"New" DVCers...maybe! Advice?!

[khiguchi]

My husband and I just returned from our honeymoon aboard the Disney Magic and after some debate, we purchased DVC (AKV) onboard. We were really excited when we signed, but now we're back home and reality is setting in and we're a little wary of this big decision we just made.

We did get a pretty good deal (I am a CM) but it is still a lot of money. We're looking into how much it would be to cancel if we had to (within these next 10 days...well, now more like 7) but I am so torn.

I know it's a fantastic opportunity but I have had several naysayers to our purchase already so I am feeling conflicted.

My husband reasons that if we cancel, there could be just as good or better deals a year or two from now...

Any advice on what we should do, just your opinions/experiences?

 

[bumbershoot]

What are the naysayers saying?

When I was talking about "deals today will probably be the same later on" with our guide, he pulled up the info he had given us in Sept '07 (I guess they keep files) and proved me very VERY wrong, LOL. It wasn't for the same resort, but still. Especially since we aren't picky and it didn't *really* matter where we bought, it would have been better for us to have bought then... Oh well!

 

[khiguchi]

well, of course since i am here, you all know i LOVE disney...haha. DH is a newbie at disney in general, and even though it's growing on him he is still skeptical.

i myself have been intersted in DVC for a few years now, but never had enough to pay myself. As a unit the two of us can manage it a lot better, and even though I am a CM now I know I won't always be, and I will need my Disney fix! DH reasons that we won't make as much use out of it in the future if we're not living in FL...but I think it is a wise investment since we don't have kids YET and vacations are something I know we will want.

Payments are definitely manageable for us, but in additon to his job, DH is also starting a small business that he thinks may use more family funds that anticipated.

Some friends/colleagues have tried to talk me out of it because of the bad economy and another predicted depression. to me, that's more reason than ever to have confirmed vacations, but you know...

=(

 

[jlwhitney]

My DH and I bought in to BLT in Oct. and are so glad we did it...we paid cash so all now we pay is the maintenance fees. It is so nice having that lump gone and now when we go we don't have to pay as much at that moment. We are looking at the purchase in future terms, since in the future room rates at rack will go up but maintenance fees not as much....plus right now there my be great deals at the resorts but no guarantee. No kids now but in a few we hope to have 1-2 to take and it will be so nice to just go. Grab tickets and some food and off we go. We do live in FL which is why we bought in now. I know you said you are not sure if you will be in FL in the future but none of us really know where we will be.

In the end keep it...since every year buy in prices go up...deals are not a given....I say try it for 5-10 years if it is not working for you try to resell it on the resell market since it wouldn't be that old yet and AKV is popular you should have a decent shot at it...plus by then the economy may be better *crosses fingers*

 

[vicki_c]

We actually didn't purchase our DVC until after we moved AWAY from Florida. We just didn't vacation at Disney in a way that made "DVC-sense" to us when we lived close to the parks. So I wouldn't base anything on where you live, and as the PP said -- that could change at any time and many times throughout your ownership.

 

[khiguchi]

thanks for all the help so far, i appreciate it!!

 

[disneynutz]

My husband and I just returned from our honeymoon aboard the Disney Magic and after some debate, we purchased DVC (AKV) onboard. We were really excited when we signed, but now we're back home and reality is setting in and we're a little wary of this big decision we just made.

We did get a pretty good deal (I am a CM) but it is still a lot of money. We're looking into how much it would be to cancel if we had to (within these next 10 days...well, now more like 7) but I am so torn.

I know it's a fantastic opportunity but I have had several naysayers to our purchase already so I am feeling conflicted.

My husband reasons that if we cancel, there could be just as good or better deals a year or two from now...

Any advice on what we should do, just your opinions/experiences?

There isn't any cost if you cancel now.

DVC can make sense for people who want to pre-pay for their room at WDW. Because of the DVC rules, you must use your points or bank them every year or you lose them.

If it doesn't make financial sense right now, I vote that you cancel and take some time to determine if the DVC is right for you.

Bill

 

[GrazingGoat1966]

Hi all. For what it's worth, I am based on the West Coast of Australia.....probably as far away from WDW as you can get geographically on the planet. When we bought (Sep 08) I explained to the DVC salesman that we would only be able to make it down once every 2-3 years and would it be worth it? After crunching the figures (coupled with the fact that we love Disney, and we have a 2 year old who will be using it in the future) we took the payment option on 10K at the time and bought into Kidani at AKL. We are looking forward to our first trip back this coming September (2010) and coupled with the fact that we are looking to relocate to FL to spend time with family in a couple of years time, it is a purchase that we have never second guessed. Sure 10k is 10k, but our attitude was you could be dead tomorrow.....so why not!!! And when we sell the house to relocate we will pay off the balance and probably add on more points for the future.

 

[bumbershoot]

There isn't any cost if you cancel now.

Ooh I didn't catch that. Yeah, as long as you're in the cancel period, there's no cost. We considered it ourselves, as almost immediately after Disney got our paperwork, hubby was informed that his department was closing. Augh....we had about a day to make that decision. Thankfully everything worked out well for us.


If it doesn't work for you, cancel. Nothing I say here should be taken as me urging you to stick with it, OK? OK. This is just OUR story and OUR thoughts on it. If it doesn't work for you, well, in a couple years it will work better.

But for us, the deciding factor was....we are taking these trips anyway. And we might as well be putting our money towards DVC, instead of staying wherever we have been staying at DLR and where we will be staying at WDW. We're doing it anyway, ya know?

And that was the strongest push towards buying in for us.

I will tell you, though...until the deed was done, we told *no one*. And the ONLY people who know are my aunt and cousin, and the only reason THEY know is because we're planning a huge trip next December, and treating them to a stay! They kinda had to know. But other than that, no one. And we like it that way.

 

[littlestar]

If you have any doubts, I'd cancel. You can always do it later. If your family has business expenses coming up and you've thought about it and are a little worried, I'd just cancel it. DVC will still be there. And you're right, the economy is very spooky right now. I have friends in hospital jobs that are really scared that their hospitals will end up closing with the Medicare cuts in the new health care bill - it's a very uncertain time for job security.

Also, I'm pretty sure you'd have stipulations on being able to sell your DVC membership since you're getting a CM discount. I'd wait until you feel better about it.

Maybe later down the road you can buy a small resale contract and pay cash for it.

 

[DenLo]

Since you are suspecting that DH's new business might need extra cash flow from the family funds, it is possible that you may not be able to do both, start his business and pay for the DVC. You two need to really look over the expenses for both home and business and determine what you both really want in right now. Vacationing at WDW is expensive and choosing the DVC will help you reduce those costs. However unless you plan to stay at WDW at least every two to three years, the DVC may not be for you. Only you and DH can decide.

 

[khiguchi]

whew - so we had a long talk about it - we're gonna do it. thanks for all the constructive comments everyone!!

 

[mgroshans]

whew - so we had a long talk about it - we're gonna do it. thanks for all the constructive comments everyone!!

Welcome Home!!!

 

[vicki_c]

Congratulations! I don't think you will regret it!

 

[toniosmom]

It can be a very aggonizing decision to decide whether or not to cancel. Much harder than the initial decision to buy. I hope that all works out for you and that you will soon enjoy your first DVC trip.

Welcome Home!!!

 

[hope3702]

Best money I have spent...Don't know what your situation is but my daughter is almost 4 and we have gone like 5 times already...Don't even think I would have gone yet if I didn't buy into DVC...Just takes all the guessing out of it and is more fun planning then I ever thought it would be...I'm sure it will have paid for itself within a few more trips...Then we are ahead of the game for the next many years.

 

[7thton]

As a CM, don't you get 50% off of the regular resorts at WDW?

 

[Greysword]

Congrats on your decision!

I think you made an excellent point for those that are reading the boards and wondering if they should join DVC, in that DVC is a personal choice only you can make.

The best part is that you did your homework before purchasing, accepted advice from people that care about your well being after purchasing, and used the Right of Recision period exactly as intended by the law. Even though you decided not to cancel, the purpose of the Recision window is to allow time for the purchase to set in and make a less emotional decision on keeping the title or canceling the transaction.

Some may not know this option exists, so thank you brining it up and demonstrating the effectiveness of the law.

- Chris

 

[khiguchi]

Again, thanks everyone!

I noticed someone asked me about CM discounts at resorts - and yes, we can get some good incentives here and there, and if we are gonna stay at a non DVC resort, it may be a better value for those visits to pay cash, but I will not always be a CM, sadly, and know that I will always love Disney anyway =D

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Welcome Home

DVC is a big purchase, and you should be sure of yourself. However, I'm so glad that you didn't change your mind ONLY because of the naysayers.