Questions on Renting DVC Points

[Doug123]

Regarding renting DVC points, I've got a few questions:
1. How exactly does it work?
2. Do you go through a company? If so, what are the better companies?
3. What are the dangers in going this route? Any horror stories?
4. What are the advantages? Is it really that much cheaper? If so, what are you sacrificing to get that cheaper price?

Thanks in advance for any input.

 

[rkandmjsmommy]

Originally posted by Doug123
Regarding renting DVC points, I've got a few questions:
1. How exactly does it work?
2. Do you go through a company? If so, what are the better companies?
3. What are the dangers in going this route? Any horror stories?
4. What are the advantages? Is it really that much cheaper? If so, what are you sacrificing to get that cheaper price?

Thanks in advance for any input.

I rented points a few months back for our January trip, we rented them off someone on the rent/trade board here on Dis. It is WAY cheaper, we are paying 800.00 total for 5 nights at Boardwalk villas, we got a 1 bedroom, that is 160.00 a night!!!!!!! the woman I am renting from has been amazing and without her points there is NO way my family could afford to stay at Boardwalk. I dont feel I am sacraficing ANYTHING I feel I am getting a better deal to be honest, if you have any questions feel free to ask away:0)

good luck

 

[dawnsb]

We rented from a DVC owner that already had a reservation but could not keep it. Our dates were flexible so we took her week's stay at the Boardwalk. We got a wonderful room overlooking the boardwalk and could see Epcot as well. The owner had a contract that we both signed (sorry I don't have it anymore), and I received the original confirmation letter with my name on it from her after I paid a deposit.

We had a wonderful trip for a good price. I'd do it again. My best advice is to look for people who have posted before, and are willing to give references. The owner also sold on EBay and I was able to read her feedback there as another warm-fuzzy!

Dawn

 

[studog]

I have rented points for OKW last year and have reservations for Mar. If you were to rent this ..it would cost $329 per night I believe and I got it for $520 for 5 nights.
The only down side to this if at all is that every reservation I have seen is for Sun -Thurs (Checkout on Fri)

Now keep in mind that you get to stay in an excellent resort and free transportation...it is just so nice. I can't imagine ever going elsewhere to rent. For what I paid for my OKW ressie, I could have gotten only the smae maount of nights at an ALL STAR. Granted ALL STAR is on property but look at the difference.

I have never had any problems checking in or buying. I have been fortunate enough to buy from very honest people. Now I have bought mine from Ebay rather than going to the trade board. I think you may get them a little cheaper on the trade board but I felt better going through EBay cuz of the protection they offer and I get to see their ratings etc...


So to specifically answer your ?s

1. How exactly does it work? FInd a seller ...I recommend Ebay or the trade board on this site.
2. Do you go through a company? If so, what are the better companies? No, You go through the seller who owns points with Disney...I know of no companies
3. What are the dangers in going this route? Any horror stories? NONE to date...nothing but magical memories in a beautiful resort on property
4. What are the advantages? Is it really that much cheaper? If so, what are you sacrificing to get that cheaper price? CHeaper and the bus stops are much close than all star resorts or other cheaper resorts. A little roomier too. I can't think of anything I was sacrificing.

Hope this helps

 

[gduvall]

A DVC reservation doesn't include standard housekeeping. You get a full cleaning every 4 or 5 nights I believe. If you want housekeeping every night it costs $25/ each night. Other than the housekeeping, it's a wonderful deal. I have personnally rented points twice. The comment about the Sun-Thurs reservations are because Friday and Saturday nights cost more points to rent.

 

[girlsx2]

I too, have been wondering about this avenue. I am still very leary about it. The only month that we can go in is Feb. We have 5 in our family (me, DH, DD 11, DD 7 and DD 2). We are staying at PC in Feb but I am already looking into our 2005 trip or a trip in late 2004 with "just the girls". I don't think we can stay in a studio with the 5 of us. The one bedrooms look awfully nice, but at about $200/night I am not sure if that is really worth it. I like the idea of a kitchen and a washer and dryer, but would I really be in the room long enough to utilize these enough to out weigh the cost of the room.

 

[Gillian]

I rented from someone through the DIS rent/trade board. I asked her for references. We didn't have a contract. She was pretty easy going about it. Everything went well and I would do it again in a second! Renting DVC points is a wonderful deal.

If you have 5 people over the age of 3, you are supposed to rent a 2 BR. Studios and 1 BRs hold 4 plus one under 3 in a crib. A one BR has just a king bed plus a pull out sofa.

 

[Doug123]

I suppose the big potential downfall is that you have to trust that the person you're purchasing the points from actually comes through. Either that, or you have to do a contract.

Those of you that have done it, do you generally do a contract between the two of you? Not to sound cynical, but I'm not sure if I could trust someone like that without a contract.

 

[gduvall]

Both time I have rented points, I had a contract between myself and owner. But not sure how truely binding the contract is. They still own the points and make the reservation in your name. They can at any time cancel reservation, if they do not pay their annual dues, the reservation would be canceled automatic. So there is a major trusting relationship going on. Fortunately I have never seen posted anyone that has done the above.

 

[BedKnobbery2]

I, too, rented points through someone on the DVC board here. I checked her references first, and the transaction went fabulously well. She mailed me a confirmation quickly...it does take a certain about of trust, to be sure.

It is cheaper than renting the unit directly from Disney, but there are cheaper on and off site options, if saving money is your ultimate goal.

I have no advice re: companies to use, haven't heard of any!

Good luck!

 

[Doug123]

Possibly dumb question warning!

You can rent points for any of the resorts, or just for the DVC resorts?

 

[madelyn]

I was able to buy a week in a 1-bedroom at OKW through the rent/trade board on this site. It was a full-week, check-in Saturday and check out Saturday. The owner was not a DVC owner but owned other timeshares and got the week through a timeshare exchange. I believe he charged me $800 or so for the week - an incredible deal! We also split Paypal fees and I had to pay a $95 fee at check-in to OKW since it was a timeshare exchange. Staying in a 1-bedroom spoiled us terribly! It is around 1100 square feet, had a full kitchen and a full size washer/dryer. We saved alot of money by cooking meals and eating in. And with young kids, I loved the convenience of having the washer/dryer in our room. After the seller of the timeshare week posted on the DVC rent/trade board, we emailed a few times and talked on the phone. I checked on his Ebay references and checked his postings on this board. It was risky but I felt pretty good about his trustworthiness. We're thinking about a June WDW trip and with all the cheaper options out there, especially off-site through Priceline, it's hard to justify staying at a Vacation Club property if you are strictly looking for a place to sleep. Even if you factor in the money saved by eating in, I could have eaten out more if we paid for a 3-star hotel through Priceline and probably still come out ahead budget-wise. But the days we just enjoyed the resort, swimming at the pool and feeding the ducks from our back patio are vacation memories that we found to be just as enjoyable as our days at the park.

 

[DznyDreams]

Originally posted by Doug123
Possibly dumb question warning!

You can rent points for any of the resorts, or just for the DVC resorts?

You CAN rent points for non-DVC Disney resorts, BUT it is not at all a good deal. The DVC members have to use MANY more points per night to stay in non-DVC resorts vs. staying in a DVC resort. It can be done, but if you are interested in non-DVC Disney resorts, you'd get a better deal by just waiting for Disney's room-only discounts....or sometimes just by paying rack rate.

As for whether or not I'd recommend renting.......by all means......YES, YES, YES! I have rented points from 5 different DVC members for 4 different trips. I've payed anywhere from $7 to $10 per point. I've stayed at OKW (once in a 1-bedroom villa and most recently in a studio) and at WLV (in a 2-bedroom villa). All of the transactions/stays were flawless and very enjoyable. The lack of daily maidservice was more of a plus for us than a negative. We saved $ by not having to tip the housekeepers daily, and we didn't have to worry about being in the way of the housekeepers when we wanted to sleep in or when we'd return early from the parks, etc. I am renting points for an upcoming stay in March at the BWV (studio), and I cannot wait!! I'm paying $532 for this reservation vs. the $2187 I'd pay Disney to stay in the very same room. Personally, I don't feel that maidservice is worth the extra $1655!

I have always used the DIS DVC Rent/Trade Board to find someone to rent from. I have never posted one of thoses "I need points" posts....I just read through all of the members posts and then email them if I see something that interests me. In all cases, except for the most recent, I've talked with the folks I'm renting from via telephone. They've always been helpful and eager to answer all of my questions. With my most recent arrangement I've just used email to make contact and ask questions, but again, they're quick to respond and VERY helpful. All members have set up very easy payment plans for me since I usually rent well in advance of my trips. In each case, I've paid in a deposit once the member lets me know that I have a reservation. I can call DVC Member Services to verify that the reservation does exist before I send any money. Once the member receives my deposit, he/she has always snail mailed the hard copy of the reservation to me. The hard copy of the reservation has the member's name listed first, and then my name listed as the holder of the reservation.

I definitely think renting points is the way to go!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Go to the DVC Rent/Trade Board and read the FAQs at the top of the board. They should give you most of the information you need.

The biggest thing is that you cannot wait until too close to your vacation time, especially if you want premium times (holidays, spring break, summer, basically anytime that school is out). DVC members can make their reservations 11 months out at their home resorts and 7 months out at the other DVC resorts. The best use of the points is at DVC resorts. You won't save much if any using the points at non-DVC resorts.

So if you need to stay at the Polynesian, renting points is not the most economical way.

You will have to pay a portion to make the reservation with most members and pay the rest no less than 30 days out from your reservation. If the member accepts Paypal or some other means to pay, you might be able to use a credit card; otherwise, it's a cash deal.

There are a few horror stories out there, from both sides of the rental. The member most likely will ask you to sign a contract for the rental.

Studios and one bedrooms sleep four plus one child under the age of 3. Two bedrooms sleep eight plus one. There are a few Grand Villas (at OKW and BWV, plus soon to be at SSR) that sleep twelve plus one.

 

[Puffy2]

I've done it once and I'm about to do it again. The first time went well; my only hesitation was that the renter was not very communicative and that made me a little nervous but every thing went as expected.
I found my DVC owners on the rent/trade board. Pick someone who has multiple posts and perhaps if you can read all the posts they have made.

Ask for references.

You can do a contract (and I think I will this time, someone from the DIS emailed me a sample contract that I might modify to use this time.) At least you will have something in writing other than emails.

To get the best room (cheapest and where you want it) they need to make the reservation 11 months out. AND you need to rent from someone who's home DVC is the hotel that you want (because if they own at say Wilderness Lodge, they will not be able to make an 11 month out reservation at Beach CLub).

The going rate is $10.00 per point. Be leary of "really good deals" much off this mark.

I have heard of two incidents on the DiS where renters got stiffed by DVC owners - this is RUMOR of course, but it's what I have read in old posts. (one, the DVC owner sold their membership and thus the reservation was not there when they arrived... the other was a man who was advertising really cheap reservation points - points to be used at the hotels as opposed to the home away from homes - there were several warnings about this guy but some people did it anyway and I think someone lost their money. The man was very limited in how much info he would provide. If anyone is not willing to give you info, be leary.)

MOST people who rent points have had good experiences.

Points are REALLY high for Fri. and Sat. nights. Avoid renting those. Sun. - THur. have the most reasonable rates.

 

[MELSMICE]

We rented from the Rent/Trade Board before we bought at OKW & I would recommend it to anyone.

A few things to remember:

--Ask a lot of questions on the Rent/Trade Board

--Ask for & check references before sending any money

--Points are higher on the weekends, so you may even get a good rate on Mousesavers for those weekend nights & get to experience a different resort. We usually do this at the beginning of our stays

--Average rental rate is $10/point. Call to find out what a cash ressie would be for the time you are going & then compare it to the cost of renting the points. Remember, there is no tax on point rentals.

--You may not think you'll use a kitchen that much, but you'd be surprised. Just eating breakfast in your room can save both time & money. Plus it's nice to sit in "real furniture" & relax in the evenings or even mid afternoons.

I haven't heard of any bad experiences from people renting on the Rent/Trade Board. Have a great time, regardless of what you decide to do, but beware of the DVC bug. Many people (us included) rented points & came home to find themselves in the process of a DVC purchase!!!!!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Originally posted by Puffy2

...
I have heard of two incidents on the DiS where renters got stiffed by DVC owners - this is RUMOR of course, but it's what I have read in old posts. (one, the DVC owner sold their membership and thus the reservation was not there when they arrived... the other was a man who was advertising really cheap reservation points - points to be used at the hotels as opposed to the home away from homes - there were several warnings about this guy but some people did it anyway and I think someone lost their money. The man was very limited in how much info he would provide. If anyone is not willing to give you info, be leary.)

MOST people who rent points have had good experiences.

Points are REALLY high for Fri. and Sat. nights. Avoid renting those. Sun. - THur. have the most reasonable rates.

And there are also stories about where owners got stiffed big time by the renters. It's a two way street. Plan on paying something if not all upfront just to get the reservation. Owners have a big penalty if they cancel a reservation less than 30 days out from the day it starts. Borrowed points can't be returned to the use year from where they were borrowed.

Don't worry about the higher points on the weekends. Just average them out over the entire stay and they aren't so bad. Plus you don't have to move out before your trip is over. Also, you won't be homeless while you are waiting for your new room to become vacant for you.

 

[summerrluvv]

I have a question....say I rented points from someone for a Sun-Thurs night stay....will the BWV transfer my luggage to a different resort for Friday-Sunday?

 

[MELSMICE]

Originally posted by summerrluvv
I have a question....say I rented points from someone for a Sun-Thurs night stay....will the BWV transfer my luggage to a different resort for Friday-Sunday?

Yes, they will. As long as you're going to another Disney resort they will transfer it for you. It's really very convenient.

 

[roadtripper]

WARNING: if you rent points to stay at a DVC resort, you may unsuspectingly catch the DVC bug. Symptoms include never staying in a single hotel room again!

We rented off the DVC board at OKW two years ago, and bought 150 points at BCV before the vacation was over! We have never regretted it. Have fun!