DVC Rental Newbie - Help

[ddbowdoin]

Basic question, why so cheap?

I have been working KK on a honeymoon, for 11 nights (2 nights at POLY, the rest at BC) it comes to 3805.86 (with AAA discount).

If I stayed 10 nights at the BC (using DVC rental points from David's DVC Rentals) I am seeing a 10 night estimate at 2210.00.

1.) I know I removed Poly, which saves a lot of money but the difference is still staggering.
2.) is this method legit or have people had horror stories with renting points?

Any help... GREATLY appreciated

 

[Pioneer Hall]

Renting points is legit, and the reason the cost is lower is because people usually need to get rid of those points for some reason or another. Working through a company such as David's should help with any of the problems that could be associated with renting (although, I have very rarely heard of issues). The problem some people have with renting is that there is clearly a risk involved because it takes an agreement between two people that don't know one another. You are trusting someone to make and maintain a reservation for you, and they have to trust you to deliver the cash. However, I think that I have only heard of a couple of problems that have come across from rental agreements vs many success stories. Also, like I said previously, working with a company does alleviate those issues (but of course it then comes at a higher cost that just renting from someone directly).

Just remember that when renting points you're vacation will be similar to one that a DVC member is taking. So you won't get daily housekeeping, and you also aren't entitled to any of the DVC perks or discounts. Overall though, if you are looking for a way to save some money off of deluxe accommodations then it is really a good way to go.

 

[tjkraz]

Yeah, the primary reason "why so cheap" is because most rentals are glorified handshake agreements.

It works like this: You send money to a total stranger and he/she agrees to make a reservation in your name. Most rental agreements will include some form of written contract but good luck enforcing that. If you find yourself standing at the resort front desk being told "I'm sorry sir we don't have a reservation in that name" Disney will do absolutely nothing to help you.

When you rent, you aren't buying a room from Disney--you're buying it from that total stranger / DVC owner. Rentals undercut Disney's prices so Disney really, really doesn't like rentals. There's very little Disney can do to stop rentals so there's nothing inherently wrong with it from your perspective, but again don't expect Disney to be of any assistance whatsoever if the rental transaction goes bad.

Rentals also tend to have much more restrictive cancellation policies due to the lack of flexibility members have with their points. Put yourself in the position of the member. He/she has points to use which expire by a certain date. That member isn't going to allow you to tie-up his points with a reservation for 6 months, and then cancel 3 weeks out because of some family or work emergency. Most rental agreements are absolutely non-refundable.

Another issue with rentals is availability. DVC members can only book the villa rooms at DVC resorts and those are often limited in number. The Beach Club is one of the most popular DVC resorts and it's also one of the smallest. Assuming you are looking for a Studio villa at the Beach Club, there are only a maximum of 110 of those rooms. To have a decent shot of getting a room at the Beach Club, you really need to start looking 10-12 months prior to arrival.

All of that said, renting points is certainly a great way to save money. And using David's rental service at dvcrequest.com offers some additional protection. For instance, when you use David's service the rental funds are kept in escrow until the stay is completed. That helps protect you from being literally left out in the cold with no reservation--the owner doesn't get any money until the stay has commenced.

David is also a pro at this, unlike some amateur renters who may struggle to come up with a rental agreement or to help you with things like booking the dining plan, Disney's Magical Express, etc.

David tends to charge a bit more than most private transactions but it's worth it for the added protection alone. Rental problems are still fairly rare but certainly not unheard-of. Right now there's a situation brewing where a member apparently owned several thousand points which were used for frequent rental transactions. He then subsequently filed for bankruptcy. The individuals have been named as creditors, are getting communications from bankruptcy attorneys and know there is a very real chance the reservations could be cancelled. Dozens of renters are on pins and needles waiting to see if their reservations will still be in effect when they arrive.

 

[disneyeater]

Yeah, the primary reason "why so cheap" is because most rentals are glorified handshake agreements.

It works like this: You send money to a total stranger and he/she agrees to make a reservation in your name. Most rental agreements will include some form of written contract but good luck enforcing that. If you find yourself standing at the resort front desk being told "I'm sorry sir we don't have a reservation in that name" Disney will do absolutely nothing to help you.

When you rent, you aren't buying a room from Disney--you're buying it from that total stranger / DVC owner. Rentals undercut Disney's prices so Disney really, really doesn't like rentals. There's very little Disney can do to stop rentals so there's nothing inherently wrong with it from your perspective, but again don't expect Disney to be of any assistance whatsoever if the rental transaction goes bad.

Rentals also tend to have much more restrictive cancellation policies due to the lack of flexibility members have with their points. Put yourself in the position of the member. He/she has points to use which expire by a certain date. That member isn't going to allow you to tie-up his points with a reservation for 6 months, and then cancel 3 weeks out because of some family or work emergency. Most rental agreements are absolutely non-refundable.

Another issue with rentals is availability. DVC members can only book the villa rooms at DVC resorts and those are often limited in number. The Beach Club is one of the most popular DVC resorts and it's also one of the smallest. Assuming you are looking for a Studio villa at the Beach Club, there are only a maximum of 110 of those rooms. To have a decent shot of getting a room at the Beach Club, you really need to start looking 10-12 months prior to arrival.

All of that said, renting points is certainly a great way to save money. And using David's rental service at dvcrequest.com offers some additional protection. For instance, when you use David's service the rental funds are kept in escrow until the stay is completed. That helps protect you from being literally left out in the cold with no reservation--the owner doesn't get any money until the stay has commenced.

David is also a pro at this, unlike some amateur renters who may struggle to come up with a rental agreement or to help you with things like booking the dining plan, Disney's Magical Express, etc.

David tends to charge a bit more than most private transactions but it's worth it for the added protection alone. Rental problems are still fairly rare but certainly not unheard-of. Right now there's a situation brewing where a member apparently owned several thousand points which were used for frequent rental transactions. He then subsequently filed for bankruptcy. The individuals have been named as creditors, are getting communications from bankruptcy attorneys and know there is a very real chance the reservations could be cancelled. Dozens of renters are on pins and needles waiting to see if their reservations will still be in effect when they arrive.

Well said here. I would add two things:

1. Depending on the season (not food and wine), you should be able to get beach club right at 7 months.

2. I believe David actually holds half of the money, with the other half going to the DVC member when the reservation is made.

 

[irmonkey]

I rented points in for a trip this past September. We paid $9 a point (didn't go through David, I think they are $13/point?) and booked two boardwalk view studios at BWV. It was $1638 for 7 nights of the hotels and we had all of the perks of a DVC member. Our KttW cards even said DVC member on them. Will definitely rent the next time we go, too!

Basically the guy we rented from was going to lose the points and he couldn't use them this year. He charged less than David's DVC Rental because he didn't have the overhead if he didn't use them as a service. In turn he made more on the deal and we paid less than if we had went through a service. All it took was a couple quick searches on mouseowners.com.

We didn't get our first choices, though. The annoying part is the owner has to check availability and there is no way for you to do it. So we kept having him check for BLT and BCV. Eventually a couple studios opened up at BWV so we grabbed those. I didn't like it as much as Beach Club but it was a decent resort.

 

[tjkraz]

It was $1638 for 7 nights of the hotels and we had all of the perks of a DVC member. Our KttW cards even said DVC member on them.

Just to clarify for the sake of any potential renters reading, renting points doesn't guarantee you member perks. It really just depends upon how lax Disney wishes to be in doling out such perks. With certain items like the $100+ discount on Annual Pass purchases, Cast Members are supposed to be much more diligent in identifying members (blue DVC member ID card, driver's license, etc.) But for something like 10% off lunch, they often let it slip through with the room key only.

Renting points does not entitle you to DVC member perks, but you may still get them.

He charged less than David's DVC Rental because he didn't have the overhead if he didn't use them as a service. In turn he made more on the deal and we paid less than if we had went through a service. All it took was a couple quick searches on mouseowners.com.

That's the dilemma every renter must consider: cost vs. protection. The DVC owner retains full control of the reservation throughout. DVC's rental agents ("Member Services") will not even speak to a non-member. Unless you can prove that you are the owner of the points, they will not confirm existence of the reservation, you cannot add the dining plan to a reservation, you cannot schedule DME pickup, etc.

Any written agreement you have isn't worth the paper it's printed on if you are left standing at the front desk with no room in your name. It's a glorified handshake agreement.

That said, most rentals do go off without a hitch. But there have been instances of fraud where the renter was completely duped. As I said in my other post, there is a bankruptcy situation now where DVC is in the process of repossessing points used in rentals. Realistically those reservations could be cancelled at any moment and the renters would have no recourse other than to file a claim with the bankruptcy court.

More common are situations where the renter simply loses contact with the owner and has either concerns over the status of the reservation or difficulty booking ancillary services (DDP, DME, etc.)

DVCRequest.com does tend to charge a bit more but you're paying for a tangible layer of added security.

 

[irmonkey]

Just to clarify for the sake of any potential renters reading, renting points doesn't guarantee you member perks. It really just depends upon how lax Disney wishes to be in doling out such perks. With certain items like the $100+ discount on Annual Pass purchases, Cast Members are supposed to be much more diligent in identifying members (blue DVC member ID card, driver's license, etc.) But for something like 10% off lunch, they often let it slip through with the room key only.

Renting points does not entitle you to DVC member perks, but you may still get them.

Well, I did mean the dining discounts and whatnot. I didn't even think to try the AP.

DVC's rental agents ("Member Services") will not even speak to a non-member. Unless you can prove that you are the owner of the points, they will not confirm existence of the reservation, you cannot add the dining plan to a reservation, you cannot schedule DME pickup, etc.

You are right about the dining plan but not for the confirmation and the DME pickups. In my experience from September, I called Disney directly to confirm the reservation (and also put the reservation number into disneyworld.com). I also set up DME on my own. Disney would not speak to me at all regarding the DDP.

Still though, it was a great trial for DVC and I am seriously considering buying because of it. Disney should allow the rental of points if not just for that reason!

 

[Phonedave]

Well, I did mean the dining discounts and whatnot. I didn't even think to try the AP.



You are right about the dining plan but not for the confirmation and the DME pickups. In my experience from September, I called Disney directly to confirm the reservation (and also put the reservation number into disneyworld.com). I also set up DME on my own. Disney would not speak to me at all regarding the DDP.

Still though, it was a great trial for DVC and I am seriously considering buying because of it. Disney should allow the rental of points if not just for that reason!

Disney allows the rental of points - either though an owner (as you did) or by offering the DVC rooms for cash (breakage)

However Disney does not ENCOURAGE the renting of points by members. It is fine if you want to rent out your points from time to time because you can't make the vacation time, or if you want to let a friend or relative use your points. But if Disney notices a pattern of rentals, it will take action. It is in your purchase agreement that you will not use your ownership as a renta property.

-dave

 

[dizzney]

We've rented out points twice thru David and it was so easy for us as an owner. When we frist thought of renting excess points we werent using that year I figured I could do it myselg. Then we heard of a situation where a member was being held responsibile for a room tab run up by a renter which somehow had bounced from the credit card after the renter checked out

I didnt want that problem so after checking reviews on the web we went to David adn rented the points out there. It was painless he has it down to a science. We recieved #10 per point, half at booking and the balance after checkin. Couldnt have been easier for us and well worth not worrying about the renter

 

[disneyeater]

We've rented out points twice thru David and it was so easy for us as an owner. When we frist thought of renting excess points we werent using that year I figured I could do it myselg. Then we heard of a situation where a member was being held responsibile for a room tab run up by a renter which somehow had bounced from the credit card after the renter checked out

I didnt want that problem so after checking reviews on the web we went to David adn rented the points out there. It was painless he has it down to a science. We recieved #10 per point, half at booking and the balance after checkin. Couldnt have been easier for us and well worth not worrying about the renter

I am pretty sure you would still be responsible for that tab in that situation. David's service is more of a broker service as I understand it. It is still your points being used so you are responsible.

 

[Frau Farbissina]

I prefer to rent on my own, which I do several times a year. So far I haven't had any issues but you do hear about problems cropping up. There was an issue on another board where several renters had rented from a guy who did a large volume of business on Ebay and he ended up going bankrupt. The other issue that can crop up is owners not paying their dues, which means you can't check in until their paid. If you go through a private owner, make sure you get recommendations and a solid contract (which if the person is a dirtbag, is really no help, but still).

I haven't used a broker because they charge more than I'm willing to pay and don't offer any real protection beyond the initial safety of knowing that the person you're renting from is legit. I think a lot of people feel they're more legitimate than a private owner, but they're really just acting as a go-between between you and and the owner. They can't even contact DVC on your behalf. But if you want to avoid having to deal with an owner directly, they're the way to go since they will take your concerns to the owner and then the owner will take care of it.

The worst thing about a points rental is that there's very little leeway in the event you have to cancel, regardless of who you rent from. I have rented from owners who are flexible, but they really don't have to be, so talk about that possibility before you rent.

I pay anywhere between $9 to $11 for a points rental. The nice thing is, once you've done it a few times, you can usually rent again from one of those owners or they sometimes have friends who can help you, so it's less scary. The reason these points rentals are such a good deal is that you're taking a huge risk. You're risking a possible cancellation or that the person isn't legit, so the savings had better be huge to make up for it. For me, paying $13 a point is too close to what I can get through Disney (with a discount) so I'm unlikely to take the risk of renting when I can pay a few hundred more and book directly with Disney.

 

[awilliams4]

As an owner, we just rented our points through dvcrequest. However, with the dues going up the way they are, I am not sure how much longer I will be happy with my cut only being $10 per point.