Why would one buy direct?

[jtwibih]

If I buy a contract via resale, is there a minimum number of points that I would have to buy direct from Disney to get the AP discounts/perks?

 

[ziravan]

If I buy a contract via resale, is there a minimum number of points that I would have to buy direct from Disney to get the AP discounts/perks?

At this moment, a new member has been able to buy as few as 50 points and a current member 25.

So. If you buy resale and after the resale is complete, a 25 point add on direct contract should qualify you for "full membership" as far as perks, AP discounts are concerned.

At this moment.

I expect that'll change.

 

[jtwibih]

Hopefully they will grandfather the current members in when that happens.......

 

[ziravan]

What is a "fixed" week?

Learning so much about DVC options and my mind is really an open sponge at this point! I haven't ruled out anything!

Thanks all.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/purchasing-a-guaranteed-week.3436056/

Fixed weeks aren't currently very economical. DVC is offering a rebate until Oct 10 and fixed weeks are excluded.

So. In addition to buying 10% more points for the fixed week, you'd have to give up the $2000 incentive (for current owners buying 150-200 points) for the fixed week.

That's why nobody has bought one in a few months or since the promotion got underway. I really don't understand why they excluded the fixed weeks.

 

[ziravan]

Hopefully they will grandfather the current members in when that happens.......

That's been the history. If I were a post 4/4/16 resale owner and thought I might have any interest in perks/AP discount in the future, I'd buy a 25 point contract while doing so still grants "full membership".

 

[_auroraborealis_]

So. If you buy resale and after the resale is complete, a 25 point add on direct contract should qualify you for "full membership" as far as perks, AP discounts are concerned.

But an important note is that for certain member "benefits", like being able to use points for cruises, will ONLY attach to those 25 points. Which is to say you'll never be using Disney Collection or cruising "benefits" because 25 points, even banked and borrowed until they're 75, won't get you anywhere.

 

[Dean]

But an important note is that for certain member "benefits", like being able to use points for cruises, will ONLY attach to those 25 points. Which is to say you'll never be using Disney Collection or cruising "benefits" because 25 points, even banked and borrowed until they're 75, won't get you anywhere.

That's true but none of those options are a reasonable value to buy and plan to use though it'd always good to have options. They just arent' worth paying for. IMO anyone looking at buying resale currently who doesn't have the perks otherwise, should consider it up front. I'd plan to buy resale where that made sense and do an add on of 25 points even if I didn't thin the perks were worth it currently. Just incorporate the issue into the overall purchase plan.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

That's true but none of those options are a reasonable value to buy and plan to use though it'd always good to have options. They just arent' worth paying for. IMO anyone looking at buying resale currently who doesn't have the perks otherwise, should consider it up front. I'd plan to buy resale where that made sense and do an add on of 25 points even if I didn't thin the perks were worth it currently. Just incorporate the issue into the overall purchase plan.

Oh, certainly. I've just seen more than a handful of "if I buy a 25 point contract can I use all my points even the resale to book a cruise?"

The only 'points' that get perks are the direct points. Most perks do not use points. For any that require points use, only those direct points can be used. (And, yes: Disney Collection and cruises are terrible uses of points compared to renting and paying cash, which can be done with resale points.)

 

[disneynutz]

What is a "fixed" week?

Learning so much about DVC options and my mind is really an open sponge at this point! I haven't ruled out anything!

Thanks all.

You buy an automatic yearly reservation that you can cancel and use the points just like regular DVC points.

Bill

 

[_auroraborealis_]

And if you want Poly or VGF the first week of December or for marathon weekend consistently, fixed week = gold.

 

[lovin'fl]

I am sure I am repeating what's already been said in this thread (I honestly haven't read it in full yet).
I bought resale and direct and here is why I bought direct:
1- I wanted to do small add ons in my UY...small contracts are tough to get via resale so if you are holding out for specific UY it may take a while.
2- I wanted to pay by Disney Visa for rewards dollars.
3- Closing costs are almost nothing compared to resale (mine were $100).
4- And, yes, the immediate points in our account is a plus.
5- We get a fully loaded contract- current points and forward.

You can get ANY of the DVC properties via direct, not just Poly or Aulani. Though I think they stopped VGC and maybe VGF for now. But we added 3 small BWV contracts for F&W (to our OKW and HHI).

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Truly for most people the only perk worth anything is the AP discount, and that could disappear tomorrow.
Other small discounts on food and merchandise are often offered through other channels.

I would not use perks or discounts in deciding resale vs direct.

MG

 

[senadler]

We bought resale around 6 years ago when the prices were very low compared to now, so buying direct was not even a consideration for us.

Many posters are talking about even the discounts potentially going away for prior resale buyers and the comments about buying a small 25 point add on. I am not sure how the prior year points work. We currently have a February UY, which works well for us, if I were to buy a 25 point add on in January 2017 with a February UY, would I then get the 2016 points?

 

[lovin'fl]

We bought resale around 6 years ago when the prices were very low compared to now, so buying direct was not even a consideration for us.

Many posters are talking about even the discounts potentially going away for prior resale buyers and the comments about buying a small 25 point add on. I am not sure how the prior year points work. We currently have a February UY, which works well for us, if I were to buy a 25 point add on in January 2017 with a February UY, would I then get the 2016 points?

Yes you would.

 

[sanibel93]

I have bought direct a couple of times when I wanted to add on a couple of small contracts. I did not want one larger one. I got tired of waiting for them to come up for the amount I wanted and the use year I wanted. Small ones go fast and they are a lot of the times higher priced per point then a larger resale one per point.

 

[Brian Noble]

Trying to understand why someone would choose to buy direct?

The biggest reason, by far, is that timeshare is a product that is sold, not bought. Very few people wake up and say to themselves: "Today I'm going to legally obligate myself to pay for part of the maintenance and upkeep of a luxury condo for the next many decades." In other words, the folks who do a bunch of research before intentionally purchasing a DVC contract are in a very small minority.

Instead, most people who buy DVC do so while they are on vacation, and decide to take a tour. They are having the time of their lives, and a helpful DVC guide shows them how they can bottle that feeling for years to come "at today's prices." You'd be surprised at how effective that is! Then, having made this aspirational purchase that they feel really good about, most people do not go looking for reasons why the decision wasn't the very best one. In other words, very few people do post-sale research to find out that (a) a secondary market exists and (b) it can be much less expensive. At least, most don't until it is too late, and the rescission period ends.

So, it's perhaps wrong to say that many people choose to buy direct vs. on the secondary market. Most people who buy from Disney don't realize there is a choice.

 

[bumbershoot]

Trying to understand why someone would choose to buy direct?

If you want the newest resort and no great deals are out there for resale, you want to stay there most of the time AND you'll take advantage of the 11 month home resort booking advantage.


We bought direct in '09 because we were spending a ton at Disneyland for onsite resorts anyway, figured it would continue at WDW, and thought it was a better idea to just go DVC.

Alas, our financial situation was not at a place where we could plunk down the money for resale and either the resale loan options didn't exist at that time OR I was unaware of it. And then there would have been the issue of qualifying for a resale loan.

We COULD, however, get the DVC loan. And the 10% interest was *nothing* at the time to the horror that was our 25% interest on our USED car loan (thanks Chase!) due to DH's "neutral" credit.

So we bought direct and have paid interest (we've done some big payments and it won't take us the whole time to pay though we didn't do what we had planned to do once I got angry at the car loan and finished it (failures at Dave Ramsey in more than one way LOL)) and we've only stayed at Bay Lake once (only me, actually) AND we've had some GREAT times at other resorts with extended family which we would never have been able to do otherwise.

It also showed us how on the edge we were, financially, when DH found out about an impending layoff AFTER our rescission period had ended.

So it has been very valuable to us. Though I don't recommend others follow our lead.

 

[mustinjourney]

Small contracts (25-50 points) ad add-ons are often best purchased direct. Availability in resale can be rough, let alone lining up UY (if desired).

and the cheaper closing costs really come into play on the smaller contracts...making direct closer in price.

 

[Dean]

and the cheaper closing costs really come into play on the smaller contracts...making direct closer in price.

Not as easy to do but the cheapest closing is to find a private seller and for them to do the closing themselves. TUG and redweeks can be a potential option for that situation.

 

[disneycrazed139]

I think it used to make more sense to buy resale than it does now, but it all depends on what you need and want. What is frustrating is the benefits that keep being taken away for those that do not purchase directly through Disney (like DVC discounts). That said the savings are substantial in the long run.