Why I didnt buy from Disney
1.
AKL is the only DVC property CURRENTLY available. I like AKL, and I think the themeing is gorgeous. Its a place I want to (hopefull) stay for a few days on a trip or two (maybe). I really dont like the location of the resort though. We love the other three parks much better, and frankly, IMHO AKL is a giant pain in the butt to get to the other three parks. I did not want it for my home resort. JMHO Edited to ADD: The incentives for AKL do make it a very attractive resort to purchase here, but for our personal situation: I go to Disney with 3 kids by myself usually. I dont take or rent a car, and use Disney transportation and ME to and from the airport. The only two easily accessible restaraunts are Boma and Jiko for TS (both excellent) and ONLY Mara for a counterservice for the AKL and the AK Villas. Hmm, dining was a real issue for me - it would not be so much for someone who has a car though. And, I have seen Mara, and wonder how the heck its going to be able to take care of all the guests at AKL and the AKL Villas - yikes.
2.
I could have waited for BLT to come out. This is (supposedly, still not 100% official) a new DVC property coming out very soon, located at the Contemporary Resort. This location would be fantastic for those who love the Magic Kingdom. Its on the monorail, so ease of access to the other monorail resorts and their restaraunts would be great. I have to say though, I dont love the themeing of the Contemporary, and its location isnt as good as BCV for me (we love epcot, studios, and the whole boardwalk area) and the pool at BCV is fantastic. Also, there has been much discussion that the price per point and MF's would be premium (much higher) at the contemporary DVC,. I asked myself, if I could only own at one resort, would I rather own at the BLT or the BCV? For me, its BVC, hands down, not even factoring the difference in cost! So, I did not even bother to wait and see if BLT became official, and what the price per point was.
3.
Buying a sold out resort from Disney. You can do it. You can call your guide and ask him/her about it, I did.
First thing you need to know is that you will be paying much more per point going through Disney then resell. The BCV was 104 per point through Disney - my current offer going through is 89 per point. (That is saving me about $4000.) Other sold out resorts vary from 100-104 buying through Disney, and there are NO incentives to go along with this high price point for buying a sold out DVC through Disney
If its your first contract, then Disney charges about 1/2 the cost of closing fees, but if you go through resell, it will cost you full legal costs. Example, through Disney I would have paid maybe 250 -300, resell it was 650. So, Disney is cheaper here.
Disney may not have anything available right away for you on a sold out resort, it depends on their inventory. I asked about BCV and was told there was a waiting list of about 80! Additionally, I said, well, put me on the waiting list for a contract around 200-250 pts, I dont really care about use year. My guide said, NO, you have to be specific on points and use year, put a thousand dollar deposit down, and when it becomes available, I will call you. Hmmm, that sounds like I could be waiting months for my contract, no faster then going through resell, and not allowing me flexibility to hurry up the process. I did not like it (or my guide either really, he wasent interested in selling me a sold out resort I dont think) However, other resorts may have no waiting list, so it may not be a factor...
Stripped Contracts: One advantage of going through Disney is NO contract will be stripped of points. You will get the full amount of points for your use year. Many resell contracts are stripped. BUT, there are resell contracts out there that are loaded, not only having full current use year points, (and full next year points) but also BANKED points, so you end up with more points going in then when buying through Disney. MF"S are negotiable, I got my banked points for 'free', and only paid half the MF's for the current year, so I feel I got a really good deal. If you want a loaded contract, contact your broker and tell him what you are looking for, even if it is not listed, he may be able to find it for you.
Small contracts or add on's - I bought a bigger contract (270 pts) but if you are interested in ones that are smaller, it may be more cost efficient to go through Disney, especially if its an add on -- disney does not charge ANY closing cost for an add on but resell it will still be 100% cost. On a small contract, a free closing cost can outweigh a savings of 10-15 per point on a resell contract. CAUTION: if its your first contract, you cannot buy anything less then 160 pts from Disney (cavaet:AKL you can purchase 100pts as a first contract, but no where else) Resell you can buy as little as you want as a first contract. Smaller contracts are easier to resell in the future, and usually go for a better price per point in the market then larger contracts. Thats a consideration.
The agony of resell: Resell will take anywhere from 6 weeks to 2-3 months. With Disney, if they have what you want, its pretty much instant, less then a week I guess. Is the savings worth it to you? It was for me. However, as I lurk the boards, flopping around, waiting to hear if my contract makes it through ROFR, its not just the time it takes to go through resell, its the uncertainty thats a killer. Will it pass ROFR? Will the sellers change their mind somewhere through the process? Ugh. I hate this part.
I think resell vs direct buy are personal choices, and you have to do what fits you best. If you are interested in AKL, I think with the incentives its pretty much a no brainer to go with Disney. If the BLT is going to float your boat, wait and see what comes out in the next couple of weeks for sure. If its an older DVC resort you want, then contact a couple of brokers with your requests (let them find the right contract for you, its their job, and give them your ultimate wish list, not just settle for whatever they may have currently listed.) Also, contact your Disney guide and make the inquiries too - is there a waiting list for 'your' resort? What is the price per point? How does the wait list work? Depending on the resort, and the size of contract, with a calculator, crunch the numbers. Whats the difference in cost? Is it worth the wait through resell?
These are all just my personal thoughts, and I am very much a newbie at DVC, but its how I figured out whether or not to buy through disney or resell.
HTH