Tell me the problems (if any) you have had buying resale and would you buy direct or resale for initial purchase?

[Type1ofaKind]

I thought I had it all figured out a few months ago- buy 150 points direct at AKV!! But no, I started looking more into DVC and the husband was like "I don't know about all of that." So here I am every week with questions when I really just need to make a decision and go with it!

Those of you that have bought resale, have you had any issues with the actual purchase? I read a few posts (not necessarily on this site) about people not getting the points that they thought they purchased. For example, points that were supposed to be banked had already been used. How likely is this to happen and what advice to prevent getting screwed over?

For initial purchase, do you all recommend buying direct or resale and why? We would like to purchase 150 points now and more points down the road. We are in our 40s but I am able to retire in 6-7 years due to working in a government job. Our youngest child would only be 9 then so we/I would be taking the kids to Disney even more!

And if I can throw in one more question just to see opinions would you all buy AKV direct (not much of a difference from resale with their current promotion) or buy BRV resale?

Thank you all for your help!

 

[gregskellington]

I would buy resale first if you think, assume, or know you will have both. Disney will work to match your UY if you already are a member. Doing that work yourself when buying resale might not be ideal.

I haven't looked at AKV direct vs resale in awhile but I personally am not purchasing a sold out resort direct. Last time I looked at the price difference it wasn't nearly close enough for me. I wouldn't purchase a 2042 resort, either, though (direct or resale), so I'd be going without DVC in your situation.

The direct v resale question is different for everyone. If you don't want to stay at Riveria regularly I think it's a bad idea to buy direct. But that's just my opinion.

 

[CarolynFH]

Those of you that have bought resale, have you had any issues with the actual purchase? I read a few posts (not necessarily on this site) about people not getting the points that they thought they purchased. For example, points that were supposed to be banked had already been used. How likely is this to happen and what advice to prevent getting screwed over?

There have been posts about that here as well. Make sure that the purchase contract includes a clause that imposes a penalty (I've read something like $20 a point) for any points that are missing at time of closing. Many of the resale agencies that are well known here include that clause routinely, but not all do. And of course, read the purchase contract carefully before you sign it to make sure that all points you thought you were buying, based on the listing, are included in the contract itself.

 

[MICKIMINI]

With a young family and many years of magic yet to enjoy, I would actually buy 150 points direct. I believe the current promotion ends on the 15th? AKV is at $186 and IMO set to go higher - just my thought. If you buy now and the next promotion is better, you can have your guide rewrite your contract. If you wait until the new promotion, it is too late to go back and get the old (if better).

Make sure you check the charts and get what you need for points and a buffer if you can afford it. Those value villas are hard to get - just sayin'! You can ask for the UY you want.

We own both direct and resale. Read your contract and have the broker change anything not correct. I have found math errors and typos multiple times. You have to wait for your perfect contract to be offered and be ready to pounce immediately if the price is right. Yes, we have had sellers that are slow, brokers that are not good at communicating and long ROFR waits, however it is only three months or so in the many decades you will be owners. Once you have direct points, you can start your Disney lifestyle, plan your vacations and buy resale at your leisure.

As far as looking for a resale I recommend writing down your perfect contract, UY, price and available banked points. Keep it handy so you don't second guess yourself when you contract shows up on a random day, you put off making an offer and lose to another buyer. The market is strong, however a stale contract may be more negotiable. You can also ask for the seller to pay closing costs and/or MF's with a full price offer (my best strategy). Do the math ahead with different options and go with the one that might be most appealing to the seller. I always have a counter offer ready as well!

Good luck!

 

[hudakjr]

I’m in a very similar boat as you. We are debating on which way to go also (resale vs direct). Our options are either animal kingdom resale, direct or Riviera direct. The resale value really makes me nervous on Riviera. And as u said there is not a lot of difference b/c animal kingdom direct vs resale especially since most resale contracts there are no points available for a while. Also, u may be able to get “double points” if u go direct depending on your use year u get.

If the perfect resale contract appears we may do that but my wife wants to be able to stay at riviera so she is pushing direct.
Im very interested to see what the direct November sales look like as that may give an indication as to where the prices are headed

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

One thing with BRV is that its expiration date is 2042. That may or may not be long enough for you but definitely resale for it. AKV is 2057 expiration.

 

[Epcot Forever Forever]

I read a few posts (not necessarily on this site) about people not getting the points that they thought they purchased. For example, points that were supposed to be banked had already been used. How likely is this to happen and what advice to prevent getting screwed over?

This is 100% preventable. Use a reputable title agency, don’t buy in like eBay or a site that doesn’t specialize in DVC (giveaways are things like listing the actual unit or not listing the points available by year), and triple check every piece of paper you are sent. You can bail if something is wrong all the way up until closing. Disney should be verifying exactly what is available on the contract prior to closing, your title agency will help with that if you use one of the ones people recommend here.

 

[Epcot Forever Forever]

Personally if BRV resale it AKV direct were my only two options I’d take the BRV resale but I think reasonable arguments could be made either way! I’d prefer to keep the extra cash, and reevaluate what I want to do for vacations in 2041.

 

[Wedgeout]

Personal experience. Bought resale first. It went smooth. I wasn’t in a rush and saved $100 per point from what direct was at that time. Starting with resale will give you more contract options because initially you will have multiple UY’s to select from to get your best purchase value. IMO the only reason to later buy direct is either to become a blue card member or have qualified points to use at RIV and beyond.

 

[kanerf]

I bought resale first as a kind of trial run. I later purchased direct at the same resort and use year.

 

[ldo]

Bought resale 3x from dvcstore. No issues. I have read that reputable brokers audit the points (and as I seller I know they did) and make it right in the rare cases there’s a snafu.

 

[Ssplashhmtn]

No issues with resale here, over 1000 points from 6 resale purchases for 2 different resorts (VGF, PVB), and we have been happy with all of them. I like knowing that we could sell anytime for roughly what we paid (less broker commissions), and get back out if we change our mind about where we want to vacation. That would not be the case if we had paid direct prices.

That said, as a resale buyer, we do not have access to Riviera. We don’t have any interest in staying at Riviera, so it’s ok, but that could be a drawback. We figure we can just rent out some of our points and pay cash to stay at Riviera if we ever want to do so.

Resale is a no-brainer in my opinion. In any case DVC far exceeds the alternative. We wish we had made the DVC leap a decade ago.

 

[D-Trick]

Count me as another vote for resale first, then direct after you try it out to see if you really need to purchase direct.

 

[Lorana]

Resale first gives you access to existing member incentives, which is nice. However, as you noted, the price difference between AKV direct and resale with current incentives is not that huge. Also, purchasing direct not only gives you member benefits, but you can use those points at Riviera, DLT, and any future resorts being built. Many won’t consider that worth it, but I certainly do! If it were me, I’d grab the direct AKV incentive right now. It expires on 12/15 and if the incentives that come out on 12/16 are better, you’re within your 10 day window and can ask your guide to switch you to the new incentives. And if not, then you’ve gotten the better direct incentive.

 

[Stargazer65]

Those of you that have bought resale, have you had any issues with the actual purchase? I read a few posts (not necessarily on this site) about people not getting the points that they thought they purchased. For example, points that were supposed to be banked had already been used. How likely is this to happen and what advice to prevent getting screwed over?

I bought two resales last year, two different brokers. I had one issue with one of the contracts - One contract was supposed to have 100 points in the 2020 use year, when it loaded I only got 50 2020 points plus 46 banked 2019 points. I showed the broker the discrepancy and was reimbursed by the seller, and the broker tacked on a few free nights at Vero to my Feb 2021 vacation as compensation for the inconvenience. I don't totally understand how the mistake was made and not picked up, but from the sellers standpoint, they had a lot of contracts and just got confused as to which points were which. The broker was a well known professional broker, so this can happen to anyone even if it is rare. They made good on it with me, and I would deal with them again, and do resale again.

All you have to do is make sure the contract stipulates what points are in it, and that there is a clause that specifies how you would be reimbursed if it was not so. This is pretty standard and the contracts are not that complicated to read.

 

[starry_solo]

Resale first gives you access to existing member incentives, which is nice. However, as you noted, the price difference between AKV direct and resale with current incentives is not that huge. Also, purchasing direct not only gives you member benefits, but you can use those points at Riviera, DLT, and any future resorts being built. Many won’t consider that worth it, but I certainly do! If it were me, I’d grab the direct AKV incentive right now. It expires on 12/15 and if the incentives that come out on 12/16 are better, you’re within your 10 day window and can ask your guide to switch you to the new incentives. And if not, then you’ve gotten the better direct incentive.

Ooh, what are the incentives?

 

[Lorana]

Ooh, what are the incentives?

https://dvcnews.com/dvc-program/fin...centives-generally-improve-for-a-limited-time
There are better incentives for RIV, AUL, and BWV, but for AKV:

Finally, Disney Vacation Club is also offering modest discounts at four other older properties: Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas, Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Polynesian Villas & Bungalows and Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney's Wilderness Lodge.

New Member Discounts - Sold Out

150-174 points: $5 off per point
175-199 points: $6 off
200-249 points: $10 off
250-299 points: $12 off
300-499 points: $14 off
500-999 points: $16 off
1000+ points: $18 off

Existing Member Add-On Discounts - Sold Out

150-174 points: $8 off per point
175-199 points: $9 off
200-249 points: $13 off
250-299 points: $15 off
300-499 points: $17 off
500-999 points: $19 off
1000+ points: $21 off

Aside from an additional $1 savings at the lowest level, these incentives remain unchanged from earlier in the fall.

Base prices are currently $186 for Animal Kingdom, $245 for Bay Lake Tower, $210 for BoardWalk, $250 for Polynesian and $225 for Copper Creek.

 

[jbreen2010]

No issues here on the actual purchase. I was happy with the price. The timing isn't great - could take 3-4 months to go from offer to points in an account...but if you're a planner and have some time, it's worth saving the money. Also being a resale member only, I don't have a "blue card", so disney has categorized we resale only owners into this category. We wouldn't be eligable for certain benefits such as a discounted annual pass...or 10% off perks. The "perks" are subject to change at any time though, so these are not a reason to buy direct. Also, the restaurants that offer a 10% DVC member discount don't know if you're a blue or white card member when you mobile order...i've gotten the 10% discount at a handful of places!

 

[EYL]

I bought resale first and had no issues other than you have to train yourself to be patient. My ROFR went in right when they announced the resale restrictions so there was a surge of people buying to make the January 19, 2019 deadline. I crossed my fingers that my contract wouldn't be stuck in the queue. Took about 2 months (remember, this was the beginning of 2019) and points were in the contract a week later. I really think it's the best to go since the money saved is worth it (saved over $16,000 versus direct on a 200pt PVB contract). You can also choose and scoop up nice deals. I got a contract with banked points, so it felt like I had a lot more points to work with.

If you're worried about points not matching up, just use a reputable broker. The purchasing contract should state the exact points in the sale and indicate penalties from the seller if even 1 point is missing. My contract did not have this language with First American at the time, though, but I have heard others who do.

 

[cruisehopeful]

I had a great experience buying resale. I will be buying retail when the DLT comes out because I want it immediately and there won't be any resales. Buying from a broker with a good reputation should be safe if you want resale.