Question for those who stay a few weeks at a time...

[jekjones1558]

I don't know what roughly $130,000 buys you near the World, (I know It buys my non-vacation home in NE PA ) but I'd think it would be nothing to sneeze at. And you could rent it out for the summer, while using the $15,000 or so in maintenance fees saved to really spruce it up. I know there must be reasons why some folks have over 1,000 points, but at some level, it's not to save a buck versus a deluxe resort. Examining the opportunity cost of holding 2-4K points definitely makes owning a second home look like a much more viable option.

I agree. Our 1150 points are not the most cost efficient use of our money. But our DVC dollars are not investment dollars, they are entertainment dollars. We have none of the headaches of maintenance or finding or evicting renters that we could encounter with a property we might buy. And WDW just does not have the same appeal to me if I am staying offsite. I totally understand that many people want to maximize their vacation dollars and not spend so much on DVC.

 

[DVCconvert]

I don't know what roughly $130,000 buys you near the World, (I know It buys my non-vacation home in NE PA ) but I'd think it would be nothing to sneeze at. And you could rent it out for the summer, while using the $15,000 or so in maintenance fees saved to really spruce it up

Well, maybe we're snobs, but even in this economy we haven't found what we'd want for a house, in an area that we'd want for much under $300K.
There's a lot to consider, either way, like pest control, weeding & feeding a lawn, is a possible house up to current hurricane standards?

The taxes we've been seeing at the houses we've looked at plus the HOA fees would eat up about $10K per year...add in pool maint, insurances and you're not far away from eating up that $15K +/- in MF's.

There are certainly pro's and con's to either action plan.

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Part of the appeal of staying on Disney property is not having to drive. I don't want to feel stuck in my townhouse or condo because I don't feel like calling a cab. My inlaws are in their upper 70s. They still go to the world, but they'd never go if they had to drive. You can't even rent a car after 75 so you'd have to buy someplace with a garage and leave a car there or take the auto train (no thanks).

We are still considering Celebration. Or putting aside a fund just for vacation rentals and dumping DVC. DVC is not the best choice financially, but if you end up with a property you don't want, that's a worse financial situation.

I agree that driving is a huge deal. I really wish Central FLA had better public transportation! That would be my MAIN reason for using DVC to snowbird.

As to Celebration, sadly, there are many reports online of decline in some areas there as well ...So, whatever the choice, CAVEAT EMPTOR!

 

[mnra]

we have thought about the same thing but the question I have is would disney even allow you to stay in the same room that long

 

[DVCconvert]

we have thought about the same thing but the question I have is would disney even allow you to stay in the same room that long

yes, there are folks here who do this now.

 

[mnra]

ok thanks might be fun but would need lots more points lol

 

[jennypenny]

I think you can stay up to 6 weeks at a time on one booking. At least, that was the rule the last time I asked about it.

We are half way to our points goal. Even if we wanted another 1,000 points, we could get SSR points for $55 making the total investment $55,000. I suspect dues equal HOA and taxes in another purchase. And I'd never have to paint or fix a clogged toilet. I could only use the room a few months a year, but I'd only stay that long anyway.

 

[granmanh603]

I've stayed for 2 wks & couldn't bear the thought of going home!! For me, it's the 50 wks in NJ that are killin' me

Honestly, I feel very 'at home' at WDW! I do wonder, though, how long they'd allow me to sit on a bench & read in the parks...but I could sit there for HOURS & be very content

We go for 3 weeks in Oct/Nov and 3 in Feb/March...still hate going home..we used to sit over in Mexico and watch the sunset with a drink but now the outside area is smaller and very busy and would feel guilty taking up a spot for too long. Outside over by USA area is usually not busy. as long as not crowded I would not worry about staying..
I hate the winters too up here and love that we don't have to worry about anything just visit. We have AP so if we go to parks for a few hours and leave it didn't cost much also get the TIW card for drinks and meals 20% off. Love to hear what others think...

 

[dianeschlicht]

We are retired and, as Minnesota residents, like to get away in the winter. We have 1150 points, so could stay for quite a while at DVC in the winter. That was our original plan but we find that we like spreading out our visits, going 3 or 4 times a year and usually bringing friends or family. Sometimes we even splurge on a big family trip (like this year when we are using more than one year's points for a single week-long family trip). We considered buying a Florida condo but just do not want the hassles and expense of another home. So we rent places when we travel outside WDW. We like the freedom it gives us to go wherever we want rather than being tied to one spot. If we owned a Florida condo we would have a hard time justifying our trip to Hawaii last winter or our cruise this coming winter.
Some folks move to Florida and thus only have one residence to maintain but we don't want to do that. Some folks use their Florida condo as a winter residence but are financially able to also own DVC and travel other places. We can't afford that. So owning in MN, owning DVC and renting at other destinations works great for us. Renting condos in Florida is pretty cheap and I would go that route when we age to the point where lots of travel is too tough.
Good luck with your decision!

Jean, I think your plan is what we have considered as well. At one time we did look into buying something down there, but the reality of upkeep etc. on a second home and the fact that we would not be staying "inside the magic" of WDW resort gave us pause for reflection. We decided we would stick with our DVC vacations for Disney, rent something each time we go down to Fort Myers for spring training, and if we want to vacation other places, we'll rent out our Disney points and use the proceeds to rent where we want to be.

Our next "other than Disney" trip is going to be Hawaii in 2013, and I've already rented my points out once and put that money aside. I plan to do the same next year, and then have enough to rent the vacation home we have our eye on in Hawaii. Thanks to you, I've been checking out the VRBO site!

 

[SamSam]

We go for 3 weeks in Oct/Nov and 3 in Feb/March...still hate going home..we used to sit over in Mexico and watch the sunset with a drink but now the outside area is smaller and very busy and would feel guilty taking up a spot for too long. Outside over by USA area is usually not busy. as long as not crowded I would not worry about staying..
I hate the winters too up here and love that we don't have to worry about anything just visit. We have AP so if we go to parks for a few hours and leave it didn't cost much also get the TIW card for drinks and meals 20% off. Love to hear what others think...

This is what we're looking at, only 3 weeks in Oct., then 3 weeks in January.

 

[jekjones1558]

Jean, I think your plan is what we have considered as well. At one time we did look into buying something down there, but the reality of upkeep etc. on a second home and the fact that we would not be staying "inside the magic" of WDW resort gave us pause for reflection. We decided we would stick with our DVC vacations for Disney, rent something each time we go down to Fort Myers for spring training, and if we want to vacation other places, we'll rent out our Disney points and use the proceeds to rent where we want to be.

Our next "other than Disney" trip is going to be Hawaii in 2013, and I've already rented my points out once and put that money aside. I plan to do the same next year, and then have enough to rent the vacation home we have our eye on in Hawaii. Thanks to you, I've been checking out the VRBO site!

Wish I had a Hawaii trip to anticipate. Our trip to Maui and Big Island this past March was our last. It is just too risky for DH to fly overseas. I hope your Hawaii stay is as wonderful as ours was. Wasn't there a wedding involved or am I mixed up (not uncommon for me!)

 

[a742246]

This is what we're looking at, only 3 weeks in Oct., then 3 weeks in January.

My plan is 2 weeks in early November and 4 weeks in Jan/Feb. I would love
to spend a whole winter in WDW but after thinking (long time) about it,
part of my excitement is the "going" there.

 

[tjcj]

We have had several of our close friends visit over the last few weeks (some owners some wanna bee's) and this has been the topic of choice over drinks. My main points on the issue are:
We have $ now while working to lock in a plan that will work for the rest of our life while on a lesser fixed income.
As we get older I will want to do less home repairs and more traveling.
We own a rental property now that costs us about 10k a year to keep (utilities taxes, fees, repairs- minus the rental income).

Using that model I say anything that costs about 10k a year without the hassles of owning a home is worth it!

So the big question is what's the best plan of action to acquire a high number of points? I assume resale is the way to go (we have done both) but do the new rules on resale change any of that?

 

[carol1231]

We have a condo in Celebration and we love it there. We're not close to retiring yet and still need to schedule trips around the school schedules. We feel it was a great decision for us, but we do still have our DVC points too. We use them to spend a night at the resorts every now and then, and are hoping to use them every other year to go to Hawaii. As for a car, we drive down so that isn't a problem. And it probably takes me less time to get to the MK from my condo than it would taking the transportation from the resorts.

 

[Corinne]

So the big question is what's the best plan of action to acquire a high number of points? I assume resale is the way to go (we have done both) but do the new rules on resale change any of that?

Great thread! I am enjoying all of the various points of view. We would also love to be snowbirds, and this thread has given me some ideas I had not thought of!

I think our first order of business should be more points, but as tjcj asked, is the best way to go resale??

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

We have a condo in Celebration and we love it there. We're not close to retiring yet and still need to schedule trips around the school schedules. We feel it was a great decision for us, but we do still have our DVC points too. We use them to spend a night at the resorts every now and then, and are hoping to use them every other year to go to Hawaii. As for a car, we drive down so that isn't a problem. And it probably takes me less time to get to the MK from my condo than it would taking the transportation from the resorts.

Would you mind sharing whether you rent your condo when you aren't there? If not, do you have a property management company look after it for you? Just trying to figure how to 'maintain' a property we'd only stay in a few months of the year vs. maybe, just having Disney maintain our DVC for us between visits. Thanks!

 

[carol1231]

Would you mind sharing whether you rent your condo when you aren't there? If not, do you have a property management company look after it for you? Just trying to figure how to 'maintain' a property we'd only stay in a few months of the year vs. maybe, just having Disney maintain our DVC for us between visits. Thanks!

No, we don't rent it out. There are a lot of people that do and there is a company in Celebration that will manage that for you. It is in the covenants that the unit needs to be checked on if not lived in regularly. We have a local lady that stops in once a week to look around, check the mailbox and make sure all is ok. We are usually down there every two to three months. We spend either most of June or July and then a couple of weeks in August before school starts, a long weekend in October, Thanksgiving weekend, the week before and after Christmas, a week at Spring Break and the long Easter Weekend. The best part is - I don't need to make a reservation! And I can sleep in my own bed. And I don't pack much because I leave clothes there.

 

[DVC-Don]

Our original plan was to spend Jan & Feb in WDW with our points and we finally got enough points to pull it off. BUT, one trip we went out and looked at homes in gated retirement (55+) communities and purchased a home in one (Solivita). Got a nice little 6 year old home, 2 bed, 2 bath, 2 car garage overlooking a good sized pond with a pool just a few doors away for less than $90,000. So, we sold most of our DVC points (still have 210 @ OKW) and will used the remainder for little holiday stays at WDW. Our new home is only 30 -40 minutes to WDW.

We do not rent out our home and the HOA takes care of the lawn and outside plants. We have wonderful neighbors there who check on the home for us. Can't wait to get back down there.

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Thanks, carol1231 & DVC-Don!
This would be the IDEAL situation for DH who only wants to snowbird! I'd prefer to relocate entirely! Third choice is DVC...but fearing that dues will continue to increase, I think we fear maintenance costs more ('specially utilities) like running a/c for 8-9 months while not even living there!!!

 

[mnra]

No, we don't rent it out. There are a lot of people that do and there is a company in Celebration that will manage that for you. It is in the covenants that the unit needs to be checked on if not lived in regularly. We have a local lady that stops in once a week to look around, check the mailbox and make sure all is ok. We are usually down there every two to three months. We spend either most of June or July and then a couple of weeks in August before school starts, a long weekend in October, Thanksgiving weekend, the week before and after Christmas, a week at Spring Break and the long Easter Weekend. The best part is - I don't need to make a reservation! And I can sleep in my own bed. And I don't pack much because I leave clothes there.

We don;t have school age kids and we are not retired. Does your job let you work remotely