Renting points to an acquaintance/friend.....

[igitur]

I was wondering what the "going rate" is when renting to someone you know. A friend who works with me has expressed an interest in picking up the week we have reserved for next February (since we're planning on a family cruise instead) and I'd like to give her some kind of a break on the points.

What's a good price for points when renting to someone you know?

Thanks!

Deb

 

[spiceycat]

depends - before this year I didn't charge - but my brother needs the money - so I charge $10 a point.

if you case what you are paying - if you financing then a couple of dollars more than your annual fee per point will be okay - if you aren't financing then your annual fee per point would work.

 

[Disney4ever4569]

The most common rate is $10 per point, so if your looking to cut a break then charge whatever you feel like that is less than $10.

 

[todsue99]

It depends on you. We had some friends come with us and they were going to stay at the All-stars for around $97/night at the time. We told them we would get the room and they payed us $100/night. It was a deal for them and us since they were staying at BCV with us. Now that was for a studio. It cost us more than $10/point, but it was a good arrangement for both parties.

 

[pumpkinboy]

I will rent to folks I know (and like) at $10 per point if it is easy for me to do. If it involves a hassle of any sort (like scrambling to find something available, using lots of waitlists and otherwise tying up my points), I up it to $11, or $12 if they are well-off.

There are others who I will just treat, like my parents, DSs and DDs Godparents (who have always been very generous with us and others).

Of course, fair market value of those points really should be $** (a matter for the debate board) IMO a fair price is one with which the renter and owner are happy with.

 

[PamOKW]

Originally posted by pumpkinboy
[IMO a fair price is one with which the renter and owner are happy with

That's the bottom-line. You might want to make a rough "guessestimate" to what a point costs you in terms of what you paid, financing and dues. Then set a price from there. At a minimum, you might want to have them cover the dues on the points.

I have treated most friends and have a hard time asking them for anything at all.

 

[mikesmom]

Charge them enough so they don't think there is no value to it. I have found that charging little or nothing (or acting like it's no big deal) can cause folks to think it IS no big deal, thereby rearranging/cancelling, etc leaving you with a hassle or holding the bag.

 

[Poorman]

Personally if it were my friend from "work" I would charge ten dollars. That friend will still be getting a good deal. If it were a long time friend it would be less, and if it were family,probably free. But that's me. You should do what ever is comfortable for you. Remember that is one less year you can enjoy your DVC.

 

[niks81]

Typically I rent my points out at $10 and above around here. If its a friend I might bend a little, but probably not a ton. When its my parents I charge very little, if any at all, considering all the things they've done for me over the years.

I agree with someone else's statement about 'charging enough so that they realize the value'. You definitely don't want to be in a position of having to make a bunch of changes because they think its no big deal.

 

[blossomz]

I just rented some points from a friend for my parents to join us this summer. We decided on $10 per point.

 

[kblbdad]

I'm curious why point rental seems to revolve around the $10 per point rate. Why couldn't you find out what the nightly rate for a room is for the days you want to make the reservation and use a percentage of that as your price basis? Based on room rates for non-dvc members it seems like $10 per point is kind of low.

 

[spiceycat]

before DVC values the points at $10 -they were renting for between $6 and $8 - but when they started the buy back program at VWL they decided it was worth $10 a point.

So then everyone who rents decided that was a fair price per point to rent.

Until DVC comes out with a $15 per point buy back - don't except DVC member to go up with their rental prices.

I would hope shortly - because let face it - there is a big difference in $95 (current price starting in May) from $72 (VWL first price).

most members don't always rent their points - they brought them to use - not as an investment - so until DVC says that they are worth more - then $10 it is.

 

[crisi]

For "friends" I'd charge about $2 "something" (my point cost over the life of the contract) plus dues. So call it $6.50 or $7. The "going rate" seems to be $10 for strangers, and I would charge a friend less than a stranger - in part because if friend finds out they "could have" gotten the points for $10 and I charged them $10, they would be right in thinking I hadn't done them much of a favor out of friendship.

(I agree, with SSR going for $95 as well as the atypical hike in dues the last two years, $10 a point for rental is looking low, and I'm thinking that price will change shortly. $10 a point is low, for weekdays. But it can often be a little high for weekends)

But Mikesmom has a point. Charge at least enough that they don't feel the points are "something you have lying around."

 

[Dopey Sharon]

I rented points from a friend from work last year. I originally had a reservation at the Wilderness Lodge. When I told her we were going back to WDW and where we were staying, she offered to rent me the points to stay at WLV. The price we settled on was the amount of one nights' stay at the Lodge with the discount they offered the previous year $119. I paid her $600 for our five night stay at BWV (she couldn't get us into a one bedroom at the WLV, which was fine....we LOVED BWV!)

ETA....I think she used 112 points for our stay, so it came out to about $5.35 a point.

 

[JLS]

This is such an individual question. Its nice to help out close friends, but at the same time, if you rent your points out at a discount to everyone, what you are essentially doing is helping to finance other people's vacations through your DVC purchase. If you charge too little, there is definitely the danger, as others have pointed out, in people not realizing how valuable the points really are.

We rented out points to our friends this year. We told them that the going rate for rental was $10, or possibly a bit more, but we offered them the points for $8.50 a point. We thought it was a good deal for us because we avoided hassle and trust issues of dealing with a stranger. We got all of the money upfront. Our friends were happy with the deal, too.

Ultimately, it comes down to what you are comfortable with. IMO, you do NOT owe your friends or family (except probably parents) a significant discount. You paid dearly for the points. But for some people, there is a reciprocity factor (you can use X relative or friend's vacation house ocassionally, so you "rent" your points to them for free or heavily discounted). There are a lot of factors that play into it. But I see nothing wrong with renting to friends for $10 a point. They are still getting an excellent deal and they get the benefit of dealing with YOU rather than a stranger.

 

[Dopey Sharon]

Wanted to add.....this was the first time she ever did this. She bought back in 1992 and last year was the first time she didn't use her points. I told her about these boards and she rented quite a few points since then. She looked at it this way....I helped her out by letting her know she could rent her points and she gave us a great room! We, since, bought ourselves!

 

[5infam]

I agree with kblbdad, I would find out what your friend would pay direct with Disney to rent the room cash with any discounts applied, plus taxes etc. If you look at it this way, the $10.00 per point may be a big cost savings, thus saving your friend money and allowing you to make a small reasonable amount off of your ownership. This way everyone wins!!! If it turns out that the savings just isn't there, then you may want to make an adjustment downward.

 

[vernon]

For a studio I would charge either $10 per point or the same rate (including taxes)per night as the All Star was available, for their stay, which ever was the cheaper. For a One bedroom or larger I would charge $10 per night.

 

[pumpkinboy]

Originally posted by vernon
For a studio I would charge either $10 per point or the same rate (including taxes)per night as the All Star was available, for their stay, which ever was the cheaper. For a One bedroom or larger I would charge $10 per night.

Yes, but what would you charge them in Sterling or in Euros? I might part with some of my points for €10 a point at current rates, tho £10 a point would be a bit steep.

But seriously, Vernon, have you ever rented to one of our countrymen? And if so, did you settle the bill in us$ or did you use some kind of conversion formula?