To Buy Or Not To Buy, That's My Question

FirstNo

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I attended the BLT preview yesterday (7/11) mostly because I wanted a first look at the new tower. I knew it was a sales presentation, but because of my 'situation', I didn't think I would receive any offers I would consider.

I was offered 160pts @ BLT for $101/pt. I was also offered 100pts at AKV for $99/pt with points starting 12/08. My parents (who live in DE), bought into BLT last Apr and have their first stay in Nov. I was present with my Dad when the sales presentation was made to him so, I had a small understanding of DVC and what I have read on the boards over the years.

My problem is I have looked at DVC since it first opened many years ago. I have always loved DW. It's where we vacationed when I was a child. When I was in the military, I used to drive here from TX for my vacation. But, I now live here. Literally...I'm 20 min off the property line. I've had an AP for years and it seems most of the 'perks' included are the same I'm given as an AP holder (as far as % off on restaurants, boat rentals, etc).

I stay on property once a year (for one night) as a little getaway gift for myself. I opted for a mod this yr because I just couldn't justify the much higher cost of the WL. I will not stay in a value resort (couldn't give it to me for free). I like the deluxes. I would stay a few more times a year, but it's too overpriced for me when I can drive 20 min and be home. Hard to justify the cost to myself.

However, 100pts at AKLV would enable me to stay 4 or 5x a year (1 nt ea). I would take advantage of this. Rounding, I'm looking at $120/mo for 10yrs + $40.46/mo for dues (which I was told averaged raising 3% ea yr). I would have no problem paying that with my current job. Things being the way they are, there is little job security for any one. While I could still be at my job
5yrs from now, I could also be gone 5 months from now.

I've been reading about the resales. It seems like the downside is one would have to take a loan/HELOC to make a purchase and, more than likely, you wouldn't have 10yrs to pay it off. While Disney's rate (10.75) is high, I could pay down more when things are going well (now), or go back to the standard pay off if things weren't. The agent said if 'problems' occur (job lay off), Disney does every thing they can to work with the person (any experiences with this??).

I really don't know what to do. I'm very torn. There's the part of me that likes this; that wants this. If I ever leave this area, I would definitely come back to DW to vacation. Ever since AKL opened, I have wanted to stay in a savannah room because I love animals and would be quite content to sit on the balcony most of the day and hang out at the pool the rest of the time. I would be able to do that once every 2 months, or so. But, the sane part of me says this is a luxury I don't need. While it's nice to have a mini-getaway, I live here and it's foolish to waste money on that when the economy is the way it is. There is no husband to help out if I lose my job. There are no children to vacation with. It's all for me, to be paid by me.

I haven't seen any one else with this type of problem (maybe I didn't look hard enough?) so, I'd really appreciate some outside, non-emotional insight. The agent told me I still have time to back out as nothing has been signed. My 'gut' doesn't tell me buying is a wrong decision, just not a practical one. :)
 
DVC will sell you an initial contract of 100 points? Perhaps that's something fairly new??
Also, I just gotta ask.. One night at a time, five times a year? I'm sure you have your reasons, but I can't help but be nosey.

Edited to add: Okay, upon further review I see you live in the area. Makes better sense to me now.
Bottom line, if it were me, I would do it if I wanted to spend five nights there. If you normally only want to spend one night a year there, and you would only spend five because you have DVC, I would hold off.

MG
 
DVC will sell you an initial contract of 100 points? Perhaps that's something fairly new??
Also, I just gotta ask.. One night at a time, five times a year? I'm sure you have your reasons, but I can't help but be nosey.

Edited to add: Okay, upon further review I see you live in the area. Makes better sense to me now.
Bottom line, if it were me, I would do it if I wanted to spend five nights there. If you normally only want to spend one night a year there, and you would only spend five because you have DVC, I would hold off.

MG


The agent said the 100pt initial buy in was something that started two weeks ago. If I remember correctly, it was only for AKLV and SSR. They were offering 100 buy in points for BLT, but you had to all ready be a member. I was initially offered this, but then he realized he gave me the wrong paperwork and whipped out the AKLV one instead.

Thank you for your input and quick response! And, the BLT was gorgeous. Got to go over on the walkway and was taken to the top floor/overview area. But, they have a MASSIVE crow problem. I felt like I was in a Hitchcock movie. The CM escorting me said they're hoping the birds will all go away once they open, but the room balcony I was shown on the 15/16th floor was filthy from all the droppings.
 
:) I think if I lived 20 minutes away. I would just buy a reale of 25 points. Use that for a couple of nights and pay it of quickly ( maybe even save for a couple of months and put it on a credit card). Pay it off then buy 25 more. it would take a couple of years to get to 100 points but everything would be paid in full and you would only have to pay MF's...not really have any debt there and still get your luxury over nighters..JMO.

I think starting out at 25 if you live so close is a terrific incentive and very reasonable cost wise.

Our reasoning for buying 210 points initially was that we live 10 hours away, stay at least 9 nights every year....I wanted the points right away and got the great 2008 points as an incentive (had to pay those MF though for 2008, so they really weren't free).
 

Some random thoughts for you -

Does the resort matter to you when you stay? If so, can you / will you plan at least 7 moths ahead of time? If not, don't buy. You'll be disappointed more often than not.

Will your 1 night stays be a Friday or a Saturday? If so, the value will not be there for you since those nights are more expensive.

Are most of your trips last minute bookings? Less than 2 or 3 months in advance? Might be tough to get a reservation. If you only stay one night and don't care about the resort, that may not be a huge problem, though.

Do you visit during black out periods for Florida resident passes? If so, owning even a small resale contract will allow you to buy a regular AP or PAP for a good discount - $100 off an AP or $125 off a PAP.

Do you take advantage of the Florida resident discounts? Or military discounts? If so, DVC isn't going to save you much, if anything.

Unsolicited advice follows - feel free to ignore it.

Why not wait until you can pay cash? Financing a luxury purchase can backfire on you. You can always stop visiting WDW if necessary, but payments and dues continue. Lots of the resales out there are due to people who can no longer afford the payments. Many of them are going to lose a lot of what they paid as a result. Don't let that happen to you.

Pay cash and start with a 25 point contract. You can start a monthly savings plan right now for the amount of your payments and dues and see how it goes. You'll either soon have the $1500 - $2500 saved or you will know it's not going to work. 25 points is enough to continue your current pattern of 1 or 2 nights a year, and if it doesn't work out, these small contract sell relatively quickly.

Good luck!
 
I was in a similar situation as OP. What I did was buy a 25 point resale contract and paid cash for that one. It had 2008 points and 2009 coming in August. I then purchased 50 points at BLT on my Chase Disney Rewrds card and now have 6 months interest free financing. Once that is paid for. I MAY buy more points. We will see how things go by then. :goodvibes
 
I was in a similar situation as OP. What I did was buy a 25 point resale contract and paid cash for that one. It had 2008 points and 2009 coming in August. I then purchased 50 points at BLT on my Chase Disney Rewrds card and now have 6 months interest free financing. Once that is paid for. I MAY buy more points. We will see how things go by then. :goodvibes

I think that was very cool, savie...
 
Some random thoughts for you -

Does the resort matter to you when you stay? If so, can you / will you plan at least 7 moths ahead of time? If not, don't buy. You'll be disappointed more often than not.

Yes, the resort would matter because if I was staying on site, there would be a 'reason' (it's F&W festival and I want Stormalong Bay and walking distance to Epcot or I just want to sit and watch animals all day so, AKLV are a must, etc) and no, I wouldn't plan in advance. My planning would be a week or two since the weather would be a factor. A co-worker is an owner and he said that he's not had a problem booking a weekend at the last minute...as long as it wasn't over a holiday weekend. Have you found it difficult to book last minute?

Will your 1 night stays be a Friday or a Saturday? If so, the value will not be there for you since those nights are more expensive.

Yes, probably all but one stay would be a Sat night because I just can't take that much time off from work.

Do you visit during black out periods for Florida resident passes? If so, owning even a small resale contract will allow you to buy a regular AP or PAP for a good discount - $100 off an AP or $125 off a PAP.

I'm not sure what the black out periods are because I've had an AP (regular) for years. And, I'm not sure DVC would get me any better discount than the FL Res/renewal double discount I get.

Do you take advantage of the Florida resident discounts? Or military discounts? If so, DVC isn't going to save you much, if anything.

That's what it looked like to me reading through the little booklet they provided on DVC discounts.

Unsolicited advice follows - feel free to ignore it.

Would never ignore advice I've asked for. ;)

Pay cash and start with a 25 point contract. You can start a monthly savings plan right now for the amount of your payments and dues and see how it goes. You'll either soon have the $1500 - $2500 saved or you will know it's not going to work. 25 points is enough to continue your current pattern of 1 or 2 nights a year, and if it doesn't work out, these small contract sell relatively quickly.

Honestly, I didn't even realize I could go that low on an initial buy in (very uneducated in all of this!). I saw another poster who advised the same. That, I can afford without all of the stress of a payment for the next 10yrs and $100-125 in dues per year would be no issue, either.

And even at 25pts, I would still be a full member? All of the perks and joys and such? But, like mentioned earlier, would I constantly be banging my head because I can't get to where I want to stay? The agent told me Disney redid the points for next year (lowered weekends, upped weekdays) because they found most people were cutting out the weekends because they were too expensive. Which meant Disney had a lot of open Friday and Saturday nights.

I've seen a couple of resale agencies mentioned by posters, including The Timeshare Store sponsor. What factors should be considered when looking to perform this type of transaction? It's been 9yrs since I first purchased my home and other than being stressed and having to sign away my firstborn, I don't remember much about that experience.

Thank you very much to all who have responded. I like the 25pt idea MUCH better and it would still allow me a visit or two, during the year. :)
 
Yes, the resort would matter because if I was staying on site, there would be a 'reason' (it's F&W festival and I want Stormalong Bay and walking distance to Epcot or I just want to sit and watch animals all day so, AKLV are a must, etc) and no, I wouldn't plan in advance. My planning would be a week or two since the weather would be a factor. A co-worker is an owner and he said that he's not had a problem booking a weekend at the last minute...as long as it wasn't over a holiday weekend. Have you found it difficult to book last minute?

Hmmm, if you are only going to book a week or 2 in advance, I am not sure how happy that you would be with DVC.


Honestly, I didn't even realize I could go that low on an initial buy in (very uneducated in all of this!). I saw another poster who advised the same. That, I can afford without all of the stress of a payment for the next 10yrs and $100-125 in dues per year would be no issue, either.



If you buy resale, then you can get a 25 point contract. The 25 point contracts are only offered as add-ons and therefore for a first time buyer you will need to buy one from a resale broker.


And even at 25pts, I would still be a full member? All of the perks and joys and such? But, like mentioned earlier, would I constantly be banging my head because I can't get to where I want to stay? The agent told me Disney redid the points for next year (lowered weekends, upped weekdays) because they found most people were cutting out the weekends because they were too expensive. Which meant Disney had a lot of open Friday and Saturday nights.

Yes, even with 25 points you would have the same benefits as everyone else.
 
A 25 pointer sounds exactly like what you need! As I mentioned earlier, I purchased a 25 point resale. My purchase was closed June 1. The contract (VWL) came loaded with the 2008 points and will receive 25 points August 1. At the end of June, I booked a MKV studio for BLT in November. I had to take a BLV initially, but waitlisted for the MKV which came in 2 weeks. I also booked one night in a studio in Oct at BWV and another night at BCV also in a studio. This is during the most popular F&W festival. As long as you are flexible, you will have no problems. BTW, I have not yet used my BLT points for a reservation. I may use them or may bank them for the following year.:goodvibes
 
25 point contracts can be hard to find at times. Plus, it lacks real flexibility!

Take a good look at your points needs, but don't be afraid to get one with 35, 40 or even 50 points.

I don't see you needing more than 50 points in your situation, but do think that 25 could be problematic. You need to take UY into account as well.

If you have no plans to reserve a room at the 11-8 month window, then PLEASE consider purchasing at SSR, as it is the best value.

Good luck with your decision.

We live in Alabama and love having 100 points!
 



















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