Benefits of Home Resort

[sbkline]

I have an assistant manager at work who is thinking of buying into the DVC. I told him that is is my understanding that your home resort eats up less points than all the other resorts, as one of the benefits of being your home resort. He said he hadn't heard that, and that the only benefit he was aware of, of the home resort vs any other resort, is that the home resort can be booked 11 months out as opposed to 7 months. I told him I would check and find out if I was right or not.

So, am I right that to stay outside of your home resort costs you more points? Is there any other perk to your home resort besides that (if I am right about that), and being able to book farther out?

 

[mouselvrmom]

No, the points charts are fixed for everyone. Some resorts take more points, but it is the same for everyone regardless of your home resort. It is mainly due to location, view etc.

Your friend is right that the benefit is that you can book at your home resort 11 months out instead of the 7 months that other members can book outside of their home resort. This is not a problem for Saratoga owners, but can be a real benefit for say BLT members.

Also, some resorts have lower dues than others.

 

[sbkline]

No, the points charts are fixed for everyone. Some resorts take more points, but it is the same for everyone regardless of your home resort. It is mainly due to location, view etc.

Your friend is right that the benefit is that you can book at your home resort 11 months out instead of the 7 months that other members can book outside of their home resort. This is not a problem for Saratoga owners, but can be a real benefit for say BLT members.

Also, some resorts have lower dues than others.

Thanks for the reply. I'll try to let him know next time I see him. :wave:

 

[dizzney]

Another benefit besides the booking is the cost of dues, the new resorts i.e. BLT have much lower dues than the older resorts - reason being cost of upkeep.

 

[slappy magoo]

Another benefit besides the booking is the cost of dues, the new resorts i.e. BLT have much lower dues than the older resorts - reason being cost of upkeep.

That's not exactly true. Age is far from the only factor in determining dues. In fact, Old Key West & Saratoga Springs have lower dues than Beach Club, Wilderness Lodge or Boardwalk (also cheaper than Vero Beach, Hilton Head & Animal Kingdom Lodge; of course Animal Kingdom is newer than both OKW and SSR). The dues also have to do with how much it costs to maintain those buildings or wings, AND the grounds of the resort. Because OKW and SSR are big, they also have many more members who call those two a "home resort" so the costs of maintaining the grounds are spread out over more people, whereas the smaller wings (BWV, VWL and BCV) have fewer point holders to cover costs of upkeep, and the outside-of-WDW resorts (Hilton Head & Vero Beach) also have to pay higher property taxes and upkeep of beach clubs. Animal Kingdom, while newer than OKW, has higher maintenance fees (and will probably go up higher than OKW's does) because those fees will also help cover the costs of caring for and feeding the animals.

Here is the current breakdown of fees, via The Timeshare Store:

Bay Lake Tower $3.78, Grand Californian $3.94, Saratoga Springs $4.46, Old Key West $4.87, Animal Kingdom $4.95, Beach Club $5.15, Wilderness Lodge $5.20, Boardwalk $5.36, Hilton Head $5.57 and Vero $6.61. All include real estate taxes. If a buyer is getting points for the current use year (2010) they are purchasing they will be responsible for the annual dues on those points. The buyer will pay those dues in one lump sum at the time of closing and that will cover their annual dues until January 2011. In 2011 the buyer will have the option of paying them in one lump sum or monthly with Disney. If the buyer is not getting points until the 2011 use year then they would not have any dues until then.

 

[Thrill]

The only benefit of the home resort is the extended reservation window, which might be useful for some of the smaller and more popular resorts. As mentioned before, it's important to take into account the annual dues, as resorts that have costlier maintenance (Vero Beach, Hilton Head Island, possibly Aulani in the future, Boardwalk) will obviously be more expensive in the long run, and should you decide to rent out the points, you're going to have to settle for a very low profit, maybe even a loss.

 

[dizzney]

The only benefit of the home resort is the extended reservation window, which might be useful for some of the smaller and more popular resorts. As mentioned before, it's important to take into account the annual dues, as resorts that have costlier maintenance (Vero Beach, Hilton Head Island, possibly Aulani in the future, Boardwalk) will obviously be more expensive in the long run, and should you decide to rent out the points, you're going to have to settle for a very low profit, maybe even a loss.

Disagree with you on renting points, we did this year ONLY becuase we couldnt get the week we wanted thru RCI (where I was willing to trade 275 points in out of our 375 yearly) in Ocean City Maryland.

Checked out the rental market and was able to rent 150 points out at 10.00 per point, covered the cost of the rental of a unit in the same complex at Ocean City Maryland that I couldnt get via RCI, saved myself 125 points and banked them.

And if I could rent 150 at $10 each, I could easily rent my balance of 225 (if I wanted to) and actually make a decent profit. Not that thats what we are doing since this was an exception BUT with respect to my dues at both BLT and BWV I wouldnt be taking a loss.

 

[Erin_Akey]

We will likely NEVER travel to Disneyland, we go to WDW several times a year. However, we bought into DGC in Disneyland because both the points cost and the dues were WAY cheaper than BLT.

We saved a lot of money and the 7 vs 11 month window I don't think will bother us, but we shall see down the road! I was able to get more points due to the price difference which we were more concerned with for sure.

 

[Thrill]

Disagree with you on renting points, we did this year ONLY becuase we couldnt get the week we wanted thru RCI (where I was willing to trade 275 points in out of our 375 yearly) in Ocean City Maryland.

Checked out the rental market and was able to rent 150 points out at 10.00 per point, covered the cost of the rental of a unit in the same complex at Ocean City Maryland that I couldnt get via RCI, saved myself 125 points and banked them.

And if I could rent 150 at $10 each, I could easily rent my balance of 225 (if I wanted to) and actually make a decent profit. Not that thats what we are doing since this was an exception BUT with respect to my dues at both BLT and BWV I wouldnt be taking a loss.

I am aware that renting points can make a profit, but I think it depends on what points you're renting. Bay Lake Tower, for example, is ideal to rent, because it has the lowest dues of any DVC resort. Vero Beach (not subsidized) wouldn't be so great, since it's something like $8 per point per year between dues and initial point price. There is a huge dependence on the market, as well. I've looked around a little bit, and there are points available to rent at $6 per point. Long term, losing a little through rentals to liquidate points would (in most cases) be balanced out by the benefits of DVC, yes, but some resorts are better to rent than others.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

We will likely NEVER travel to Disneyland, we go to WDW several times a year. However, we bought into DGC in Disneyland because both the points cost and the dues were WAY cheaper than BLT.

We saved a lot of money and the 7 vs 11 month window I don't think will bother us, but we shall see down the road! I was able to get more points due to the price difference which we were more concerned with for sure.

But if you ever do plan to go to Disneyland, you do have a nice priority at the hardest to book DVC resort.

 

[Erin_Akey]

But if you ever do plan to go to Disneyland, you do have a nice priority at the hardest to book DVC resort.

Good point. I didn't realize it was hard to book?? Who knows, maybe at some point we will head west....you never know! But what sold me was the dues and price per point breakdown. Both were way less at Grand Cali.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

Good point. I didn't realize it was hard to book?? Who knows, maybe at some point we will head west....you never know! But what sold me was the dues and price per point breakdown. Both were way less at Grand Cali.

Very difficult...only has 48 units. Definitely an 11 month booking window you want to take advantage of.

 

[kverdon]

We are looking at DVC as we go to WDW at least once every year. Our friends are steering towards the resale market. Following up on this thread, their advice is to purchase the least expensive resort (Saratoga Springs) and then just use the points where we want. Their argument is that since we tend to travel in the off season, (Sept, Dec and Jan-Feb) that we would not be too badly hurt by the 7 month booking window. We tend to like to stay at Beach Club / Boardwalk so is it REALLY worth it to look at those contracts that tend to run $15 - $20 per point more?

thanks much,

Kevin and Mona

 

[orky8]

We are looking at DVC as we go to WDW at least once every year. Our friends are steering towards the resale market. Following up on this thread, their advice is to purchase the least expensive resort (Saratoga Springs) and then just use the points where we want. Their argument is that since we tend to travel in the off season, (Sept, Dec and Jan-Feb) that we would not be too badly hurt by the 7 month booking window. We tend to like to stay at Beach Club / Boardwalk so is it REALLY worth it to look at those contracts that tend to run $15 - $20 per point more?

thanks much,

Kevin and Mona

I'm not a DVC owner (yet), so I can't speak from experience, but I've seen listings for Boardwalk at the $68-$69 / point range and Saratoga seems to be about $62 (though I have seen a few lower). So, the difference doesn't seem as drastic as you suggest - only about $6-$8 / point. From what I have read, you are pretty safe booking in the off season, but will you always want to do that? Plans may change 10-20 years down the road. Also, with Boardwalk you take advantage of the 11 month window to get the standard view rooms, so that may be something to think about. Also, there are maintenance fees and other things to consider, of course. Good luck! Plan to take the plunge myself in a year or two. I keep debating between BLT and the Epcot resorts, myself. Personally, I want to always be guaranteed to be in one of those locations. How disappointed would you be if you couldn't get the choice you want is also something to consider.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

We are looking at DVC as we go to WDW at least once every year. Our friends are steering towards the resale market. Following up on this thread, their advice is to purchase the least expensive resort (Saratoga Springs) and then just use the points where we want. Their argument is that since we tend to travel in the off season, (Sept, Dec and Jan-Feb) that we would not be too badly hurt by the 7 month booking window. We tend to like to stay at Beach Club / Boardwalk so is it REALLY worth it to look at those contracts that tend to run $15 - $20 per point more?

thanks much,

Kevin and Mona

Traveling in the offseason will provide you with a cushion, but there is no guarantee that anything will be available at the 7 month mark. BCV is one of the fastest resorts to book because of its popularity and size. BWV standard and boardwalk view rooms go quickly as well, but there seem to be a good amount of "preferred" pool view rooms. If you don't think you can be happy without staying in one of these resorts, then you should consider purchasing a contract at one of them. However, you want to make sure that you weigh all the pros and cons accordingly. Remember that a SSR contract will provide you with more years, cheaper overall price, and what seems to be a trend of lower priced dues (since it is a full DVC resort). Also, remember that every offer going through resale needs to pass Disney's right of first refusal. Within the last few months Disney has been letting most contract through EXCEPT for Beach Club. It seems that a majority of the Beach Club contracts are being bought by Disney unless the price is fairly high.

I recently made the decision to purchase (going through closing now) and chose AKL. I decided the higher point price would provide me with a resort that I would like to stay at even if I don't get my first choice (I also like the Beach Club). I also realized that AKL provides some of the best values in the DVC market with the value rooms (slightly smaller for a big savings in points) and concierge if I ever want to splurge. FYI, I paid 76 a pt for 200 pts and went through the Timeshare Store.

 

[mousefan1972]

We are looking at DVC as we go to WDW at least once every year. Our friends are steering towards the resale market. Following up on this thread, their advice is to purchase the least expensive resort (Saratoga Springs) and then just use the points where we want. Their argument is that since we tend to travel in the off season, (Sept, Dec and Jan-Feb) that we would not be too badly hurt by the 7 month booking window. We tend to like to stay at Beach Club / Boardwalk so is it REALLY worth it to look at those contracts that tend to run $15 - $20 per point more?

thanks much,

Kevin and Mona

This is how I would put it: if you are only able to book SSR, for every trip, would you be disappointed? DVC doesn't have the same off season as the cash-booked Disney resorts. For example, early December is one of the busiest times for DVC. That time of year uses the least amount of points, and the World is decorated for Christmas. It is very, very hard to get anything other than OKW or SSR at 7 months out. That is a time when your home resort booking window will come in handy.

If you know you will be wanting to book BCV or BWV, buy there. I would only recommend buying SSR if that is where you want to stay. Are there times when you will be able to switch at 7 months? Sure. But there will also be plenty of times when you can't, and SSR is where you will be. If you are ok with that, go ahead and buy there. We were not, so we bought BLT.

 

[Yanks07]

One of Our home resorts is BCV and if you book @ 7 months, chances are slim. The 11 month window is key here and I try to utilize it. Boardwalk is a little better but not much. Like Kristin said, if you buy At SS and plan on booking @ BWV or BCV, it will be tough, but at the same time, Saratoga Springs is nice and in my opinion Old key West is just awesome, Just a hike from everything. Best of luck

 

[K-dub]

I've got a ? for you "multi-resort" owners.

Is there any restriction regarding the ability to use your 11 month window for a resort you only own say, 10 points at?

For example, could it be a useful strategy to purchase a small number of points at each of the DVC resorts and a LARGE block of points at the least expensive resort with the intention of using your "ownership" 11 month booking window advantage anywhere but using the points from your big stash to "pay" with?

 

[Cubs Brian]

No, you cannot do that . Say you had 25 points each at AKLV, BCV, BLT and 200 points at SS. At the 11 month window you could only book 25 point usage at those resorts which for the sake of argument would be no more than 1 or 2 nights at each resort and up to 200pts at SS. If you think about it and you could reserve an entire trip the way you suggested, everyone would buy in at the cheaper cost resort and want to stay at the "desirable" resorts creating less profitability for DVC.

 

[K-dub]

Thanx for the quick response! I'd always wondered if such a restriction might be in place.
Thanx Again!:wave: