tempted to buy in, but is it worth it?

[abminer]

I have been considering DVC for a long time. My Dad and I even went on a tour of OKW before it opened! What I have never been able to figure out is if it would save me anything over regular WDW discounts...

I have always figured it was out of my price range and would be an emotional purchase (I love the idea of owning some of the magic), not a practical one. Then earlier this week I did the phone pitch with DVC to get the $25 gift card for our October trip. The guy did not put on the "hard sell," but he managed to get us thinking anyway. I could buy in at 60 pts in BCV, which is where we'd want to be (or BWV). I like the idea of buying from Disney for the most flexibility. The cost was far lower than I expected, I could just write a check, and the dues weren't as bad as I'd anticipated.

But, it's just the two of us (for now ) and we don't go every year - we've gone every other year since '05 (our favorite time of year is October when we have our anniversary). I am sure there will be times we can't even go that often. Then there's the fact that I get a fair number of PIN codes and have done free dining three times.

My parents just retired and love WDW and Dsis and her hubby are trying to get pregnant for the first time. I see us all going to WDW for many years to come.

I guess I'm wondering if renting out our points when we can't use them would allow us to "break even?" Would that make it worth the buy-in over just taking whatever discounts WDW offers for regular visitors or even renting DVC points?

I know this is a very personal decision for everyone, but any advice would be great to hear.

 

[disneynutz]

You have to work the numbers to see which is better, discounts or owning DVC.

IMO renting points from a owner is the best deal if you want to stay in a DVC resort. You can vacation when you want, where you want without dealing with the rules and restrictions that owners have. I would guess that 90% of the current owners don't use their points for anywhere outside of Disney so for most flexibility isn't truly important.

Bill

 

[Kidanifan08]

It is a very personal decision. It is a purchase that you could own anywhere from 30-50 years, depending on what resort you prefer.

For someone like you, who has gone to WDW every other year for 6-7 years, it could work. If you wanted to buy in, you could buy half the number of points that you need for a single stay and use them every other year with banking of points. Since you like to go in October, the Epcot resorts (Boardwalk and Beach Club) can't be beat for the easy access to Epcot Food and Wine.

The resale market is a great way to get in cheaply. You can't use you points for the Disney Cruise Line, Adventures by Disney, or the Disney Collection, but most would say that those are not a good use of points anyway. Buying direct from Disney could cost you almost twice what a resale would cost, depending on which resort you want as your "home".

Look at the points charts for the different resorts and decide how many points you need for the room type, length of stay, and the time of year that you generally travel. Then look at the resales. Again, you could buy half the points for a single stay, if you plan to travel every other year.

Spend alot of time searching these boards. There are some real experts out here who have amazing tips on optimizing your DVC ownership.

 

[abminer]

The resale market is a great way to get in cheaply. You can't use you points for the Disney Cruise Line, Adventures by Disney, or the Disney Collection, but most would say that those are not a good use of points anyway.

I've read that Disney Collection and DCL aren't good values on several threads, but why? It could be fun to try lots and lots of resorts and we very much want to try DCL. I can't imagine paying for DVC and having to give Disney more $ later oop. Am I off track here?

 

[duckygirl]

I am new to this board, but not new to DVC. The resale market is definitely your best bet right now. You can get deals that are 30-40% off the direct rates.

The Disney Collection, ABD, etc. take an enormous amount of points compared to just regular DVC resorts. Yes, many DVCr's do this, but if you look at the charts, it is better to just stay at DVC. IMHO I agree with the previous poster that you would be better off buying a smaller contract, banking and/or borrowing points. You can always add on if you feel the need. We own at BLT and just purchased another identical BLT contract resale.

 

[Kidanifan08]

I've read that Disney Collection and DCL aren't good values on several threads, but why? It could be fun to try lots and lots of resorts and we very much want to try DCL. I can't imagine paying for DVC and having to give Disney more $ later oop. Am I off track here?

The number of points required per person is ridiculous! It is much better to pay cash and either rent your points or use them for WDW. This is especially true if you buy resale - the money you save may get you a Disney Cruise. I don't know if there is someplace to look at the points required for DCL -- maybe someone else can provide a public website.

We plan to do DCL in the next 2-3 years, but would definitely pay cash and use our DVC points for WDW. And we even bought direct from Disney initially. I have done two add-ons since then on the resale market.

 

[Kidanifan08]

I am new to this board, but not new to DVC. The resale market is definitely your best bet right now. You can get deals that are 30-40% off the direct rates.

The Disney Collection, ABD, etc. take an enormous amount of points compared to just regular DVC resorts. Yes, many DVCr's do this, but if you look at the charts, it is better to just stay at DVC. IMHO I agree with the previous poster that you would be better off buying a smaller contract, banking and/or borrowing points. You can always add on if you feel the need. We own at BLT and just purchased another identical BLT contract resale.

Congrats on your purchase and welcome to the DISboards. Addonitis can become an incurable condition, so watch out. . .

 

[duckygirl]

Congrats on your purchase and welcome to the DISboards. Addonitis can become an incurable condition, so watch out. . .

Thank you! I just passed ROFR on my second contract. Waiting for the the final paperwork.

 

[AnnaS]

I have been considering DVC for a long time. My Dad and I even went on a tour of OKW before it opened! What I have never been able to figure out is if it would save me anything over regular WDW discounts...

I have always figured it was out of my price range and would be an emotional purchase (I love the idea of owning some of the magic), not a practical one. Then earlier this week I did the phone pitch with DVC to get the $25 gift card for our October trip. The guy did not put on the "hard sell," but he managed to get us thinking anyway. I could buy in at 60 pts in BCV, which is where we'd want to be (or BWV). I like the idea of buying from Disney for the most flexibility. The cost was far lower than I expected, I could just write a check, and the dues weren't as bad as I'd anticipated.

But, it's just the two of us (for now ) and we don't go every year - we've gone every other year since '05 (our favorite time of year is October when we have our anniversary). I am sure there will be times we can't even go that often. Then there's the fact that I get a fair number of PIN codes and have done free dining three times.

My parents just retired and love WDW and Dsis and her hubby are trying to get pregnant for the first time. I see us all going to WDW for many years to come.

I guess I'm wondering if renting out our points when we can't use them would allow us to "break even?" Would that make it worth the buy-in over just taking whatever discounts WDW offers for regular visitors or even renting DVC points?

I know this is a very personal decision for everyone, but any advice would be great to hear.

This is just my opinion and many will not agree. If you are able to buy directly from Disney 60 points for the first time and would go to Disney every other year - or two - if you learn the ropes of banking and borrowing, I would prefer to buy through Disney. Simple, quick and definitely more flexible. Before you know it, you will visit Disney more often and will add-on as soon as you can afford to. My other suggestion is to buy only what you can afford and are comfortable with.

Good luck with your decision and keep us posted.

 

[GoofItUp]

If you are looking to buy only 60 points or so (very reasonable -- we started with just 100 points at BCV) then I would really weigh the numbers out for buying resale. Resale is considerably cheaper and 60 points will not get you very far in the other categories. In fact, I don't think you could book a cruise or ABD trip if you banked/borrowed and used 3 years worth of points.

 

[SabresFan]

You definitely sound like a good candidate for ownership. But 60 points is a very small contract for it being your only one. The main thing is to look at the point charts and see if it gives you enough for what you want to do. I just checked Beach Club for October, and a studio in October at Beach Club goes for 107 points for a week - so with banking, you could go every other year on a 60 point contract. So if that is what you are after, then you are OK there. But if you want a 1 BR Villa, that takes 211 points - and you can't do that even going once every three years, since you would only have 180 points to spend. Also, studios are often the first to go, so if you want October at Beach Club or Boardwalk in a studio, you have to book 11 months in advance, or basically forget it.

I'm not sure what price Disney quoted you - probably at least $120 per point for Beach Club or Boardwalk. You can easily get Beach Club resale for $80 per point and also pass ROFR, and Boardwalk is heading down into the $50 per point range. So you could easily buy 120 points resale for Boardwalk for the same price as 60 points direct from Disney.

And with a 60 point contract, you would never have enough points to take a cruise, given how many points those require, even with banking and borrowing. So losing the ability to go on a cruise with points because you bought resale is meaningless to you.

IMHO, the most important thing is to have lots of points. After that, where you own is important if you can plan 8 to 11 months in advance. If you are always booking your vacation 6 months in advance, then points is points and it doesn't matter where you own (although there will be some resorts and times that you won't be able to get into because they are booked up already).

Good luck with your decision!

 

[arthur06]

I think that the current price from Disney on BWV or BCV is $115 from Disney. If you are looking at BCV, then direct from Disney is the way to go, IMHO. You get the amount of points you want, the UY that works best for you, and BCV for a small contract can fetch (usually) $80 or higher.

However, if you want BWV's, then those contracts usually go on resale for $50 to $70 and the savings is more considerable. I would buy BWV's resale before I would buy direct.

 

[abminer]

Right now, we're looking to go just the two of us every other year for 4 nights in a studio (if available). I really don't want to buy more than about 75 points first. We could add-on later. The Disney sales rep I spoke to said we could only save points for 2 years, but some of you are saying we could bank three. Is that true?

Can you recoop your annual dues by renting out your points now and then?

 

[AnnaS]

Say you bought now - you received 60 points, you would bank them. You would book your vacation for 2012 and you would use your 2011 (banked), 2012 (current for that year/trip) and borrow from 2013 (no points that year but you could always borrow from 2014 into 2013 not giving you much, etc. etc. You can skip a vacation that year 2013 and start again 2014.

 

[abminer]

Then 60 points could work.

If you buy resale, can you still use points at VGC and Aulani?

Maybe we'll go peak around BCV (and BWV) while we're there in August, that could help confirm is BCV is really worth the higher cost (though I prefer the amenities). Is BCV due for refurb any time soon?

There is a lot to think about here (thanks for helping me realize that), so I'm going to hold off buying in for now and maybe watch the resale market. I'm still more interested in buying direct, but if an amazing resale deal came along...

 

[VrBchJ]

News to me that you can buy only 60 points at BCV. The least I've heard of DVC selling was 100 points at the resorts that were currently on sale. I wonder what it means if they will now sell just 60 points for an intial purchase at BCV.

 

[Sammie]

Am I glad I bought in the 90s. Yes prices were low.

Would I buy now, no prices are too high for the worth.

Am I glad I still have it till 2042, no.

 

[tinkandme]

You have a lot of great replys here, but if it helps buying into DVC was the best thig I have ever done with my money. We bought in in 1996 on our honeymoon, best gift ever! We have brought our extended family and friends many times so was happy to have the extra points, we bought 2 more contracts since. It is your choice, and use a level head. Howeverf, if you think you can afford it, I say do it! I'm not sure how resale works, but you can't beat DVC member services.
Good Luck in your decision!
~Kim

 

[JimMIA]

In your situation, my ranking of your options would be as follows:

1. Rent from DVC owners first, use codes and special promotions as a backup. This is going to give you the lowest cost overall, and with no obligation.
2. Buy resale. If you can reliably schedule and book vacations more than seven months in advance, AND where you stay matters a great deal to you, consider buying where you want to stay. If EITHER of those criteria don't fit you, buy at SSR or OKW for the lower buyin and considerably lower dues.
3. Buy direct. Personally, I would NOT do this...period. Honestly, if I HAD to buy DVC direct, I wouldn't purchase at all; I'd be looking at offsite options for a tiny fraction of the cost. I also think you might not be able to buy the small number of points you want direct as a new purchaser.

Cost comparisons:
Here's a look at cost comparisons for various resorts, including buying direct or resale at prevailing prices + your annual dues.

These calculations are based on two erroneous assumptions, but there is no other way I can think of to do an accurate comparison otherwise. The two assumptions are that you keep the contract until it expires (you won't), and if you resell it, you would net zero (that's not as far from reality as you think, but you'd almost certainly get something back if you sold after 15-20 years). Without those assumptions, we end up in a pointless argument about how long you'd REALLY keep your DVC and what you'd REALLY sell it for at that time.

Also, I used the current dues numbers. Obviously, these will increase a little over time.

My personal opinion that the assumption of keeping the contract to expiration yields a substantial UNDER-estimate of overall costs. In other words, I think the true costs would be somewhat higher than I show below.

BCV -- Direct price $115, resale price for a small contract about $82, dues $5.28 per point.

There are actually only 30 years left (because the 2042 contracts expire in Jan 2042), so $115/30 = $3.83 per point acquisition cost. Dues are currently $5.28 per point, so your net per-point cost would be $9.11...which is QUITE high. If you buy a 60-point contract and go every other year, the cost of those 120 points will be $1,093.60. For somewhat less than that, you could get a TWO BEDROOM for an entire week offsite, and have no ongoing obligation.

BCV resale -- At $82, your acquisition cost is $2.73 + $5.28 dues = $8.01 (still quite high), and your vacation cost for 120 points would be $961.60.

BWV -- Direct price $115 or $3.83 per point + $5.46 dues = $9.29 X 120 points = $1,114.80.

BWV resale @ $60 for a small contract is $2.00 per point acquisition cost + $5.46 dues = $7.46 X 120 = $895.20...still well north of what you can get a 2 BR for an entire week for offsite.

OKW -- $99 direct price is $3.30 per point acquisition cost + $4.98 dues = $8.28 X 120 = $993.60.

OKW resale @$60 is $2.00 acquisition cost + $4.98 dues = $6.98 X 120 = $837.60.

SSR -- SSR has an expiration date of 2057 (45 years), so the acquisition calculations will be a little different. Direct price of $99 is $2.20 per point acquisition cost + $4.51 dues = $6.71 X 120 = $805.20.

SSR resale at $65 = $1.44 acquisition cost + $4.51 dues = $5.95 X 120 = $714.53...or about the same as you'll pay for a 2 bedroom offsite for a week.

 

[chalee94]

If you buy resale, can you still use points at VGC and Aulani?

both of those are DVC resorts, so yes. (once the 7 month window opens.)

you can also trade out through RCI with resale pts, but a 60 pt contract wouldn't work since most trades through RCI start at 160 pts.