So let me get this straight regarding point increases...

[Pete C]

You buy a certain amount of points for a certain initial cost, and with a yearly maintenance fee. Got it. Here is what I don't get...the number of points required to stay in a certain type of room goes up every year?? I was just looking at a chart, and it costs something like 10 points for a night at a resort. But next year, it's 11 for the same room, same time of year. So, in like 30 years the points you spent a ton of money on might not even be able to get you half the same number of nights you bought in at. What other "timeshare" is like that where your time purchased at the place reduces year after year? Am I getting this right? You are forced to buy more points, which ALSO increase in cost, just to get the same vacation. So...what exactly are you "locking in" by buying DVC? Anything at all?

 

[MKCP 1985]

So...what exactly are you "locking in" by buying DVC? Anything at all?

Locking into money leaving your wallet, guaranteed.

 

[DisneyJoe]

I believe the number of points for a resort for a year are fixed... they can't just increment every night of the year across the board.

For example, if I recall correctly, they recently increased the number of points to stay on a weekend but decreased the number of points for weeknights, and basically the cost for the entire week was the same.

Someone slightly more versed in DVC rules can clarify, I am sure.

 

[Master Yoda]

Each resort has a set number of points that have to be alloted each year. That number can not change. How those points are alloted for each day can change but by the end of the year the total must be the same. So if day X goes up one point somewhere day Y will have to go down by one point.

 

[MKCP 1985]

So if you buy enough points to stay there every night all year, there can be no surprises! :hammer:

Easy! :lol:

 

[Master Yoda]

So if you buy enough points to stay there every night all year, there can be no surprises! :hammer:

Easy! :lol:

There are no surprises if you read that phone book size size contract you sign. Point allocation is spelled out in the contract.

 

[Monty]

IIRC they adjusted how many points it costs on weekends compared to weekdays. If you have enough points to cover a week at a given period before, those points will still cover the same week in the same period. If you got enough points to cover a two-night weekend, it'll cost more for the same two-night weekend.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

As the others have said, each resort is allocated points and the total for that resort cannot change over the course of the contracts. They can shift around the points on the chart though to make different seasons/room types cost different amounts. But if a resort has a total of 1000 points over the chart (not a real number obviously) it will have 100 points until the day those contracts expire. Howver, those 100 points can be divided over the categories however Disney wants. So if your trip this year cost you 100 points for a week, next year it could cost 105. However, somewhere else on that chart someone else who paid 100 points is now paying 95.

 

[greebomusic]

If you can be flexible with the time of year you stay it should never effect you too much. If you go the same time every year and never alter it, you stand a chance of using more or fewer points accordingly. Off season rules!

 

[Phonedave]

As other have explained, the total number of points at a resort cannot change. If it takes 100,000 points to book every room for every night, for a year, it will allways be 100,000 points if you add it all up.

Sometimes people complain when they shift point costs around, but the thing is, DVC is not doing this to make any sort of money. What they are doing is trying to influence usage rates. If they find a lot of people trying to book in May, but not enough rooms, and in January they have rooms available and nobody is booking, they will make the days in May a point or two more and the days in January a point or two less. They are trying to balance supply and demand. Which as an owner is a good thing to see. Sure some people who used to go during the 'cheap' season my feel jilted, but in the grand scheme of things, it is sill for the best.


-dave

 

[Pete C]

I get it now, and thank you all very much for the explanation!

 

[dreamfinder]

The point increases are one reason why some people have a slight overage in points. That way if Disney does increase them for the time period they wish to travel, they are still covered.

But your points still get you .003% of the resort (or whatever they work out to be) The adjustments are to help balance stuff out. They noticed a large number of people staying midweek only, and then either leaving or switching to another resort, so they dropped weekend a point or two, and kicked up midweek. Example, AKL studios in January went from 10pts midweek and 16pts weekend, to 11pts midweek and 13pts weekend. So a whole went actually went down a point, but a weekend stay dropped 6 points, which would help to convince people to stay on the weekend.

 

[Pete C]

How are some DVC resales around 50 points if the minimum to purchase is 160 new?

 

[Pioneer Hall]

How are some DVC resales around 50 points if the minimum to purchase is 160 new?

The minimum right now is actually around 100 I believe on a new contract (a way to boost their sales). After your initial purchase though, you are allowed to purchase smaller contracts as an add on. While you can use your points all the same, these contracts are seperately deeded and can be sold separately as well. So the contracts you see listed for 50 points or so were someone's second, third, etc contract.

 

[mousefan1972]

The minimum right now is actually around 100 I believe on a new contract (a way to boost their sales). After your initial purchase though, you are allowed to purchase smaller contracts as an add on. While you can use your points all the same, these contracts are seperately deeded and can be sold separately as well. So the contracts you see listed for 50 points or so were someone's second, third, etc contract.

There is also another way... say for example someone buys 200 points directly from Disney. They can "break up" those points into 4, 50 point contracts if they wish. Or 1, 50 point contract, 2, 25 point contracts, and 1, 100 point contract. As long as it is done at the time of purchase, Disney will gladly break a large point purchase into smaller contracts. Then, the owner can choose to sell any of them individually if their travel plans change.

 

[hansel1]

Although the total point cost for a 7 day stay remained unchanged the weekends went down and the weekdays went up.

So for someone like me who stays 10-12 nights I get caught in an increase for my stay. Whereas I could arrive on a sunday night and leave on a friday morning only hitting two weekend days at a higher rate, they have now increased week days so I have to come up with about 2 more points per week night.

I fixed this by buying another 160 at AKV, so I can alternate resorts every other year and have a 2 bedroom with points to spare.

 

[slappy magoo]

The best way I've thought of to explain it is like this:

When you buy into DVC, you're "buying" a teeny tiny percentage of your home resort (and "buying" is a bit misleading, since eventually the deed reverts back to Disney). It's just that your teeny tiny percentage is represented to you in the form of points. For the people who run DVC to just increase point values across the board would be like saying "Yeah, I know you have a contract that says you own THIS much of the Saratoga Springs resort, but really? As of now, you only own THAT much. Sucker."

Imagine if a buddy of yours wanted to buy a pizza place and needed a minor partner, so you bought into the place, 10% of the restaurant. And at the end of the year, when he divvies up profits, he only gives you profits for 5% ownership and says "yeah, I decided you only own 5% now." Well, THAT'S illegal, in'nt it? And it would be the same if DVC just increased point values across the board.

As others have been said, they can reconfigure the point values, adding points here while reducing values there so it all balances out at years' end. And even that would only be to spread out users more evenly. When DVC first started, lots of people were using their points for weekend jaunts. So points were adjusted so that Friday and Saturday night stays used much more of your points than the rest of the week. Then, DVC had the opposite problem, as people were maximizing the use of their points by taking a few Sunday-Friday trips over the course of a year. So they're further finessing point values so weekends use more points, but not as much as they used to. Trying to jigger it so that more people use their points in weekly increments. The only negative is for people who bought into DVC because the point value structure, at the time they bought, made more sense to them than it does now. I suspect most people arrange to go for 7 or more nights, as opposed to just weekends or just arrive-Sunday-depart-Friday, so those people aren't affected as much.