Buying DVC - Need help from experts . . . or at least owners

[SuzyQ]

OK Dave & all you DVCers - Let me run a couple things by you! ;)

Del and I are seriously discussing buying into DVC. We have been running a bunch of numbers (buying SSR from Disney vs. VWL or OKW from a resale) and think that it may be best for us to buy about 200 points for OKW.

We are thinking of buying 200 OKW (current asking price is around $70, but we are hoping to be able to make an offer a bit lower). The reason being that the maintenance fees are so much lower.

Basically, we would love to stay at VWL often, but we also like the roominess of OKW - so we would probably stay at both. Our favorite times to travel are September, May and early December - so our thinking is that it may not be TOO hard to reserve VWL during the off season with only 7 months notice.

This is where we need your help . . .

Are we thinking correctly? Do you think that the maintenance rates will continue to go up with the same ratio (meaning that OKW will pretty much always be the cheaper rate vs. VWL). I know that you cannot know for sure, but just wondering about all of your own experiences.

ANY thoughts, advice or inpute would be greatly appreciated and not held against you in a court of law. ;) :lol:

Thanks guys!

~Suzy

[Tagrel]

OK - the mantra chanted by most DVC owners:

"Buy where you want to stay the most"

To be truly happy, you need a 'home' where you will be happy staying. If you have to worry every year about getting a 7 month reservation, it will more than likely be a sore point. (Well, it is if you are a OC planner like I am!)

Currently, depending on when you travel, there is typically a pretty good chance of getting a room at your desired DVC resort at 7 months. This does vary. Last year I was on a waitlist for 4 months before I could get a Friday night Studio at VWL in early Dec! This year, people have been posting that they have been able to get an early Dec room there, no problem. You just never know! BUT - if you look at the ongoing situation, I foresee other benefits to buying at VWL if that is your favorite. BCV and VWL are the two smallest DVC resorts. As DVC membership grows at SSR (currently 81,000 members!) there will be MORE and MORE people scrambling for those 7 month reservations. So, what might prove fairly easy to get today, may be almost impossible in a few years. :?

Maintenance Fees for 2004:

Old Key West - $3.68
Hilton Head - $3.86
Beach Club Villas - $4.18
Wilderness Lodge - $4.22
Boardwalk Villas - $4.25
Vero Beach - $4.67

I see these rising fairly evenly across the WDW resorts. The Beach properties seem to be more 'volatile', especially Vero. (That resort was supposed to be much larger, allowing for the cost to be spread across more owners - that plan was scrapped when they didn't sell as well as Disney would have liked)

Currently (an example):

VWL: $4.22 x 200 pts = $844
OKW: $3.68 x 200 pts = $736

Yearly Maintenance Fee Dues Difference = $108 or $9 per month.

Is the $9 per month (granted, it will likely increase over the years) worth it to you to own at your preferred resort?

Only you can decide that. Need to weigh the pros and cons of each resort: (This is MY list of pros/cons - other may look at things differently!) :)

OKW:

larger rooms
availability of Grand Villas
park near your building
lower point costs per unit
lower maintenance fees
adding pool slide in the next year (I'm thinking this will impact dues for both contruction and the added life guard costs - hopefully minimal)
larger resort, so its easier to get reservations after 7 month window


VWL:

Deluxe resort amenities (Several Restauants, hotel layout (inside halls), valet parking, room service)
boat to MK, Contemporary, FW
boat rentals on Bay Lake, Electric Water Pagent nightly, Beach area.
Great feature pool, and very nice quiet pool
Smaller, so that 11 month booking window will only increase in value.

Hope that helps! Also - VWL resales are fairly uncommon and typically get scooped up even before they are posted. Once you decide, contacting a resale agent to call you as soon as something is available is a good idea.

And - Beware the REALLY GOOD DEAL. :) Disney has the Right of First Refusal (ROFR) on all sales. This means that if you get a really good price, they can decide to buy that contract before you do! A good resale agent can tell you what minimum cost is typically getting by Disney.

And - :) - Look at each contract carefully. Some are 'striped' with no points available for this year OR next. (They have borrowed and used all available points). Don't pay top dollar for these! Some have lots of banked points that need to be used quickly, and you may be asked to pay maintenance fees on those points. Its all negotiable, so work with the resale agent and ask lots of questions!

Oh - and SSR contracts go through 2054 - while all other DVC resorts only go through 2042. You pay more for SSR (currently about $90 per point (with discount Disney is offering) but you get 12 more years. Just something to be aware of.

Good Luck in your number crunching! I know that with the discounts of the last couple years I was wondering if DVC was a good choice. (Since we LOVE the 1 bedroom units, it was for us!) But now that travel is picking back up, and those rack rates and discount rates are rising, I'm loving that our cost is 'locked' in. The Maintenance fees can only rise by actual costs - Disney can't raise them on a whim. I LIKE that! :)

[SuzyQ]

Thanks, Dave! I knew that I could count on you for some thorough info!

~Suzy

[Brer]

Everything he said !! Haven't stayed at SS,but WL is a grand and beautiful place. Looking to add on myself :)

[SuzyQ]

I'm thinking (now that we cannot buy through Disney in WA State) that we will try to get VWL through resale and then add on SSR (when we can) so that we will have some points that don't expire until 2054. I hope that is how it works.

Does anyone know where I can get a point schedule for Disney Cruises?

~Suzy