Not yet a DVC member......Questions

diznee25

Disney all the time
Joined
Jul 17, 2002
Messages
2,566
Hi DVC members! I've been researching about becoming a DVC member and have a question for all of you. The minimum purchase is 150 points at $80 per point. ($12000) Did any of you decide 150 points wasn't going to be enough and decide to purchase more points in the begining? Or did you stay with 150 points for the first few years and then add more later on?

Any answers would be greatly appreciated....meanwhile I'll keep reading through the threads, you guys give so much information!

Diznee25
Disney wedding/honeymoon 2004
 
The minimum purchase has changed over the years. It started at 230 and has decreased to the current 150.

You should assess your needs for the near future and buy as many points as you can afford based on those needs. One problem with trying to buy add-on contracts after a few years is that your home resort will likely be sold out at that time and you will have to go to the resale market or purchase a different home resort thru DVC.

No wrong answer- you need to start someplace, but purchasing as many as you expect to want right now would be my suggestion!

Enjoy!
 
I have to agree that WebmasterDoc is right. I suggest you contact DVC and get a hold of a point chart (not sure where on is on line for non-DVC members) and look at it. Compare when you normally want to travel and for how often, where you want to stay, etc and get that many points.

That's my 2 cents.. good luck!! :cool:

editted to add....
As I was reading the board I found a site that has the points chart and other DVC information! Looks like a really informative site hope it helps!

http://www.mouseplanet.com/dtp/dvc/
 
We purchased 200 points initially earlier this year at BVC and have already found that we will need to add on! Try to figure how often you go and the points required for that amount of stays and then add some extra points in if possible.
It is very easy once you are a member to try and squeeze in 'one extra vacation' OR to let family members stay (and use your points). We will be adding on soon, to cover the different scenerio's.
 

When we first started discussing DVC we only talked about buying the minium. The cost seemed rather inhibitive but after looking at price increases over the years we decided we wanted to lock in then so we bought 400 points the first time round, this was 2 years ago. I am so glad we did, DVC has constantly increased its price per point. I would suggest buying what you will need but can afford the first time round.
 
I'd definitely get the points charts and try to decide how ofter you will visit as well as what size unit you will need. Unless you live within 6 hours or so, I'd recommend buying at least a full weeks points for either a 1 or 2 BR for the time you think you will usually travel. If you have children, I'd buy at least points to match magic season (summer) for the resort you are buying and/or the resort you plan on staying the most. That means most people should buy at least 220 for an OKW 1 BR and 300 for a 2 BR. For the other on property resorts, the numbers are more like 270 & 350. For every other year, I'd buy between 150-500 points depending on specifics. I'd recommend against buying exactly the number of points you need by the chart unless you're buying enough for magic season in a 2 BR every year for at least a full week. Generally a small cushion is a good idea. That way if they readjust the points, you won't be messed up.

If you have 2 children the same gender, the 1 BR should be fine for quite a while. If they are different gender or you have or anticipate more than 2, I'd look at a 2 BR when deciding how many points.

I think few people who buy with the idea of staying in a studio stick to that plan long term. Many who plan on going every 2 or even 3 years, change their mind when they get the DVC bug. Just make sure this is something you can afford. When I hear about people asking about the minimum, I always worry about them.

OTOH, I think a lot of people have bought the minimum (currently 150) to try it out and see how this will work for them. While you may not be able to add on a few points at your home resort, you can always add on at a resort DVC is still selling. The DI project is coming for 2004 and hopefully Eagle Pines at some point though I'm skeptical. Remember you can always go out and buy more points on the resale market. You could always get your home resort or look at other resorts. Many like owning multiple resorts so they get the 11 month home priority at other resorts.

If you're pretty set on one resort, buy there. Otherwise consider a resale at OKW or BW. You could even do a resale then add on at BCV if you so chose. I hope this helps you.
 
I would purchase the maximum you can afford at the present time.Re-sales will always be available.Right now at $80 pt , this will only go higher in the future:(
We started at 230 pts(1999) and within 3 months added another 70 pts all at OKW at $62 pt.But this yr in Jan we bought at VB (200 pts) using MB's at $62 pt.
So whatever you decide, there is always a chance you may purchase an add-on down the road.:D
 
My DW and I just recently purchased DVC ( 2 weeks ago ) with my wife making a ressie for Jan for 5 nights ( incl Fri and Sat )
and will use over 60% of our pts for those 5 nights. Definitely use the point calculator to see what you might need. Then decide from there.
I am sure somewhere along the way we might decide we still need more points and will add-on.
 
150 points at 12,000.00 is what got us interested to start (this forum is what made up our minds).
But after looking at the sales handout with the point charts on it and the fact we have 3 teenage boys (who will not share a bed) we knew pretty quickly that we had to have a two bedroom and the lengh of time we like to vacation (10 nights) we realized for us150 points would not be enough. After doing some homework (where we want to stay, how long are we staying, when are we going and accomodations do we need) we decided on 300 points.
We closed last week and already have a vacation planned in May 2003, August 2003, November 2003 and January 2004 totalling 580 point (we banked most of our points from 2002 into 2003 use year).
Do some homework, calculate how many points you need for your dream vacation(s). Then come back to earth and figure out what you can afford that comes closest to your dream vacation. Good Luck.
 
If you'd really like to get a good idea of how you might use points (and therefore figure out how many points you might need), feel free to download the free vacation planning program I created for DVC members.

It has point charts through the year 2010.

www.seidata.com/~wneth/id57.htm
 
When we purchased, the minimum buy-in was 150 points, and we thought that wouldn't be enough, so we went with 200. Now we're looking at 200 more!!!!
 
I know I am in the minority here but.......I think you should look at the big picture when deciding on how many pts to buy and buy accordingly but also look at the WHOLE BIG picture and realize that the room size you need now will change a lot over the years depending on your family when your orginally bought. If you are a young couple with no children in 5 yrs the studio that was fine when you bought will no longer be functional once you have a couple of kids. However if you are a family with teenagers when you orginally buy into DVC the 2 br you need now most probably will not be needed in 5 yrs once the kids are grown and living their own lives. Yes, you could one day have grandchildren that you would want to take to WDW but it is just as possible that you will not have grandchildren (many young people in todays world are deciding not to have children) or you might have children that once they are grown have no desire to go to WDW for vacation or if they go to WDW once evey 5 or so years is more than enough for them. I read posts of people buying multiple contracts and they keep adding on and adding on points and they have not even stayed once at a DVC resort! These are pts that you will be paying dues/interest rates/ payments, etc for every year whether you use them or not. I think sometimes more is not always the best, there is definitely a reason you see so many pts for rent and contracts for resale and they can't all be from divorce or deaths!
I bought my DVC membership very conservatively and am adding on also very conservatively because I do not want to have more pts then I need that I am paying dues on month after month for the next 40 yrs. I bought DVC for me and when I figure out how many pts I need it is based on me, not my children who are now young adults with lives of their own or on family and friends I might invite to WDW for a free vacation. My son could go to WDW every 8 yrs and that would be fine with him, someday he might have children but that is most probably at least 6-8 yrs down the road--that is a lot of dues to pay for the chance that someday I might have grandchildren to take to WDW. My DD enjoys WDW much more than her brother but that does not mean this will always be that way nor does it mean she will one day have kids. Also though I dearly love WDW and go at least 3-4 times a year there are also other places in the world that I like to vacation at and trading out pts to other places is not that good of a deal and IMHO has gotten worse over the years. I also doubt that pts will continue to rise until 2042, if the membership stays the way it is now--it is inevitable that the cost of pts and the value of our DVC contracts will come down and come down rapidly as the years go on.
As I said, I know I am in the minority and anyone is free to disagree with me but I see how in the past 5 yrs my needs for a large villa has decreased as my children grew up and 5 yrs is nothing compared to the next 40 yrs! There will always be resales to buy, other wonderful vacation places to visit, other wonderful new WDW resorts to try out, and adds on to be had, but once you sign on the dotted line you are financially committed for a long time. As I said before, there has got to be a reason there are so many resales to be had at below the going sale price and pts to be rented at DVC resorts.
 
I'll second DeeP as well as some of the other advice...

Get out a point calculator and figure out how many points you'll need.

Also figure out how often you go. I'm one of the few "every other year" people on this board (lots of people here go more than once a year) and that means we'll do fine on half the points. I can't imagine going every year on my 150 points - but my 150 points serves very nice when they become 300 every other year. If I discover I need more - I'll buy another contract at a different resort or another resale at my home resort or take my chances on Disney eventually having points available in my use year. We could even stay on cash at our DVC resort or go back to the Deluxe hotels.

Don't let the lure of more points get you into any sort of financially uncomfortable position. If you happen to be Bill Gates - buy the maximum (3000?) - who cares if you can use them all or not. For most of us, we need to balance what we want with what fits into our budgets. Remember, you'll need to pay maintence on those points every year - and you'll be using those points to vacation - which is seldom cheap even if your room is paid for.
 
Thanks everyone for the advice, it is greatly appreciated! This will help me and my fiance' decide if this is financialy (sp?) accomodating for us at the moment. (right now we're saving up $$ for a wedding and honeymoon at WDW:)

Thanks Caskbill for letting me use your vacation planning guide, my fiance' just downloaded it now, so I'm going to get busy.

Thanks everyone,

Michelle
 











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