Riveria direct

[CVTmarie23]

We took a tour today of the bwv today and they sent us to riveria which we fell in love with. We are still waiting on details but buying direct 300 points at riveria gave the biggest discount on price per point ($178pp).

We had the intention to purchase resale contracts but have been hesitant because of the restrictions and not being able to stay at the riveria.

We have 3 young children and are 2 hours away. We usually rent points and stay in studios at the poly because of the room sizes. We have done 1 bedrooms and will probably start booking those more as the kids get older.

I know we could save a significant amount by purchasing resale but I don't love the idea of not being able to stay at the riveria or other future resorts. Other resales we have looked at had prices of 150-170/point (we haven't looked much) so it doesn't seem like a huge huge jump for this particular incentive.

If we decided to rent points out that we wouldn't use, is that hard to do? What kind of prices can you get for them? We really like the riveria and are ok paying more for that incentive but i was so set on doing a resale that this feels like I am missing something.

 

[JETSDAD]

If you do buy 300 points I would just recommend having it broken up into a few smaller contracts if possible. Renting points for 7-11 month reservations at $17-20 shouldn't be too hard if you're willing to rent them out yourself. You could also use a broker if you're ok with getting a bit less.

 

[CVTmarie23]

If you do buy 300 points I would just recommend having it broken up into a few smaller contracts if possible. Renting points for 7-11 month reservations at $17-20 shouldn't be too hard if you're willing to rent them out yourself. You could also use a broker if you're ok with getting a bit less.

What's the benefit of having them broken up? Do they allow this when buying direct? In order to get the lowest price we would need to buy $300, any less than that it goes up in price.

 

[JETSDAD]

What's the benefit of having them broken up? Do they allow this when buying direct? In order to get the lowest price we would need to buy $300, any less than that it goes up in price.

If you ever go to resell or want to just downsize a bit, the smaller contracts are easier to sell and sell for a higher price. Generally they allow you to break it up and still get the same discount.

 

[npatellye]

What's the benefit of having them broken up? Do they allow this when buying direct? In order to get the lowest price we would need to buy $300, any less than that it goes up in price.

As noted above, in case you ever choose to sell, it is easier to sell smaller contracts. Yes, they do allow you to break up your points into smaller contracts but, for new members, at least one contract needs to be the minimum (currently 150 points). You will still receive the discounts based on the total points purchased. So you can get two 150 point contracts, a 150 and two 75s, etc. and still receive the 300 point pricing.

 

[CVTmarie23]

As noted above, in case you ever choose to sell, it is easier to sell smaller contracts. Yes, they do allow you to break up your points into smaller contracts but, for new members, at least one contract needs to be the minimum (currently 150 points). You will still receive the discounts based on the total points purchased. So you can get two 150 point contracts, a 150 and two 75s, etc. and still receive the 300 point pricing.

Ok thanks! Is this more difficult to manage as far as booking or renting points?

 

[npatellye]

Ok thanks! Is this more difficult to manage as far as booking or renting points?

It is pretty easy to manage for booking points; we have not yet rented our points out (we just use them and then bank whatever is left). We split our initial purchase into two contracts and it works just fine since everything is in the same use year and at the same resort. Good luck!

 

[pianomanzano]

Another option is to get a fixed week. If there's a particular week that you're interested in and worried about availability for that time period (like in the fall for food and wine, christmas, etc.). They'll automatically book that week for you every year. Great thing is there's a lot of flexibility with the fixed week. You don't have to actually book that fixed week and can use those points however you'd like. I'm missing a lot of details (amount of points required, "sellability" of a fixed week in the future) that you can probably look up through searches on this forum, but just wanted to throw that out as an option since I haven't seen it brought up yet.

 

[DVChris]

I would also look into a guaranteed week, especially for your first block of points (minimum 150). With Riviera’s resale restriction, if you want a standard view studio, it will be harder and harder to get as time passes.

 

[Sandisw]

Ok thanks! Is this more difficult to manage as far as booking or renting points?

When the contracts are in the same membership and the same resort, even though you have different contracts, they function as if they were one big contract when going to book. So, from that aspect, 300 in one contract, for two 150 point contracts give the same booking benefits.

You will pay a little more in closing costs to do this, but as mentioned, it does allow you to sell some of the points down the road, and still keep the benefits associated with the one contract that is required to be 150.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

We have 300 points at Riviera, and I think it's a really great amount. Echoing PP, have it split into 150x2, especially if you plan to pass the points on to the kids and would like each to get a contract without having to share/rotate points as adults. I agree, too, the incentives bring RR to many resale resorts with fewer years. We've done four stays at Riviera and love it more and more. I heard, anecdotally, that RR is becoming very hard to get into, so you definitely would want the home court advantage for 11-month booking.

Congratulations! What use year are you thinking?

 

[The Jackal]

You do not need a single contract of 150 points. You just need them to equal 150 or higher. The have guaranteed weeks that are less than 150 points. They have to be a separate contract, let’s say it is 133 points for the FW. You would then have a second contract for at least 17 points to satisfy the new member 150 point minimum. So in a few years we should see a few low point RIV contracts on the resale side.

 

[Royal Consort]

You do not need a single contract of 150 points. You just need them to equal 150 or higher. The have guaranteed weeks that are less than 150 points. They have to be a separate contract, let’s say it is 133 points for the FW. You would then have a second contract for at least 17 points to satisfy the new member 150 point minimum. So in a few years we should see a few low point RIV contracts on the resale side.

You could get the fixed week but the second contract would have to be a minimum of at least 25 as that is the smallest they will sell.


If you are buying 300 points I wouldn't bother with a fixed week, especially if you're planning on one bedrooms down the track. I would split it into 2 x 150 point contracts like other posters suggested.

 

[Sandisw]

You do not need a single contract of 150 points. You just need them to equal 150 or higher. The have guaranteed weeks that are less than 150 points. They have to be a separate contract, let’s say it is 133 points for the FW. You would then have a second contract for at least 17 points to satisfy the new member 150 point minimum. So in a few years we should see a few low point RIV contracts on the resale side.

First time buyers do. Disney has been pretty strict on this for a while that the first contract must be at least the new minimum.

The only exception is when you are buying a fixed week.

 

[Disneynewb0001]

If you have a fixed week, do you still have to book it at 11 months to guarantee that you get it? Are there any downsides to a fixed week?

 

[swaysui]

How much more is a fixed week?

 

[Disneynewb0001]

We took a tour today of the bwv today and they sent us to riveria which we fell in love with. We are still waiting on details but buying direct 300 points at riveria gave the biggest discount on price per point ($178pp).

I hadn’t been tracking much on RIV, has this discount been in place for a while or is this a short term discount, and if so, how long is it expected to be in place? Typically, what are the closing costs if buying direct?

 

[CVTmarie23]

We have 300 points at Riviera, and I think it's a really great amount. Echoing PP, have it split into 150x2, especially if you plan to pass the points on to the kids and would like each to get a contract without having to share/rotate points as adults. I agree, too, the incentives bring RR to many resale resorts with fewer years. We've done four stays at Riviera and love it more and more. I heard, anecdotally, that RR is becoming very hard to get into, so you definitely would want the home court advantage for 11-month booking.

Congratulations! What use year are you thinking?

From what we were told this was the best value with the current incentives. If we purchase less the price pp. is higher.

I am concerned about availability. I would hate to do this and never be able to actually use it. Currently, we do not plan ahead that far. We are within 2 hours and sometimes plan trips further out but more often than not we are within a few months. We are very flexible and have been renting points for years. We basically pick a date range and then go with whatever rental we can find for those dates. I'd love to have the flexibility to book on my own vs having to play the waiting/booking game of trying to rent points. Sometimes we have been very lucky and found people who have aggressively searched for us and we have had some very good deals. For example, I'd love to be able to look and say here's a random Tuesday at riveria or poly, let's go then and we have the flexibility to do that. Right now we rent about 10 nights a year. We would do more if it was easier to book.

How much availability is there at 2/3 months out? We tend to go in Sept and Dec and jan each year so those we can book ahead but I'd love to be able to view the availability for 2/3 months out and do random available nights in addition to that. We have stayed at most resorts and certainly have our favorites but really like being able to stay at a variety of places.

We are basically trying to figure out if it's worth owning vs continuing to rent forever. We have been successful with renting for the most part but prices are getting higher and it seems like it really depends on the person booking for us as to availability. Many times I've been told no availability at all but one person and then one person will get back to me saying they found it and held it for me and I confirm and take it. I definitely think we would use to a lot more if I was able to view the availability on my own.

 

[Disneynewb0001]

Also, when buying direct, is Disney willing to negotiate on price, if so, do they budge much? I’ve always been locked into buying resale, and I probably still am, so I haven’t spent time researching a direct buy. Apologize if answers to my questions have been addressed in other threads.

 

[CVTmarie23]

I hadn’t been tracking much on RIV, has this discount been in place for a while or is this a short term discount, and if so, how long is it expected to be in place? Typically, what are the closing costs if buying direct?

This current deal is good until Dec 14th. Not sure how long it's been going on. We honestly went in to see the deal on boardwalk villas and from what we were told this was the better contract for us because of the length of the contract. We also love the riveria rooms much more.