Trying to understand banking and use year

[Kkb0517]

I'm still a little confused and I'm sure someone can help me understand.

We just bought a contract with a feb use year. There are 100 points left on the 2017 use year. We would first want to use it in April 2018 not at our home resort.

So I would book the April 2018 trip in September 2017. When I book that trip I would really be using 2018 points despite booking it in 2017 so I would also need to bank my 2017 points, correct?

 

[BillPA]

Yes, bank prior to booking if you want to use 2017 points in April 2018

 

[Kkb0517]

Thanks

 

[Nie0214]

2/1/17 - 1/31/18: UY 2017
2/1/18 - 1/31/19: UY 2018

Since April 2018 falls under UY2018, you'll need to bank 2017 to use those points next April. If you book at the 7 month mark, you would do that in September 2017.

 

[jerseyduke]

Remember that banking can not be undone. Your banking deadline for a Feb UY is the end of September, so, I would not bank until the last minute, as you have to consider what you will do if you can not book at the 7 month mark?

If it were me, I would not bank at first, make my reservation at my home resort (this May, at 11 months), and then adjust as the 7 month window nears. If availability is there, then cancel, bank, rebook.

Unless you have no intention at all of staying at your home resort (like it is HHI and you want to stay in Florida....)

 

[drusba]

Remember that banking can not be undone. Your banking deadline for a Feb UY is the end of September, so, I would not bank until the last minute, as you have to consider what you will do if you can not book at the 7 month mark?

If it were me, I would not bank at first, make my reservation at my home resort (this May, at 11 months), and then adjust as the 7 month window nears. If availability is there, then cancel, bank, rebook.

Unless you have no intention at all of staying at your home resort (like it is HHI and you want to stay in Florida....)

You cannot reserve in May 2017 a trip for April 2018 using the 2017 points without first banking the 2017 points. Thus, if first trip you are going to take is next April and you want to take the safe avenue of booking your home resort at 11 months out and then trying to switch in September to another resort, you should bank the 2017 point before trying to reserve your home resort in May 2017.

Don't know your home resort or which resort you actually want for the trip but be aware that for April you will typically find SSR open at WDW at 7 months out, and then also BLT lake view, BWV pool/garden view, AKV standard or savanna view at least at Kidani, BRV, Poly, OKW, and VGF other than studios, with some risk otherwise for any of those for the Thursday through Sat of the Star Wars Dark Side race weekend in mid-April (the highest DVC demand time during April), or for Easter week time if your start date is the Monday or later of Easter week (those dates sometimes get filled by those reserving 7 months out with an Easter start date). BCV and BLT theme park view have some chance of also being open except for a low chance Easter week and the race weekend. AKV value and club level, BWV standard and boardwalk view, BLT standard view and VGF studios will likely have issues most of the month.

 

[jerseyduke]

You cannot reserve in May 2017 a trip for April 2018 using the 2017 points without first banking the 2017 points. Thus, if first trip you are going to take is next April and you want to take the safe avenue of booking your home resort at 11 months out and then trying to switch in September to another resort, you should bank the 2017 point before trying to reserve your home resort in May 2017.

Yes, my bad. You have to bank first, even for your home resort.
I would still make a ressie at your home resort for that week, just in case you can not switch. (if feasible - IE - your home resort is one at WDW and you want to switch to another at WDW)

I would just take out that extra "insurance" when banking points, the last thing you want to do is bank points, and then not be able to get something at the 7 month mark.

Although if that does indeed happen, you are still early in your 2018 UY, so you have a lot of time before the bank points would expire, should you not get something at 7 months.