DVC rookie question

[LilWalt]

I keep seeing people post about having points at a certain resort available or for rent or any other thing. Why is that important? I understand buying the resale of a membership the length of time it is still useful but why any other reason?

Contemplating buying into the DVC and whether through Disney itself or resale. Just trying to make all this make sense.

 

[lostpro9het]

The home resort comes into play if you want the best chance at getting a room at that resort. Owners of the home resort can book at the resort 11 months in advance where as an owner at a different resort has to wait until the 7 month mark to book there. So I am an owner at AKL, I can book there 11 months in advance but cannot book at any other DVC resort until the 7 month mark. Another thing to consider is the expiration date for all the contracts differ from DVC resort to DVC resort, some are the same though.

Before we purchased we stayed at many of the DVC resorts to make sure we knew where we would be happy. I, like I suggest you do, asked a TON of questions before hand because there are many things to know before going in.

 

[EOD K9]

If you buy direct, there are absolutely no restrictions on how you use your points. If you go resale, you cannot use your points at certain resorts, cruises, etc. I just added on via resale, I have no plans to use them other than just for normal DVC resorts, so it wont be an issue to be quasi-limited. My other points purchased direct have no such limits.
Home resorting is also nice for renting at certain places with high demand. During Food and Wine Fest demand is high for BWV and BCV. You can rent your points out very easily for those two places during that time as people want to be close to Epcot so they can stumble back to their rooms a lot easier.

 

[dreamfinder]

Keep in mind that the expiration on the deed will be the same (in almost all cases) if the points are bought direct from DVD or on the resale market. They will vary from property to property however and are based on when the resort opened. The only time they may vary is with OKW, where they offered owners the chance to add an extra 15 years (I think it was 15) onto their deed for an extra cost. So if you buy OKW, the deed expiration may vary.

Regarding your first statement, are you referring to people renting out their points? Some owners do this when they will not be able to make a trip during the given year. Doing so allows them to get back reasonable value for their points (usually covering dues and potentially any finance payments) without having to sell the deed. The ability to do so is important for some people as not all timeshares hold their value. Just look at how many are up on eBay selling for a dollar or some other trivial amount simply so the owners can get out of having to make yearly dues/maintenance payments on property they don't want to use.

 

[LilWalt]

Thanks guys.
So if you buy the resort in Hawaii, do you have to wait til 7 months out to book at WDW? If that is the case then why would anyone want that?

 

[dreamfinder]

Thanks guys.
So if you buy the resort in Hawaii, do you have to wait til 7 months out to book at WDW? If that is the case then why would anyone want that?

Yup. If you buy into Aulani you can book there at 11 months, but WDW at 7 months. Common advice is to book at the resort you want to stay at. Hawaii is a destination in and of itself, so most people who buy there are looking to make trips to Hawaii, and not necessarily to WDW all the time. The same thing applies for Vero Beach or Hilton Head. Owners at those two properties weren't necessarily looking to make trips to WDW every year, but wanted some of the Disney brand/service at other locations.

 

[LilWalt]

Is the 4 month difference really that much harder to get booked?

Why do the moderate resorts use more points? What would make you want to stay at those?

 

[lostpro9het]

Thanks guys.
So if you buy the resort in Hawaii, do you have to wait til 7 months out to book at WDW? If that is the case then why would anyone want that?

Different strokes for different folks!

Is the 4 month difference really that much harder to get booked?

Depending on time of year and resort YES! Good luck getting a week during F&W at BCV or BWV at the 7-month mark.

Why do the moderate resorts use more points? What would make you want to stay at those?

IMO using your points at the Disney collection and for cruises is not a good use of points. you'd be better off renting your points and paying cash for the moderate rooms or cruises, againjust my opinion.

 

[dreamfinder]

A few other thoughts. The 4 month booking window is key for certain resorts and certain times of the year. 7 months out you should still be able to get SOMETHING booked at WDW in most room categories. SSR and OKW tend to have space most times of the year, up to a few months out. The extra 4 months is key if you have a must have location/room class during busier times of the year. For instance, only AKV Jambo offers DVC Club Level rooms, so those book up lickety split at the 11 months. But if you simply want a studio anywhere on property in say early November, then it's not a big deal.

Also, while DVD may not advertise that they sell any DVC resort, but they will sell them to you. You may need to wait as they will need to exercise ROFR on a resale, but you can get them.

Why do the moderate resorts use more points? What would make you want to stay at those?

The non DVC resorts are more points because DVC basically needs to pay cash for the room on your behalf and then rent your points out as a cash booking. Most uses of points that aren't DVC rooms, so cruises, ABD, etc aren't usually good bang for your buck. But some people may want to say join their family for a vacation at a moderate and so they will use their points instead of trying to rent the points and then book using cash. It's mostly a convenience thing.

 

[LilWalt]

Thanks guys!

 

[PhilharMagician]

We bought into SSR and almost never stayed there. We were always able to book AKV and BLT which were our favorites. The difficult resorts to book are WLV & BCV. We have stayed at both, but not always able to book and was always on a wait list which rarely paid off.

SSR was also one of the least expensive resorts for maintenance fees.

If you are going to buy then look at your cost per point, maintenance fees per point over the past few years and then talk with the family about which resort you would like to be your home resort. Then calculate how many nights per year, time of year to travel and what size room you would prefer so you can calculate the approx number of points to buy.

We bought 200 points figuring we would travel off season and stay one week in a 1 bedroom. That worked for the first stay and we started staying in a studio and staying 2 weeks, but still in mostly off season.

 

[Lynne M]

Why do the moderate resorts use more points? What would make you want to stay at those?

If you're doing anything with your points other than staying at the DVC resorts - DCL, ABD, staying at non-DVC Disney resorts, staying at other hotels that are in the Concierge Collection, or trading thru RCI - you are exchanging out of the DVC system. Different rules apply to exchanges.

To use the example of the non-DVC Disney resorts like the moderates...DVC negotiates annually with the division of Disney that runs those resorts, to determine what compensation the resorts want when members use their points to stay there. That compensation usually goes up every year, so the number of points needed to book a room at a non-DVC resort goes up every year.

As for what would make a member want to stay there...DVC offers those non-DVC options so that buyers feel that there's some variety available to them. In practice, they're not nearly as good a value as using your points at a DVC resort. Almost always, you get a lot more bang for your buck by renting out your points and using the proceeds to pay for the other accommodations.

 

[Glenn Stewart]

I keep seeing people post about having points at a certain resort available or for rent or any other thing. Why is that important? I understand buying the resale of a membership the length of time it is still useful but why any other reason?

Contemplating buying into the DVC and whether through Disney itself or resale. Just trying to make all this make sense.

i would buy resale i i were you at OKW it is a little less expressive and you can extend the years if you want.

 

[dreamfinder]

i would buy resale i i were you at OKW it is a little less expressive and you can extend the years if you want.

Not quite. Some of the contracts were extended, but it was a one time deal where the owner at that point had to buy the extension. So you will see 2 expiration dates for OKW deeds, but unless they offer the same deal again, you cannot currently change the expiration date of your deed.

 

[Glenn Stewart]

Not quite. Some of the contracts were extended, but it was a one time deal where the owner at that point had to buy the extension. So you will see 2 expiration dates for OKW deeds, but unless they offer the same deal again, you cannot currently change the expiration date of your deed.

my okw was extended