Direct Purchase benefits announced!

[Dean]

If I wanted another timeshare such as the ones mentioned I would have bought those not DVC but I didn't. Not only did I buy once direct, I bought twice because I believed in the type of program DVC was executing and managing. Yes I understood the docments, the risks, the this, the that, but DVC was not that type of timeshare the past 18-20 years, were they???

Enjoy your day everyone.....

IMO they have been just another nice timeshare all along. You say you understood the documents but yet you never expected certain things to happen and now you're upset when they did. It appears you bought a timeshare and assumed they really weren't a timeshare, you assumed wrong, IMO.

 

[JimMIA]

Another example, is Marriott announced that they will be spinning their TS business off from the main company.

I could see Disney doing this with off property resorts. However, I have a hard time picturing Disney would ever do the same for the on property resorts. (Please note, I'm not advocating spinning off the off property resorts, just pointing out something that is a possibility in the documents we signed).

Wyndham has an interesting program called WAAM, where they purchase unsold inventory from timeshare developers and then resell it and include it in their portfolio of resorts. That's how they recently acquired part of the beautiful Reunion Resort near WDW. I don't think any of the DVC resorts would be likely targets for Wyndham's WAAM, but some of the Marriott resorts might be.

 

[Joan of Arc]

I can't imagine that Disney would ever let another management company take over. If the new management let things go ,Disney would not want broken down, dilapitated, old buildings next to their delux resorts. I just don't think that would ever happen.

 

[crisi]

I can't imagine that Disney would ever let another management company take over. If the new management let things go ,Disney would not want broken down, dilapitated, old buildings next to their delux resorts. I just don't think that would ever happen.

That can be addressed in the terms of the contract. They wouldn't sell the land, only lease the buildings. Disney has let the Swan and Dolphin exist - and I'm sure part of the lease agreement on the land includes a covenant on maintenance. They might even keep the buildings, and just outsource the administration and grant use rights.

 

[JimMIA]

I can't imagine that Disney would ever let another management company take over. If the new management let things go ,Disney would not want broken down, dilapitated, old buildings next to their delux resorts. I just don't think that would ever happen.

I can't see Disney letting another company take over ONSITE resorts, simply because they wouldn't be Disney. If there ws one lesson Uncle Walt learned in Anaheim, it was that you had to control the whole environment.

 

[Joan of Arc]

A Question? crisi,
What would happen if say the last 5 years of our leases, a lot of owners stop paying their dues, for whatever reason. if end dates arent staggered and people just dont care about their contract anymore. I wonder how that would be handled.

 

[Dean]

A Question? crisi,
What would happen if say the last 5 years of our leases, a lot of owners stop paying their dues, for whatever reason. if end dates arent staggered and people just dont care about their contract anymore. I wonder how that would be handled.

Existing owners who did pay would be responsible. This has happened at other resorts and in a couple of cases, forcing sale or closing of the resort. It's also one of the issues for seasonal resorts that work on the weeks system. Off season owners pay the same, or nearly so, as everyone else even though the purchase price, inherent value and rental potential are vastly different. The off season owners are to a degree, subsidizing the high season owners. This tends to be much less of an issue with points and some floating systems.

 

[JimMIA]

Existing owners who did pay would be responsible. This has happened at other resorts and in a couple of cases, forcing sale or closing of the resort.

Yep. With timeshares, you have to remember that each resort is really a stand-alone entity. Due to the economy, a lot of timeshare contracts have defaulted, and we're starting to see some "special assessments" and other ramifications to the owners who continue to pay their annual fees.

We haven't seen any DVC resorts in trouble yet, but that will be something to watch for if DVC management starts talking about defaults on annual dues causing revenue shortfalls. Someone will have to make up the difference...and it's the owners of those resorts.

 

[crisi]

I can't see Disney letting another company take over ONSITE resorts, simply because they wouldn't be Disney. If there ws one lesson Uncle Walt learned in Anaheim, it was that you had to control the whole environment.

But Walt has been gone for some time, and new Disney management doesn't always agree with the lessons Walt learned. They have outsourced a lot over the years.

 

[bicker]

Heck, new Disney management has learned lessons that Walt never learned (or were smearter business people on their way in to Disney than Walt ever was). Trying to draw any parallels, in that regard, falls apart.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

I did as well, but I faced that they weren't all that different from the industry a long time ago. About six months after we purchased ten years ago. HOWEVER, they still bring value to our vacations.

I'm also a little different, and I suspect most of the "realists" are. I never bought into the "this was the best purchase we ever made." I've always though "Welcome Home" was a silly marketing ploy. I own a "piece of the magic" by owning stock - not DVC. For us, DVC has been a way to get regular vacations at Disney in a multi room unit. If I were making the decision today, I wouldn't do it - its way too expensive now and Bonnet Creek is nearby and lovely. Plus, the switch to RCI has made trading in from a different timeshare MUCH more reasonable. But I wouldn't buy a timeshare at all now. We got a good deal in 2002 when we bought. Or we wouldn't have done it.

I had the blinders on for the 1st 6 months too!

Also...for the folks complaining about the dues...I've not checked with the CPI, but dues appear to be close to the inflation rate and expected. In 1991, you could stay in a decent moderate hotel anywhere in flyover country for $35. Your lucky to find a decent hotel for less than $100/nt. now.

Although, I must admit...park and food prices are getting pretty annoying.

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Existing owners who did pay would be responsible. This has happened at other resorts and in a couple of cases, forcing sale or closing of the resort. It's also one of the issues for seasonal resorts that work on the weeks system. Off season owners pay the same, or nearly so, as everyone else even though the purchase price, inherent value and rental potential are vastly different. The off season owners are to a degree, subsidizing the high season owners. This tends to be much less of an issue with points and some floating systems.

Yep. With timeshares, you have to remember that each resort is really a stand-alone entity. Due to the economy, a lot of timeshare contracts have defaulted, and we're starting to see some "special assessments" and other ramifications to the owners who continue to pay their annual fees.

We haven't seen any DVC resorts in trouble yet, but that will be something to watch for if DVC management starts talking about defaults on annual dues causing revenue shortfalls. Someone will have to make up the difference...and it's the owners of those resorts.

ok...that would really scare me!

 

[JimMIA]

ok...that would really scare me!

That's just a fundamental principle of any kind of shared ownership. If some of the owners don't pay their share for whatever reason, the rest pay more. The bills have to be paid either way.

It's no different than condo/homeowner associations in residential real estate. Look at the difficulties some of those have gone through over the last few years!

 

[Brian Noble]

Wyndham has an interesting program called WAAM, where they purchase unsold inventory from timeshare developers and then resell it and include it in their portfolio of resorts.

It's even better than that. Wyndham doesn't actually purchase any inventory. They simply market it, and charge a hefty percentage of the sales price as a fee. The remainder of the sales proceeds become a revenue stream for the developer, until---eventually---the development is sold off. But, all inventory covered by the WAAM contract is immediately part of their timeshare portfolio.

Essentially, they sell on consignment, and from the developer's point of view, it looks like a reverse mortgage with an accelerated payment schedule.

 

[Dean]

It's even better than that. Wyndham doesn't actually purchase any inventory. They simply market it, and charge a hefty percentage of the sales price as a fee. The remainder of the sales proceeds become a revenue stream for the developer, until---eventually---the development is sold off. But, all inventory covered by the WAAM contract is immediately part of their timeshare portfolio.

Essentially, they sell on consignment, and from the developer's point of view, it looks like a reverse mortgage with an accelerated payment schedule.

II and RCI do much the same thing in many situations including purchasing to sell and selling on consignment.

 

[LauraLea]

A Question? crisi,
What would happen if say the last 5 years of our leases, a lot of owners stop paying their dues, for whatever reason. if end dates arent staggered and people just dont care about their contract anymore. I wonder how that would be handled.

This concerns me as well. I have heard several DVC owners comment that they intend to just walk away from their commitments when they age to the point they can no longer enjoy their DVC points.

I sure hope this is a very small minority, but I see this as a real concern.

Laura

 

[MrShiny]

But Walt has been gone for some time, and new Disney management doesn't always agree with the lessons Walt learned. They have outsourced a lot over the years.

Um WALT outsourced the Disneyland Hotel. It wasn't under Disney control until Eisner.

 

[bicker]

Don't confuse the mythos with facts, MrShiny.

 

[Brian Noble]

This concerns me as well. I have heard several DVC owners comment that they intend to just walk away from their commitments when they age to the point they can no longer enjoy their DVC points.

I sure hope this is a very small minority, but I see this as a real concern.

Laura

I would expect that DVC will be fairly aggressive at foreclosing on such contracts---that allows them to resell the contracts at whatever terms are then in force, or to retain ownership and rent out the rooms at then-market rates. The deadbeats will take a hit to their credit, though in some cases that may not be much of a barrier.

But, when there are contracts that are simply unpaid, the remaining owners must cover the shortfall.

 

[Sammie]

This concerns me as well. I have heard several DVC owners comment that they intend to just walk away from their commitments when they age to the point they can no longer enjoy their DVC points.

I sure hope this is a very small minority, but I see this as a real concern.

Laura

If enough members feel that DVC no longer cares about them as a member, I can definitely see this happening.

This is the very reason I feel that DVC has to be very careful in how far they push the membership.