Thinking about DVC - lots of questions

[itutorfortravel]

I am so new to the idea of DVC ownership that I don't even know what to ask!!!

We just got back from the 11 night Southern Caribbean cruise on the Magic during which time I attended at DVC presentation. They were offering DVC membership @ BLT for $100 per point for purchasing 160 or more points. DH and I just were not ready to commit to DVC without getting member input and learning more, so I thought I'd come to the DISboards, as I have always gotten great help here.

I have seen on timeshare resale sites that you can purchase DVC points for a lot less at other resorts. I understand that depending on where you buy, your contract end date will vary, though I do not know the details for each resort.

If we were to purchase points at say, SSR, could we use those points at any Disney property? If so, is there anything different about using your points at a resort other than your home resort that would make it important to carefully choose your home resort? Because if not my first reaction would be to purchase the cheapest points I could and then use them at various resorts...

We are a family of 3 who likes to go to WDW once per year. The times we typically go are in early December, mid-January, or mid to late May. We try to avoid school holidays, though that may change as DD gets older. We would likely want a 1 bedroom unit with the full kitchen, w/d, etc. as we usually stay off site in a condo (Sheraton Vistana Villages) and really enjoy those amenities. We like nice common areas, a good pool, and easy access to the parks. We also like having the option of on site dining. Any recommendations of the # of points and best home resort for us?

Any other advice or just pointing me in the right direction to gather more info would be great. Thanks!

 

[DVC SSR Owner]

I would buy 2 100 point contracts to start

 

[itutorfortravel]

why 2 contracts vs. 1?

 

[rcchello]

Home resort priority is the main difference in how points work for different resorts. When you buy points at a DVC resort you are then able to reserve a vacation 11 months from the start of your vacation at that resort. If you want a reservation at another DVC resort you can start booking at 7 months from the start of your vacation.

Certain room types at certain resorts fill up before the 7 month point, so if you really want a Magic Kingdom view 2 bedroom at BLT for Christmas, you may have to own at BLT since those rooms may sell out at exactly 11 months out. If you want a Grand Villa at Christmas at OKW you may need to own there.

If you are like me and just happy being in DisneyWorld, rather then at home, you can buy wherever you get the best buy for your $$$$$.

 

[taaren]

DVCSSROwner, I second the 200 point vote. We started with that amount at VGC and were happy with the 1 bedroom until we wanted more people to join us so we recently closed on our first add-on of 75 points so we can get the 2 bedroom every year instead. Resale is a little more stressful, takes longer, but the savings was well worth it IMHO.
Another thing you may want to consider is UY - if you're vacationing late in the year and Spring, you may want to consider a Dec UY so, for instance, your 2010 points would be good from Dec 1, 2010-Nov 30, 2011.
We have a June UY by accident (our guide told us June was all they were selling at the time since we bought in June 09) on the larger contract which works well since we vacation in late Sept-early Nov typically, and added on with an Oct UY since that still works for fall trips. Generally its good to have your UY start about the month or a month before you want to travel.
As far as which resort, just consider that if you want the comfort of an 11 month booking window, pick a contract where you'd like to stay the most. If you check out the DVC official website they have a lot of gorgeous pics of the decor/room layouts if that matters (though the map of WDW on there is not very helpful to those of us on the other coast - wish they would fix that up with more details), as well as which parks each one is adjacent to. If you're okay with staying in any of the DVC resorts, go with the cheapest contract then see what you can get at 7 months out.
Good luck! We love our DVC membership.

 

[taaren]

why 2 contracts vs. 1?

In case you want to sell down the road, a 100 point contract would be easier to sell than a 200, and for a higher amount. Even if you still want to keep DVC you might want to switch resorts later. Or get add-on-itis.

 

[spiceycat]

why 2 contracts vs. 1?

it is more difficult to sell a 200 point resale than 100 points - I am worst mind are 60, 60 and 50.

60 point contracts are fairly easy to sell.

the more difficult it is to sell the lower point cost to sell it. one of the reason that SSR is such a bargin.

once blt sells out it will be difficult to get. BCV is already difficult to get.

now SSR, OKW, AKV (except for concierge), and some times BWV - are fairly easy to get.

also with as many members as DVC has - cancelation happen alot - so even if at 7 months you can't get what you want - would try again at 60 days out, then 030 days out, then 7 days, 6, 5,4, 3, 2, 1 - until you either give up or get what you want.

 

[itutorfortravel]

Thank you for the feedback. I am learning so much!

Here is another question. If we owned let's say 100 points but needed more to book a particular vacation, is there a way to pay extra to be able to obook that particular stay without having to buy more points?

 

[BBG-BLT]

I agree with 2 100 points. We have 400 points but always need a 2-BR. We also go once a year (now me and the better half go once a year for a weekend without the kids - it's great). Wish we had done it sooner.

How did you like the cruise? We're considering it.

 

[A&MsMommy]

here's my question...what if you buy say 160 at BLT and then add on later at WL of say 60...how do you figure your time to book?

 

[vicki_c]

here's my question...what if you buy say 160 at BLT and then add on later at WL of say 60...how do you figure your time to book?

All points are the same at 7 months out and can be used to book any resort. Prior to that though, you can only use your home resort points to book that home resort. So having 60 pts at WL wouldn't help you book nights @ BLT at 11 months out, only your BLT points could be used at that time.

 

[vicki_c]

Thank you for the feedback. I am learning so much!

Here is another question. If we owned let's say 100 points but needed more to book a particular vacation, is there a way to pay extra to be able to obook that particular stay without having to buy more points?

You can use banking and borrowing to get more points into a particular year. You can use 3 years worth of points for a trip doing that.

So if you want to travel in your 2011 use year, you could use 2011 points, 2010 point that you banked into 2011, and 2012 points that you borrowed into 2011.

You can also buy 24 points from Disney @ $15 - I think that might be limited to once a year, but I'm not sure.

 

[bz8bls]

Also, you can pay cash (DVC discount if available) to link with your points stay. We have done this several times when we didn't have enough points for a longer stay.

 

[ToddyLu]

You can purchase up to 24 points from Disney for the $15 but only for a reservation at 7 months. If you cancel that reservation you forfeit the 24 points. So DH and I made reservations for Oct 2011 with our points and had a few left over. We purchased 11 points from Disney for a reservation we made for this May--because we were less than 7 months out. In our case we had 86 points left, bought 11 for 95 points. We are staying in a standard studio at Kidani May 1-8.

 

[ToddyLu]

Another DVC owner can transfer points to you once a year also for more points to use in your account.

You can rent a reservation from a DVC owner as well and save your own points for a second trip.

 

[ToddyLu]

So in the above example you could book a few days at WL, using your 60 points, then split stay over at BLT using those points during the same vacation.

Stay on the DVC forums and read read read. That is how I am learning and it took a good 6 months for my to wrap my head around all the ins and outs of ownership. You can also get an inexpensive DVC primer from Pass porter to learn this info quickly or to use as a reference while you decide.

I was all for buying the cheapest points possible but DH only wanted to own at AKV. That really surprised me that he was so determined to stay there. It works for both of us and was truly a wonderful decision. As I stated on another thread DVC changes your trips to Disney like a Corvette would change your drive to work.

 

[Sandisw]

When choosing a home resort, you should think about your needs and desires and decide on one that you would be comfortable staying at if you could not get a reservation at one of the other DVC resorts.

You get a booking advantage at your home resort. Owners can book vacations at their home resorts starting 11 months out from travel. You can only use your points at other resorts starting at 7 months out. For much of the year, this is not a huge issue, but there are times when it is.

For example, December is a very popular DVC time and many people book at the 11 month mark. Certain resorts are difficult to trade in to during this time. Also, some room types, like AKV Concierge are very difficult to book unless you own there and can book 11 months out.

If you want ease to parks, then IMO,you should check out BLT, VWL, BCV and BWV. BCV and BWV are near Epcot and HS so you can walk or take a boat to those parks. BLT is a walk or monorail ride to MK as well as a monorail ride (with a transfer at TTC) to Epcot. VWL is just a boat ride to MK.

If you really think that you would be comfortable staying at any of the DVC resorts, then buying via resale at OKW or SSR is the way to go in terms of cost. SSR expires in 2054 and OKW is 2042, with some contracts having an extended end date of 2057. The MF's for these resorts are also reasonable and some of the lowest of all the resorts.

Someone mentioned getting your contracts in smaller amounts. You can really only do this if you buy through Disney. If you buy resale, you have to go with how the contract is written. While you certainly buy more than one resale contract, it does add to the costs as you could end up with multiple charges for closing.

Good luck!

 

[dmancuso]

I suggest buying at the resort you want to stay at most.