Where would you buy?

[Eeyore's the Best]

Hi, I'm getting very close to my November trip where I will likely be purchasing DVC. I have posted before but still gathering opinions and experience, I'm interested in buying direct. I want the perks and the discounts, and I want to be able to stay at new properties.

We have exclusively stayed at Pop for the last 10+ years. We never rent a car and I'm not a huge fan of using the Disney buses. It's my sister and I that travel together, and now that we are getting older and I have a recently improved financial situation we want to go for some upgraded experiences. My number one parameter is that there is something other than the bus to get to at least two parks, monorail, skyliner or walking. Our favourite parks are Epcot and Hollywood Studios. We go for 2 - 3 weeks a year and I have approx $50K-$75K Canadian set aside for this DVC purchase. We typically travel in Feb or Nov.

Where would you buy? Riviera seems like an obvious fit, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around what the issues are with re-sale etc. I'm certainly not going into this with the intention to sell anytime soon, but you never know. Boardwalk is another top choice, but can you buy this direct? Grand Floridian seems like a possible choice as well, but I know it costs a lot more points to stay there on a regular basis I think than most other DVC hotels.

Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[NVDISFamily]

Have you already established a relationship with a guide and have you scheduled a tour? I'm a rookie, so I don't know if this was the proper protocol, but I called a guide, started a dialog about my goals, and setup a tour of a few properties. It was a fun day. The kids got lots of books, pins, stickers, and some free treats.

I went into the day expecting to buy VGF (due to what many were saying about resale restrictions and resale value), but during and after our tour the family really loved Riviera more. We also did a tour of CCV and SSR that day, and we quickly also added on some points at CCV before all was done. Riviera is our main resort in the EPCOT area, and CCV is for MK fun

The resale restrictions suck, and I do hope they get rid of them, but like you, I'm not buying this for profit

Wish you the best of luck. If you need a guide, I really like mine - Garrett.Ford@disney.com. He was really patient with my family/kids and treated us great.

 

[kanerf]

We don't have any new resorts yet other than Riviera, so we don't know if those coming online in the next 2-3 years will have restrictions or not. That said, I am also a Riviera owner. The contract will surely outlast me, so it will be someone else's problem when it comes to selling it. It is just too convenient connected to both Epcot and HS. I also own at Boardwalk, so I split stays between the two and I have BLT and BRV also to stay close to MK.

Just keep in mind that you will have to buy 150 direct pts to get the blue card benefits and with some of the deals they have had, Riviera is the best for that.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

You asked for opinions.

We love Riviera, and we totally think the resale restrictions are overblown hysteria at this point. It's doing well on the resale market, and I think it's a 50/50 chance Poly 2.0 has the restrictions. There's an argument to be made both ways for it to have it, but at the end of the day, our favorite parks are HS/EP, we love the Skyliner, hate the buses, and love the small footprint, user-friendly rooms, and great dining options at Riviera -- all while under cover from the elements and not requiring walking through rain/heat/humidity to hit the parks.
Tour some of the other resorts, just to satisfy yourself where you want to be. I also will say, Riviera is getting tough to get into for any standard view rooms, any category. So, therefore, if you don't own there, you'll be using major points to book there in prime seasons. I think you'll want the 11-month booking advantage there to set it and forget it, especially since you know your budget and expected timeframe of travel. We love RR and have zero regrets!

 

[Sandisw]

I think Riviera sounds like a great choice given everything you said.

We love it and stay every trip.

 

[CraigInPA]

Epcot and Hollywood Studios being your favorite, your first choices should be resorts over in that area. Instinctively, one would immediately say "Riviera!", due to the fact that it's a new property and it has the Skyliner, so you won't be on buses to your 2 favorite resorts. You could also buy BCV or BWV (which offer walking paths to both parks), but both expire in 2042. If you're happy with the value proposition of a 2042 resort (20 years until expiration), they might be an option for you. To further refine the difference, Riviera: $207/48 years=$4.31/yr, BCV $265/20=$13.25/yr, BWV $230/20=$11.50/yr. Note that the prices shown are direct prices, and assumes you will hold the property until the end. The same calculation done using the average resale price over a 10-15 year investment would yield greater differences, but who can tell what the resale price will be in 10-15 years with any degree of accuracy?

I'm partial to the monorail resorts and to the MK. So, for me, the best choice was BLT after looking at the Poly (which was announced, but not constructed) and GFV. I purchased years ago, and have watched the direct and resale prices climb. The resale prices are now almost twice what I paid. I never would have expected that!

 

[havoc315]

Hi, I'm getting very close to my November trip where I will likely be purchasing DVC. I have posted before but still gathering opinions and experience, I'm interested in buying direct. I want the perks and the discounts, and I want to be able to stay at new properties.

We have exclusively stayed at Pop for the last 10+ years. We never rent a car and I'm not a huge fan of using the Disney buses. It's my sister and I that travel together, and now that we are getting older and I have a recently improved financial situation we want to go for some upgraded experiences. My number one parameter is that there is something other than the bus to get to at least two parks, monorail, skyliner or walking. Our favourite parks are Epcot and Hollywood Studios. We go for 2 - 3 weeks a year and I have approx $50K-$75K Canadian set aside for this DVC purchase. We typically travel in Feb or Nov.

Where would you buy? Riviera seems like an obvious fit, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around what the issues are with re-sale etc. I'm certainly not going into this with the intention to sell anytime soon, but you never know. Boardwalk is another top choice, but can you buy this direct? Grand Floridian seems like a possible choice as well, but I know it costs a lot more points to stay there on a regular basis I think than most other DVC hotels.

Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Riviera is the very obvious choice if you prefer Epcot and DHS. (and it also has above-average bus service to Magic Kingdom as it doesn't share busses with any other resort). Do NOT worry about the re-sale restrictions. They do not impact you as a direct buyer. The "concern" is that it may impact the re-sale price later on, if you ever choose to re-sell it. But by that time, most properties will have various restrictions. Sure, the value of Riviera could potentially be depressed by a few dollars. But it's not going to be a huge difference. Ok, in 20 years, you will "only" be able to resell it for $160 per point, and if it didn't have restrictions, you'd be able to resell it for $170 per point. Something along those lines.

Boardwalk is a lovely resort, great location. But buying it direct is insane. They price is extremely high, and there are only 19 years left on the contract. The result -- You are vastly overpaying. It can be cheaper just to book cash rooms, definitely cheaper to rent points.

 

[havoc315]

Epcot and Hollywood Studios being your favorite, your first choices should be resorts over in that area. Instinctively, one would immediately say "Riviera!", due to the fact that it's a new property and it has the Skyliner, so you won't be on buses to your 2 favorite resorts. You could also buy BCV or BWV (which offer walking paths to both parks), but both expire in 2042. If you're happy with the value proposition of a 2042 resort (20 years until expiration), they might be an option for you. To further refine the difference, Riviera: $207/48 years=$4.31/yr, BCV $265/20=$13.25/yr, BWV $230/20=$11.50/yr.

Ah... but you have to include dues. So RIV is about $12, BCV is about $21, BWV is about $19.
But then, when you add closing costs and "lost opportunity costs" those numbers get higher. Becomes more like $14 to $15 for RIV, $25 for BCV, $24 for BWV.
When you remember that you can rent points or book cash rooms, often at a cost that is equivalent to lower than $20 per point, those 2042 resorts become unjustifiable. Sure, if you love the "price of ownership" so you don't mind paying more for DVC than you would for booking cash rooms, or paying 10-20% more for greater certainty than you would get by renting points.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

I just wanted to add, so far since we bought in in 2019, during a pandemic with borrowing restrictions, we've done BC, RR, GF, OKW, and if we wanted to, could have booked SS, AKJ, AKK, and even some BW or BLT. We go prime school vacation weeks, too. (February, April/Easter, 4th of July.). While I don't want you to think you can easily get a FULL week somewhere else, if you're open to split stays, I think you can stay just about anywhere except CC from Veteran's Day-NYD. I'm excited to try different resorts. The deal with my husband is we always have to split the stay with Riviera, because if he had his way, we'd never stay anywhere else! LOL. He compromises and lets me book the splits.

 

[hhisc16]

Have you already established a relationship with a guide and have you scheduled a tour? I'm a rookie, so I don't know if this was the proper protocol, but I called a guide, started a dialog about my goals, and setup a tour of a few properties. It was a fun day. The kids got lots of books, pins, stickers, and some free treats.

I went into the day expecting to buy VGF (due to what many were saying about resale restrictions and resale value), but during and after our tour the family really loved Riviera more. We also did a tour of CCV and SSR that day, and we quickly also added on some points at CCV before all was done. Riviera is our main resort in the EPCOT area, and CCV is for MK fun

The resale restrictions suck, and I do hope they get rid of them, but like you, I'm not buying this for profit

Wish you the best of luck. If you need a guide, I really like mine - Garrett.Ford@disney.com. He was really patient with my family/kids and treated us great.

We used him for our HHI add on in December. He has a very interesting back story with DVC.

 

[jason423]

If you plan on buying direct then Riviera would be the best choice given the price and length of contract. Depending on how many points you need and desire to stay at other spots around Epcot you could consider buying 150-200 points direct on Riviera and then trying to land a resale contract after that at Boardwalk or Beach Club. You should get all your DVC benefits that way and save some money. The negative on that is your resale points would not be able to be used at Riviera to stretch your points further at that resort.

 

[RoseGold]

Especially as an international buyer, and with a joint contract, I would get some local legal advice to set up the buy correctly. This is a property interest in Florida. It has to be probated there with a FL lawyer in many cases. There are workarounds to this, and it is probably worth getting some legal advice.

There is no rush. DVC is not going anywhere. If I were buying direct, I would wait until Poly2 comes online. They will book you a "welcome home stay" so you should be able to book something last minute, no matter what you buy direct. Heck, you could probably do it now and cancel your current reservation if you were ready.

And for your preferences, I might consider BW resale. The points are more expensive, but the chart might make up the difference. I'd do some math on it.

 

[dvc lover 1970]

Sounds like RIV is a perfect fit for you. if you are planning to keep the contract long-term do not worry about the restrictions. I personally would not buy any more than the 150 points required for new direct contracts there. If you find you need more points there, buy those resale.

 

[princesscinderella]

I’d save some money to buy points at the Disneyland tower when it goes on sale potentially at the end of this year or definitely in 2023. It has the potential to skyrocket in price just like Grand Californian has due to the scarcity of DVC and on property rooms there. Even if you use the points primarily at WDW at 7months you will not regret that purchase.

 

[Rick195275]

To your last point, I would take a look at the points charts for your desired travel periods between Riv and grand flo. The standard studios aren’t really abundant at Riv so you frequently might need to book preferred view rooms (which in my opinion, most should be standard view but that’s a whole different topic) which could cost more than standard rooms at grand flo. I’m not sure how many of the new rooms are standard viwe at grand flo but they seem plentiful while it’s currently on sale. I’m not a huge Riv fan myself, would prefer bcv or boardwalk in that area but I can’t see the value there going direct. I enjoy the skyliner but it’s known to go down due to weather and that creates a mess for Riv guests when it does. Not sure this is helpful but you asked for opinions lol. Have you thought about booking a cash stay or renting for a night or 2 to try them first? Maybe do a short split trip and see which you prefer before taking the plunge?

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Where would you buy? Riviera seems like an obvious fit, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around what the issues are with re-sale etc. I'm certainly not going into this with the intention to sell anytime soon, but you never know. Boardwalk is another top choice, but can you buy this direct? Grand Floridian seems like a possible choice as well, but I know it costs a lot more points to stay there on a regular basis I think than most other DVC hotels.

Honestly, the RIV point chart is not a savings over VGF, so that's kind of a non-issue on the math. BWV is a much kinder chart, because it's one of the originals, but it is absolutely bananas to buy BWV direct, or for any other purpose than to book BWV for every single trip from now to 2042. They are not sleeparound points.

I think we can assume any new resort will have restrictions. VGF didn't because they added to the existing assoociation. Poly2 (Polyday Inn) is likely to be a second association with restrictions.

I would not wait for the Disneyland Tower to stay on-site at WDW. Your travel dates of November and February definitely overlap a busy period where 11-month booking is key at WDW (November) and potentially also with February (US President's Day weekend/Princess Half are an 11-month booking as well).

Which is me saying "buy where you are happy to book at 11 months and not necessarily see a lot of switch choice unless you travel at non-typical times compared to when you just said you like to travel."

 

[Kjdisney]

I’d save some money to buy points at the Disneyland tower when it goes on sale potentially at the end of this year or definitely in 2023. It has the potential to skyrocket in price just like Grand Californian has due to the scarcity of DVC and on property rooms there. Even if you use the points primarily at WDW at 7months you will not regret that purchase.

I’m not sure I agree with this. VGC has skyrocketed because it is the best resort in the area AND it is the smallest DVC resort, so very limited supply. Neither can be said of the new Disneyland tower.

I plan on purchasing when it does go on sale, but purchased resale first so I can purchase in smaller point contracts. If Disneyland forward isn‘t a reality in 10 years and there isn’t even a second gate into DL for on-site guests, I think VDH resale will struggle. There may not be much DVC, but there is a lot of hotel space, and most is closer to the parks and cheaper than the DLH.

It will really depend on the point charts, for how good of a value the purchase of VDH would be. If the point charts are the same or higher than VGC, it could be hard to even rent out the points if you weren’t using them. I wouldn’t buy a Disneyland contract with resale restrictions unless I plan on using it yearly, even then I wouldn’t want to have any contracts over 100 points.

 

[Kjdisney]

Especially as an international buyer, and with a joint contract, I would get some local legal advice to set up the buy correctly. This is a property interest in Florida. It has to be probated there with a FL lawyer in many cases. There are workarounds to this, and it is probably worth getting some legal advice.

There is no rush. DVC is not going anywhere. If I were buying direct, I would wait until Poly2 comes online. They will book you a "welcome home stay" so you should be able to book something last minute, no matter what you buy direct. Heck, you could probably do it now and cancel your current reservation if you were ready.

And for your preferences, I might consider BW resale. The points are more expensive, but the chart might make up the difference. I'd do some math on it.

This is excellent advise! It sounds like it is you and a sister are purchasing together? I would definitely get legal advice on the best way to title any DVC purchases.

I also second looking at BW resale. I ended up purchasing BW resale because in the end the point charts made it the best investment for me. I will mostly travel between Nov- Feb, and would need 30- 40 points more to stay at RIV vs BW. I will say that the RIV standard studios are beautiful, so it might be worth the extra expense to you.

I really like being able to walk to both Epcot and HS, so am willing to give up the larger, prettier studio. I do Disney trips with my sister as well, since she likes Disney more than my DH! My sister and I also like a spa day in the middle of our trip, which is another reason I chose BW. the madrona spa at the dolphin is really nice and close. That for me was the only downside to owning RIV, it is such a beautiful restful retreat from the parks. I just wish they had added a spa like at VGF.

I’ll need more points in a couple of years for trips with kids/grandkids, so
I plan on purchasing direct at Poly Tower and most likely VDH, so like the flexibility of smaller contracts, and current member pricing.

 

[lowlight]

Riviera. Some people don't like it, but some people don't like pizza either and you would never ask them for food advice so...

 

[aka Charles]

Hi, I'm getting very close to my November trip where I will likely be purchasing DVC. I have posted before but still gathering opinions and experience, I'm interested in buying direct. I want the perks and the discounts, and I want to be able to stay at new properties.

We have exclusively stayed at Pop for the last 10+ years. We never rent a car and I'm not a huge fan of using the Disney buses. It's my sister and I that travel together, and now that we are getting older and I have a recently improved financial situation we want to go for some upgraded experiences. My number one parameter is that there is something other than the bus to get to at least two parks, monorail, skyliner or walking. Our favourite parks are Epcot and Hollywood Studios. We go for 2 - 3 weeks a year and I have approx $50K-$75K Canadian set aside for this DVC purchase. We typically travel in Feb or Nov.

Where would you buy? Riviera seems like an obvious fit, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around what the issues are with re-sale etc. I'm certainly not going into this with the intention to sell anytime soon, but you never know. Boardwalk is another top choice, but can you buy this direct? Grand Floridian seems like a possible choice as well, but I know it costs a lot more points to stay there on a regular basis I think than most other DVC hotels.

Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

From everything you have said, Riviera does seem to be the best fit for you.

If you have not talked to a DVC Guide yet, call and get one NOW!
I say this because the current incentives are ending in 5 days (8/24/22).
It is possible the new incentives after 8/24 might be better, but they could be worse, or go away until after the holiday season.

If you get a guide now and make a small deposit (10% of a 150 point contract) you can lock in the current incentive pricing while you go through the process.
You can change the amount of points on the contract at any time during the process and still use the same incentive plan.
If any new incentives that come out are better, they will gladly move your contract to the new incentive plan.
And you can always change your mind (before closing) and get your deposit back.

The current New Member Riviera Incentives are as follows (in US dollars, Cad. dollars would be more, but the % of savings would be the same):
The Current Direct Price is $207/point.
Buy 150 points - Save $8/point = $199/point
Buy 200 points - Save $16/point = $191/point
Buy 300 points - Save $26/point = $181/point

You can buy two 150 point contracts at the same time (300 point total) and get them at the 300 point price savings.
That would allow you to split them up at a later time, if needed, and each would still have full member rights.
You could also sell one, and keep the other, retaining full member rights on it.
There would be an additional document fee for the second contract.

The next question would be how many points.
A standard studio at the Riviera runs from 125/week to 155/week in Feb. and Nov. 2023.
For two weeks that would be 250-310 points.
If you stay one week at the low end and one week at the high end, it would be 280 points total.
Getting 300 points would seem to be the best bet, at this time.

300 points times $181/point = $54300 US, or about $70600 Canadian, (if I got the exchange correct, lol)

That would seem to fit your budget.