100 pt Direct Blue Card Minimum September 17,2019

You know something. I brought resale after the 01/19 restrictions, and not being able to book into Riviera and other future resorts doesn't hurt as much to me as not being able to utilize the blue card member benefits (which of course I don't have either).

If anything, that's the benefit I want most, but not willing to pay a premium for, unless I know I can recover the cost difference. It needs to have a break-even point for what you normally do anyways, meaning if I did plan on going to WDW at least two times every 3 years, than it would be worth it, as I can see buying annual passes, once every 3 years would eventually lead to cost recovery (even if the benefits can be taken away anytime). But if I am just taking more trips than I normally would, and buying annual passes just to justify the extra cost of direct membership, than it's not worth doing to me. I just would like to have that choice, where I can decide to buy an annual pass some years, instead of having to do it continually to get to cost recovery.

This does make me wonder though (and I know DVC has zero chances of undoing anything, nor are we entitled to anything), but if DVC were to undo / rollback the 01/19 restrictions of not being able to book new resorts, or lower the direct buy-in minimum back to 25 points (where it is easy to justify buying 25 points direct), what would people actually prefer. Again, I know this ain't happening, but I do wonder what people value more. Perhaps I need to start a new polling thread for this question.

Great3
 
I assume this is the case as why else would there have been the rush yesterday to buy 75 points, but is it accurate that as long as you had 75 direct by yesterday, you will be a blue card member? And if you only had 50 purchased direct before it went to 75 even, you are still able to get a blue card?

I have 2 contracts, one of which is a 100-point direct. If they raise the limit again, am I grandfathered in for the blue card?

Now that they issue blue cards with an expiration date, is there concern that once it expires, the 75-point people will not be able to get a new one? (Yeah, I know by then anything could have changed, but as of now, what is the deal?)
 
I assume this is the case as why else would there have been the rush yesterday to buy 75 points, but is it accurate that as long as you had 75 direct by yesterday, you will be a blue card member? And if you only had 50 purchased direct before it went to 75 even, you are still able to get a blue card?

I have 2 contracts, one of which is a 100-point direct. If they raise the limit again, am I grandfathered in for the blue card?

Now that they issue blue cards with an expiration date, is there concern that once it expires, the 75-point people will not be able to get a new one? (Yeah, I know by then anything could have changed, but as of now, what is the deal?)

From the way Disney has always done it, is that once you are grandfathered, you are grandfathered. I believe the expiration dates were put on so that people who sell inbetween buying and that date, won't be re-issued a new card when they come out. They will check memberships and those who are still eligible for member benefits will get the new card.

Since over the past 5 years or so, there have been a few different rule changes in which people were grandfathered in. If they were to eliminate for one aspect, I would think they'd do it for all. IMO, that would get way to messy. So, if one bought in when it was 25, or 75, you will still be considered eligible, regardless of future changes.
 
Yes, and points in your account in 24 hours
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Doesn't seem to matter to Disney. I tried to sneak in a June UY 75 point purchase at SSR last night around 8:30pm EST, and the guide said that the folks who do the contracts were already gone for the day and he didn't think that my purchase would go through before the minimum point increase.

Sure enough they called me back this morning already and said no go.
I did the exact same thing last night at 8:30, trying for 75 points at saratoga. i actually did an online chat with a guide at 7:30, he told me that "he" was leaving at 8pm. I knew the office was open until 9pm, he told me to call him direct if i wanted to seal the deal with him. he never said that all transactions had to be done by 8pm! i reached out again online at 8:30, intending to buy, with another guide. she then informed me that i was too late. i feel cheated! if the 1st guide that i spoke with had told me that it had to be done by 8pm, i would certainly have done it. thinking about calling management today but i really dont feel confident
 


Since people are beating dead horses... I’ll say that to every last person, every time it’s posted that someone talks about how the benefits are not worth it, they will be a blue-card carrying member. Granted, you can’t really make that judgement if you weren’t, but I would ask everyone who has talked about how the befits are not worth it:

If I were to offer to trade your direct/grandfathered points for 2016-2019 restricted resale points, how much would you expect to be cash compensated?

To anyone who says anything besides $0; that you would be willing to trade your blue-card points for 2016-2019 restricted points for zero compensation, you are putting some value on membership benefits. Being able to decide that moonlight magic is not worth it, that you don’t buy THAT a much merch to make it worth it, that you don’t use the dining discounts much, etc., has some value to you.

There is value in the freedom to choose whether or not to use a benefit. There’s a luxury in being allowed to register for the Soarin’ tour. It doesn’t matter whether or not you do. You have that choice.

What people who preach to others that member benefits aren’t worth it don’t fully appreciate is that they are part of a privileged class. They are choosing not to use the benefit. With the current class system, Disney created an entire group of owners who are not afforded that opportunity to choose. That second class feeling was imagineered by Disney brilliantly and it has worked. So if you used your 20% merch discount even once, wandered into the Epcot lounge - even just to check it out and decide “not worth it.” You have exercised that privilege in a way a lot of owners can’t.

While I certainly don’t condone the misguided Mickey Math justification of projecting “savings” by way of buying 35 years worth of APs, I recognize that often, people aren’t buying the benefits. They’re buying the right to choose whether or not to use those benefits.

I am making no judgement on the merits of the member benefits, nor the perceived loss of opportunity by not being a part of Disney’s timeshare “club,” but I understand the desire to at least have that choice.
Great post, and you really tapped into the psychology behind wanting to become a blue card member. It's one thing to be in a posh nightclub and decide it's lame and you want to leave. It's a whole other thing being the one standing behind the rope, knowing that you likely won't get in that night. It's insiders and outsiders. Cool kids and nerds. It's just about every aspect of our lives that we have lived over and over. People don't want to be "out" they want to be "in". And the blue card gives them that.

So you're right, there's a motivation much stronger than money here. I think it serves us well to discuss the strategies and financial machinations that help outsiders become insiders and what the legitimate valuations are. But to discuss whether or not it's "worth it"? That's an individual decision and time spent debating that is probably as worthwhile as people who love chocolate ice cream the best trying to convince those who like strawberry the best that they are misguided.
 
I did the exact same thing last night at 8:30, trying for 75 points at saratoga. i actually did an online chat with a guide at 7:30, he told me that "he" was leaving at 8pm. I knew the office was open until 9pm, he told me to call him direct if i wanted to seal the deal with him. he never said that all transactions had to be done by 8pm! i reached out again online at 8:30, intending to buy, with another guide. she then informed me that i was too late. i feel cheated! if the 1st guide that i spoke with had told me that it had to be done by 8pm, i would certainly have done it. thinking about calling management today but i really dont feel confident

If you do, please update this thread if you were successful or not. I am not optimistic, but suppose it can't hurt to try.
 
Doesn't seem to matter to Disney. I tried to sneak in a June UY 75 point purchase at SSR last night around 8:30pm EST, and the guide said that the folks who do the contracts were already gone for the day and he didn't think that my purchase would go through before the minimum point increase.

Sure enough they called me back this morning already and said no go.

So there wasn’t any AKV left huh? I wonder if the options are to cancel the purchase or sneak it in, if they’d push it through
 


So there wasn’t any AKV left huh? I wonder if the options are to cancel the purchase or sneak it in, if they’d push it through

I preferred SSR since I will already have resale points there. They literally said I was just too late - the department that can confirm sales left at 8pm and I called at 8:30. He took my deposit info anyway "Just in case" they could do it, but called back in the morning to say they wouldn't be able to do it.
 
I preferred SSR since I will already have resale points there. They literally said I was just too late - the department that can confirm sales left at 8pm and I called at 8:30. He took my deposit info anyway "Just in case" they could do it, but called back in the morning to say they wouldn't be able to do it.

You should ask to talk to a manager and politely explain you were ready to buy, but were not told of the cutoff. That you would be willing to buy at 75 points but will NOT at 100 points. They may make an exception for you to get the sale.
 
very helpful, thank you!
I was just told that is not true. That the contract had to be in by 7pm. I thanked them, and will not be moving forward with a direct purchase. Oh, but they were super willing to move forward with Riviera...
Doesn't seem to matter to Disney. I tried to sneak in a June UY 75 point purchase at SSR last night around 8:30pm EST, and the guide said that the folks who do the contracts were already gone for the day and he didn't think that my purchase would go through before the minimum point increase.

Sure enough they called me back this morning already and said no go.
Yep, they said the same thing to me before 9pm. That pretty much sealed the deal for me, so syonara direct purchase...
 
I was just told that is not true. That the contract had to be in by 7pm. I thanked them, and will not be moving forward with a direct purchase. Oh, but they were super willing to move forward with Riviera...

It's as if they don't want to make any extra sales because of the increase. First, the increase was done quietly on the DVC website. Second, you would think they staff enough people on the eve of the increase to ensure that people will buy, buy, buy!! I was expecting "extra magic hours" set up for DVC sales, not an early closing...
 
It's as if they don't want to make any extra sales because of the increase. First, the increase was done quietly on the DVC website. Second, you would think they staff enough people on the eve of the increase to ensure that people will buy, buy, buy!! I was expecting "extra magic hours" set up for DVC sales, not an early closing...
They don’t want to sell 75 SSR/OKW/AKV points for blue card status. That’s the difference.
 
Woohoo! It’s a big deal for us.

Edit-Hate when picture gets rotated.
Congrats! And don't worry about the picture, I just turned my computer 90 degrees. :)

This is a good example of one more element that escapes our calculations when comparing direct vs. resale. Personally, I am trying to rid myself of things, so this doesn't appeal much to me. But I fully understand and respect that it holds great appeal for others. Congrats again!
 
Woohoo! It’s a big deal for us.

Edit-Hate when picture gets rotated.
Me too. I find if it’s posting from my camera roll it will post sideways unless I go into the camera and edit the photo before attempting to post. Usually I just crop a tiny bit (you don’t have to change orientation). No idea why this works or how I figured it out. I’m on an iPhone XR.
 
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