Why DVC?

[sleepyone]

I'm really curious about DVC. The more I look into it the more it seems "not worth it" for us. Am I missing something? If I pay rack rate for Dec. 8 - 14 it would cost $2676 for 5 of us to stay at WL. If I were a member of DVC it would take 270 points for a 2-BR Villa at WL. If I purchased a deed of 150 points for $14250 at SSR annual dues would be around $570. I could go to Disney every other year by banking points (right?). It would take about 5 or 6 visits to a deluxe to add up to the $14250. So, in about 10-12 years (not including dues) it would have "paid" for itself. 10 years worth of dues = 5700 (assuming no change in dues ) so that's a couple more visits. I don't know if this makes sense...maybe I'm making errors. What are the benefits of DVC? Are there any discounts for tickets, food, etc.? If so, what is the discount %? I guess what I'm asking is if we're interested in DVC how do we get our $ worth?

 

[gopherit]

Maybe we're odd birds but we have never really looked at our DVC so much as an "investment" monetarily (although admittedly our pts have really gone "up" in value) as it was an investment in our family and how we would spend our time together in the future. A room in the WL doesn't compare to a 2 br villa. When we bought our DVC, we committed ourselves to taking family time together without allowing the cost aspect to compromise our comfort. When we vacation at WDW, we have a kitchen, we have a washer/dryer yet we are on-site. We are in a deluxe resort, with all the trimmings. This is NOT something we would probably do otherwise! In a world where it seems we spend our lives doing the World TOur for Peace visiting DH's family or mine on every holiday or spare moment, it was so great to sign a piece of paper that said, as of today, you PROMISE to go on a real vacation together! And frequently! And if the family balks -- you can always bring 'em along (which we have, several times). The dynamics of a family of 5 are tough -- and admittedly, DVC's only real answer to that is the pricier 2 br (or 2 studios, if you trust 'em out of your sight!) But honestly, I've done the everybody-crammed-in-one-room routine, and once we got a 2br and discovered the joys of separate rooms, everyone having their own bed, and the nice living space inbetween to boot, well, there's just no going back!

I'm sure others can chime in on the cost specifics (like how the rack rates are ever-rising, yet DVC point charts stay fixed) and do a better job than I could. But for our family, DVC is really just an investment in "us", and thus far, a darn good one.

 

[crisi]

You pretty much have it.

There are some "gotchas" you may not be figuring...

Tax...currently at 11.5% or something, won't apply to your DVC room.

The room will go up in price - the points won't (the dues will, but the dues increases have been fairly moderate).

But I figure ROI in about six trips, then I go for the cost of dues.

 

[tjkraz]

Sounds about right. A 10-year breakeven point isn't uncommon. The point is that the dues alone on those 270 points are only $1034 in today's dollars (SSR points.)

So, it takes you 10 years to break even, then you save about $1600 per trip($2600 cash price vs $1000 DVC dues) for the next FORTY years.

We do receive some perks from Disney, but none of them are guaranteed and the list changes often. It's probably not wise to base a purchase decision on today's list of perks, which could well change tomorrow.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I am also one who doesn't look at the financial picture as being the end-all.

BUT figuring money, let's look at your own statement:

"So, in about 10-12 years (not including dues) it would have "paid" for itself."

True. The point is, most, if not all of us plan on visiting more than the next 10-12 years. In addition, many of us visit several times per year.

Yes, dues increase, but I figure that will be a wash with room rates.

Good luck...

MG

 

[SlyHubby]

Well, my take is as follows:

- Prior to DVC we would stay at Grand Floridian, Beach Club, etc. and an average week in a standard room (comparable to a DVC studio) would run about $2000 to $2500 - this was back in the mid 1990's but also included park tickets.

- our 150 points @ $67 less $750 @ $10/point for half our first year points brought our cost to about $9500.

- our $9500 was covered within the first 2 to 3 years of our membership.

- today our $9500 "investment" could be easily sold for something between $11,000 and $12,000. Most non-DVC timeshares go down in value, for some reason this one keeps going up.

- now, we get about 10 nights a year for our dues of about $500 (partially tax deductible).

That's how it is worth it for us.

Look at it for the cash price of comparable accommodations. If you paid cash on a nightly basis at the Beach Club what would it cost you going cash? Now compare to what it would cost going the DVC route.

If you don't plan on visiting Disney all that often, or you can't see how it fits your needs - then maybe it doesn't. There's nothing wrong with coming to that realization. Though Disney/DVC will advertise that everyone should own a piece of the magic, it's not necessarily true.

 

[Cplofdisneynutz]

Just bumping in to see how this thread goes. We are also looking into but are unsure about it!!

thanks for all the info

 

[mikesmom]

There are lots of reasons to buy in (as with many others, we kick ourselves for not doing it sooner) but if you want to stick to economics , one of the core issues is that the hotel rates can (and will) go up every year and the DVC points go up VERY little in comparison. I have had some of mine go down in the odd year.

DH is an economist and ran spreadsheets ad nauseam before we made the decision. Once he got it all out on paper he said it was a no-brainer.

If you do the spredsheet thing, do not restrict yourself to the last few years. Hotel rates both on and offsite were badly depressed after 9/11. Disney offered many discounts and those are slowly but surely fading away. Hotel prices go up, dues go up less.

 

[RobDoc]

... Am I missing something? If I pay rack rate for Dec. 8 - 14 it would cost $2676 for 5 of us to stay at WL. If I were a member of DVC it would take 270 points for a 2-BR Villa at WL.

You are also comparing apples and oranges. With the room at WL you have just that- a room, with one bath and basic needs for 5. In a 2BR at VWL, you will have a living room, master bedroom - with King Bed, TV and jacuzzi tub, full kitchen (most will at least have breakfast and snacks in their room thus saving some $$ on meals- some will even prepare some simple dinners), washer/dryer and a second bedroom with two beds (or queen bed and sleep sofa depending on the room configuration). The villa will have 2 bathrooms, three TV's and lots of comfortable living space.

The breakeven point, if you want to do a financial analysis, will also depend on how often you can use your points and whether you are able to avoid weekend nights. You may find that point under 10 years- depending on how the points will be used.

Just do the math, but be sure to use comparable amenities and options in yor analysis.

Enjoy!

 

[beattyfamily]

One great perk right now is $100 off APs!! I'm excited about that benefit.

Free valet parking at DVC resorts

I think are not comparing the same type of rooms either.

We love DVC and have been able to stay in rooms we would never have been able to afford before.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Doc said it very well. Remember too that you are kind "prepaying" your annual vacations when you buy any timeshare. Since Disney is where we knew we wanted to visit most often, it was our choice of a prepaid vacation. That isn't to say we don't go other places, but we know we will always get at least one Disney trip a year, and in uncomparapble accommodations to boot! Once you have stayed in a villa, it is impossible to go back to a regular hotel room, or even a studio.

I also wanted to add that the 150 point minimum buy it is a bit low for the way I think I would want to vacation. Once you join, if you love Disney, you will find you want to travel more often than you did before. We started with 230 points and added another 150 the following year when we learned that. The good thing about DVC is that you CAN add onto your point totals fairly easily.

 

[Caskbill]

The biggest thing about DVC is it's a great hedge against inflation. Using your figures, if today rack is $2675 that would be $2983 with tax. If inflation goes at 3% per year, then in ten years that figure becomes $4008 (including tax)

Today DVC Dues are $570. Your points remain constant and there is no tax. At 3% inflation, in 10 years dues would be $766.

So over that 10 year span, your regular room increased by $1025, compared to your DVC increase of $196.

And you're still comparing a regular hotel room to a 2-B/R villa. Since you said 270 points for the 2-B/R you must be looking at Adventure season as that's 270 point sor a 2-B/R for a week. A studio during that time is 104 points for a week and a studio is still more than just a regular hotel room at WL. Every other year in a studio would be 52 points/year or about 1/3 of the figures you were using.

What does that do to your calculations?

1/3rd the initial purchase, and 1/3 of the dues you calculated. And since you cannot purchase that small of a contract direct from Disney you would need to go to the resale market. Out there you would probably enjoy about a 5% savings on the purchase price compared to Disney prices.

 

[sleepyone]

The reason I used the WL was because they will allow 5 in a room. I understand you have to get a 2-BR Villa to house 5. Right? So, that's why I'm comparing the two, I understand the difference and the size. I just picked any deluxe that would house 5. For those of you who at least have one meal at a villa, how much do you find you're saving on food?

 

[crisi]

IIRC, you can't put five in a room at WL unless you have a family suite. You can at the Poly or CR though. The WL rooms don't have the "daybeds" of some of the other Deluxes (WL and AKL are "Deluxe lite" resorts). Don't know if you've stayed there, but the regular hotel rooms are quite small for five (we had toddlers when we stayed there). If we were going to rebook those rooms, it would be connecting just for the four of us.

 

[tjkraz]

The reason I used the WL was because they will allow 5 in a room. I understand you have to get a 2-BR Villa to house 5. Right? So, that's why I'm comparing the two, I understand the difference and the size. I just picked any deluxe that would house 5. For those of you who at least have one meal at a villa, how much do you find you're saving on food?

Breakfast is the easy meal to prepare in the room. Pick up frozen waffles, OJ, milk, cereal, bread, even eggs. So, figure how much you would spend otherwise eating breakfast in a week and compare that to a couple gallons of milk and a box of waffles.

We still do the mid-day break thing since our kids are young and need a nap, so most days we'll have lunch in the room, too. Cold cuts, chips, cookies, fruit. That's a lot more economical than $20+ per day for burgers and fries at lunchtime.

Another big area of savings is in your snacks. We buy soda and water in bulk at Publix and never pay $2.50 per bottle at the theme parks. That savings adds up fast. You can also get chips, cookies, popcorn and ice cream to keep in your room for the evenings.

Having the washer and dryer in the room is a great benefit, too.

 

[sleepyone]

I originally used the WDW website to see if I could book a room for 5 at WL. I just ran another example and they will let you book 5 for a deluxe room. As I originally posted: Dec. 8 - 14 it would cost $2676 for 5 of us to stay at WL, I used the WDW website.

 

[DrTomorrow]

[...] For those of you who at least have one meal at a villa, how much do you find you're saving on food?

Not that we bought into DVC to save money on food, but the savings we experience are:
1. Beverages. We stop off and pick up bottled water, soft drinks and adult beverages at a local grocery store. This is where the fridge comes in handy!
2. Breakfasts. At the same stop, we purchase things like bagels, english muffins, butter/jelly, fruit, cinnamon buns and also some of the Pillsbury-type five.minutes.in.the.oven breakfast goodies - and coffee, of course. Nothing like a bagel and a cuppa joe in the AM on our SSR balcony....
3. Snacks. We usually pick up some chips or crackers, and maybe some cookies. You can easily save 50% compared to the Resort store prices.
4. Lunches. We also pick up some bread, lunch meat and a small mustard, so we can throw together a quick sandwich. So many times, as we head back for our afternoon break, we've skipped paying $10 each for chicken strips, fries and a pop/soda and had a roast beef sandwich, chips and a pop/beer in the comfort of our own DVC room.
5. Late night. Sometimes you just want a little something - we've done frozen pizza, Bagel Bites, Pizza Rolls or egg rolls. Again, after a busy evening, we pop them in the oven, shower off and relax with a snack and a drink.

Will you do these things? Don't know. Will these dollars.saved.here.and.there "pay for DVC?" Nope. But we find that the savings and the convenience are simply two more of the benefits of DVC.

Be well!

 

[crisi]

I originally used the WDW website to see if I could book a room for 5 at WL. I just ran another example and they will let you book 5 for a deluxe room. As I originally posted: Dec. 8 - 14 it would cost $2676 for 5 of us to stay at WL, I used the WDW website.

Yep, you are booking the deluxe room (family suite). You might actually be able to get a lower price booking two connecting standard view rooms (I was wondering how you ended up with such a large bill!) or staying five in a room at another Deluxe (where they have a daybed for one of your kids). POR also sleeps five as a Moderate.

With a DVC two bedroom, you'd get two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a washer dryer. We've found sleeping in a seperate room from our kids to be worth "extra" money. My husband likes the fact that I'm much more likely to be amorous if the kids are in a different room.

DVC perks aren't great, but they aren't bad (currently DVC members get $100 off an AP, some dining discounts). Don't join for the perks.

We don't save much eating in the room. We do breakfast, but we did that in a standard room. Just the breakfast has changed - scrambled eggs and juice and coffee instead of poptarts/cereal bars and coffee in our refillable mugs that we went down to refill that morning.


Personally, I think your big driver has to be changing the way you vacation....not saving money. If you want to save money, there are better ways (offsite, moderates, perhaps even codes) without making the long term committment to a timeshare.

 

[rinkwide]

...if we're interested in DVC how do we get our $ worth?

Experience the indulgent luxury of your five in a VWL 2Bdrm for one week (at rack rate) and everything will become crystal clear.

 

[dtheboys]

This is off a bit from the other replies, but DVC is a guaranteed vacation for me and my family!!

Let me expalin........We book 11 months out for our next stay at Disney....That is 11 months looking forward to our next trip!!

No excuses, "we can't go to Disney this year because of a tax bill, money problem, etc" We own at DVC, and we will use DVC....is that clear as mud?

I know in the past, we had to save, and save to go to Disney. Some years we almost cancelled because of savings...now I pay DVC all year long in a monthly ( vacation) payment....

Then, I'm ready to go..................