Maintenance fees go where?

[captainkidd]

I also wear one Christmas shopping/any large shopping trip and anywhere I don't want a purse knocking things over-getting in the way. Basically any hands free location.

One quick plus for DVC that has nothing to do with cost/savings etc. I know in another post you said you had three kids. If they aren't all the same gender, I would recommend DVC on that alone for when they get older. You will need the space. They don't generally want to be in the same room together and two or more TV's is always helpful. My girl and boy are 21 and 17 and we have been members since 2003. It makes a huge difference.

Trust me - You don't have to sell me. We just got back last month from a 1 bedroom villa at the Boardwalk. It was heaven having all that space.

I love the DVC 1 bedrooms. By far, my favorite room I've stayed at in all my Disney trips is the 1 bedroom villa at the Wilderness Lodge. That room was absolutely stunning, and exactly matched my idea of a perfect theme. We've stayed twice in a studio (Old Key West, Wilderness Lodge). While the rooms were nice, I saw no real difference between them and a regular room. They can't compare to a 1 bedroom.

 

[Funfy]

Trust me - You don't have to sell me. We just got back last month from a 1 bedroom villa at the Boardwalk. It was heaven having all that space.

I love the DVC 1 bedrooms. By far, my favorite room I've stayed at in all my Disney trips is the 1 bedroom villa at the Wilderness Lodge. That room was absolutely stunning, and exactly matched my idea of a perfect theme. We've stayed twice in a studio (Old Key West, Wilderness Lodge). While the rooms were nice, I saw no real difference between them and a regular room. They can't compare to a 1 bedroom.

Well, unless you don't like renting the points, I would just keep doing that. You get the benefit of the space/kitchen/LAUNDRY without the commitment of the purchase. You can walk away if the kiddies decide WDW is not cool when they get older.

Mine have been threatened to never dislike Disney-so we are covered!

 

[captainkidd]

Well, unless you don't like renting the points, I would just keep doing that. You get the benefit of the space/kitchen/LAUNDRY without the commitment of the purchase. You can walk away if the kiddies decide WDW is not cool when they get older.

Mine have been threatened to never dislike Disney-so we are covered!

The only part I don't like about renting points is, there's usually no security. In other words, heaven forbid something comes up and we have to cancel, depending on the owner, we may be out 1 night's deposit, or we could be out the entire amount. The biggest renter of points that I know of has a no cancellation policy. So, we're taking a chance next year. We've booked a room at the Beach Club and paid for it in advance. We're hoping 1 of 2 things happens:

1.Disney releases a general or Annual Pass discount on DVC resorts closer to the trip and we can switch the reservation.
2.We can rent the points for a 1 bedroom a month or 2 in advance.

It's a gamble, but I think it's best. We've stayed in standard rooms before and never had an issue. We have 3 boys, 2 of which are twins, so the sleeping arrangements isn't an issue.

 

[Funfy]

The only part I don't like about renting points is, there's usually no security. In other words, heaven forbid something comes up and we have to cancel, depending on the owner, we may be out 1 night's deposit, or we could be out the entire amount. The biggest renter of points that I know of has a no cancellation policy. So, we're taking a chance next year. We've booked a room at the Beach Club and paid for it in advance. We're hoping 1 of 2 things happens:

1.Disney releases a general or Annual Pass discount on DVC resorts closer to the trip and we can switch the reservation.
2.We can rent the points for a 1 bedroom a month or 2 in advance.

It's a gamble, but I think it's best. We've stayed in standard rooms before and never had an issue. We have 3 boys, 2 of which are twins, so the sleeping arrangements isn't an issue.

I see about the risk. I understand. I am very greedy with my points and never have any left over so, never have really looked at either side of the rental market.

I do feel sorry for your dilemma. Not that you don't know, but, life is a juggling act-sometimes you just have to say, I want it, I can afford it and by golly I'm worth it (old Saturday Night Live reference-LOL). I know that if you did go for DVC, you would love it, but, I also don't want to say that and it is the worst experience ever.

Good luck with whichever way you go.

 

[tjkraz]

2.We can rent the points for a 1 bedroom a month or 2 in advance.

You have virtually zero chance of getting Beach Club Villas on 2 months' notice. Booking BCV right at 7 months can be difficult. It would be miraculous to see a room slip through the cracks at 2 months.

The only possibility would be booking immediately after someone has cancelled a matching room. But that's a needle in a haystack scenario.

 

[captainkidd]

You have virtually zero chance of getting Beach Club Villas on 2 months' notice. Booking BCV right at 7 months can be difficult. It would be miraculous to see a room slip through the cracks at 2 months.

The only possibility would be booking immediately after someone has cancelled a matching room. But that's a needle in a haystack scenario.

Yeah, I know. I just didn't want to pay someone all that money 11 months in advance with a no cancellation policy, know what I mean?

 

[tjkraz]

Yeah, I know. I just didn't want to pay someone all that money 11 months in advance with a no cancellation policy, know what I mean?

Understood. But doesn't that invalidate all of your financial comparisons of buying vs. renting?

If you aren't willing to run the risk of renting and are still paying Disney prices for accommodations, you should go back to looking at DVC cost vs. cash rates.

I don't have any major qualms with your +/- 20 year breakeven when comparing to rental rates. But if you are not renting, those figures are meaningless.

 

[captainkidd]

Understood. But doesn't that invalidate all of your financial comparisons of buying vs. renting?

If you aren't willing to run the risk of renting and are still paying Disney prices for accommodations, you should go back to looking at DVC cost vs. cash rates.

I don't have any major qualms with your +/- 20 year breakeven when comparing to rental rates. But if you are not renting, those figures are meaningless.

It's not that I'm not willing to rent. But with BCV popularity, the most likely option would be to book 11 months out, and that was risky. I'll probably look at it again in December, when we hit the 7 month mark. That will buy us 4 more months, and give us a bigger window of people to rent from. The woman I've used for my last 2 trips is fantastic, but I didn't want to put her in a tough spot or take the risk myself.

The other downside to renting versus going through Disney directly is the price you pay from the renter can not go down. There's always the possibility of a discount through Disney. We've seen DVC discounts as big as 40% through Disney in recent years, though more recently, down to 35%. Plus, we're going in January, so there's always the possibility of a bounceback offer as well.

 

[heatherkatheleen]

My family are Old Key West members... We bought within months of it opening for purchase. I pride myself on being an 'original member' and am happy to say I've never had any problems with the rooms being filthy with crumbs on the floor, etc. Though it did come to a point before their most noticeable recent upgrades (all you Old Key West veterans who have been in the past couple years will know what I'm talking about--the rooms have been completely re-floored, re-upholstered, etc) things were starting to look a bit outdated but never to the extent where I was disappointed with the room. I kind of miss the plaid couches to be honest... They remind me of when I was a little kid!