OKW Owners – Another thought on dues increase

[Dancind]

If I'm beating a dead horse, please tell me, I'll get rid of this post. I read a long discussion on the OKW dues, but this point didn't come up.

I've been an OKW owner since 2001, and have always been happy to stay there. Even when we had a nearly last minute chance to go on a trip, we could usually count on a room at our home resort. I'm pretty sure OKW was only full during the very busiest seasons, when no one could transfer to another resort.

It seems that the bigger SSR gets, the busier OKW has become. I have been trying to rent some points lately. No matter when I call for, if it's less than exactly seven months out, there is nothing at OKW except a night here and there.

OKW and SSR are very close location wise, and OKW uses quite a few less points. That makes OKW very attractive. I doubt the AKV opening is going to change this in the long run.

So, here's my point (finally). It costs a lot more to run a resort that is continually at full occupancy than it does to run one that isn’t. I don’t know what the occupancy rate used to be for OKW, but I’m pretty sure it has jumped. One unknown to me is whether DVC resorts subsidize other DVC resorts when their owners book away from their home resort. It seems like that would be an accounting nightmare, but do they do it? If not, then OKW costs of operation are going to stay high, and we can only hope that won’t cause a disproportionate dues increase every year. What do you think?

 

[Chuck S]

All DVC Resorts and the point system are designed for high occupancy rates. That is the only way any point system, even if it the only resort in the system, can work in the long run. As we more more and more resorts added to the DVC system, regardless of size, it will become more and more important to book during your resort priority window.

Resorts, while they can vary their staffs somewhat, still need to keep the vast majority of staff employed, regardless of season or how busy they are at a given time. Set costs have increased in the last several years, including, but not limited to, insurance (both building coverage and employee health coverage), utilities, property taxes, resort transportation and wages. Adding new resorts to the mix probably did little, if anything, to increase operating costs at OKW or any other resort. However, if you are of the belief that it does, then logically, you must also believe that renting also adds to occupancy and overall costs. Perhaps there should be a $1 per point surcharge for any room booked on points and not occupied by the owner, or not occupied in conjunction with an identical visit by the owner.

 

[Dancind]

Hi Chuck, I'm not a habitual renter. We generally use our points, but I retired last year and we aren't able to go as much until our finances even out. My point is, OKW is much fuller than it used to be, night to night. This translates into higher actual costs for housekeeping, maintenance, utilities, bus service. If we have been paying for a full house all along, we've been getting overcharged.

I'm just hoping that the increase we saw this year evened things out, and we won't be seeing it again next year.

 

[Chuck S]

Again, while some adjustments can be made...you've got to keep the vast majority of staff working no matter if the occupancy is 85% or 95%, and wages is normally the highest expense of any business. Energy and insurance costs have increased substantially since 2001...so actual occupancy rates have a fairly small impact on resort operations cost. A 10% occupancy rate increase does not, by itself, lead to a 10% operational cost increase. And again, if "other resorts" play a factor in increased occupancy, then so does renting, right? If you want DVC Accounting to debit home resorts of the people that trade from one DVC to another, then it is only fair to charge owners that rent their points, whether they are a "commercial" renter or not...the costs to DVC would be the same

Remember, there is also an increase for the slide (added a lifeguard & insurance), the new soap/shampoo products, etc.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I don't think the occupancy is the reason. I think the fact that the resort is 15 years old and updates are constantly being done, there is a new slide and lifeguards were added is probably the biggest reasons for the increase. The fact that is that it's a GREAT resort, and if we want it to remain such, we need to expect an increase in maintenance fees. OKW is still second lowest in that department, so I don't really have any complaints.

I also disagree that the addition of AKV will make it worse at OKW. The reason I don't feel that will matter as much is because there are plenty of options that are less points than OKW at AKV. NOT the high profile ones, but still there are options that are less.

 

[MrsNick]

I'm a little confused. When DVC sells points for a resort, they sell the amount that would cause the resort to be at full occupancy (except for the ones they keep for CRO and maintenance). So, my understanding is that OKW would have been at full occupancy from the get-go.

Not sure how full occupancy today creates higher maintenance fees vs. full occupancy 15 years ago. I do see how needed repairs and upkeep could cause an increase, regardless of who stays in the room (OKW owners, other DVC owners, renters or those who book thru CRO). I would also expect SSR's maintenance to be higher in 15 years than it is now.

 

[littlestar]

We just got back from OKW and we tried to add another night and couldn't get it. It was full. But, they had a whole section of buildings out of service back on Turtle Pond Road because they were painting/refurbishing them. That's probably part of the reason I couldn't get another night. The new paint job looked great - you could tell it was brighter than the other buildings across the road. I guess the sun really fades the paint. It looked like some of the buildings in the front of the resort had been recently painted, too. My husband noticed it right away on our arrival day.