help just about to close contract with dvc

[bocaj1431]

There is so much information on this forum, which is great. Unfortunately, I have a special needs child which does not leave much free time. I am in the middle of closing for 150 points at saratoga with DVC. Is there some reason I should not go through DVC. Some of the comments I have seen seem to suggest this. Also, Saratoga is not our 1st choice but price per point lowest. Is it really diffclt to book a stay at bay lake for Sept at 7 months out or other villas. Thnx

[Msmithmd]

Strongly urge you to cancel until you research the benefits and drawbacks for buying direct versus resale. There are valid opinions on both sides, but bottom line if you are going to use the points to stay at DVC resorts- you can acquire the points for literally half price resale.

This is like buying a car. Don't make this level of financial decision without spending a couple months following these boards. And for gosh sakes, no matter which way you buy, don't finance such a luxury purchase. My 2c.

[Niewoe]

Originally Posted by Msmithmd

Strongly urge you to cancel until you research the benefits and drawbacks for buying direct versus resale. There are valid opinions on both sides, but bottom line if you are going to use the points to stay at DVC resorts- you can acquire the points for literally half price resale.

This is like buying a car. Don't make this level of financial decision without spending a couple months following these boards. And for gosh sakes, no matter which way you buy, don't finance such a luxury purchase. My 2c.

Completely agree!! We bought resale and closed this past July. We were able to get BLT for much cheaper than what DVC was offering at the time. If you don't mind not being able to use the points for the cruises (the point value is terrible in my opinion) or nonDVC Disney resorts, then def look at resale. If you have specific questions, please feel free to post. I'm new to DVC, but just went through the process of buying. We used The Timeshare Store and had a wonderful experience. Good luck!! Researching is worth it!!

[Msmithmd]

And I forgot to mention, if u want BLT, you can buy BLT resale, for less than SSR direct from Disney. And not have to worry about the 7 month availability, if that is where you want to stay most often. For me that would make resale a no brainer.

[Breyean]

Originally Posted by Msmithmd

And I forgot to mention, if u want BLT, you can buy BLT resale, for less than SSR direct from Disney. And not have to worry about the 7 month availability, if that is where you want to stay most often. For me that would make resale a no brainer.

Very true. You can find BLT contracts for the 150 points you want to buy (although you might need more to stay at BLT than SSR given the points per night) at Fidelity for around $95 with full 2012 points.

[crisi]

1. Is there a reason not to go through DVC.

Its much more expensive. You get one benefit, the ability to book Disney resorts and cruises on points. However, booking Disney resorts and cruises on points is expensive point wise, and may work out to be more expensive than just paying cash out of pocket - and has other complications associated with it. So the benefit they are selling you is one that many people on the board think they are doing you a favor to not provide.

2. Can you book BLT 7 months out? Maybe, but not consistently. Standard view for low points - probably not. Theme park view - probably not. BWV or BCV for Food and Wine - maybe, but probably not consistently. And it will depend if you can call right at seven months or if you end up getting busy (and with two ordinary children - it happens, I can only imagine how busy I would be if one had special needs) and not calling until six and a half months out.

[DannysMom]

I agree with the good folks here. If you want/need your points NOW, go through with the direct purchase. If can wait for a few months to get your points, buy resale and save some cash. Also buy where you would like (or wouldn't mind) staying. You may not get your first choice resort at 7 months out. Depends on when you travel and where you want to stay.

We bought BCV points resale this summer. Very happy with our purchase. We paid a lot less than buying SSR points direct would have been. (We got our contract at $65/point.). I also agree that these questions should be answered to your satisfaction before you go through with any purchase, direct or resale. You might do well to cancel your contract, if you may still do so without penalty, and research some more. DVC isn't going anywhere, no need to rush into it.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards App, please excuse any typos.

[ELMC]

Originally Posted by bocaj1431

There is so much information on this forum, which is great. Unfortunately, I have a special needs child which does not leave much free time. I am in the middle of closing for 150 points at saratoga with DVC. Is there some reason I should not go through DVC. Some of the comments I have seen seem to suggest this. Also, Saratoga is not our 1st choice but price per point lowest. Is it really diffclt to book a stay at bay lake for Sept at 7 months out or other villas. Thnx

Out of respect for your lack of time I will keep this short.

There are many reasons not to go through DVC. First, it is frequently twice as expensive as resale. Second, because you are being pidgeon holed into a resort you really don't want because of exorbitant direct prices.

I would advise you to cancel your purchase and take the time (no matter how long it takes) to learn about DVC. There is a lot you should know before making a decision of this magnitude so that you are not disappointed down the road. Good luck!

[WebmasterDoc]

Originally Posted by bocaj1431

There is so much information on this forum, which is great. Unfortunately, I have a special needs child which does not leave much free time. I am in the middle of closing for 150 points at saratoga with DVC. Is there some reason I should not go through DVC. Some of the comments I have seen seem to suggest this. Also, Saratoga is not our 1st choice but price per point lowest. Is it really diffclt to book a stay at bay lake for Sept at 7 months out or other villas. Thnx

I'm a little unclear if you are purchasing directly thru DVC or purchasing a SSR resale. I would be surprised if DVC had first offered you a contract at SSR before BLT or AKV - unless you requested a purchase at SSR it would not be likely that SSR would be resort offered for direct purchase.

If you are truly purchasing SSR directly thru DVC, I would consider rescinding the contract if that is still possible and consider resale. If it is, in fact, a resale purchase at SSR, I would suggest canceling the contract (if you are still within your rescision period where your deposit is returnable) and looking into a resale at BLT if that is your resort preference.

Welcome to the DIS!

[bocaj1431]

Originally Posted by WebmasterDoc

I'm a little unclear if you are purchasing directly thru DVC or purchasing a SSR resale. I would be surprised if DVC had first offered you a contract at SSR before BLT or AKV - unless you requested a purchase at SSR it would not be likely that SSR would be resort offered for direct purchase.

If you are truly purchasing SSR directly thru DVC, I would consider rescinding the contract if that is still possible and consider resale. If it is, in fact, a resale purchase at SSR, I would suggest canceling the contract (if you are still within your rescision period where your deposit is returnable) and looking into a resale at BLT if that is your resort preference.

Welcome to the DIS!

Thank you to everyone for the info. I am purchasing directly through dvc. I am not sure why they only offered SSR, unless because it cost less per point than the other hotels. I did call to ask about purchasing points for one of the other hotels but they explained they were either more expensive or the term was not as long. I do not believe it is a resale purchase. I would think they would have to tell me that?

I do have an additional question, If I did a resale purchase, do they have the same financing. I would not have the full amount to pay up front to make such a purchase. I could only pay a deposit and then the monthly payments. Thanks again for everyones advice.

[disneynutz]

Originally Posted by bocaj1431

Thank you to everyone for the info. I am purchasing directly through dvc. I am not sure why they only offered SSR, unless because it cost less per point than the other hotels. I did call to ask about purchasing points for one of the other hotels but they explained they were either more expensive or the term was not as long. I do not believe it is a resale purchase. I would think they would have to tell me that?

I do have an additional question, If I did a resale purchase, do they have the same financing. I would not have the full amount to pay up front to make such a purchase. I could only pay a deposit and then the monthly payments. Thanks again for everyones advice.

With all due respect, I am afraid that you might be headed for trouble. Disney is one of the most expensive destinations for luxury vacations and by buying into the DVC to save some money, you are actually locking yourself into ever increasing costly yearly vacations.

The cost of dues, food, airfare, admission tickets and other Disney extras increases each year and can easily cost $2000 per trip if not more.

DVC works well for some but not for others. That is one of the reasons why there are hundreds and hundreds of contracts for sale on the resale market at any one time.

Disney will only tell you what you want to hear when they are selling you a contract. They will also tell you what matches the quota for the day and if SSR is on the list, they will tailor their presentation to the benefits of SSR. Same thing that a car sales person will do when you are buying a car.

You have 10 days after signing the contract to back out without any penalties. You might consider giving yourself more time to learn more about the program before moving ahead.

Bill

[jessc79]

Originally Posted by bocaj1431

Thank you to everyone for the info. I am purchasing directly through dvc. I am not sure why they only offered SSR, unless because it cost less per point than the other hotels. I did call to ask about purchasing points for one of the other hotels but they explained they were either more expensive or the term was not as long. I do not believe it is a resale purchase. I would think they would have to tell me that?

I do have an additional question, If I did a resale purchase, do they have the same financing. I would not have the full amount to pay up front to make such a purchase. I could only pay a deposit and then the monthly payments. Thanks again for everyones advice.

You cannot finance through Disney if you purchase resale. You may be able to get a better rate outside of Disney, though, which could amount to additional savings.

They tried to sell us SSR too, sine it's where they send the budget conscious I guess!

We ended up buying 120 direct at AKV but it took me a year to make the decision. Not a decision to make after an hour sales presentation, IMO. Although many do so you wouldn't be the first.

[Missyrose]

Originally Posted by bocaj1431

Thank you to everyone for the info. I am purchasing directly through dvc. I am not sure why they only offered SSR, unless because it cost less per point than the other hotels. I did call to ask about purchasing points for one of the other hotels but they explained they were either more expensive or the term was not as long. I do not believe it is a resale purchase. I would think they would have to tell me that?

I do have an additional question, If I did a resale purchase, do they have the same financing. I would not have the full amount to pay up front to make such a purchase. I could only pay a deposit and then the monthly payments. Thanks again for everyones advice.

Let's make this as simple as possible. A contract bought directly from Disney will cost roughly double a contract bought on the resale market. Financing a DVC contract means you will pay roughly double the cost of the contract over the life of the loan (including all that interest). So buying a contract directly and financing it for a full 10 years will not save you much (if any) money over booking through Disney or renting DVC points.

Like PP have said, you have 10 days to back out of your deal (mandated by state law). Pull out of your current contract, do some real research and in the meantime, start making those monthly DVC payments to yourself so you can buy a contract with cash when you feel truly ready to buy.

[wholovesminnie]

I myself also bought at SSR resort a few years ago bc it was lowest $ per point to get into DVC. I have still not stayed there Yes DVC is a luxury purchase BUT everyone's different. I could not afford to buy resale since there were no financing options, SO I bought direct 100 points SSR. I paid my monthly payment and when I had extra $ I paid toward principal. I have since already paid off my first contract of 100 points. I then bought add on points at AKL where I really wanted all along and buy in- it was same as I paid for SSR bc they offered a add on discount since you were already a member. Buying direct is nice knowing that in 20 years if your kids don't want to go to Disney world.. but want to go to Italy, Australia, Mexico etc- YOU can use your points to use outside of Disney. and the adventures by disney etc. yes not best use of points BUT when u pay a monthly payment for dues etc and you can use that for your vacation you are going to take anyway- it doesn't really matter. We all don't have 20,000 available to buy resale. Just like all of us don't pay ca$h to buy a new car but fiance the car with monthly payments. I love my DVC and never regretted the direct purchase
Do what works best for you ! Nothing wrong either way

[Lynne M]

Originally Posted by bocaj1431

Thank you to everyone for the info. I am purchasing directly through dvc. I am not sure why they only offered SSR, unless because it cost less per point than the other hotels. I did call to ask about purchasing points for one of the other hotels but they explained they were either more expensive or the term was not as long. I do not believe it is a resale purchase. I would think they would have to tell me that?

I do have an additional question, If I did a resale purchase, do they have the same financing. I would not have the full amount to pay up front to make such a purchase. I could only pay a deposit and then the monthly payments. Thanks again for everyones advice.

My best advice to you is to get out of this deal now. Buying SSR through Disney and financing it is only something you do if you can afford to throw away thousands of dollars.. You're paying thousands more for the contract through Disney, and their interest rates are so high they'll wipe out any savings you'd get by buying DVC.

Spend some time researching DVC, figure out how many points you really need, and then buy a resale contact that you can pay for without financing. You can always add more points later.

To answer your question about why they only offered SSR....it sure wasn't because they were looking out for your wallet. SSR is tougher for them to sell than AKV or BLT, so they tell their salespeople to push SSR.

When buying a timeshare, being an educated consumer is critical, or you're gonna spend way more than you need to. No need to rush into a deal. Take your time.