Please Help thinking of buying DVC.

[Tinkerpeas hubby]

Hi all,

We are in the process of selling our house, plus my wife is due " fingers crossed" to get a health insurance payout. Now due to me being military and always moving around we have decided we will put half the money away so when we do finally settle and that won't be for another 15-20 years if all goes to plan we will have a decent deposit for the house!
Now the other half we tend to play with a little my wife feels that due to all her suffering and the fact we have all had a rough time with her being ill we deserve to blow a bit on something we love and DISNEY just happens to be that thing we love lol!

We are dw 28, me 32 oldest son 10 twins 8 so we have a good few Disney years in us yet......

We have decided that DVC is what we want to do with some of the money.
I just need some help please, we have tried to read forums etc to get info but I think it may be more helpful to get views from you guys!
We would like at least 2 wks every other yr. and we like the look of SSR /AKL /BLT. And maybe even the POLY depending on when it will be ready for sale and of course I'm sure it will be expensive, we have looked around the poly quite a bit and still trying to decide wether DVC could ruin the beauty of it and make it more busy then it already is lol.

Right so questions
1. How many points roughly would it be to get a 2bed villa every other yr for 2-3 wks?

2. We use DDP every trip wether we pay OOP or not, obviously if its free then that's great we never eat in the villa so do many who buy DVC still holiday like this or does it defeat the point of buying DVC?

3.Buying direct do they still offer Incentives to buy direct with them, I remember when we 1st looked into it they offered either GC or Disney cruise?
4. If you buy resale I understand you can't cruise with the points, we have not done a cruise but are going to book one for next year with us being a family of 5 sometimes 6 if mother in-law comes along is cruising a bad way to use your points? I've read cash cruise is better ( hope that makes sense)

5. Anything else we should consider?
Sites forums we could look at to get more of an idea?
We would not so finance we would pay it straight out, we pay now roughly £5000- £8000 just for accommodation tickets and DDP now when at Disney as we do 3 wks in 2 rooms or a 2 bed so I think it makes sense in that aspect to get DVC even if we so lose on the free DDP,

Thanks for any help you can give

 

[wilma-bride]

I will try and answer some of your questions as best as I can, albeit that it isn't really all that straightforward in some places.

1) As far as how many points, it really depends on when you intend to travel and where you want to stay.

Based on this year's points charts, a 2-bed villa for 2 weeks will range from 370 points in low season for a value 2-bed at AKV to 948 points for a 2-bed Magic Kingdom view at Bay Lake Tower during Premier Season (Easter/Christmas).

A 2-bed villa at SSR for a fortnight in October would set you back 590 points.

Based on what you have said, I would guess that you are looking at needing to buy between 250 and 300 points (possibly more if you plan to travel in high season - Easter/Christmas).

What I will also add is that, since the introduction of free dining, we have opted NOT to stay at OKW and SSR as they are the resorts where discounted packages and free dining are offered. At the risk of sounding like a snob, we prefer now to stay at the other DVC resorts where it is more likely that the majority of residents will also be DVC members, unfortunately that often means higher points.

2) If you buy into DVC and stay on points, the DDP will never be offered to you for free. You can, of course, still purchase the dining plan without being tied in to a package, meaning you don't have to fork out for the 14 day tickets so you can tailor your tickets to the way you want to vacation. We quite often spend a shorter amount of time at the DVC resorts now and don't need (or want) 14-day tickets. We prefer the flexibility of being able to buy tickets just for the days that we need.

I can understand not wanting to cook. I can honestly say that, with the exception of a piece of toast, I have never cooked anything in the DVC resorts. I go on holiday to have a rest from cooking, cleaning and all the ohter things I do every day at home. We don't tend to eat on-site much though, preferring to venture off-site where meals are cheaper and there is much more to suit our particular tastes. That isn't to say that we wouldn't consider buying the dining plan if we preferred to eat on-site. And, in actual fact, we may well be doing just that next March when I visit with my daughter as it is likely that I won't be driving so will make it harder to go off-site for food.

As a DVC member, you also have the option to purchase the Tables in Wonderland card, whcih gives a 20% discount off meals (and alcohol) at most WDW restaurants. It may be that this would save you more money than buying the dining plan.

3) There are often incentives offered when buying direct. I am not entirely sure what the current offer is (quite often a discount per point). I did read something the other day about a discount per point plus a developers' credit (which you could choose to exchange for MYW tickets/DL APs)

4) If you buy resale, there are restrictions on how you can use your points. You cannot use them for DCL, Disney Collection or ABD. If you buy resale, you can only use your points to stay at one of the (currently) 11 Disney DVC resorts or through exchange with RCI. Using points for anything other than staying at a DVC resort is rarely a good use of points anyway, however you would need to consider whether, as the kids get older or you want to venture further afield, you might want to use them elsewhere. If so, resale is unlikely to be the best option.

I tend to look at dvcnews.com for the most recent/up-to-date DVC information and offers.

Whilst it shouldn't be a reason, to buy, don't forget that DVC members do get additional perks (discounted APs, tour discounts, discounts on tickets/special events, etc.)

Hope this is of some help. Ask away if you have any other questions.

 

[Elise79]

Heres my answers:

1) Like Joh said it really varies have a look at The Dis Point Calculator and it will give you an idea.

2) We NEVER buy the DDP - it just doesn't work for us. We have a TIW card which gives us 20% off our TS meals and drinks.

I also do really enjoy cooking in the villa especially when we are there for longer. Nothing complicated just steak, jacket potatoes and salad for example. Wraps and sandwiches for lunch.

We also enjoy eating offsite and the quality and choice at most Disney restuarants has decreased so much we have virtually no must dos any more.

3) Check DVCnews.com they usually list the latest promotions.

4) As Joh said said resale purchased contracts can not use points to cruise (or other Disney Collection items) however it is really point heavy - you can usually rent your points for cash and pay for your cruise where you would not have had enough points for everyone in the party to go on points.

5) Remember you have annual dues to pay every year and DVC only covers accommodation. You still have to buy tickets, food etc

I am slightly concerned that you are using the sale of asset to fund the purchase of a luxury liability and won't have your own home. I would highly recommend speaking to an IFA (Independent Financial Advisor). I know you said you have 20 years left in the military however in that time you could have a fully paid mortgage so when you leave you won't have to worry.

 

[tinkerpea]

Heres my answers:

1) Like Joh said it really varies have a look at The Dis Point Calculator and it will give you an idea.

2) We NEVER buy the DDP - it just doesn't work for us. We have a TIW card which gives us 20% off our TS meals and drinks.

I also do really enjoy cooking in the villa especially when we are there for longer. Nothing complicated just steak, jacket potatoes and salad for example. Wraps and sandwiches for lunch.

We also enjoy eating offsite and the quality and choice at most Disney restuarants has decreased so much we have virtually no must dos any more.

3) Check DVCnews.com they usually list the latest promotions.

4) As Joh said said resale purchased contracts can not use points to cruise (or other Disney Collection items) however it is really point heavy - you can usually rent your points for cash and pay for your cruise where you would not have had enough points for everyone in the party to go on points.

5) Remember you have annual dues to pay every year and DVC only covers accommodation. You still have to buy tickets, food etc

I am slightly concerned that you are using the sale of asset to fund the purchase of a luxury liability and won't have your own home. I would highly recommend speaking to an IFA (Independent Financial Advisor). I know you said you have 20 years left in the military however in that time you could have a fully paid mortgage so when you leave you won't have to worry.

Thanks for your answers,
They have been telly helpful as have Joh's answers.
I think we would be quite happy to buy resale as we know after 20 years of doing Disney that we won't want to use our points for anywhere else we have had many holidays at other places and although we have bucket list destinations we will want to holiday at Disney at least every other yr.

I did want to answer your concern about us selling our house and using the money, I own the house in Newquay and the mortgage is already nearly fully paid I was lucky enough to buy at 18 and so when we sell we will make a very good profit,
The reason we are selling is being in the forces we always have to live on base ( well unless we want to rent off base) our rent is £110 a month! We rent out our house in Newquay and for the last 5 years its been ok but then the tenants trashed the house and we decided that if we are going to be posts abroad we don't want the worry of it happening again so we decided to sell,

When Ian comes out he will have a full pension at at least a Officer rank plus a payout of at least £60,000 as his " golden handshake" this with the fact we should be able to put away a decent amount from the house leaves us feeling comfortable with the decision to spend a good amount on Dvc,

We also have the fact that my health insurance payout will be a fair amount, and that we should be able to put half of it away and spend half on luxury my way of thinking is I have suffered incredibly for this money so I'm going to make sure my family & I enjoy it lol.
I hope some of that makes sense and shows its not a wreck less decision that will leave us with no money for a house when he retires haha.
We may even find a place we want to settle unfortunately after living in many places we yet to find anywhere we would like to call home!
I want to settle in the US and go back to my roots

I will take a look tv the sites and the point calculator, we love September an October the most out of school holiday time but a few shorter trips over Xmas and may time also appeals

So thanks again