Newbie, tell me why.

[xraydave]

I am completely new to the idea of DVC. Everything I have heard about timeshares has been negative. Tell me why DVC makes sense to you. Also, after the initial purchase of points, what kind of fees/taxes/dues are required to maintain your points?

 

[spiceycat]

DVC is different.

most timeshare (although they are changing) - you buy a certain week - this is the week you use from now on it. If it is a 2-bedroom or whatever -that is your week at your villa. if they do allow you to change they charge you for this request.

DVC is very different - you decide when and you decide what (studio,1,2 or 3 bedroom) and you decide which resort - for NO extra charge. No extra charge for housekeeping if you stay only a day or two. No extra charge period.

You can stay one day or a whole month if you want too (and of course have the points).

It is your decision.

DVC is not a good value unless you are planning on going to WDW and staying in your villa at least every year or every other year. If you only go once every 5 years or even 3 years - then don't buy DVC - you won't be able to get your money out of it.

I love it!!!

 

[Melrosgirl]

MANY people get suckered into the time share purchase and then regret it later on and complain and that's where we get the horror stories. I think DVC is totally different. They don't pressure you. The members do their research usually and know that they will use the vacation club. If you travel to DVC often (especially if you stay in Deluxe resorts), DVC can make a lot of sense!

My father got suckered into buying a timeshare in Mazatlan. Bought it on the spot ($20,000 or so). That was 3 years ago. He has NEVER once used it. Never. He pays dues and never uses it. It's so pathetic.

I like to brag to him how we are using our DVC again for yet another trip. (At least once if not 2 or 3 x a year). I know it bugs him. I told him he should sell, but he has no idea where to begin. He's "dollar foolish" as they say.

 

[DrTomorrow]

Also, due primarily to Disney's Right of First Refusal on all sales, the resale price per point of DVC has actually gone up over the years, not dropped the minute you buy like many other timeshares....

 

[xraydave]

Tell me about the "other" charges. Housekeeping, maintenance, taxes.....

 

[JimMIA]

The primary advantages I see with DVC are flexibility, and the fact that this is Disney we're talking about. If you go to WDW or DL once a year for about a week, or go for a longer period every other year, you may find real value in DVC. Quality, value, flexibility -- that's why.

For more info, you really need to do a good bit of basic research on your own, because as you've seen, you are not going to get a flood of answers to very broad, general questions.

A good place to start would be the link above for Frequently Asked Questions. That will give you a good basic understanding of DVC. Also, call DVC and ask them to send you a packet of info. You'll get a video with practically no information, but you'll also get a book with a good bit of info. In addition to these two boards, you might look at www.allearsnet.com and some of the other sites. You'll find a lot of repetitive information, but you will get some different slants occasionally.

Then, research the dues question (dues cover things like maintenance, reserves, taxes, etc. and they vary widely from property to property) and the differences between buying "new" direct from DVC and buying resale. Don't jump to conclusions based on prices which initially appear to be very low. Figure out the total cost picture.

Along the way, you will probably pick up what use year is, borrowing/banking, and many of the other basics. About that point, you will start to have some specific questions.

Once you get to more specific questions, you will find a LOT of help here and on the DVC Community Board. People are very willing to help -- they just don't know where to start until you get more specific.

 

[jnrrt]

You have an annual maintenance fee per point that covers everything. It varies depending on your home resort - right now they're all between $3.80-4.70 per point per year. So if your fee was $4 and you had 100 points, you pay $400 a year.

 

[bcvillastwo]

DVC made sense to me because (1) we love WDW, (2) we were going at least twice a year, (3) we were staying in moderate or better resorts, (4) we spent time (more than two years) discussing it before we decided to go for it, (5) it wasn't a financial hardship for us, and (6) we really liked Beach Club and BCV was being built when we finalized our decision.

With all of that said, anyone considering DVC has to consider whether DVC is right for them and if so whether they can afford to make the purchase. One thing you will hear over and over again is to buy where you want stay. Generally, I agree with this however, if you have a great deal of flexibility when you can travel and traveling at peak times (e.g. Christmas) isn't a major requirement it seems possible, even probable that this may not be a major factor. On this point I would advise researching this issue further to be sure whether you can live with the 11 month vs. 7 month window associated with SSR.


Good luck with your research and your decision.

 

[tjkraz]

Tell me about the "other" charges. Housekeeping, maintenance, taxes.....

As jnrrt said, it's about $4 per point. The actual maintenance is determined by the resort you own, even though you can use your points at any DVC resort. The resort they are actively selling now, Saratoga Springs, has maintenance of $3.83 per point. The maintenance can be paid in one lump sum at the beginning of the year, or in 12 equal monthly installments (with no interest or admin fees charged.)

Property taxes are part of the dues. DVC gives us an exact accounting of property taxes paid because these are normally a valid deduction for those who itemize their 1040.

There are no resort taxes when you check-in or depart. If the entire trip is paid with DVC points and you don't charge anything to the room, you will have a bill for $0.00 upon check-out.

Housekeeping is on a limited schedule. Member dues pay for 100% of the operating costs of the resort, including housekeeping. Most members will tell you they are more than happy with the schedule. But if you want additional cleanings, you can pay extra for it.

If the stay is 4 nights or more, you get what is called Trash & Towel service on day 4. During T&T, housekeeping will empty the trash, bring clean towels and replenish consumables in the room (paper, laundry detergent, soap). If the stay is 8 nights or more, you get a full cleaning on day 4 and the T&T service on day 8.

Additional cleanings run $25+ depending on the size of the room.

Every DVC room either has a washer and dryer within (One Bedroom and larger) or access to FREE laundry facilities (Studio.) I'm guessing that most people wash their own towels (we do), but you can also request a fresh set of towels from housekeeping as needed. There is a stated charge of $6 for the towels, but many members report they've not been charged.

Hope that helps.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Everything I have heard about timeshares has been negative.

That's a shame. There are many good timeshare resorts and there are many very satisfied timeshare buyers.

Yes, there are plenty of stories of high-pressure salespeople pushing third-rate timeshares with fraudulent sales pitches. Buyers learn the hard way that they should have resisted the pressure. So they sell for far less than they paid. But that's not indicative of the whole timeshare industry.

There are also many buyers who did their research and purchased the right timeshare resort from a reseller or from a developer. Companies like Marriott, Starwood, Hyatt, Four Seasons, and Disney, as well as companies you've ever heard of, operate outstanding resorts around the globe, where guests stay in beautifully furnished condos in great locations.

DVC is a great way to vacation at WDW. It's not for everyone, but it works extremely well for most of us on this board.

 

[littlestar]

We love our DVC. It enables us to stay deluxe for a fraction of the cost of cash and bring family with us. We've got two studios and a one bedroom rented for the fall. Total points used for this reservation 65, 45, and 80. If I would have called up Disney to book at the Boardwalk these reservations would have cost me at least $4,900 (I'm figuring the cash equivalent of an AP discount to compare and who knows if that would be available so $4,900 is probably low).

If you use the rooms Sunday through Thursdays the savings are even more. We have 340 points and we get 3 to 4 trips a year out of these points (especially if we use studios).

I don't like housekeeping in my room a lot. DVC has trash and towel every 4 days. It works perfect for me.

If you like a Days Inn or a Hampton Inn off site, then DVC isn't the way to go. Or, if you're perfectly happy at the All Stars, don't buy DVC. But, if you like deluxe hotels and want to come to Disney and stay deluxe on site at least every other year - it's worth it and then some.

 

[Greysword]

One thing I like abotu DVC is that although it is a deeded share in a property (like conventional timeshares), DVC is more of an extended lease with Disney.

This may not sound good, since owning the whole shooting match and never giving it back is percieved to be better than paying the money to return the property to its original owner, but there are some significant advantages to the latter.

First, this phenomena puts my wife and I in the mindset of us prepayign vacations instead of buying a condo. This has more than likely been and will probably be said to you many times over the course of your research, but it is an important point. Hotel prices at WDW (regardless of value, moderate, or deluxe resort) have steadily increased since the park's opening. Just think what hotel prices may be like in the next 40 years!

Secondly, Disney has a vested interest to use our dues and their extra needed cash to maintain the resorts as close to their sparkling new appearance as possible, since they won't want to inherit a dump! If they keep the resorts in great shape, they could turn around and sell the properties again with just a few minor upgrades to the rooms and facilities!

Just a couple thoughts for you.

 

[xraydave]

Thank you so much for the advice.

JimMIA, I thought this would be a great start to my research. I have some general knowledge but there is no better source than actual users of DVC to get straight forward answers. Any literature you get from the company is sure to list all of the perks but I want to know "the catch".

Everyone else - Thanks for the advice. It sure sounds like something we will be considering. Yet another question: It was mentioned that the price of hotels are steadily rising, do the amount of points needed for a stay at DVC ever increase?

 

[tjkraz]

Yet another question: It was mentioned that the price of hotels are steadily rising, do the amount of points needed for a stay at DVC ever increase?

Here's an oversimplification of how point-based timeshares work.

The developer sets the total number of points that a single unit represents. Let's say for a single Studio unit that number is 5000 points. That is the number of points it would "cost" to stay in a Studio 365 days / year. It is also the number of points that the developer can sell for every Studio that they build.

Once the total points are set, the developer must create a schedule indicating how many points it costs to stay a single night in that Studio. In DVC's case, there are 5 different seasons with different rates, as well as lower rates on the weekdays than on the weekends.

What can NEVER change is that original total of 5000 points for the entire year. DVC COULD decide that a day currently in Adventure season (say, 11 points per night) will move to Dream season (12 points per night). But, they must balance that move by effectively switching another night from Dream Season (12 pts) down to Adventure season (11 pts.) The total points must remain the same for the entire length of the contract.

So, to answer your question, chances are very good that a SSR Studio that costs 11 pts today for a Monday in September will still be 11 pts per night 40 years from now. It is within DVC's rights to reorganize the point schedules as described above, but that has only happened once (about 8-9 years ago) and it was only a minor adjustment.

Figure on about 3% average increases in dues, but with cash room rates climbing at 3-5% annually, DVCers are still doing very well in the long run.

 

[DavidRoss]

No, the points don't increase. Different times of the year require different amounts of points for a particular accomodation. For instance a studio in January will not use as many points as that studio during the week between Christmas and New Years.

When I took the tour of DVC (1997) I had already toured a couple of other timeshares in the Orlando area. DVC took me to a property and showed me the different accomodations. Then they took me back to the main offices and sat us down in an office. I was all ready for the hard sell but that never happened. The person we dealt with gave us some paperwork and explained the point system. I kept waiting..... Then he asked if we had any questions. Again, I kept waiting for the had sell..... I finally asked, "Aren't you going to ask me to take out my checkbook? Aren't you going to try to force me to buy?" The response I received was as follows. "Actually, No. We don't do business that way. We are very proud of our properties and the way our system works. We feel that our properties sell themselves and don't think it is fair to ask a couple to commit to such a large purchase without first making absolutely sure it is for them." Then they took us out and fed us ice cream and let us know we were free to go back and ask any questions before we left or call them later on.

I don't know if they still handle sales this way. But, at that point, I was so impressed and didn't feel like we had been taken advantage of. I actually felt grateful that someone took the time to educate me without demanding anything in return. Two year later, I bought. And I have since done 3 add-ons.

I also have traded out to other timeshares through Interval International. My experience has been that they don't even come close to DVC standards. Not that they were bad trades. I just felt like DVC took the time to put some extras in the the construction of their resorts.

 

[DrTomorrow]

They do still handle things this way, and they are right - DVC does sell itself, as is evidenced by the number of folks who have bought in over the phone, sight- (and site-) unseen (including DW and I). There have been a few reports of Guides making some factual mis-statements, and there's a "must.buy.within.three.days" policy for incentives (I think that's still around). But compared to the horror-stories I've heard from friends that've attended other time-share presentations in Las Vegas and Florida, dealing with a DVC Guide is pretty much the way Walt might have wanted it.

 

[xraydave]

WOW, tjkraz... Your posts are exactly what I am looking for. I love the DIS. Although the time is not right today, I really like what I hear (or read) from all of you. As was suggested earlier, I will continue my research so when the time comes I will have a better understanding of what and how much I need. (Notice I said need and not want!! It's more than a want) Thanks a million.

When that time comes... buy direct or secondhand? Why or why not?

 

[SueOKW]

When that time comes... buy direct or secondhand? Why or why not?

We bought resale - we wanted OKW points, which weren't for sale anymore. We didn't need financing or incentives - we wanted the best price - and perhaps even points carried over from the prior year. (You can send points to the next year or borrow from the next year - very flexible.)

 

[jnrrt]

Here are the pros and cons of resale versus direct that I see. I'm sure others will add to or disagree with some of my thoughts. BTW, we went resale.

Resale pros:
1. Can get properties that are currently sold out without going on a wait list.
2. Lower price.

Resale cons:
1. Longer time period from start to finish (by quite a lot!)
2. Have to go through ROFR and see if you make it (Disney's right of first refusal, they can buy back any contract that you make an offer on).
3. Have to pay in some cases closing fees and maintenance fees for the current year in one lump sum - this can skew the price you think you are getting if you don't do the math.
4. Have to find your own financing.

Direct pros:
1. Very fast turnaround - save 6-10 weeks if the points are available.
2. No ROFR angst - if you sign and they have the points, you get them.
3. Some like the security of buying straight from Disney.
4. Disney pays closing costs.
5. Can use Disney financing.

Direct cons:
1. Waitlist for sold-out properties (could be longer or shorter than the whole resale process)
2. Higher price.

I'm sure others will add their thoughts. We went resale primarily because we saw a contract at the property we wanted and even factoring in closing costs we saved a lot of money over going direct. The closing costs affect the price more and more the smaller the size of the contract. The process is pretty drawn out which is frustrating, but I really would have no expectation of getting it sooner by waitlisting at Disney. Also, we weren't in a time crunch to "get it done" since we're not going terribly soon and will be flexible with where we stay the first time. We also knew we could get financing. If you wanted SSR which is currently available, I think the decision would be much closer to call.

Hope that helps.

 

[Buzzlitebeer]

Another plus for us when buying into DVC was that it is DISNEY. So standards of maintenance are very high. Although OKW is the oldest DVC property it is still in perfect condidtion with regular rehabs. You know with Disney that they have set the bar high and don't and wont let their standards slip.


Cheers Pete