Reservation vs Renting Points?

I’m sure a thread like this exists some where but I couldn’t find it.

Are there pros/cons to making a regular reservation vs renting points? I’m wondering if we should consider renting points for our instead of the package we have. We are currently booked for AKL standard view and it looks like we would be able to book a savanna view for less if we rented.

Are there hidden fees or costs? Is there any reason not to do points? How is it different to a regular stay?
Pros:
  • Lower price than Disney
  • Ability to book villas that never show up on the Disney website
  • No overnight resort parking fee
Cons:
  • Owner controls the reservation until you check in
  • Takes a degree of trust on the parts of both owner and renters
  • No refunds/changes in some cases (intermediaries have their own policies; owners who rent out their points independently can create their own terms)
There's a reason why renting is more affordable than going thru Disney. Renting comes with caveats and restrictions. Renting is not for everyone but for those that do rent, they can save a lot of money. It just comes down to doing your homework and evaluating the risks.
 
This seems like a good thread to ask the question about cost of points when renting. We've rented once thru the DVC Rental Store for Vero Beach and had a great experience and I think we paid maybe $17 pt for the rental. We are going to WDW in December and have reservations at POR but I am constantly searching for DVC points to rent for that time frame as it would be the only way to afford Deluxe. Looks like point rentals are now $21+, was shocked at how much they went up. Is that what others are seeing/experiencing? I'm also getting multiple emails a week with confirmed reservations, but I'm not really seeing what I would call "discounted" reservations. In this current environment, not sure if renting points still provides the big discount one would assume it would. As others have stated, my biggest concern pulling the trigger on a point rental is the non refundability of it. When it works it works well, but it comes with a huge caveat.
 
This seems like a good thread to ask the question about cost of points when renting. We've rented once thru the DVC Rental Store for Vero Beach and had a great experience and I think we paid maybe $17 pt for the rental. We are going to WDW in December and have reservations at POR but I am constantly searching for DVC points to rent for that time frame as it would be the only way to afford Deluxe. Looks like point rentals are now $21+, was shocked at how much they went up. Is that what others are seeing/experiencing? I'm also getting multiple emails a week with confirmed reservations, but I'm not really seeing what I would call "discounted" reservations. In this current environment, not sure if renting points still provides the big discount one would assume it would. As others have stated, my biggest concern pulling the trigger on a point rental is the non refundability of it. When it works it works well, but it comes with a huge caveat.
You are coming very late to the game for a December DVC rental. Owners booked their home resorts 11 months out or non-home resorts at 7 months. We are now 4-5 months away and almost everything has been booked up. Those spec reservations might be all that you can find. The agencies have no need to discount those reservations because they will sell. And if they don't, that's the owner's problem not the agency's.
 
We have rented a few times. I had a DVC reservation for Oct 2020 through one of the major companies and decided I couldn't go due to covid. Because at that time mainly DVC resorts were open, the company was able to quickly resell my reservation and gave me a full credit good for 3 years. I also had a reservation directly through a person during covid and lost all of that money. Will not do that again, will be sticking to companies.

One other plus of DVC rental is free resort parking and free parking at the parks.
 

We have rented a few times. I had a DVC reservation for Oct 2020 through one of the major companies and decided I couldn't go due to covid. Because at that time mainly DVC resorts were open, the company was able to quickly resell my reservation and gave me a full credit good for 3 years. I also had a reservation directly through a person during covid and lost all of that money. Will not do that again, will be sticking to companies.

One other plus of DVC rental is free resort parking and free parking at the parks.
Anyone staying at a Disney hotel parks for free at the parks.
 
This seems like a good thread to ask the question about cost of points when renting. We've rented once thru the DVC Rental Store for Vero Beach and had a great experience and I think we paid maybe $17 pt for the rental. We are going to WDW in December and have reservations at POR but I am constantly searching for DVC points to rent for that time frame as it would be the only way to afford Deluxe. Looks like point rentals are now $21+, was shocked at how much they went up. Is that what others are seeing/experiencing? I'm also getting multiple emails a week with confirmed reservations, but I'm not really seeing what I would call "discounted" reservations. In this current environment, not sure if renting points still provides the big discount one would assume it would. As others have stated, my biggest concern pulling the trigger on a point rental is the non refundability of it. When it works it works well, but it comes with a huge caveat.
Yes, those are the rates now. Astronomical compared to not too long ago. Travel insurance can cover the points and The DVC Rental Store offers some built in protection - but spikes the price.
 
I’m sure a thread like this exists some where but I couldn’t find it.

Are there pros/cons to making a regular reservation vs renting points? I’m wondering if we should consider renting points for our instead of the package we have. We are currently booked for AKL standard view and it looks like we would be able to book a savanna view for less if we rented.

Are there hidden fees or costs? Is there any reason not to do points? How is it different to a regular stay?
DVC Rental Store has a new cancellation policy:
Cancellation WindowCredit Received
> 120 Days100% of funds paid
120-61 Days75% of total reservation price*
60-16 Days50% of total reservation price
15-4 Days25% of total reservation price
0*
 
In addition to the cost, if you're able to get your rental request in by the 11 month window, the rental company can find someone who owns there and you'll have way better availability for tough rooms to get.
 
You are coming very late to the game for a December DVC rental. Owners booked their home resorts 11 months out or non-home resorts at 7 months. We are now 4-5 months away and almost everything has been booked up. Those spec reservations might be all that you can find. The agencies have no need to discount those reservations because they will sell. And if they don't, that's the owner's problem not the agency's.
Not really, just didn't post anything. I had looked back at the 11 month window and it wasn't so much availability being the issue as it was the cost per point for renting that went up way more than I had anticipated. My desire to stay at Deluxe isn't strong enough to validate or rationalize the huge price difference with our current reservation with POR, especially with diminishing perks.

With confirmed reservations at places like the DVC rental store, do you know, does the point holder set the price for their confirmed dates, or does the store? Just wondering then as the dates grow closer if the point holder then might reduce the sale amount to get someone to take over those dates, or does the store control the pricing?
 
With confirmed reservations at places like the DVC rental store, do you know, does the point holder set the price for their confirmed dates, or does the store? Just wondering then as the dates grow closer if the point holder then might reduce the sale amount to get someone to take over those dates, or does the store control the pricing?
It's my understanding that the owner sets the amount that they would like to get for their confirmed reservation and then the agency tacks on their fees.

There is a filter for "price drops" to apply when browsing DVC Rental Store's confirmed reservations. However, a price drop does not necessarily mean that the rate is reasonable. One price drop that I looked at was still in the $28/point range. My guess is that the owner knows the resort is sold out and if you want to stay there at that time, you'll have to pay the premium price.

DVC owners run up against 2 deadlines. The first deadline is for banking the current year's points into next year. The other deadline is the last day that you can cancel a reservation without the points going into holding. If an owner's points are in holding or cannot be banked, they are considered to be distressed and owners will discount their per-point price. However, it's more likely that the owners who list these speculation reservations will cancel the booking before their points become distressed if they cannot find a renter.
 
Renting points is cheaper but harder if not impossible to cancel if need be.
It's also getting harder to find owners who want to rent (especially for more than 5 nights in one resort) and prices are definitely up. It can be about the same price to book with Disney if discounts are being offered. And then you don't need to worry about cancellation policies. Word is out on renting points!
 
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It's my understanding that the owner sets the amount that they would like to get for their confirmed reservation and then the agency tacks on their fees.

There is a filter for "price drops" to apply when browsing DVC Rental Store's confirmed reservations. However, a price drop does not necessarily mean that the rate is reasonable. One price drop that I looked at was still in the $28/point range. My guess is that the owner knows the resort is sold out and if you want to stay there at that time, you'll have to pay the premium price.

DVC owners run up against 2 deadlines. The first deadline is for banking the current year's points into next year. The other deadline is the last day that you can cancel a reservation without the points going into holding. If an owner's points are in holding or cannot be banked, they are considered to be distressed and owners will discount their per-point price. However, it's more likely that the owners who list these speculation reservations will cancel the booking before their points become distressed if they cannot find a renter.
Thanks - very good info to have on hand. My guess is I'll have better luck getting a room discount at POR vs finding a DVC bargain at one of the stores. Appreciate the explanations.
 
DVC Rental Store has a new cancellation policy:
Cancellation WindowCredit Received
> 120 Days100% of funds paid
120-61 Days75% of total reservation price*
60-16 Days50% of total reservation price
15-4 Days25% of total reservation price
0*
To clarify, you don’t get your money back, you get a credit to use within two years.
 
This seems like a good thread to ask the question about cost of points when renting. We've rented once thru the DVC Rental Store for Vero Beach and had a great experience and I think we paid maybe $17 pt for the rental. We are going to WDW in December and have reservations at POR but I am constantly searching for DVC points to rent for that time frame as it would be the only way to afford Deluxe. Looks like point rentals are now $21+, was shocked at how much they went up. Is that what others are seeing/experiencing? I'm also getting multiple emails a week with confirmed reservations, but I'm not really seeing what I would call "discounted" reservations. In this current environment, not sure if renting points still provides the big discount one would assume it would. As others have stated, my biggest concern pulling the trigger on a point rental is the non refundability of it. When it works it works well, but it comes with a huge caveat.
Overall pricing for DVC has gone up since Covid, a LOT. the rental price had been flat for a long time, I'd say it was time for the price to adjust up. The broker takes a few bucks of that, you can do a little better with individuals, if you want to go that route.
 
DVC Rental Store has a new cancellation policy:
Cancellation WindowCredit Received
> 120 Days100% of funds paid
120-61 Days75% of total reservation price*
60-16 Days50% of total reservation price
15-4 Days25% of total reservation price
0*
If I were to rent my points with a cancellation policy the cost would be much higher. At 15-4 days the points are in the end are almost useless being the restricted booking window for the owner cancelling. When you go back there is still risk if the owner can bank the points but they may still lose the income if they banked in a time frame needed to pay their dues and by looking at precentage the owner will likely see a couple of dollars a point at most as i am sure the agency still gets its fee as they are doing most of the work and financial transactions with are not free either . If you want a better price you would need to find an agency with the same terms as renting direct from an owner -- I can understand renting direct can have more risk -- the terms would be you can not cancel but an owner should work with you for different CLOSE dates at whatever resort that has rooms or multiple resorts for split stays. It is a timeshare and the points have to be used based on a use year. In some direct cases the owner does "make" a lot of money when you figure the dues and lose of a year with the buy in price tack on a middle man fee and cancellation and policy.... It is not for everyone but if you are 100% of your dates and or purchase insurance that would cover such a transaction. People go to great lengths to save 5% buying Disney gift cards which has risk as well. If you want to save there will always be risk but 99+% have 0 issues. I own DVC and personally have only rented once in almost 20 years because I had a lot of extra not something I enjoyed as an owner and not really something I would enjoy being on the other end of as both sides can be an issue being the owner has to pay for any room damage or a room charge that is unpaid both of which have happened as well just as renters have lost money being unable to use the reservation.
 
If we rent DVC points, is there any chance of utilizing other DVC things like the new villain lounge at Contemporary?
 
I've rented points a few times with an upcoming trip, staying at Boardwalk in October.
I don't usually have to worry about canceling since I tend to go 2-3 times a year but if I should have to cancel my reservation, you do not get refunded but you get credited to use 2 years from the cancellation date (I booked with the DVC Rental Store) I technically go for seven night with a one night resort stay at one of the value or moderate resorts on my arrival day and add all my tickets to that one night reservation to make it a pkg. This way if I have to cancel, I can get a full refund for that one night with tickets. I book the other six nights renting points (room only) I have that same type of reservation for next Sept 16-23. Sept 16-17 at Allstar Music suites with seven day parkhopper pkg and booking (have to wait till the 11month mark) either the Polynesian or the Riviera Sept 17-23 renting points.
That’s who we are booked with. I like that you can cancel and use it at a later date.
 







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