Will we ever see 2%-3% dues increase at BLT?

[ssawka]

When we purchased at BLT they told us the estimated dues increase would be 2%-3% per year, yet it was 8% for 2013 and 6% for 2014. Since we pay our dues monthly, we probably won't even notice the increase, but if this continues BLT will go from the lowest dues to the highest. I am not ready to sell over it, but I really can't help but feel that we were duped by DVC.

 

[Deb & Bill]

When we purchased at BLT they told us the estimated dues increase would be 2%-3% per year, yet it was 8% for 2013 and 6% for 2014. Since we pay our dues monthly, we probably won't even notice the increase, but if this continues BLT will go from the lowest dues to the highest. I am not ready to sell over it, but I really can't help but feel that we were duped by DVC.

Legally, if they need to, dues can go up 15%. And, anything they "told" you versus anything you got in writing is just gone with the wind.

 

[DougEMG]

If the assumption was that BLT were artificially too low during it's sales period, you would think that eventually it should catch up to we're it should be and that then the increases would be more in line with the other resorts. After all how much can it cost to maintain one building with limit facilities. Once it's absolute costs are similar to VWL/BWV/BCV I bet that the increases will stabilize, at which point SSR will have the lowest dues of any resort.

 

[DebbieB]

It would be interesting if someone who has both years could see which category went up the most or if it's across the board.

 

[disneynutz]

When we purchased at BLT they told us the estimated dues increase would be 2%-3% per year, yet it was 8% for 2013 and 6% for 2014. Since we pay our dues monthly, we probably won't even notice the increase, but if this continues BLT will go from the lowest dues to the highest. I am not ready to sell over it, but I really can't help but feel that we were duped by DVC.

IMO we were duped.

Bill

 

[Sammie]

IMO we were duped.

Bill

And we know who did it.

 

[Sammie]

If the assumption was that BLT were artificially too low during it's sales period, you would think that eventually it should catch up to we're it should be and that then the increases would be more in line with the other resorts. After all how much can it cost to maintain one building with limit facilities. Once it's absolute costs are similar to VWL/BWV/BCV I bet that the increases will stabilize, at which point SSR will have the lowest dues of any resort.

That access to the monorail is extremely expensive.

 

[JessLCH]

Will members bring up this question/concern at the annual meeting?

 

[Wedgeh]

And we know who did it.

Agreed, the debacle with Aulani dues shows that there was a clear (if unsurprising) focus on making the dues at newer resorts look 'good value'. I hope it doesn't compound at 6-7% for 50 years because that would be painful indeed.

 

[DebbieB]

Will members bring up this question/concern at the annual meeting?

I believe they did away with the Q&A last year.

 

[magicaldisney]

I believe they did away with the Q&A last year.

Becasue DVC owners are too smart for our own good!! We give them a run for their money.

 

[tjkraz]

It's interesting to note that the dollar value of the increase is $.2874 per point. Of that, nearly all of it can traced back to the "Administration and Front Desk" cost component ($.1407) and property taxes ($.0840). All of the remaining adjustments collectively totaled only $.0627 per point.

Property taxes are largely uncontrollable. Disney does have people who actively work with Orange County to question/challenge/contest their appraisals. Remember, Disney pays taxes on all of Walt Disney World and the DVC resorts are a tiny sample of that property. So it's in their best interest to actively monitor those assessments.

As for the admin category, the easy conclusion to draw is that the fully-staffed front desk & bell services at the Tower could be taking a toll. I only looked at a couple other resorts but none of them had front desk cost increases of this magnitude. SSR's increase from 2013 to 2014 was less than a penny per point.

 

[disneynutz]

I believe they did away with the Q&A last year.

Disney doesn't like to be questioned in an open forum, most of their answers were generic and non committal. They also don't like confrontation and apparently felt that an owner could become aggressive and unruly due to the fact that they had uniformed security present.

Bill

 

[DebbieB]

It's interesting to note that the dollar value of the increase is $.2874 per point. Of that, nearly all of it can traced back to the "Administration and Front Desk" cost component ($.1407) and property taxes ($.0840). All of the remaining adjustments collectively totaled only $.0627 per point.

Property taxes are largely uncontrollable. Disney does have people who actively work with Orange County to question/challenge/contest their appraisals. Remember, Disney pays taxes on all of Walt Disney World and the DVC resorts are a tiny sample of that property. So it's in their best interest to actively monitor those assessments.

As for the admin category, the easy conclusion to draw is that the fully-staffed front desk & bell services at the Tower could be taking a toll. I only looked at a couple other resorts but none of them had front desk cost increases of this magnitude. SSR's increase from 2013 to 2014 was less than a penny per point.

I just read a post complaining that the BLT front desk closed at 10:00. Imagine if it was open all night.

 

[dizfan]

It's interesting to note that the dollar value of the increase is $.2874 per point. Of that, nearly all of it can traced back to the "Administration and Front Desk" cost component ($.1407) and property taxes ($.0840). All of the remaining adjustments collectively totaled only $.0627 per point.

Property taxes are largely uncontrollable. Disney does have people who actively work with Orange County to question/challenge/contest their appraisals. Remember, Disney pays taxes on all of Walt Disney World and the DVC resorts are a tiny sample of that property. So it's in their best interest to actively monitor those assessments.

As for the admin category, the easy conclusion to draw is that the fully-staffed front desk & bell services at the Tower could be taking a toll. I only looked at a couple other resorts but none of them had front desk cost increases of this magnitude. SSR's increase from 2013 to 2014 was less than a penny per point.

We were very surprised by the staffing during our September BLT stay. When we checked in, there was one CM outside with an iPad, another taking our luggage, and there were three additional CMs behind the large desk. The CR lobby was also at the highest staffing level we have seen in four years of BLT stays.
Wonder why Disney does not reduce the CR front desk staffing when BLT staffing is so high?

 

[tjkraz]

I believe they did away with the Q&A last year.

Becasue DVC owners are too smart for our own good!! We give them a run for their money.

Well, hoping not to offend anyone in particular, IMO the Q&A had largely morphed into a platform for members to voice their own niche special interests. Every year there were rather mundane questions about certain cable channels not being carried, "why don't we get more discounts?", "why don't people who own a large number of points get better perks?", complaints about bus transportation, room accessibility, decor, etc.

I couldn't help but sense the irony when owners go directly from complaining about costs (dues increases) to wanting additional services added.

And there were also questions from people who just didn't understand the economics of running a hotel / timeshare. 3-4 years ago it was "why are our dues still going up while we're in a recession?" Operating costs associated with property management (union wages, health insurance and other benefits, fuel prices, etc.) typically aren't subject to the impacts of a recession. But there's no effective way to teach Econ 101 in an open forum where they're trying to accommodate dozens of questions in a limited time.

Overall I would have preferred that the Q&A stay. Morbid curiosity, I guess. But in a sense, I don't blame them for eliminating it. Last year's meeting was less than half as long as the year before. It went from nearly 3 hours down to about 80 minutes.

Disney doesn't like to be questioned in an open forum, most of their answers were generic and non committal. They also don't like confrontation and apparently felt that an owner could become aggressive and unruly due to the fact that they had uniformed security present.

Bill

Some of the answers were generic. Some were also very specific...and informative. I could provide several examples if you wish.

As for the security, if YOU were planning the meeting, would you run it without a security presence? Regardless of how satisfied (or not) the masses are with DVC, there's always the possibility of a confrontation. In the minds of some, it's an adversarial environment similar to a shareholder's meeting.

Much better to have security on-hand than be scrambling to protect attendees if someone with an axe to grind refuses to act in a civil manner.

 

[JimMIA]

I remember numerous people saying that BLT dues would be low during the selling stage, but would rise later.

Their warnings were drowned out by a host of others saying, "No Way!"

Just sayin'...

 

[wcpamotm]

Honestly, I would personally be fine with having to check in at the Contemporary front desk if it would save maintenance fee money. It's no worse than what the folks staying in the Garden Wing have to do.

Sure it's nice to be able to check in at the lobby of BLT itself. It would also be nice to have someone come in and make my bed every day too, but I don't want to have to pay for that.

 

[ssawka]

Honestly, I would personally be fine with having to check in at the Contemporary front desk if it would save maintenance fee money. It's no worse than what the folks staying in the Garden Wing have to do.

Sure it's nice to be able to check in at the lobby of BLT itself. It would also be nice to have someone come in and make my bed every day too, but I don't want to have to pay for that.

ITA! I really never understood what the problem was with checking in at CR.

 

[crisi]

I remember numerous people saying that BLT dues would be low during the selling stage, but would rise later.

Their warnings were drowned out by a host of others saying, "No Way!"

Just sayin'...

Really, you don't say....