Optimal flexibility & cost strategy

[jeffj2h]

I'm considering buying into DVC. I'm thinking about buying 250 points. My wife and I have two kids (2 & 5) who love pools and the beach. My wife and I love MK and Epcot. So a great place to stay would be BCV. However there are not many contacts available for BCV, and they are expensive.

So here is my strategy. Please comment:

1) Buy the bulk (~100 points) at OKW since prices are lower and fees are low
2) Buy ~50-75 point contracts at other resorts I'd like the 11 month window for (BCV, HH...)

A few questions:
1) I've heard about closing closts. How much are these and are they fixed?
2) Is there any minimum number of points you must own to qualify for 11-month booking?
3) It might work better to buy the bulk at Vero since it's cheap, but I've heard some scarry comments about hurricane fees. What's the scoop?
4) What are the best resale web sites?

Thanks for your help,
Jeff

 

[AJKMOM]

1. If you buy from disney, there are no closing costs. From a resale- costs depend on number of points.
2. If you buy a resale, you just get what's available. For the 11 month booking, you can only use what you have available. In other words, if you have 150 points at BWV, then you can only get 150 points worth of reservations. Say 6 nights. It depends on when you are going. If the rest of your points are at VB, and you want nights at BWV, you have to wait until the 7 month window to add to your existing reservation.
3. We own 2 small contracts at VB for baseball spring training, and haven't heard anything about hurricane fees. I would think they would be insured for that.
4. The sponsor of this forum is supposed to be good.

You didn't ask this, but the general rule of thumb with DVC is buy where you want to stay so you can book at 11 months.

 

[Happy Birthday Cat]

Spend a few dollars more and get the place you want to stay at the most. What is the difference in price per point? Divide that by the 37 years left on the contract. It's not that much. Better to have what you want so you will always have the guarantee of having it. That being said, if you are going to buy the lowest priced DVC, at least buy one at WDW if that's where you want to vacation. That way you can make the reservation at 11 months and try to switch at 7 months. If you own at VB, you can't do that.

Since there aren't a lot of BCV resales out there, contact the re-sale brokers ahead of time. Introduce yourself and let them know what you want. The good contracts never see the light of day, so prepare ahead of time.

I bought a resale from A Timeshare Broker, as many others did as well on this board. There are also a few other reputable sellers. You should also check out TUG (Timeshare Users Group) for private sales.

Good luck in your DVC quest.

HBC

 

[FamilyGuy]

The answer to your first question, regarding closing costs, points out that you may want to re-consider another strategy. Closing costs are "typically" in the $350 - $500 PER CONTRACT range, depending on the closing agent and the number of points. On resale contracts the closing costs are almost always paid for by the purchaser (I would imagine that is negotiable also, however doing so would naturally affect your per point cost, and therfore negate most or all of your advantage of seller paid closing costs). The exception to this is Disney purchased contracts in that Disney always absorbs the closing costs.

So assuming that you are able to purchase all of your desired points at the same time, I would recommend purchasing them that way. It'll save you in closing costs obviously.

Also, even with what little experience I have, I would echo the sentiments posted all over these boards; IE. it makes the most sense (long term) to purchase where you would most like to stay. Though it is conceivable to purchase at a resort and never actually stay there, this is most definitely not the most desirable way to plan your vacations.