like a regular timeshare.



I'm sure they do, until something pushes it over the line & people just abandon their contracts (or strictly rent them out) &/or stop going. lol



Indeed, I haven't been to Vegas in over a decade.



Agreed.



So lets say one could make a Facebook group for people to advertise their contracts, &/or a section here on the forums?

Sadly I can only do one Thumbs up when they are all combined like that

 

[MICKIMINI]

Then be PROACTIVE rather than reactive. If education is a cost within this fee, then create an on-demand webinar that teaches new owners these things. How to book a stay online, 11 month window, 7 month window, etc. Honestly, I'm surprised they don't already have that.

It seems the average DVC owner doesn't know much about their contracts until they start watching DVC Fan or visiting boards or facebook groups. However, I see a lot of uneducated "long time owners" spout off incorrect info on facebook and I'm sure that confuses new owners.

Owners were provided a lovely three ring binder and a checkbook like page to add and subtract points back in 1996. There were pages of floor plans and a list of all the do dads included in the kitchens. It was a tangible way to connect between vacations. Periodically, a large envelope with new pages appeared for you to insert in your three ring binder, prompting you to consider your next vacation(s). All interactions were on the phone with a cheerful MS cast member. Your pretty binder was on the coffee table. It was a much happier time. Changes were in writing and showed up in your mailbox on a regular basis to keep you informed.

Now, you find out about a change and then another appears, usually without warning or notification. If not for disboards I would be totally disconnected. Even something as simple as paying your MF's monthly with a gift card changed. When we bought, we were told points assigned to villas would never change, renting and gifting to friends was encouraged...and on and on. It is death by a thousand cuts IMO. Nothing individually may be perceived to be a game changer but the transparency of DVC over the decades has deteriorated greatly IMO.

The happy feeling of spending $62 per point for 230 points in 1996 was hard to explain. This $500 fee is not the end of the world, just another sneaky change added to all the other sneaky changes. Goodwill at the beginning of our purchase has devolved into a love/hate relationship with DVC and WDW. We notice peeling paint at MK, gum stuck to the pavement and an endless row of green walls, one snack instead of two when you buy the QS plan so why bother? At our advanced age, we might get another ten years of trips. I try not to be negative about DVC and WDW, however they are not making it easy to feel that happy feeling anymore. And it was VERY REAL. Just my two cents...

 

[jcolvin5]

Owners were provided a lovely three ring binder and a checkbook like page to add and subtract points back in 1996. There were pages of floor plans and a list of all the do dads included in the kitchens. It was a tangible way to connect between vacations. Periodically, a large envelope with new pages appeared for you to insert in your three ring binder, prompting you to consider your next vacation(s). All interactions were on the phone with a cheerful MS cast member. Your pretty binder was on the coffee table. It was a much happier time. Changes were in writing and showed up in your mailbox on a regular basis to keep you informed.

Now, you find out about a change and then another appears, usually without warning or notification. If not for disboards I would be totally disconnected. Even something as simple as paying your MF's monthly with a gift card changed. When we bought, we were told points assigned to villas would never change, renting and gifting to friends was encouraged...and on and on. It is death by a thousand cuts IMO. Nothing individually may be perceived to be a game changer but the transparency of DVC over the decades has deteriorated greatly IMO.

The happy feeling of spending $62 per point for 230 points in 1996 was hard to explain. This $500 fee is not the end of the world, just another sneaky change added to all the other sneaky changes. Goodwill at the beginning of our purchase has devolved into a love/hate relationship with DVC and WDW. We notice peeling paint at MK, gum stuck to the pavement and an endless row of green walls, one snack instead of two when you buy the QS plan so why bother? At our advanced age, we might get another ten years of trips. I try not to be negative about DVC and WDW, however they are not making it easy to feel that happy feeling anymore. And it was VERY REAL. Just my two cents...

Well said!!

I would forward this exact message to DVC.

 

[Chili327]

Sadly I can only do one Thumbs up when they are all combined like that

Technically you can highlight any portion & quote them separately... not that i need more thumbs up, but just FYI you can edit posts pretty extensively.