Why is there such a difference per point?

[Shooby doo]

Hi, DW & I are seriously considering ,in fact we are getting the finances together, buying into DVC- many moons ago we nearly bought into BWV but changed our mind at the last minute-Big mistake as it would now have paid for itself! Anyway I'm a little confused at the various price differences? We are looking at possibly buying a resale at SSR but can't understand why the same No. of points at say BWV is so much more ,when there are less years on the contract?
I understand the whole "Home resort" thing but does it really make that much difference? We generally vacation Mid Sept,is this a busy period for DVC seeing as the last few years this has been Free DDP time?
Thanks in advance SD

 

[DebbieB]

It's like the question why is the house down the block selling for a higher price than mine? Does it have a better location? More desirable features?

At Boardwalk, you can walk to Epcot & DHS. At SSR, you can walk to Downtown Disney. Is that worth paying more for?

There are alot of restaurants close by and activities on the boardwalk. SSR has Downtown Disney restaurants and activities but they are farther away. Again, is that worth paying more for?

What about supply? There are more SSR units available.

You are talking real estate and all is negotiable so it comes down to what the market will bear.

 

[alicat07]

I'm new to DVC but a long time fan of Disney, but I'll give my opinion on this--certain resorts are definitely more desirable as home resorts due to location, rooms, ect...and therefore are in more demand. Many of those resorts would require that you be able to book out 11 mths ahead just to get the dates you want. With the great location like BWV, those rooms are harder to get at the 7mth mark, but not impossible. Plus, SSR is the largest resort with the most rooms, so availability is higher.

Not sure if that time of year is really busy, but a general observation with DVC is that the "slow" periods for Disney are busier periods for DVC'ers. In general DVC'ers like to go at the slower times of the year, so even if Disney is slower in general, their DVC resorts may be booked because that's when they like to go. Also, DVC'ers do not get the perks like the free DDP, so that's another thing to take into consideration. Even if Disney is offering those incentives, DVC'ers are not eligible for the promotions.

We went last year mid-late Sept with our friends who have SSR as their home resort. They tried to get BWV or BCV but it was booked--we just ended up going to SSR for the week. So if you know you want to go to one resort all the time, buy your home resort there. At least you'll be able to get your home resort most of the time in case the others are booked!

Curious as to other replies on this too!

 

[tamclan]

The price difference is related to prices the current owners paid, scarcity of that resort and its location.

For some people that travel today or may in the future to WDW and can plan more than 7 months in advance their preferred home resort has value.

I was in same situation this past summer and was thinking about buying the lowest costs resort OKW but opted to spend more on BWV. My reasons were cemented when we stay in August and needed to wait for the buses to go back to Hotel. It sure would have been nice to walk "Home" after Illuminations and Fantasmic.

While I usually drive to WDW we probably will fly more in the future, the EPCOT resorts since you can walk there offer so much more food choices without the need of a car.

That is what went into my thinking which isn't important to others.

If these things have no value to you or you can't plan in advance definitely go with the lowests costs options.

 

[Shooby doo]

I can understand the location side but in the BCV we are talking $10 a point difference for a 12 year shorter lease,which in theory means that I would have an additional 12 years of holidays for less money? Being new to this I had thought that as WDW offer the Free DDP for late Aug/Sept that that would be a slower time for DVC owners? We have only ever been to SSR for the AKV presentation so we couldn't rule out staying there every trip but we do know that we liked the look of AKV & WLV & would want to stay there at some point.
SD

 

[dianeschlicht]

I can understand the location side but in the BCV we are talking $10 a point difference for a 12 year shorter lease,which in theory means that I would have an additional 12 years of holidays for less money? Being new to this I had thought that as WDW offer the Free DDP for late Aug/Sept that that would be a slower time for DVC owners? We have only ever been to SSR for the AKV presentation so we couldn't rule out staying there every trip but we do know that we liked the look of AKV & WLV & would want to stay there at some point.
SD

If you buy into SSR, you will have the 7 month booking window to stay at AKV and VWL. AKV will be large enough that the 7 month window should work just fine. VWL will be more difficult because it's smaller, but not impossible.

 

[twinklebug]

I can understand the location side but in the BCV we are talking $10 a point difference for a 12 year shorter lease,which in theory means that I would have an additional 12 years of holidays for less money? Being new to this I had thought that as WDW offer the Free DDP for late Aug/Sept that that would be a slower time for DVC owners? We have only ever been to SSR for the AKV presentation so we couldn't rule out staying there every trip but we do know that we liked the look of AKV & WLV & would want to stay there at some point.
SD

Time wise: I think many buyers look at the here & now side of things. Do they care about the extra 12 years? Not yet. Some might even assume they'll pass on before that time.

Location wise: There are places I love staying. To me, it's worth a little more to make sure I can book a resort I love 11 months out & not get stuck in a location I don't want. There's probably some of this thinking going on too.

There really is no slow time of year for DVC anymore. The points have been allocated so that time frames that would usually see lighter DVC traffic are now in demand due to the savings.

 

[tamclan]

I can understand the location side but in the BCV we are talking $10 a point difference for a 12 year shorter lease,which in theory means that I would have an additional 12 years of holidays for less money? Being new to this I had thought that as WDW offer the Free DDP for late Aug/Sept that that would be a slower time for DVC owners? We have only ever been to SSR for the AKV presentation so we couldn't rule out staying there every trip but we do know that we liked the look of AKV & WLV & would want to stay there at some point.
SD

I don't own BCV but that is one of the smallest resorts. If you want to stay there during prime time you really need to have that as your home resort.

Before buying any property you should probably tour them to see the pros nd cons. To me my purchase was a lot of money and I wanted to be happy with my purchase.

 

[Raivyn]

Why do points cost more or less depending on resort? Demand and location.

If the location is more desirable, the price will be higher than at a resort with a less desireable location.

If the supply is low (i.e. a smaller resort), the price will be higher than at a larger resort.

Look at the resale points for Vero Beach and HH. Those are MUCH less expensive than at the WDW locations. But if you are planning a WDW trip, being able to use 500 pts is useless if you can't get a room at the 7th month window.

Also look at the supply of these points for sale....when I last looked, there were lots of Vero Beach/HH points in the $60-$80 range.

But everyone has to make their own individual decision about how much of a discount a less desirable/larger resort should be. $60 points at Vero Beach maybe a good value to you, or no value if you don't think you'll ever use them.

 

[OneMoreTry]

Difference in cost usually means that the 11 month window is very important to some people.

Which usually means they want a specific room category that can be guaranteed at the time of reservation OR that being able to guarantee a room at holidays AT a specific resort is important to them. BWV has the Boardwalk View, AKV will have concierge and savannah view. BLT will have the MK view.

Some are wondering if BLT may be hard to book at all after 7 months, but I don't think it will be impossible.

I.e. if you want to stay at BLT at Xmas better buy there. If you MUSt stay at AKV concierge or definitely want Boardwalk view, buy where you want to stay.

Other wise buy cheap.

 

[drusba]

SSR is the largest DVC resort. Before SSR OKW was the largest. Neither is close to a park. Before SSR, it was often easy to get any resort at 7 months or even shorter out much of the year (holidays and December the biggest exception). Majority of OKW owners generally preferred OKW including because of its large rooms and thus there was no mad rush at 7 months out to reserve other resorts. SSR has changed that pattern. There can be many openings at 7 months out many times of year for resorts near a park but now you better be calling at exactly 7 months out to have a chance both because the demand has increased significantly and because owners at the park-adjacent resorts are more and more making their reservations further out than 7 months because they realize it is now more difficult to get their own resort 7 months or less out. In other words, home resort reservation advantage is becoming more and more important and when buying you need to consider that fact.

 

[aurorafan]

We chose AK because our kids love animals and I loved the exotic look/feel of it. I like that it feels more removed from the bustle of the parks, but then again our first stay was at POR so we got used to bus rides and didn't mind them at all, so the ride to AK isn't a problem for us. My best friend prefers the Epcot resorts because she has smaller kids, so the location made all the difference, plus her family likes the busy-ness of the place .

The size and location of the Epcot resorts makes them prime real estate. As someone else mentioned, a lot of people aren't worried about the length of the contract yet, and are willing to pay the increased price per point, and thus the difference

 

[Lynne M]

I can understand the location side but in the BCV we are talking $10 a point difference for a 12 year shorter lease,which in theory means that I would have an additional 12 years of holidays for less money? Being new to this I had thought that as WDW offer the Free DDP for late Aug/Sept that that would be a slower time for DVC owners? We have only ever been to SSR for the AKV presentation so we couldn't rule out staying there every trip but we do know that we liked the look of AKV & WLV & would want to stay there at some point.
SD

Everyone's taste and situation is different...in my case, I'm 49 and have no kids. The extra 12 years are useless to me, I'll likely be unable to travel by that point, if I'm still around.

Also, where I stay is very important to me. I prefer the hotel-style resorts, and I want to be close to at least one theme park. I would rather have fewer years at VWL, than more years at a resort I don't really care for. It's not a 'deal' if it's something I don't really want.

 

[Mollie Bell]

We bought at VB in 2001. So far we've never even seen it. We have always been able to stay on site in Orlando, but we always go in months when kids are in school. We've never had a problem booking in the 7 month window. I just hope our good fortune continues.

Good luck !