Please tutor me on DVC

[Cruella 66]

We just returned from a fabulous trip to WDW. It really couldn't have been better (see my other post on YOAMD and the Contemp ). Anyway, every where we turned, especially upon entering the parks, there was somebody trying to get you to go to a DVC seminar and buy into DVC. We didn't have time but we are very curious. Can somebody tell me in plain English all the pros, cons, the points system and how it works, and fees. Is it better to by from Disney or resale? How many points would we need for a family of 5 (well, 6 but one is an adult now)? What's included in the DVC membership? They always asked if we were referred by a current member; if we do this anyone want the referral??? Does it get you mouse ears? I just really want to hear from REAL people that have bought into this. Thank you all, Cindy

 

[vicki_c]

I'll give my best mini-recap -- I'm sure others will offer more. I thought there was a sticky, but I don't see it (so for sure, someone will post the link after I type this)!

DVC is a time share. It is a way to pre-pay for your Disney (and other places to some extent) vacations for many years into the future.

For a sum of money up front and annual maintenance fees, you will purchase a number of points in the Disney vacation club. Those points will allow you to have resort accomodations. Unlike some timeshares, you don't buy a certain week at a certain resort. Your points are flexible in that you can use them at any of the DVC resorts and a number of other Disney and non-Disney resorts (those have a service charge though and some extra "rules"). Depending on which resort you choose, what time of year you go, and how big of a room you need -- you will use varying numbers of your points.

You can use up to 3 years of points at one time, by banking and borrowing from the years prior to and after your current year.

You purchase into a "home" DVC resort which gives you a 4 month booking advantage for THAT resort. This can be important for a lot of reasons, but particularly if you plan to travel during peak DVC times (which are not always the same as the peak WDW resort seasons).

For a family of 5 (that's a tricky one -- can you leave one at home?) -- only Animal Kingdom Lodge "officially" allows 5 people in a 1 BR. There are various reports that Member Services will allow 5 in other 1 BRs, but I'm not going down that path! So aside from that, it sounds like you would need a 2 BR which sleeps 8.

It gets you lodging only and some dining/merchandise discounts (one of the best is discounted Annual Passes). No discounts on theme park tickets.

In my opinion, it's a good fit for people who regularly vacation at WDW and plan to continue that (at least every other year) and usually stay in either a deluxe (or possibly a moderate) resort. If you normally stay in a value, it probably won't make sense financially.

This described us -- frequent deluxe visitors, with plans to keep going. Given that, it was kind of a no-brainer for us and it will probably save us money eventually. We are very happy with our purchase (2008) and are planning our 2nd DVC trip for 2008 -- our 3rd Disney trip for 2008.

There's a ton more to be said, but I think I've done my share!

Vicki

 

[vicki_c]

See this post below as well, if you haven't already, which has a lot of information:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1913642

 

[Grendalynn]

Subscribbing!! I have wondered the same things... Also a family of 5! If people dont mind sharing, can you tell us newbies, greenhorns,or whathave you - about prices paid for X amount of points, how much the annual fees are and things like that... I dont want to be too intrusive! Thanks so much!!

 

[vicki_c]

It's not intrusive -- if you're buying from Disney, all that information is published and readily available. Someone here has a post with all the annual maintenance fees and their increases over time, but I don't have that handy.

If you're buying resale, I suppose someone might want to be more tight-lipped about what they paid, but if you click the link for the Timeshare Store at the top of this forum, you can see what resale prices are at various resorts. Resale will be cheaper than buying direct from Disney, but takes a bit longer and no incentives are offered -- Disney sometimes offers incentives (gift cards, extra points, etc.).

We bought direct from Disney -- the minimum required at the time -- 160 points per year at SSR, which were $104/pt at the time. We got a $10/pt discount, so it was $94/pt. We also received a one time bonus of 160 points -- those are called incentive points or developer points. I think we got something else as well - money from Disney that was added to our downpayment (I can't even remember)!

My annual fees for 2008 at SSR were $4.21/pt, I think. We paid about $588 in maintenance fees, but that was prorated because we purchased in Feb 2008.

Just keep asking questions -- someone other than me might chime in at some point (I am not the expert by any means, being new to DVC myself).

 

[Cruella 66]

Sounds like you had a pretty sweet deal??!! There is a thread here someplace i read in the last couple of hours about what people are paying for points and which resorts; these have passed ROFR. I'm learning! Do you think we should wait for the 'big' October reveal? They really are cruising on the BLT...we saw it last week while at CR. Work is progressing much quicker there than at the new food establishment!

 

[Grendalynn]

When you buy at a particular resort (OKW, SSR, AKL...) are you locked into staying at that one place or can you stay any where? Are you penelized for staying elsewhere? TIA!

PS: Clue me in on what ROFR means??

 

[javamom]

Wow lots of posts needing answers. Good links have been posted. Feel free to PM me if you'd like too.

 

[vicki_c]

ROFR = Right of First Refusal

It means Disney gets to review the price offered for any resale contract and decide if they think it's too low -- if so, they may buy the contract back themselves. It's to try and maintain prices so that the ownerships are not worth drastically less than people paid (well that's my non time share expert explanation anyway).

No, you don't have to stay at your home resort. You can stay at any DVC resort with your points, but if it's not your home resort you can only book 7 months out. At your home resort, you can book 11 months out, so that's definitely an advantage for the smaller resorts which may book up faster. You can also stay at the Disney Collection (basically non-DVC Disney properties) but it costs a lot more points per night and you have to pay a $95 fee. AND you can trade out your points for other timeshares (Interval International), but I know really nothing about that.

Others may have opinions on what might happen when they announce the Contemporary DVC (assuming that's what it is!) in October (assuming that's when it is!). I'm not that interested in that, so haven't been paying much attention. Now if they did DVC at the Poly, that would be a whole different story.

Sorry I'm the only one answering tonight -- clearly, you're only getting one opinion (or lots of opinions, but all from me!).

 

[milenkod]

When you buy at a particular resort (OKW, SSR, AKL...) are you locked into staying at that one place or can you stay any where? Are you penelized for staying elsewhere? TIA!

No, you are not penalized...Yes you can stay at the resort of your choosing. Points depend on what season/time of year, accommodations you are looking for and resort. If you click at the sponsor at the top, they have a point chart at their sales site. The point listed are per night.

PS: Clue me in on what ROFR means??

Right of First Refusal. Disney has the right to refuse a resale if the cost/point exceeds a minimum price. I'm not clear if Disney has the option to buy-back your points or not. The DVC sales rep I delt with wasn't too clear on how ROFR exactly works.
For other acronyms, you might want to check this out the Mouseolaneous thread "Ongoing DVC Discussion Topics". There's a glossary of common terms there.

 

[bellazachmom]

Cruella 66 - Cindy

Just posted on your other thread with a few answers and my opinions ... good luck with your decision!

 

[spaceace510]

Sounds like you had a pretty sweet deal??!! There is a thread here someplace i read in the last couple of hours about what people are paying for points and which resorts; these have passed ROFR. I'm learning! Do you think we should wait for the 'big' October reveal? They really are cruising on the BLT...we saw it last week while at CR. Work is progressing much quicker there than at the new food establishment!

YES! I would wait until the October. I an have been waiting for that day for a while... I have always wanted to hear officially what Bay Lake Tower will be!!! I just might have to get a second contract and buy there too

 

[Grendalynn]

For other acronyms, you might want to check this out the Mouseolaneous thread "Ongoing DVC Discussion Topics". There's a glossary of common terms there.

I can usually figure thse things out, but not this one for some reason... Thanks for the help!

I Too am interesed in teh contemporary DVC possibility!! Any official news out there about that???

 

[spaceace510]

I can usually figure thse things out, but not this one for some reason... Thanks for the help!

I Too am interesed in teh contemporary DVC possibility!! Any official news out there about that???

Rumors are flying about an Oct. 3 announcent about BLT and other things. Then have been reports from the Orlando newspaper about the government releasing documents pertaining to timeshares and resturants and other things...

 

[janni518]

Most important tip of all:

BUY WHERE YOU WANT TO STAY!​