Purchase Timing

[brandonw91]

We are going to purchase 150 direct points. That much has been decided .

Our favorite resort is Poly, and tentative plan is for that to be our home.

Here’s where I’m looking for thoughts/opinions:

We have a cash stay booked for September. It is a split stay at Poly Tower and Riviera. I love playing the credit card and gift card discount game so I have gift cards to cover the cash value of that stay already…

Our guide approached us (Since Mickey let him know that we were heading back down ) to tell us that we should essentially use the cash for our cash stay as a down payment. He claims that he can reserve both rooms we have now with points. If it matters, I would likely price on credit card for points and pay off… so the “down payment” argument is more of a psychological benefit than practical.

I know promotions come and go and that I should never try to time the market. We missed the Visa promo from last month and I’m not sure if any others are qualifiable right now. I also just wonder if the recession turns if they will offer more aggressive options in the coming months or year…

Since I have the gift cards he also threw out options such as having Disney buy back the first year and paying cash and some others too.

Long story short, what would the much more qualified members here do? I’m just trying to crowdsource some opinions. Buy know and accept current price or hope and pray for better promos to come. Open to all perspectives!

 

[ShaneDJ]

Don't try to time the market (or the incentives). They will ebb and flow.

Buy when your finances and circumstances permit.

 

[WeIcomeHome]

Personally, I think incentives will only get better than they are right now. Whether that happens before the next increase in base price is yet to be seen.

With your stay coming up, though, it would be a decent chunk towards your point purchase. You could likely wait until the end of this current incentive cycle and still get your upcoming stay converted to points as a welcome home stay for your first stay after buying direct. By waiting you could have the option to switch over to the next incentive cycle promotions if they are better than the current incentives.

Is there a preferred use year based on when you like to travel?

 

[Hubalorian]

If this is your first contract, check out the Referral thread to pick someone who could refer you to save an additional $500

 

[AstroBlasters]

We are going to purchase 150 direct points. That much has been decided .

Our favorite resort is Poly, and tentative plan is for that to be our home.

Here’s where I’m looking for thoughts/opinions:

We have a cash stay booked for September. It is a split stay at Poly Tower and Riviera. I love playing the credit card and gift card discount game so I have gift cards to cover the cash value of that stay already…

Our guide approached us (Since Mickey let him know that we were heading back down ) to tell us that we should essentially use the cash for our cash stay as a down payment. He claims that he can reserve both rooms we have now with points. If it matters, I would likely price on credit card for points and pay off… so the “down payment” argument is more of a psychological benefit than practical.

I know promotions come and go and that I should never try to time the market. We missed the Visa promo from last month and I’m not sure if any others are qualifiable right now. I also just wonder if the recession turns if they will offer more aggressive options in the coming months or year…

Since I have the gift cards he also threw out options such as having Disney buy back the first year and paying cash and some others too.

Long story short, what would the much more qualified members here do? I’m just trying to crowdsource some opinions. Buy know and accept current price or hope and pray for better promos to come. Open to all perspectives!

I would absolutely apply the money you are going to use for a cash stay to a DVC contract if they can get you the same room with points for a planned trip….

 

[Tatebeck]

A few things. September has pretty low point charts so if they can get you the same stay at a fairly low point cost that would be pretty nice. And I know the cash rates for Poly and Riviera are typically quite high. So if it would be a large amount of the purchase price of the contract I would highly consider it.

One possible negative ... If you cancel the package and buy the contract, you will have to rebuy tickets or annual passes for that stay so there will be a bit of an extra cost there as well.

I would also check what use year they are trying to sell and try to get one that still has the 2024 points (so something June through September if any of those work for you long term) Then you could sell back the 2024 points as Magical Beginnings and still have 2025 points they could use in September for your trip.

And one last small note, The later you buy in the year, the less you pay for 2025 dues, so you can actually save by waiting. Either way if you want to purchase soon I would consider waiting until towards the end of the current promotion, lock in the purchase within 10 days of the next round of incentives so you can see if the next round is even better and have an option to use that price instead. And it will save you a tiny bit in dues to wait as well.

 

[NVDISFamily]

A few thoughts.

• Not sure if I saw this said by you or someone else but you should also consider if the UY you pick will, can net you 2024 points for "free".
  • I'm not sure what UY were allowed to get 2024 points for Poly Tower but I'd ask.
  • Just be careful with those free points. It's a good way to get used to having a lot more points and will make you likely need more points.
• I'd also fight for the UY best for your travel patterns long term. I'd make this a higher priority than getting the 2024 points but both would be better.
• Be careful that you aren't buying enough points for this trip but for the trip you are likely to take X years, year after year, in the future.
  • If this trip is a lower point season but most trips will be in a higher points season?
  • Are you using a one time benefit (welcome home booking) to help you book a very hard to get room that may be hard to get every year in the future? Consider buying points to get that more expensive view, larger room, etc.
• If you can, buy more points than you think you need.

Seems like you have a good plan. I'll also add that more experienced guides are happy to "push" on the edges of the rules and give you a few months to get all things in line to get you locked into a contract. I've done something similar a few times with my guide. Wish you the best as you go on this journey.

 

[PolyRob]

Just adding you can use all your accumulated Disney Gift Cards to pay your annual DVC dues. The 2025 dues will bill shortly after you close. I am sure that is a fraction of your trip, but the money wouldn't go to waste and you can still subsidize the cost.

The Disney Visa promotion has definitely ended, but the D23 Gold promotion ($500 off) is still running and there is a new $1,000 off for Annual Passholders. Not sure if you have an AP or what the math would be compared to tickets you have in a package or plan on buying, but that is another promotion this cycle.

 

[cruisehopeful]

If I was in the exact same position and my guide could guarantee booking the same rooms, I would use the money towards the down payment. There are so many things that you can use your gift cards for. As already mentioned, you can even prepay your annual dues with gift cards. I don't think I've ever seen someone say that they wished they waited longer to buy their DVC contract.

 

[yourfriend2]

If the numbers work for you, buy now. Save your gift cards to pay your annual dues (you will need to pay them every year). See if your DVC guide can get you your welcome home stay on you new points.

 

[cruisehopeful]

There's a stickied thread for referrals. You aren't supposed to mention it in any other threads or messages.

 

[yourfriend2]

There's a stickied thread for referrals. You aren't supposed to mention it in any other threads or messages.

oooh, oooops. sorry. moderator please remove if not allowed.

 

[WeIcomeHome]

I think your travel patterns and use year will play a decent role in when you should ultimately purchase.
If I was in your shoes, I'd prioritize the following in the order listed:
1. Find out the latest your guide can get you the cash rooms you currently have booked on points as part of a welcome home stay.
2. Figure out your preferred use year based on when you normally travel and demand that you get that specific use year.
3. Time your purchase to get 2024 points if possible.
4. If 3 isn't possible and 1 allows, then wait for the end of the incentive cycle to minimize dues and allow flexibility on incentives.

 

[eticketplease]

We have a cash stay booked for September. It is a split stay at Poly Tower and Riviera. I love playing the credit card and gift card discount game so I have gift cards to cover the cash value of that stay already…

Our guide approached us (Since Mickey let him know that we were heading back down ) to tell us that we should essentially use the cash for our cash stay as a down payment. He claims that he can reserve both rooms we have now with points. If it matters, I would likely price on credit card for points and pay off… so the “down payment” argument is more of a psychological benefit than practical

Do you have actual cash or is it all tied up in gift cards?

A few posters have said to hold onto your gift cards to pay for other things including dues I didn’t see anyone mention why.
The why is because you cannot use gift cards to pay for a DVC contract, it has to be cash (i.e. using a credit card or bank draft) or cash down payment and then finance.

So if you have extra cash and it’s not all tied up in gift cards I would certainly pull the trigger.