Starting My Research, so many questions!

[SomePixiedust]

Don't buy a resort you never plan to stay at. You lose the opportunity to book your stay at 11 months out and have to wait until seven months out with everyone else. It will be hard to book from mid-Sept through the Marathon in January. Buy the resort you think you will like to stay at if you can never swap our your 11 month home resort reservation with a non-home resort reservation.

Thank you. Definitely something that is a con about purchasing AUL. Hopefully the stars will all align and we can hit it right with a sold out resort or CCV.

 

[rg35]

I believe there have been posts made in recent times that DVC used to offer better or special incentives for buying on a cruise, but that they now only offer whatever the current incentive is (so the same as buying on land).

I'd probably make every effort to not buy while on vacation at all, because being "in the moment" can lead people to make poor decisions.

 

[SomePixiedust]

I believe there have been posts made in recent times that DVC used to offer better or special incentives for buying on a cruise, but that they now only offer whatever the current incentive is (so the same as buying on land).

I'd probably make every effort to not buy while on vacation at all, because being "in the moment" can lead people to make poor decisions.

Thank you! That is exactly why we are doing our homework before heading down to Orlando. We won't purchase on our first trip this year and hopefully after that we will have enough info and have done enough research to pull the trigger after the 2nd or 3rd trip.

 

[ELMC]

Thank you. Definitely something that is a con about purchasing AUL. Hopefully the stars will all align and we can hit it right with a sold out resort or CCV.

You keep mentioning Copper Creek, so I think there are two things you should know. First, booking studios at CCV is very competitive, to the point where it might be prohibitive. Second, at $210 per point the price is bordering on punitive. There are much better values at other resorts. So unless you have your heart set on staying at Copper Creek most if not all of the time, I would consider other options as well.

 

[SomePixiedust]

You keep mentioning Copper Creek, so I think there are two things you should know. First, booking studios at CCV is very competitive, to the point where it might be prohibitive. Second, at $210 per point the price is bordering on punitive. There are much better values at other resorts. So unless you have your heart set on staying at Copper Creek most if not all of the time, I would consider other options as well.

We are definitely considering all of our options. Right now we're hoping to get something at one of the "sold out" resorts but will weigh it all when we start inquiring with Disney. Currently there is an offer for $$ off a CCV purchase but that doesn't necessarily sway us. Staying at any particular resort is not a deal breaker for us. We have stayed at most of them and are happy anywhere. We are just keeping CCV in play if we are set on getting something in Orlando to take advantage of the 11 month booking availability. Thanks!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

We are just keeping CCV in play if we are set on getting something in Orlando to take advantage of the 11 month booking availability. Thanks!

The challenge is that many CCV owners are finding themselves locked out of studios at CCV at 11 months in certain seasons. So if you're buying for 11 month priority, but want to travel in fall, you may find yourself holding home resort points with no room at the inn (lodge), waiting for 7 months.

 

[SomePixiedust]

The challenge is that many CCV owners are finding themselves locked out of studios at CCV at 11 months in certain seasons. So if you're buying for 11 month priority, but want to travel in fall, you may find yourself holding home resort points with no room at the inn (lodge), waiting for 7 months.

I'm getting such great information here, I really appreciate it!!

 

[striker1064]

Yep, worth noting CCV is now $220/point, I'm pretty sure.

If you love CCV and will be booking studios, consider a guaranteed week (although you lose out on the incentive).

 

[tgarre06]

Yep, worth noting CCV is now $220/point, I'm pretty sure.

If you love CCV and will be booking studios, consider a guaranteed week (although you lose out on the incentive).

What is a guaranteed week?

 

[striker1064]

What is a guaranteed week?

For some reason I can't find the DVC page for regular guaranteed weeks, but here's the page for runDisney guaranteed event weeks:

https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/rundisney-weeks/
A guaranteed week works the way a traditional timeshare works - you buy enough points for one week of the year that you want to return every year, buy an additional 10% in points, and DVC books the week for you either right before or right after the 11 month window opens. However, you still have the ability to change or even cancel the week and use your points however you wish.

The downside is you must purchase an additional 10% in points. For example, we have a CCV runDisney guaranteed week for Wine and Dine weekend, which is I believe week 44 specifically. On the points chart at the time we bought, that week was 107 points for a studio. We had to buy an extra 10%, so 11 points, so we have a total of 118 points per year. DVC books the studio for us, and it costs the full 118 points, so we do pay a premium over everyone else.

The upside is, the points costs never goes up. If DVC adjusts the points charts and that week now costs 120 points to book, we still only have to use our 118 points and we get the whole week. (This applies if the week is adjusted down, to, say, 95 points. We pay a bigger premium.) We get a hard to book room (CCV studio) during a very busy week (Food & Wine) and a very busy weekend (Wine & Dine race weekend).

If you love CCV, travel mostly during the same time every year, and want to book studios, consider a guaranteed week. You will save yourself a lot of headache and hassle down the line, as studios are not getting any easier to book.

The bad thing here is if you're buying a week during a hard to book low points cost week, you'll miss out on incentives for CCV (they currently start at 155 points). According to the 2021 points chart, it would be necessary to buy a guaranteed week during Easter or between Christmas and New Years (183 points per week) to get an incentive, or you'd have to buy more than one guaranteed week. $220/point is quite a large premium to pay for guaranteed bookings. But if you're already considering 100 points direct at CCV and know you'll go around the same time every year, an extra 18 points isn't a huge amount.

 

[Philsfan77]

What is a guaranteed week?

You buy a specific week...similar to how many typical timeshares work. Say you wanted to travel in early December typically...you'd buy week 49 or 50...they make you buy a few extra points than the week currently costs (10% more), and that locks you into that week every year. However, it doesn't limit you in the sense that you can still call member services and cancel your fixed week and then the points will be released to your account (I believe thats the process anyways) and you can use them at any time of the year.

If I was looking for studios and wanted CCV, and planned to go typically at anytime from October-December (definitely in December), i'd buy a fixed week just for the peace of mind of knowing that any year when i want to go in early December, I could.

 

[sethschroeder]

Are guaranteed weeks still available for CCV?

DVC sales is closed until further notice otherwise I would ask them.

 

[MB_Ellie]

Are guaranteed weeks still available for CCV?

DVC sales is closed until further notice otherwise I would ask them.

I don't think guaranteed weeks are being offered anymore for CCV. I believe it is now only for Riviera.

 

[E2ME2]

We are definitely considering all of our options. Right now we're hoping to get something at one of the "sold out" resorts but will weigh it all when we start inquiring with Disney. Currently there is an offer for $$ off a CCV purchase but that doesn't necessarily sway us. Staying at any particular resort is not a deal breaker for us. We have stayed at most of them and are happy anywhere. We are just keeping CCV in play if we are set on getting something in Orlando to take advantage of the 11 month booking availability. Thanks!

If you truly wouldn't mind staying anywhere, I would consider SSR for a home resort. We have 3 contracts there (or will after the current resale contract closes)
We've been extremely happy there, and have had decent success getting other resorts at 7 Mo. You might also consider this, if you're planning to add on incrementally:
If you buy resale first, you can snatch the best looking resale offer at SSR based on price per, and number of points. Then it will be easier to add on Direct with the same use year (& add the 100 pt. minimum direct to get your blue card). We bought direct, unaware of the resale market at the time. When addonitis hit us, it made it harder to find the right resale contract with the same use year. It took years to find the right match for us! Regardless of your choice, I hope you find the perfect contract(s) to make you happy at DVC for a long time!
ET

 

[striker1064]

Are guaranteed weeks still available for CCV?

DVC sales is closed until further notice otherwise I would ask them.

It was brought up once or twice in the CCV thread on the Resorts board and as far as anyone knows, they were still available up through January or February. With no sales going on right now that means CCV still isn't quite totally sold out, so my guess is they'll still sell you a guaranteed week when sales reopen.

 

[Philsfan77]

Are guaranteed weeks still available for CCV?

DVC sales is closed until further notice otherwise I would ask them.

This topic came up on the CCV owners thread, and I went back through my emails because I had reached out to my guide to get verified information directly from him. As of February 20th, when I emailed him, you could still purchase a fixed week studio for November-End of December. I only asked about this time frame, because its the toughest time to get a studio at CCV. My assumption is that, if those weeks were all still available, any fixed week studio throughout the rest of the year would also be available.

 

[sethschroeder]

This topic came up on the CCV owners thread, and I went back through my emails because I had reached out to my guide to get verified information directly from him. As of February 20th, when I emailed him, you could still purchase a fixed week studio for November-End of December. I only asked about this time frame, because its the toughest time to get a studio at CCV. My assumption is that, if those weeks were all still available, any fixed week studio throughout the rest of the year would also be available.

Ya I have an email in to my guide that I talked to last June. Just waiting on DVC Direct to reopen. I am somewhat surprised they are not working reduced hours.

 

[ChipNdale8887]

Ya I have an email in to my guide that I talked to last June. Just waiting on DVC Direct to reopen. I am somewhat surprised they are not working reduced hours.

Me also. Our guides email auto replied that their offices are closed. Maybe they are having trouble setting up to work from home? Or maybe they thought the idea of selling timeshares at the time isn't the best idea? Not sure but they have now been shut down for a month come thursday.

 

[dclpluto]

Going to be lots of resales coming because of this virus . I will wait and get a good deal.
lots of people will need the money. Than there are going to be lots of members pissed off if dvc doesn’t do the right thing.
even if dvc does the right thing still will be a lot.

 

[ChipNdale8887]

Going to be lots of resales coming because of this virus . I will wait and get a good deal.
lots of people will need the money. Than there are going to be lots of members pissed off if dvc doesn’t do the right thing.
even if dvc does the right thing still will be a lot.

I agree! Anyone thats planning on selling a Poly, CCV, or Bay Lake contract for June, hit me up! I'm interested! But for real. Itll be interesting to see how fast or slow prices drop. Lots of people that financed their DVC purchase that lost their jobs will be needing to sell if money gets tight.