Seriously considering DVC with a few questions...

[GoofGoof]

Yeah... that's the 'catch' that people abuse to no end. And I'm sure they cry a plenty when they get busted too. My vacation timeshare as a business expense? I'd love to be in that audit meeting

You would be amazed what people claim. I knew a dentist who's office was attached to his house. He was furious when I told him he couldn't take 100% of his utilities and insurance expense on his tax return. He also leased a Lexus which he wanted to claim 100% as a business expense. He worked from his home as a dentist!!! Where exactly was he driving for work? He claimed he sometimes dropped things off at a lab. Haven't seen the guy in about 10 years so maybe he's in jail by now for tax evasion.

 

[flynnibus]

my wife was self-employed for a number of years and we claimed some things as business expenses. Just dealing with the tax complications when you dispose of stuff you had been claiming deductions for is enough reason to make me not want to deal with any of that crap ever again!

 

[Ralphlaw]

Yeah, I know an accountant who's spiel of advice often ends with, "Very few people get audited." That's reassuring. Take that to the bank.

We've never done the meal plan because we like a fair amount of spontaneity in our vacations. We also use Tables in Wonderland, and that obviously cuts the costs. When we first looked into the meal plan, we noted that most meals required a dessert. My wife is pre-diabetic, and we try to have sweets as a treat, not as an obligation at every meal. Who needs a chuck of cake after lunch? We'd prefer an ice cream break around 3 p.m. There's also something very heavy about a frosted dark brownie on a humid day. No, we'll just eat without regard to the dining plan. It may cost a bit more (or simply not save us as much money), but it makes me feel less controlled by the man.

 

[Phonedave]

my wife was self-employed for a number of years and we claimed some things as business expenses. Just dealing with the tax complications when you dispose of stuff you had been claiming deductions for is enough reason to make me not want to deal with any of that crap ever again!

My ex and I ran a side business. We deducted many things. Milage when she had to drive places for the business, supplies, etc. One thing we never wrote off was the room in the house she used as an office. Our accountant said it was not worth the hassle for the small amount of money we would have saved. Apparently home offices are a big red audit flag.

My wife and I have a rental unit, we track all expense associated with it, and actualy came in at a loss last year, but still did not loose enough to claim anything.

It is a royal pain.

-dave

 

[flynnibus]

My ex and I ran a side business. We deducted many things. Milage when she had to drive places for the business, supplies, etc

Even tho we were just deducting miles... it was a PITA when we sold the vehicle. Same with depreciation on office equipment, etc.. *shudder* Luckily have I have CPA that made it all easy on me once I gave up on trying to do it all myself But I have no interest in going back there ever again

 

[Ralphlaw]

Home offices are both a red flag for the IRS and a pain, record wise. You'll also have to recapture the deducted amount upon closure of the business or sale of the home. Overall, bad idea. Find a better deduction somewhere to make up for it, so to speak. "Very few people get audited." The IRS loves to hear that.

 

[Disney Fan KLD]

Hi! Long time reader, first time poster!

I, too, have been considering purchasing DVC. Does anyone know what the difference is in amount of time given to repay the purchase if you purchase resale as opposed to direct? I think I saw somewhere that if you buy direct, you can only do a 10 year loan. Is resale more like a mortgage transaction and you can select, say, a 15 year repayment term? Do you have to have money to put down or can you do with 0% down? Credit isn't perfect, so not sure if that effects things (other than the interest rate). Just trying to figure out if this is something we can swing right now. Thanks for your help!

 

[ParentsOf4]

Hi! Long time reader, first time poster!

I, too, have been considering purchasing DVC. Does anyone know what the difference is in amount of time given to repay the purchase if you purchase resale as opposed to direct? I think I saw somewhere that if you buy direct, you can only do a 10 year loan. Is resale more like a mortgage transaction and you can select, say, a 15 year repayment term? Do you have to have money to put down or can you do with 0% down? Credit isn't perfect, so not sure if that effects things (other than the interest rate). Just trying to figure out if this is something we can swing right now. Thanks for your help!

Welcome with your first post!

Generally speaking, financing any timeshare is not a good idea financially. And the longer you finance, the less sense it makes.

There are non-financial reasons to join DVC ("Being a DVC member makes me happy") but, ultimately, the only good reason to buy into DVC is because you intend to vacation at WDW for a long time, can afford to stay at Deluxe Resorts, and are looking to save money. I could number crunch scenarios for you but, seriously, if you are looking to finance over 15 years, it could be decades before you reach the break-even point. (In other words, the point at which you'd actually start saving money.)

If you want to stay at a DVC resort, the best financial advice is to simply rent DVC points through one of the well-known agencies such as David's DVC Rentals. Alternatively, just stay at a Moderate or Value Resort. Heck, for the price on eBay, I like renting a 2-bedroom suite at Wyndham Bonnet Creek, which is essentially on WDW property and can be found for $100/night.

Just trying to offer some friendly advice but if you are looking to finance over 15 or even 10 years, I politely suggest DVC is not for you.

 

[GoofGoof]

Hi! Long time reader, first time poster!

I, too, have been considering purchasing DVC. Does anyone know what the difference is in amount of time given to repay the purchase if you purchase resale as opposed to direct? I think I saw somewhere that if you buy direct, you can only do a 10 year loan. Is resale more like a mortgage transaction and you can select, say, a 15 year repayment term? Do you have to have money to put down or can you do with 0% down? Credit isn't perfect, so not sure if that effects things (other than the interest rate). Just trying to figure out if this is something we can swing right now. Thanks for your help!

You can get financing for a resale purchase and in theory you might be able to take out a personal loan with a term longer than 10 years, but the rates are really, really high on these loans so you would probably want to pay it off as soon as possible. Financing DVC longer than 10 years isn't a great idea IMHO.

If you need to finance and want to save on your monthly payment one option is to only buy enough points for a trip every other year. You can bank and borrow so you end up buying half as many points. For instance if you plan to use 300 points each year then buy 150 points. Combine this year's 150 points and borrow next years points to get to 300. Next year you skip then repeat again the following year. After 10 years you will have your 150 points paid off and if you want to go more frequently you could buy 150 more points.

 

[dreamfinder]

Hi! Long time reader, first time poster!

I, too, have been considering purchasing DVC. Does anyone know what the difference is in amount of time given to repay the purchase if you purchase resale as opposed to direct? I think I saw somewhere that if you buy direct, you can only do a 10 year loan. Is resale more like a mortgage transaction and you can select, say, a 15 year repayment term? Do you have to have money to put down or can you do with 0% down? Credit isn't perfect, so not sure if that effects things (other than the interest rate). Just trying to figure out if this is something we can swing right now. Thanks for your help!

Keep in mind that any financing you need to do will most like run in the 15-20% interest. Perhaps even higher with an iffy credit score. Most lending institutions see any timeshare as high risk proposition, and charge accordingly. The down payment is something that the bank typically wants. The seller doesn't care if they get paid by you as a down payment, or by the bank from the mortgage check, they just want their money. Obviously, the more you can put down, the less you owe and need to finance.

Just trying to offer some friendly advice but if you are looking to finance over 15 or even 10 years, I politely suggest DVC is not for you.

Agree with most of @ParentsOf4, but especially this. We bought resale, and didn't need to finance. Even with both of those factors, our break even was still 7ish years down the road. (Don't remember the exact year) Throwing in the extra finance costs, it pushes the breakeven out even further.

Might I suggest that when looking at the breakeven point, you consider the resort cost where you would have normally stayed. DVC will often show you numbers comparing your breakeven to the cash price of the villas. However, unless you would normally stay in that room type even if you didn't buy DVC, your numbers will look better than they should. That gives you a much better comparison and may even help you to break even sooner, or afford it more easily than you thought.

 

[Phonedave]

Hi! Long time reader, first time poster!

I, too, have been considering purchasing DVC. Does anyone know what the difference is in amount of time given to repay the purchase if you purchase resale as opposed to direct? I think I saw somewhere that if you buy direct, you can only do a 10 year loan. Is resale more like a mortgage transaction and you can select, say, a 15 year repayment term? Do you have to have money to put down or can you do with 0% down? Credit isn't perfect, so not sure if that effects things (other than the interest rate). Just trying to figure out if this is something we can swing right now. Thanks for your help!

DISNEY will only give you a 10 year loan. If you want to buy direct and arrange your own financing, you are welcome to do so. The advantage to having Disney do your financian is that is it is very painless. It is like having a house, but having the person you buy from hold the mortgage instead of a bank. The know the value of the property they are selling you, so they are OK making the loan. They also set it up so you can track and/or pay your loan via the member website.


If you have some way of securing 15 year financing on your own, you are free to use it to pay WDW for a DVC contract.