Thinking about buying AKV

[katieandemismom]

We're on the verge of buying AKV resale. AKL is my favorite resort, I can get a 1-bedroom for fewer points, and the contract we're looking at has 09 points coming plus a few from 08. My hesitation is two-fold. First, the mf are high although in the middle of the pack overall. Second, I'm worried about resale as it appears there are a ton of AKV owners out there compared to BCV, BWV, and BLT. Here are my questions (I've never owned timeshare before).

Is there any way of knowing how many points there are in total at each resort? Since there is limited history on mf for AKV, should we assume that the annual increases will stay in-line with the others? One of my fears is buying in this year only to get pounded next year with a $1/point increase.

I've done a lot of reading about which resort to buy into, and I really think AKV is my favorite. Dh would like to try BCV someday for Stormalong, and I'd love to stay in BLT as well (I know the mom of one of the designers). I don't think we'd have a 7 month booking problem as we always travel in September or mid-November or May.

Sorry to be so long-winded. Dh pretty much doesn't care as long as I don't break the bank. I just needed someone to talk to about it.

Sarah

 

[5forDiz]

You may find this helpful re MFs, this is link to MFs over the years ( I'd like to give credit to whomever put it together but not sure , I copied from a post by LisaS here on these boards )

http://personalpages.tds.net/~rb/DIS/DVC/DVCDuesHistory.htm

Although travel habits often do change as years pass, if you don't book earlier than 7 months before check-in date you will not be able to take advantage of Home Resort booking window ( 11 months - 7mos+1day before checkin date you'd want ). Booking at 7 months or less means you will compete against all DVC owners. Most members will buy at the resort they love most in order to be sure they can book their favorite during HR window.

Here's link to excellent post by DVC Mike on things to consider when deciding on Home Resort (post #1)

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2152512

AKV is a great resort and DH & I are considering add-on there to occasionally take advantage of concierge DVC rooms in Jambo House and also for 1 bedroom & 2 bedroom villas at Kidani all of which will have extra full bathroom in living room.

Best wishes with your planning

 

[logan115]

Couple of questions :

How many points to do think you're going to be buying ?

Resale may save you some money on a price per point basis, but you have to make sure you factor in the fact that you may not have all of the current year points that you would get if you buy direct.

I'm a big believer in resale given the discounts that you can get vs buying direct for SOME of the DVCs. For comparison, we bought SSR resale and paid $68 for 160 vs $91 thru Disney. Also, we got a full years worth of banked points (160 2008 UY points) in addition to all of our 2009/10 points which kinda makes it like we paid $58 valuing the points at $10. We just found out we passed ROFR last week (took about 25 days) and should be in the system in a few weeks

For AKV, if you're buying a stripped contract for say $83, and if you assume points are worth $10, it's kind of like paying $93 thru Disney (believe with current incentices the AKV price is $96 but not 100% sure). Figure that the difference between closing costs resale and thru Disney (as a first time owner) is only a couple hundred bucks and may be worth going direct as you'll have a better chance of getting the UY you want, full current years points, and almost instantly be in "the system."

For SSR, OKW, BCV, BWV, VWL, HHI, and VB I think you can get a much better deal going the resale route (just look at the sponsors resale listings), but for AKV and BLT think that any savings you may get may not be worth it. Haven't really seen anything pass ROFR for AKV lower than $85 here http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1960185&page=55 although with DVC selling AKV for $96 I think the prices have to drop a bit to incentivize people to go resale. When/will this happen ? I don't know, but if you're set on owning at AKV then direct may not be a bad option.

Good luck,

Chris

 

[katieandemismom]

We're looking at 160 points at $85 per point. The use year is Sept (what we want), and there will be full points coming in September. We'd ask the sellers to pay the mf for 2009.

So many choices and decisions. Argh.

FWIW - we've got four main choices: AKV (in the lead so far), BWV (resale), SSR (resale), and BLT (direct from Disney). The BWV b/c we love that area and the prices are lower per point but mf is high. SSR b/c the price is low and mf is low, but I don't like that resort and probably never would stay there to get the 11 month window. BLT b/c I love the location, the mf is low, and the decor is pretty much my style. However, it's more money upfront, the points necessary to stay there are higher, and dh isn't as big a fan.

 

[hellerjw]

We own at AKV and I feel the MFs will continue to follow the 3-5% increases other WDW DVC resorts have historically seen, particularly with the much larger owner-base the new Kidani building will bring in to help shoulder the load.

I believe some of the animal care resources (guides, zoologists, etc) are shared with the Animal Kingdom Park so I don't think we as owners are on the hook for the total cost of their care. This cost is really the only unique variable AKV has that the other resorts don't have, but I still can't see DVC taking the hit for the full cost.

 

[logan115]

So many choices and decisions. Argh.

I know the feeling, but they're nice choices to have aren't they

First we had to decide whether or not DVC was right for us, after deciding it was I thought we were in the clear - nope....Then it was figuring out what our home resort would be and the amount of points. Each family will probably weigh the factors differently, and I don't disagree with "buy where you want to stay" as that's very good advice IF you HAVE to be guaranteed to stay at a particular resort each trip, plan on visiting during busier times, and would be upset if you can't get that resort. We took the alternative of "buy where you wouldn't mind staying if you had to."

We've only tried two of the DVC resorts so far (BCV and SSR) and enjoyed both, although honestly we liked BCV better (can't beat SAB and the location IMHO). BUT we also enjoyed SSR, and felt that if we are "stuck" there it's not the end of the world. We plan on trying all of the resorts and for us our goal was to be guaranteed to be able to get a 1BR SOMEWHERE at WDW, which our SSR resale does, and for us it didn't make sense to pay more for a given resort when we plan on trying them all.

With the lower upfront cost and MFs, along with the longer expiration made sense for us to buy SSR. We honestly wouldn't have been buying 160 points if the cost was north of $80, but it was more important for us to get the extra points and be able to stay in a 1BR for a full week as opposed to doing split stays (stayed at POP on our last two trips for the weekend before DVC for Sun-Thurs) than being guaranteed to stay at BCV for Sun-Thurs.

Just our preference and it shouldn't affect your decision as it's your vacation and not mine, but wish you good luck in making your decision, and a big for doing all of your homework.

Chris

 

[christa112]

No question for us AKV was the resort we wanted. Someday would we like to stay at Wilderness or Beach Club, but if we cannot book I will be happy staying at AKV.

We just purchased directly through Disney this month. With current incentives they were too good to pass up and I didn't want to take a chance of it not making it through ROFR.

 

[Sandisw]

If AKV is on the top of your list, I would take time to compare the resale process to buying direct.

Here is just a few things to consider:

1. 160 through Disney will be $96.00 per point--$11.00 difference. However, closing costs through Disney for a new buyer might run a little cheaper than resale so I would estimate the difference to be about $10.00 per point (or $1600).

2. Is Sept UY the UY you want? If not, going through Disney might yield you a better one. And, I think, if there were still points available for earlier UY (ie: Feb, March, April), you would have points immediately available.

3. Resale takes about 2 months while adding on through Disney will take a lot less time. You will be a member and can make reservations within days. If you start the resale process and than Disney exercises ROFR, you are back to square one. Think about when you first want to be able to go to WDW as a DVC member.

4. Disney allows you to use your CC to pay for the contract. If you have a Disney Visa, you will get 6 months, 0% interest on your charges. I was told that only the first $2500 would qualify, but I am currently being given the 6 months for the entire charge.

5. Financing through Disney is a lot easier and it is not reported on your credit report. It is also looked upon as a mortgage and for many, the interest ends up being tax deductible.

Just some things to think about with this resort. Good luck and happy planning!!!

 

[hakepb]

I'm curious about the 1BR being fewer points at AKV comment...
As long as you are happy with the Standard and Savannah view 1BRs' you should usually get exactly what you want as there is a lot of inventory in those categories. If you expect to always get Value 1BR's you may be frequently disapointed. I think the Value rooms should be thought of as an occasional bonus, not a yearly expectation (There are only a few of the 3' smaller value room 1BRs in Jambo, no additional Value inventory in Kidani, so I would expect strong competition at the exact 11+7 day month mark)