We own at VWL...would love to add-on, need advice

[jimmytammy]

We have been juggling pts for 2 yrs now and it seems like a add-on may be in our future. So I have some questions:

It makes most sense to add-on at VWL in our use yr of Aug. but the resale prices are either higher than we are willing to pay, use yr is not same or more pts than we need. Shontell sent me some info today showing VB resale for $55 a pt. Well that got the wheels in my head to churning.

I was thinking what if we bought at a different resort so we can free up those 220 pts we have at VWL for our Dec trips that we cherish so much in a 2 bed.

I guess my question would be then for those who own pts at say HH, VB or OKW. Those three resorts resales tend to be a few $$s less than VWL pts. Do yall find it difficult to book at the 7 mos window at other resorts?

Since VWL is hard to get in Dec we are glad we own there since we like to visit then. But we are at the point of realizing we can go twice a year. We want to be able to keep those pts at VWL available for a nice 2 bed or 2 studios stay in case extended family may travel every once in a while. It seems to make most sense to purchase at OKW if right resale comes along. Does that make most sense or would it really matter which of these three we purchased?

Thanks for feedback and thoughts(and if you think Im crazy, you can feed me that back too ) Sorry for the confusion of this whole thing, I just couldnt find less words to try to say would I wanted to say.

Jimmy

 

[jaysue]

Using VB to get into WDW at 7mo window is probably reasonably safe if done at quieter times - OKW and SSR are probably big enough that if you are flexible re room type and accomodations you should be ok most of the time

The disadvantage with using VB in this way is that the mtce. fees are higher - for example $4.67 versus $3.80 for SSR - this difference if continued will eat away at the savings up front from the lower capital cost - for example

SSR $84
VB $60 on resale (include closing costs etc)

$17 difference - let's say use the 5yr Treasury yield as a discount rate or 3.5% is $0.84 per point - mtce. diff is $0.87 so this would be flat assuming you actually have the $24 difference in the above example invested to help against the mtce difference

Have you been to VB? If you have and like it then by all means add on there - stay at VB sometimes if you cannot get what you want at the 7mo window

Some believe the 7mo window into WDW will get harder with the addition of the SSR members so you may want to consider that opinion

thanks
jaysue

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

If you never plan on staying at the offsites, I would stay away from buying them. However, if you would like the 11 month advantage for an occasional or annual offsite stay, I'd do it.

We recently did just the type of add-on your describing. We own at VWL, BCV and HH. We added on a resale at HH not only because it is a great resort and we like staying there, but we use the extra points to supplement WDW accomodations. We've yet to be shut out booking at the 7 month window at WDW with HH points. We sometimes "hold" our BCV or VWL resservation at the 11 month window, then convert some of that reservation to HH points if their is availability at the 7 month window. Additionally, you can usually book Fri and Sat nights at most WDW-DVC resorts at the 7 month window as well. We have booked VB last fall, OKW this spring break and OKW in August all using HH points.

Most people advise buy where you want to stay, but since you have VWL points, you have an 11 month advantage at WDW already. As far as buying, I would pick the offsite that you would like to stay at as opposed to the cheapest. Since DVC is not building anymore offsites (for now), demand for them will just keep growing as the number of members keeps growing. The offsites are the best and most affordable vacation options in the DVC program. We can vacation a week at HH for less than $500 including transportation (we drive from IL). If we had to sell some of our points, I would sell the onsites before the offsites.

 

[spiceycat]

at $55 for VB - DVC will probably buy it back.

you might like to stay at OKW - the rooms are bigger and there 2 bedroom is great - plus it is less points.

the less points will get to you after awhile....

 

[Kelly Nelly]

IMHO I believe that Hilton Head is the best place to buy into if you are a flexable DVC member. Not only do you have the 11 month window for the peak seasons at HH but you also have lower annual dues.I personally belive that the whole 11 month window bookings at the WDW DVC resorts are over hyped on these boards. I own at HH, BCV, BWV, and SS. But the funny thing thing is that I spend most of my vacations at VWL. I usually book about 4 or 5 months sometimes even less before vacations and as long as you are flexable you will never have a problem getting into VWL with HH, VB, or OKW points.

Actually I just booked a trip for FEB 6th to the 13th at VWL in a dedicated 2 bedroom only 2 weeks ago so that just goes to tell you that other DVC resorts other then your home resort are certainly not impossible to get into, unlike what many people belive on these boards.

 

[Nick@ VB+OKW]

jimmytammy

If you are going to add-on in the 100-200 pt range I would also do an off-site DVC(HH or VB). This way you will have the 11 month window at WDW and ocean front.

In your case since you live in North Carolina I would go with HH.
Mainly because of the lower dues and you can probably drive there in 4-6 hrs(estimate). This way you can also do quick trips for 3-4 days also.

We like having the the 11 month window at both places(OKW+VB) but we have 300 pts at each so it is worth while for us.

But if you are only planning to add-on in the 50-100 pt range I would just add on at your home resort VWL(re-sale) when you can.

 

[Mic]

We live in NC, and HH is almost exactly half-way to WDW from our home(and we usually drive), so adding 50 points there made perfect sense to us a few years ago to use as a 1-night stop on our way down and/or back from WDW. Our first stay there was actually last year, during that huge ice storm, and we were Duke Power customers and without power for 8 days. All the hotels were jacking their prices up, so I called MS at 7 pm on a Thursday night, and used our points to spend 2 nights there. We had a 2-bedroom, and it was great! I've been dying to go back ever since. I ended up waitlisting for a few months for 50 more points, then decided to add-on at Vero when the HH points(Dec.UY) never came open. My reasoning was I could use the 50 Vero points to stay a few nights at OKW during Oct. and Jan/Feb, which I had been using my BWV and HH points to do,thus freeing those points up. Then my guide "found" some BWV points, so I added 150 more there, and took my name off the HH waitlist(DH would NEVER agree to more points now). So far, I have had no trouble booking OKW at the 7-month(or sooner) mark with my Vero points, but the maintenance fees are a little higher. Since I have only 50 points, it does not translate into a huge amount of money, but if you are looking to add on more than 50 points, I would reconsider. I bought knowing that I would use the Vero points to stay elsewhere most of the time, and so far have been successful. I was even able to book a studio at OKW for a 10-day stay in a studio during Thanksgiving at the 7-month mark using a combination of points from Vero and BWV just this past April. Whether the availability will change is anyone's guess. When searching for a resale, it was hard for me to see a significant savings over Disney, as closing costs factored in on small contracts made them less attractive, and then there was the whole "how many points available right now" issue with a resale. At the time, most small contracts were stripped of current points, but with Disney I could add-on one day, and book using the new points a few days later. Just weigh out each contract individually if you are looking at resales. I was told that if buying resale, the points did not have to have the same use year as my master account, but that if I bought through Disney my points would have my current UY(Dec.). I hope this does not make the decision harder!