What would you do?

[Cfabar1]

Looking for some brain trust advice….

Buying a small contract… need about 30 or so more points for our trip…

We typically stay at 1 BR standard view VGF. Have never stayed at WDW other than VGF, BWV, BCW. Don’t really wish to go elsewhere - maybe LSL someday, but already have direct points.

Would you do a direct contract at VGF for about 30 points?

Or would you pay less and do a 40-60 points contract at another resort RESALE - say SSR, OKW-E, etc. that would be fully loaded, and cost less.

I don’t really need the extra points beyond the 30 right now… and another 10-20 are unlikely to skew the math on opening up more seasons/dates, etc.

Expiration date is a factor to keep in mind, but who knows how I will feel about DVC in 2054/2057.

Dues are another factor - as they are higher at SSR and OKW.

Would be same UY as my current contract.

Don’t care too much about resale restrictions.

Trying to be general enough to not have the post blocked.

 

[Brian Noble]

Do you need more points on an ongoing basis, or just for an upcoming trip?

If just for an upcoming trip, I'd see if I could get them via transfer.

If ongoing, I would probably match an existing resort at which I wanted more dry power for 11-month reservations. The difference is not a big enough deal otherwise for me, but I like to keep my life simple.

 

[Cfabar1]

Ongoing… we have a trip we like doing every year… sold a 25 points VB contract and so are now “just a few points shy” of what we will need….

And to clarify we would do a direct VGF or RESALE at OKW/SSR…

More points are nice, but feels like a bit of a hassle… Saving money is also nice… but at the expense of tediousness for the next 30 years? Idk…

 

[VGCgroupie]

Would a 30 point direct help you in the future if you needed to sell? Meaning help keep you at 150 to remain a blue card holder?

I would strongly consider CCV if you go the resale route and buy 40-60 points. Low dues, desirable for resale purposes and a great point chart.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Thinking more.. I would buy VGF direct unless you like resale shopping. I would look into which credit card will give you the best return on your purchase.

 

[RuntheMouse]

Buying a small contract… need about 30 or so more points for our trip…

We typically stay at 1 BR standard view VGF. Have never stayed at WDW other than VGF, BWV, BCW. Don’t really wish to go elsewhere - maybe LSL someday, but already have direct points.

Would you do a direct contract at VGF for about 30 points?

We just went through this. We were going to sell one of our contracts that was a bit too small and swap it with a larger one (this is a standalone UY for us). When news came out they were selling 25 point contracts at RIV that changed everything and we added on with 25 points instead. It solved all of our issues.

I would just do the 30 direct at VGF, too easy.

 

[sndral]

Do you change your reservations at 7 months? If not, why buy a resort you don’t intend to stay at?
Although 30 points won’t go far at VGF, I’d likely just buy the extra 30 points there & plan on staying an extra night in my 1 br. every other year .

 

[hhisc16]

We just went through this. We were going to sell one of our contracts that was a bit too small and swap it with a larger one (this is a standalone UY for us). When news came out they were selling 25 point contracts at RIV that changed everything and we added on with 25 points instead. It solved all of our issues.

I would just do the 30 direct at VGF, too easy.

You were able to add on 25 points at RIV?

 

[intamin]

You were able to add on 25 points at RIV?

They recently decreased the minimums for all resorts to 25 I'm pretty sure.

 

[Genie+]

Looking for some brain trust advice….

Buying a small contract… need about 30 or so more points for our trip…

We typically stay at 1 BR standard view VGF. Have never stayed at WDW other than VGF, BWV, BCW. Don’t really wish to go elsewhere - maybe LSL someday, but already have direct points.

Would you do a direct contract at VGF for about 30 points?

Or would you pay less and do a 40-60 points contract at another resort RESALE - say SSR, OKW-E, etc. that would be fully loaded, and cost less.

I don’t really need the extra points beyond the 30 right now… and another 10-20 are unlikely to skew the math on opening up more seasons/dates, etc.

Expiration date is a factor to keep in mind, but who knows how I will feel about DVC in 2054/2057.

Dues are another factor - as they are higher at SSR and OKW.

Would be same UY as my current contract.

Don’t care too much about resale restrictions.

Trying to be general enough to not have the post blocked.

I’ve been contemplating similar, so thanks for the discussion!

We started off DVC booking a studio, that lead to booking 2 studios at VGF, and now I finally booked the 1BR. It was a bit of a scramble for points patching together a stay in Season 6.

After this the family is going to be all about 1BRs and 2BRs. It’s been on my mind over a week now. 200pts isn’t gonna cut it anymore. How should we add-on?

I’ve not yet done the full deep dive into the math or availability. I think it’s going to come down to deciding which seasons we will keep being most interested to book. Seasons 4, 5 and 6 as a group probably work out well for the SAP. I also want to run Seasons 1-3 taking costs and availability into account. Does the math gap shrink between SAP and VGF resale if VGF is able to book much more consistently, including standard view? Will share what I come up with.

 

[cruisehopeful]

Buy where you want to stay. Buy direct for immediate points. There's really no reason at all to consider a resale contract at a resort that you don't want to stay at.

 

[RuntheMouse]

You were able to add on 25 points at RIV?

They recently decreased the minimums for all resorts to 25 I'm pretty sure.

Yes 2 weeks ago.

 

[Sprinkles&Sprints]

I would definitely do direct for 30 points - probably for anything under 50 depending on the resort.

 

[muppets3d]

Buy where you want to stay. Buy direct for immediate points. There's really no reason at all to consider a resale contract at a resort that you don't want to stay at.

A lot of people buy resale at resorts they don't plan to stay at. They just use those points at 7 months at other resorts they can be used at.

 

[AstroBlasters]

Looking for some brain trust advice….

Buying a small contract… need about 30 or so more points for our trip…

We typically stay at 1 BR standard view VGF. Have never stayed at WDW other than VGF, BWV, BCW. Don’t really wish to go elsewhere - maybe LSL someday, but already have direct points.

Would you do a direct contract at VGF for about 30 points?

Or would you pay less and do a 40-60 points contract at another resort RESALE - say SSR, OKW-E, etc. that would be fully loaded, and cost less.

I don’t really need the extra points beyond the 30 right now… and another 10-20 are unlikely to skew the math on opening up more seasons/dates, etc.

Expiration date is a factor to keep in mind, but who knows how I will feel about DVC in 2054/2057.

Dues are another factor - as they are higher at SSR and OKW.

Would be same UY as my current contract.

Don’t care too much about resale restrictions.

Trying to be general enough to not have the post blocked.

Just curious why not 50pt VGF resale? I know sometimes a shift in point charts or a peak weekend can impact things….

 

[Brian Noble]

More points are nice, but feels like a bit of a hassle… Saving money is also nice… but at the expense of tediousness for the next 30 years? Idk…

If you are combining this with existing GFV points, then just buy the 30-pointer direct and move on. It's not going to be that much different, money-wise. That way you don't have to futz around with the 7-month deadline to get your final day, etc.

After this the family is going to be all about 1BRs and 2BRs. It’s been on my mind over a week now. 200pts isn’t gonna cut it anymore. How should we add-on?

This is not an extra 30, it's probably closer to double. In that case, I'd probably look for a resale at the same resort (which I assume is GFV). If GFV were in active sales, maybe I think about this differently.

Full disclosure: I'm in a similar position with RIV, and I keep going back and forth on resale vs. direct for the second batch of points. I'm leaning resale, but not committed. Yet.

 

[airjay75]

I also vote for VGF direct (assuming you are combining with other VGF points and resale VGF is not an option). For trips that you’re planning to take with regularity, I think it would become quite annoying to always go add on that extra night at the 7-month mark. I also think increasing your points power at a single resort gives you more flexibility and more options in the future.

 

[Genie+]

This is not an extra 30, it's probably closer to double. In that case, I'd probably look for a resale at the same resort (which I assume is GFV). If GFV were in active sales, maybe I think about this differently.

Full disclosure: I'm in a similar position with RIV, and I keep going back and forth on resale vs. direct for the second batch of points. I'm leaning resale, but not committed. Yet.

Yes, currently VGF 150pts and 50pts resale BWV. We quickly got accustomed to booking 2 studios if either of our adult kids joins us. Our next trip - 5 weeknights VGF in April:

240pts for 2 studios - what we originally booked for 3ppl
230pts for 1BR (saves 10 pts) - we switched to this, first time trying VGF 1BR
325pts for 2BR (adds 85pts)

We’ve rented & loved many resorts but since repeatedly staying VGF DH has become a huge fan. We’ve also outgrown 1 studio for more than 2ppl. Throw in that we naturally splurge on higher point seasons much of the time… I’m starting to think a cushion of SAP points could actually work for us.

7 month availability in this area looks good to consume the SAP points.

I see nice 50pt SSR resales in our UY for around $100pp -
As long as 150pts out of every 3 years can be applied toward things we booked that have 7 month availability, it could work fine. In that time we’d be using 750pts total, so that would only require 20% to have 7 month availability that could use up those SSR points. Going by our current DVC habits, the odds look good that it would pretty easy for us to do and not inconvenient.

SSR 50pts resale $5k
VGF 50pts resale $8k
VGF 25pts direct $6.6k
VGF 50pts direct $13.2k

That last one gets crossed off because if I’m spending 5 figures, I’ll stick with keeping my eye on direct Poly incentives and whatever happens with LSL. I love Poly and DH enjoys it.

Never thought we could make good use of SSR resale. For now I’m still torn.