PLEASE HELP! Use Year and Reservations (banking and borrowing worries)

[ArRzrbk]

This is really long and complex, but I am really, really confused and need your HELP!

I just got my welcome kit, and I am so confused! I thought I had the Use Year all figured out and had chosen wisely. Now, I'm not so sure. Take this hypothetical situation...

We have an April Use Year. It's now August, I want to make a reservation for July of next year, using my 11 month Home Resort priority booking. But my 2003 points expire in April, if I don't bank them? Right? So, I am forced to bank points to make the reservation. Right?

If I consistantly exercise my 11 month booking window, I am always going to be banking and borrowing points, hardly ever using the points in the year in which I got them? Right?

If that is true, all my calculations about why an April Use Year would be good for us (we would be traveling sometime between April - September most years) really meant nothing.

I had hoped that by having the first six months of the Use Year tied to the months we vacation, we would have less change of loosing out on the ability to bank points, if we had to cancel (31+ days out).

If we had to cancel (31+ days out), we would still be within our 6 month 100% banking window. So, we'd just bank the points, assuming we didn't want to reschedule. But if we are always using banked points from the previous year, then we can't bank banked points. They have to be used by the end of the year they were banked into. Right?

And if we were using more than just the banked points from the previous year and dipping into the present year's points for the reservation, we would actually have had to borrow those points at the time of reservation, 11 months prior. And borrowed points cannot be returned to their original Use Year. Right?

I really thought I understood this and liked the system. Now I am so totally confused I am not sure I will be able to "work" the system at all. Any light you all can shed? Please HELP! Thanks.

ArRzrbk a.k.a. Char

 

[InstImpres]

Hi Char -

Your corrected about banking the points. I think you will find quickly you will be on track as you will start using up more points and sneaking in extra trips quickly. Also keep in mind, your 11 month window is your booking date, nothing connected to UY. They will use the correct year's points unles you tell them to bank or borrow.

The other way around this is to take this years points and rent them right away. Consider it your own Magical Beginnings program. Then you will be using current points for the July trip.

Good Luck
Sandy

P.S. Glad to hear you took the plunge, as I told you, you won't regret it.

 

[stacy6552]

When you call to book your trip for july of next year you book with next years points. If youre not going before april, then bank this years points and go on them. But say youre using this years points to go at christmas and you want to plan your trip for next july you can call and book on the points you will have by then. You dont need to have these points in the bank now to book now.

Heres a real example: My neighbor has a Dec use year. Shes used all her current points. She called a few months back and booked her trip in January with her dec 2003 points, because she will have them by then.

 

[kem330]

As stated, you will "catch up" next year.You will bank this years points if you are not going before April, but then you will have double the points to use between April 1, 2004 and march 31, 2005. Points used for reservations are points available at the time of your stay, not at the time you make the reservation. For an July trip in 2004 for example you could use banked 2003 points, current 2004 points and borrow 2005 points.

 

[PamOKW]

April 2003 -- Points to be used by 3/31/04 or banked into the following year.

April 2004 -- Points to be used by 3/31/05.


You call today, 8/13/03, to book a trip for July 2004.

Option A -- You know that you will take a different trip before 3/31/04 and want to save your current points for that trip. You don't want to bank anything right now. MS will use your April 2004 points to book your July 2004 trip. You still have use of your April 2003 points.

Option B -- You do not want to save any points for use prior to July 2004. You ask MS to bank your current April 2003 points and to use those first to book this trip.

It's your choice whether it is necessary to bank for a trip that falls into your April 2004 Use Year.

 

[ArRzrbk]

Thank you all so much for responding so quickly. I now understand. I figured I was just missing something, and that something was that if you book a trip for 2004 (no banked or borrowed points necessary), they will use your 2004 points to do it Whew! Thanks again for your help.

ArRzrbk a.ka. Char

 

[dianeschlicht]

Another easy thing to think about when you make your point charts is to remember that any points banked from one use year into the next, must be used in that next use year. Always make sure you are using at least as many as you bank. For 7 years, we have always been in a banking state. It's kind of like rolling points over. I think we finally hit the borrowing state for next year because of a couple of GV trips planned close together. That flexiblility is the advantage of DVC!