I went to see a DVC guide during our last trip. He said that Disney has better buying power than a typical timeshare. Which I like the idea of going elsewhere to vacation also but I had doubts that Disney had better buying power than other timeshares within II (Interval International).
After our meeting & later in the afternoon, we were on the monorail & meet a family from New York. It came about they owned DVC. They originally wanted to buy Marriott or Wyndham. He called Marriott and wanted to have his home at a Myrtle Beach resort but he wouldn't be able to stay at the time he wanted (don't ask me how it works this is just what he said). He had a friend who owned DVC & ask him to call DVC. DVC had no problem booking at the resort he wanted for the time he wanted. He said he checked thoroughly between Marriott, Wyndham & Disney. It was easier to stay where he wanted with Disney than with Marriott or Wyndham however he did say booking at different Disney resorts within the Disney system at times is a challenge.
Don't ask me how this works, this is just what he told me.
The guide simply told you wrong, see my post above. Marriott Grande Vista in Orlando has better trade power both within and without Marriott if one chooses a good week. I'm sure the issues that person was referring to was that most Marriott's have floating week units within a season so you have to call and reserve the week you want, no guarantees you'll get it. For MB they actually have a fixed week option but only for 4th of July. There are no guarantees with DVC either and there are a lot more people potentially competing for the same time than with such a Marriott.
Are their other timeshares that have the point system like Disney? ..If Disney doesn't have good trading power than who or what resorts do? And would one Disney resort have more trading power than the other, i.e. boardwalk vs. Saratoga?
An you mentioned getting 25-60 points? ..What could that even get for me?
There are many other points systems, they all have their advantages and disadvantages. Some of the larger and/or more prominent ones are Bluegreen, Shell, Hilton, Club Intrawest, Hyatt, Westin, Wyndham and RCI points. There are others. The trade power for a given deposit would vary with the factors I've outlined below. I tend to look at trade value rather than trade power, basically cost vs trade power. As such, BG, RCI points and Wyndham likely have the best overall trade value. Actually the best trade value within II for many people is Marriott due to the internal trading preference that II gives to members and that a large portion of the top resorts in II are Marriott's.
To understand DVC's trade power, or lack of, one needs to understand how II (and RCI) assign trade power. It's based on the resort quality, demand of the resort, demand of the week in question at that resort, unit size, lead time to the deposit and the supply of units at the resort AND the area. Orlando is overbuilt as everyone knows. And given that DVC is mostly a request first system, II does not know what week or resort they are getting until it's too late. Further, DVC doesn't tend to give II the best resorts or weeks and tends to give them on shorter notice than II would prefer. II really has no choice but to look at what they're actually getting (off season, smaller units, lessor resorts) and assign an average trade power accordingly. Thus no one resort ownership has any more or less trading power than another. Esp given that a large majority of the deposits are Jan, Feb, May, Sept, Oct and then HH for Nov through Feb other than the holidays. One could live in HH for about 6 months of the year in timeshares if they wanted and in Orlando basically all year long.
As for smaller points, you mentioned not going every year to Disney. 60 points would get you a 2 BR for 5 nights or 7 nights in a 1 BR every 3 years if you avoided weekends for much of the year. IMO, owning a smaller DVC package and at least one other timeshare that complements it well for that person is a much better options than either alone. I've stayed at DVC resorts about 10 or 11 times in the last 3.5 years and only 1 of those stays was using points. My average cost for a week in a 1 or 2 BR is somewhere around $350-400 per including the exchange fee and $95 resort services fee. We are empty nesters so are OK in a 1 BR and can travel off season, we actually prefer to travel off season to WDW and many other places.
I have been pricing GOOD Marriott traders for about 6 months. On resale it's probably LESS money then DVC on resale. Using TUG has helped me see what works for trading etc. 
there's gotta be a reason that so many people have bought into it, right?
I think a fairly small percentage of members use points outside of DVC, and those that do will only do it a few times over the life of their membership. And that's fine. It becomes a very poor value if you want to trade outside of the system as often or more often than you stay at DVC resorts.
