I've watched a lot of these and this is the best one I've seen on DVC. Others got too mixed up in the emotions of the magic and left out the facts. Love the facts! Question if you have time and if you know. If I bought a resale contract for one resort but later bought a different contract through Disney, would I start getting the additional DVC perks with the second Disney contract purchase? Also, with if one has two contracts, does that mean I would have two home resorts now for 11 month booking? Thanks again!
Ryan Dierking wow, Ryan, thank you so much!! I honestly feel like that’s part of the problem when people buy and let their emotions control what is really a financial decision. So glad you enjoyed it!!!😍
Ryan only the points attached to the purchase from Disney will have the "benefits" as far as converting them for use outside of the Disney Vacation Club properties and the World Passport Collection (which can be used by all purchasers including resale). But once you have "full perks" from that second purchase, you will receive invites to all the special DVC events and have your blue ID card to access entry into the lounges and such. Two different home resorts won't help you combine them to be able to book 11 months in advance at both. Only the points respective to each home resort can be used to book greater than 7 months in advance. Once the 7 month window hits, they can be combined without any issues.
I've been a DVC member since 2002. Purchased as a resale and have been able to enjoy all of the Disney perks. Want to reduce your maintenance fees? Get a Disney Visa card and use the Disney Reward points towards payment of your fees. Been doing this for years and have been able to use the points towards 50% of our fees.
I ABSOLUTELY should do this. I used my Disney points just recently to renew my annual pass but I love the paying for dues with it idea! Thanks SO MUCH for watching and taking the time to comment!!!!
We do the same!! We use the card and pay if off every month! I try to max it out every month to get as many points as possible and use them for dues every year.
We just bought our dvc club resale and it's good for 38 more years. I'm glad I came to this video since I know we have the Visa and I'm sure my wife, the financial guru that she is, would have figured it out but now I can pretend this was a brilliant idea from me. Thanks for the win ;)
We've been members since 2000 and have taken many vacations at WDW. But now that we're older and don't travel as much, we have found extra points each year that we don't use. We've banked the unused points which means we have EVEN MORE to use the following year. I thought of selling some of them, but instead I tried putting them out on the rental market. Had them all rented in just over a week of listing them. The rental income more than pays for the maintenance fees. Will be doing this each year that I have unused points.
GaryD that’s a great point, Gary, and I know a lot of people do just that! That way when you do want to use them (or gift them to someone) they’re there for you to use! Thanks for watching!!
Been a DVC Member since 1992, 400 points, with Old Key West as my home resort. Things were much much different back then as Disney was just getting into the Time Share business. Included free theme park tickets, member socials, and an on site ice cream parlor. I still like Old Key West because the rooms are by far the largest of all the DVC resorts. Each new resort that is built, the rooms are getting smaller and more compact. We enjoy the extra room in the evening when you return from wherever, and you want to relax. Even the bathrooms at Old Key West are spacious. We kid about being able to hold a card game in the studio bathroom, and still room for more.
We bought around the same time and so did 3 of my cousins but once they started getting rid of all the perks like the tickets included and the socials being gone we got rid of it. We now just book vacation packages and it is cheaper most times then what we would have spent paying for our Dvc membership
Thanks for covering this. I considered buying into DVC several years ago, but decided against it as I would not break even for a very long time. I came up with these three points, a couple of which you touched on: It does not include park tickets or meals, only the resort. You will, however, get a DVC discount on tickets, purchases and meals. You will only see a savings in the long term. Figure out how much you would spend on the resort without DVC and determine how many trips you plan on taking over the course of the contract. That will give you an idea as to where you will break even. Do you really want to visit Disney that often? On the plus side since you technically now own property, you can include it in your will and even rent it. BTW, I use my Disney Visa rewards points to pay for my meals when I go there. That’s a savings you can count on.
When you said “Disney is our lake house” and your kids have all their childhood memories there, it rang so true! We’ve taking our kids at least once if not twice a year their whole lives and that’s where they have all those family adventure memories. I’ve never regretted buying it when our son was 1. My grandmother had left me a little money when she passed so we used it to buy our favorite resort via resale. She’d be so happy with how we used it
DVC member for 8 years. What I wish I knew: RCI is useless - don't bother trying to use it. DVC excludes you from most promotions that Disney offers the public, many of which would save you money. As mentioned, the best rooms are booked a year in advance. Pop Century is the best value there and excluded from DVC. In summary, don't do DVC... just stay in Pop Century because the other hotels are overpriced and have worse transportation, so it's not worth the price they claim anyway. Spend your time in the parks, not the hotels.
You're such a natural on camera! I wish we could have watched this video when we bought back in 2017. We researched for months and put together an excel spreadsheet to calculate the rising maintenance fees when making our decision. Our "we wish we had known" is that you can ask the DVC guide to let you know when a contract for a specific resort becomes available when purchasing direct from Disney. We will go the resale route if we decide to add on points.
I'm going to do a follow up video (most likely in the next couple of weeks) to talk about all the rules. So. Many. Rules. And if you don't understand them it can really hurt how and when you can use your points. It's like we all need a DVC PhD! And that rhymes if you say it together. Ask L'il Man if he thinks I'm good at rhyming:). Oh, and than you for the kind words! Much appreciated!!!!!😍😍😍
I think a video on the rules is an excellent idea! It will be helpful to those considering buying in and newcomers like us. I think I have most the rules down, but it really is confusing. I'll ask Lil' Man about the rhyming when he gets home from school. :) You are such a natural on camera. I'm still trying to not be nervous. After years of teaching, I actually find it easier to talk to people when I can see them (which is what most people fear). Lil' Man, on the other hand, has absolutely no problem with public speaking in any venue. :p
Thank you for creating your channel and making these videos. It is SO nice to get Disney tips tricks, advice and so on from a Adult!🥰🤩🏅. No offense to all the other great Disney channels (I watch many of them) but it is challenging to really get good advice from someone whose parents are still paying for their vacas or they haven't just yet started really adulting and they blow all their money on Disney. Thank you for putting yourself out here! You are appreciated🤗🏆
Yes, yes, yes! I would advise that anyone that can take the tour of the DVC should do so with a note pad and do it at least twice. The second time things will be much clearer and your questions will be shorter. There is no pressure during your personal presentation (from my experience) to purchase. Simply take notes and try to understand the first time what you are told. Then if still interested go do another tour. All of the things mentioned in this video SHOULD be understood before you sign. I would add on I was told many people buy too few points the first time, then need to add on. That is a personal preference dictated by your vacation needs. If you are going to use points outside of the the Disney properties, 160 points is a key number to own. I have owned through Disney and through resale. Personally I love owning a piece of the magic! I agree with you, Jen, on the main reason for owning points is to secure a great room in Disney when you want...everything else is a perk that can go away for any owner.
Thank you for your great comment!! That's funny because our initial contract WAS 160 points and it's served us well. And I'm always amazed that people buy on the spot after just touring the models once (especially when they walk in with no prior knowledge of DVC) but to each his own?? I'm a huge researcher so it takes me forever to make a decision like this (6 years in this case!). But now, we are VERY happy owners. Thank you so much for watching!! And I love your tip about going twice and taking a notebook. Excellent suggestion.
So glad I found your channel! I've been watching DVC resale offers since my first Disney vacation last December. Super excited to have finally gotten a contract within my budget (150 points at Vero Beach) since I was outbid on my first two attempts. Am definitely looking forward to learning more about Disney vacationing from you and your channel (I just hit the SUBSCRIBE button). Thanks so much for all you do :)
Thank you SO MUCH! Once I started thinking of different topics for the future, I realized how much I've learned over the years the hard way! Be looking for more in the coming weeks on how we actually use our points in a given year and stuff like banking and borrowing and how you can buy one time use points. And congrats, Neighbor! We ADORE Vero (that's our home, too). When's your first DVC trip??
Also you can't forget the purchase price along with the maintenance fees. Anyone buying needs to calculate at what point you would break even with adding them together. They are definitely beautiful accommodations but if you're ok with staying in a value resort and are only a family four like we are it really isn't a savings.
Absolutely! In one of my other videos I go into more detail on that but you are 100% correct that if you typically stay in a value or a moderate, the savings are not really there. Everybody has to do the math FOR SURE. Thank you so much for commenting! Very much appreciated!!
Yup. I am a Deluxe Girl. Basically, if I'm not staying Deluxe (or at least moderate) I'm probably not going to Disney;). My husband feels like he's over here printing money with our DVC membership!😂😍😂
Very nice presentation. We have owned for 5 years and very happy. With our 140 pts we have been going twice a year, stay in Studios for 5 nights each time, and go Sunday night through Thursday night to save on points (points are higher Friday and Saturday) A big thing I think people forget is to compare apples to apples. I frequently see people say to rent a house off-property...no thanks, that is not "going to Disney" that is going "near Disney". Or they say they can stay at Pop Century cheaper. Yes you can, but if you prefer nicer vacation resorts like those on the monorail route it isn't a fair comparison to staying in a Value Resort.
Buying a DVC membership was a massive dream for my wife we finally made it come true. Decided to go with animal kingdom as our home. The contract process is taking quite a long time so technically not owners yet but well on our way. So excited for our first time as DVC members. Thank you for your video in still trying to get acquainted with all the little.bits of info people don't really tell you with these. The hunt continues...
Matthew I so get this and it's honestly why I started doing the videos in the first place! It's a lot to navigate!! But good luck on your journey and I'm sure your first DVC trip as members will be here before you know it!
Such a helpful video! I’ve been trying to convince my husband for years, but he just cannot get past the dreaded “TIMESHARE” label. In the past 3 years, we’ve spent at least $15,000 on resort stays, anyway! However, we do get to go to any resort that we want, so it’s good to know that you can’t always go wherever, even at the 7 month mark. I had no idea about that.
A nice compromise might be to buy a small contract for those big trips maybe every couple of years (that you'd plan far in advance so more likely to get what you wanted) and then still pay cash for your other visits. That's sort of where we've landed and it's worked out nicely. I honestly don't mind staying at a mod resort if it's just for a few nights but for the big, longer trips I NEED that kitchen and washer and dryer! Thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment!! Makes my day!!
I honestly get kinda irritated when people refer to DVC as a "timeshare". It is SO NOT a "timeshare" in the sense that people think of. It's not shady. Disney is very much an open book and DVC agents are VERY helpful and go above and beyond to make every trip special. The flexibility that Disney tells you about is not a myth or just a sales pitch. It's really true.
Thank you for explaining DVC! I'm a huge Disney fan and can see myself going to Disney once a year, and it seems like DVC can help! But right now until I'm more established, just not the right timing.
You're so very welcome! We considered it for about 6 years before we finally make up our minds so I absolutely get this. And you can still go to Disney every year without it, of course, just not with the financial commitment that DVC has. Have a great day and thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
Saw your tube buddy 1900 subs cert on twitter. Needed to come make it 1902!!! :) We just signed up for DVC on our last trip! Excited to be a member!!! :) Congrats on 1900! 2K coming soon!!!
Awww . . THANKS DOLE WHIP DAD! With a title like that, clearly I need to go check out your channel;). LOVE IT. Thank you so much for encouragement, it is greatly appreciated!
That's awesome, Erika, congrats! I really wish we owned some BLT points but since we already get all the perks (we were grandfathered in because we bought before the restrictions) we might as well go resale and save some $$ on our initial buy-in. Out of curiosity, where's your home resort??
Or just buy a 4 brm 3 bath house in the WDW bubble, in a gated community on a golf course, with a pool. Rent it out and have it pay for itself with a nice profit. Use it when it's not rented and go whenever I want with our AP. With almost all the same perks you get. Downside it's almost always rented out, so it's hard to block out time for us. Damn 1st world problems.
LOL!! We have actually considered this very thing. Glad it's worked out so great for you guys - and yeah, what's with those people wanting to go to Disney all the time?!? 😂😁😜
Love that!!! I didn't think you were knocking it at all. It DEFINITELY isn't right for everyone. I love that she's working there - how awesome! And hoping that means you get free friends and family tickets from time to time?? Between that and the house, ya'll are set!😍
Hi! I just made my husband watch this video with me... I’ve been pushing for DVC for a few years now... When he heard 2042 he threw his hands up and walked away 😂 LOL!! Thank you for the video! Happy to subscribe and support your channel 😊💜👍🏼
Yeah, I'm not always such a big hit with the reluctant spouses, LOL!!!! Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!! If you purchased, where would you want your home resort to be?? There are so many great choices!
Jen Lefforge when we stay at Disney properties, we usually stay at Boardwalk. We are an adult couple with no kids, so we REALLY enjoy EPCOT 👍🏼 Boardwalk is super convenient for EPCOT visits. We also love spending evenings walking the boardwalk, enjoying dinner, and the shows. It’s very peaceful and relaxing sitting by the lake 💜
That is a lot of money to spend to go to the same place year after year. Disney is good but I don't want to be be forced to go to Disney every single year.
Than I definitely think DVC might not be the right call for you. We travel many places throughout the year, but always visit Disney at least once so for us it works but weird a little odd that way, I'm the first to admit! Thank you so much for watching!!
We've looked into DVC, a couple of times . . . This, to me, isn't a good deal. Add your maintenance fees, to your contract cost (Most people will pay the contract on a monthly basis) and you're paying a LOT. . . We have found that we can rent a house, with 3-4 bedrooms, 3-4 bathrooms, a private pool, full kitchen, washer and dryer, etc. It's just much more economical to rent the house, plus far more space to spread out. . . For some people, staying on property means everything. To me? The cost differential is the key. . . Also, your description is inaccurate. You speak as if the maintenance fee is the ONLY cost, completely leaving out the cost of the contract itself, the points you're paying for. You can't equate JUST the cost of your maintenance fees as the total cost of a DVC vacation.
+michael silver I do mention that there comes a point when you’ve recouped the cost of your initial investment - for us that happened rather quickly as we bought a contract with banked points, purchased resale and paid cash. But is sounds like for you DVC wouldn’t be a good deal. We only ever stay on property so for us it’s worked out. Thanks for watching!
Thank you! I get why some people want to buy direct from Disney but really, financially, it just doesn't make sense to me. We are looking at adding on YET AGAIN and resale is the only way that's possible. Thank you for watching and commenting!
I WISH I HAD BOUGHT SOONER! So very true! I purchased resale the same year you did and I have not regretted my purchase. In fact, I have purchased two additional point contracts. I WISH I HAD BOUGHT SOONER! The luxury of resale: you can choose your home resort. Choose your home resort wisely! It is the resort you most want to stay in and it is the resort you will get first opportunity to book, so it is important. Also, if someone in your party purchases an WDW Annual Pass, you will get the discount on food & merchandise that way!
You're so right, Deb! We can't purchase until next year most likely (kids college is really putting a cramp in my style;) but we loved buying resale and will definitely do it next time! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!!
It is really simple, it is not convoluted at all. Don't make a mountain out of a molehill. There are just two options - 1) Buy from Disney and get all the perks or 2) Buy resale and get Room Only - It's that easy to remember.
@@kenyoung3817 I don't think he means convoluted way to buy the club membership but rather book vacations.....which yea...this seems like a boatload of hurdles for how much you pay.
Good video. Been a member since 2008. Agree with all you have stated. Exept welcome home. They have been saying that in ever hotel for years. Used to be a dvc thing. Now it's just a thing.
Also. Don't forget your points are locked in at time of purchase. The amount per night per room will roughly be the same. The price for rack rate will go up. Akl studio in 2008, for weekday. Still same now.
We've been a DVC member since 2008 and I totally agree with all you said. We purchased SSR versus Aulani at the time due to the maintenance fees difference in price but have never stayed at SSR and have stayed at Aulani twice! The biggest thing i agree with, I wish we had done it sooner!
Thank you so much for watching, Leigh Anne and taking the time to comment! Aulani is just spectacular. Only ever had dinner there (we were at the Marriott 2 doors down;) but it's just enchanting!!
Great video, and i totally agree with your 4th point. we wish we had done it years ago! Our home resort is the beach club and we love it! If you can afford the up front cost, go for it. Then you have years of inexpensive holidays ahead of you, which to me is such peace of mind.
Tracy Robinson I’m currently sitting in a studio at BLT and it’s awesome. Very glad we bought!!! Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment!😍😍😍
I couldn't imagine not being a DVC member. We've been members at BLT since 2008 and we take 3 trips a year and spend about 24 or 25 days a year there. It's just so awesome knowing that we always have another adventure guaranteed just right around the corner and we don't have to stress about trying to save up to stay in the best accommodations in the world. It's just great knowing that we can walk right over to the MK in 10 minutes and especially at the end of the night when you're watching everyone else wait like crazy for the chance to maybe get on a bus. Also the discounts on the Annual Passes is great as well. If you're a family that absolutely loves Disneyworld and can't imagine a vacation anywhere else then I really think the DVC is a no-brainer.
So we had stayed many times at the Contemporary but I just stayed at BLT for the first time last month and I'm thinking of adding on there. Seriously LOVED it so very much!! Thank you for sharing your experience - I share your view and we would be giving the mouse that money anyway so it might as well be as part of DVC;). We used to live in Dallas but now that we're much closer (Atlanta area) I think we need more points. Don't you think we need more points?
It totally depends on the accommodations you want. We bought in at 160 before we had kids and were in our mid to late 20's. We then quickly saw that we were gonna need more when we had kids because the studios are pretty small there. So we bought 90 more points. Now we have a 7 and a 4 year old and in order for us to take 3 trips per year we have to use studios so we are about to add on more by buying our first resale contract. We always go in like the 3rd week of May. Then in October. Then back in the 2nd week of May and that gives us 3 trips per pass. A standard view 1br there in May is 250pts for a 7 day stay and we usually do 8 day trips. Our dues as of right now are a little over a thousand bucks per year and that's actually a really awesome price for dues. BLT is considered one of the best dues rates in the whole DVC. Another thing people should know is that points are also valued by "seasons". So like a 1br will cost you LESS points in September as opposed to the summer if that's when people have to go. So like if you wanted to buy less points at BLT you could get more mileage out of them by using them in the non busier times and then use your bigger contracts for the busier times. If that makes any sense. We live in east TN so we're not that far from you guys actually. I will tell you my Disney dream and how it came true. All my life my mom and dad took me to Disneyworld and I loved it and would literally cry as a kid when it was time for each trip to end. LOL! I would ride through the Contemporary on the monorail and think "when I grow up I'm gonna stay there and have a view of the Castle from my room". So when I finally did grow up and got married I we saved up and spent a week in a MK view room from the Contemporary and made my dream come true... for about $5,000 for ONE trip. So we knew that someday we'd love to join the DVC and finally when they announced they were gonna build right by the MK we KNEW that it was time to join. So we did and now I have access to a MK view room as much as I want and every trip is literally like a dream come true all over again for me. The crazy thing is that basically we spent $25,000 on ALL our points and get $5,000 accommodations THREE TIMES PER YEAR. THAT is what makes the DVC so awesome. My little boy LOVES animals and so sometimes we will spend a couple of days at AKL with a savannah view before moving to BLT for the rest of the stay and he wakes up to giraffes at our balcony. There is just truly "something for everybody" and I don't feel like anyone else can offer that except for Disney but DVC makes that possible.
we just bought resale at OKW~ I was told that we can enter the Epcot lounge. After 21 years of trips we finally took the plunge! We also bought resale and saved a huge amount of cash!
Oh, hurray on the lounge! Although, truly, it's not that great. Well, it's great in the summer because it's quite cool in there. Welcome home!! We ADORE OKW. Seriously my favorite on property aside from a savannah room at Kidani. Woohoo!
Thanks!!!! I'm sure the lounge isnt amazing, but we will check it out in 10 days for a cold drink! I remember back in 1999 the AP lounge above the land pavilion that was neat and a million years ago!
Great video. I agree with those points and I'm so happy we bought ours 11yrs ago when I was 24. The wife and I go at least twice a year, and we have brought our parents, nieces, nephews and friends. We wish we had bought into the Polynesian but Saratoga is good too. lol But our plan has paid it self over a few times.
I think bringing family along is one of the sweetest parts of our membership! Looking forward to when we can bring our son's families as well. Thank you so much for watching and commenting!!
I love the DVC lounge in Epcot. Going to Hawaii next year with our points. Everyone saying welcome Home and not gonna lie I like getting the extra attention/help from cast members.
No, I get this on a very deep level. Because I have 3 teenagers so, you know, being treated super great is AWESOME.😂😂😂 Have you been to that part of Hawaii before? We stayed right next door (at the Marriott) for 2 weeks last summer and it is honestly heaven on earth. We made it over to Aulani for dinner one night and just wow. You'll love it there!
Jen Lefforge we've never been but we're gonna stay at Aulani for a week. We're really looking forward to it. We just got back from Disney World stayed at the polynesian. We love it there.
There is a great restaurant right across the street (you can walk) called Monkeypod. I think they take reservations (if so do that it gets crowded) but GREAT food, super fun atmosphere and very reasonable prices (I mean, compared to Disney;). We did day trips to Diamond Head and the north shore as well.Oh, and there's a Costco literally right around the corner from the resort and their prices were the same as at home so you can pick up sunscreen and maybe groceries if you're cheap like I am (Hawaii is EXPENSIVE). Let me know if you have any other questions! OMG, now I want to go back.
Good video. One thing that I think needs to be considered when looking at cost per night is not just the maintenance dues but also the initial purchase price (amortized in). On a 100 point Vero contract bought at $66/point over 22 years, it's ~$320 per year. Not huge but it's something that has to be taken into consideration.
We bought direct from Disneyland in right before the Grand Californian resort opened. We paid $90.00 a point there and points at Saratoga Springs and Animal Kingdom. We had 545 points with 245 of them at the Grand. We enjoyed many stays at the Grand and never traveled to Florida. My wife died suddenly of cancer in 2012. I was devastated and decided to sell everything. I’m so sorry I did now because my $90.00 Grand points are going for well over $200.00! I sold them for $150.00 which still was good
Rod I am so sorry for your loss. I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you. But yes, you still made a great return on that investment - $150 is VERY good!
I love our DVC signed up back in 2011, with Saratoga, Best decision we ever made I love when they say to us welcome home! We could have never stayed at the resorts that are so extremely nice!
We have been seriously considering this. Thought it would make sense with our annual passes. It seems so confusing. Thank you for sharing. From one Disney fanatic to another, have a magical day sprinkled with pixie dust! :-)
Have fun doing your research! It took us a long time to finally pull the trigger as it is a big decision! And yes, have a magical day!! Thanks for watching!
Great job. We contiguously analyze the value of the DVC investment. we haven't made the leap yet as the numbers just don't pan out since we normally stay moderate. But as the moderate resorts creep up in price we are considering resale again. Wish they didn't black out so many DVC benefits.
It's a big decision! PLEASE let me know if you have any specific questions. I have loved our membership but I researched the heck out of it before we took the plunge.
Yes, if you purchase direct from Disney you save about $200 on your annual pass. Great question! And they sometimes do promotions fro park passes (they did last year but I honestly don't remember what it was) so all of that is subject to change from year to year.
Great video, you've got lots of good facts. We LOVE Disney but the analytical part of my brain won't let me do DVC; my husband and I discussed and it just doesn't ever make financial sense, even in the resale market. It's a timeshare and I can't justify spending money on something we don't own. DVC booking times are too far out for our planning schedule, we have never booked a trip 11 months in advance no matter where we've gone, just doesn't work with our work schedules.
It's a great point, Dana. If you can't plan your vacations out at least 7 months in advance, I really don't think it's a good call. I try to present all the sides of the equation and why it worked for us but it's definitely not for everyone. Thanks for watching!
Some sensible advices. Maybe give advice on non home resort availability different seasons and accommodation types. For example, Jan to Sept avoiding holidays and run events you can literally book any resort at 7 months in a 1 bed, and quite decent studio availability also.
Good video! If you can buy resale for $1 on eBay for this or any other timeshare good for you as you saved some money. BUT If you want more flexibility on your travel plans (and no contracts) then do not do any timeshare, vacation plan, etc. - not even Disney! I have been able to book top hotel rooms in high season in Disney Orlando, Rome, Santorini, New York, Paris, Chicago, San Francisco, Miami, Singapore and Berlin for less than $300 a night - and my family have had many good memories as well.
100% same. At Vero Beach (our home resort) they have a bell they ring when it's your first time home. I cried like a baby. Perfectly normal. Or not, but you're in good company either way;). Thanks for watching and commenting!
We had bought into DVC and tried to use at the 7 month mark right when I got the packet for another resort other than the home resort and could not get availability where we wanted. It didn’t really seem like it was going to work for us because of that. We cancelled and they gave us our money back right away.
We were disappointed because we were really excited to be members. They told us staying at other resorts wouldn’t be an issue unless we were going spring break, Christmas, or Easter. We were going to book in October (7months out) a low period, and we couldn’t get into anything on the monorail loop. We were looking for a studio because we didn’t need all the extra space and it seemed like a waste of points for the 1 bedroom. They said the studios fill up first and October is a pretty busy time because of the food and wine festival. The recommended booking at my home resort 11 months out and set an alarm on my calendar 7 months out and call them right away in the morning to try to get something else. Essentially booking my vacation twice. Our home resort was going to be Copper Creek which is nice but we weren’t in love with the theming. We might look at buying into the Riviera when it open. The renderings look amazing. Still love Disney but was disappointed how they presented and sold the DVC.
My parents bought into DVC in 1993 when Old Key West was the only place actually built. They had the foresight or just luck to buy in early on when the price per point was much lower. I spent a lot of my childhood and even part of my adulthood staying there and going to Disney especially because the park tickets were a really good deal through resort back in the 90s. Now it isn't really much of a deal so we buy our tickets elsewhere and just link them to our magic bands. I think we've stayed in a Grand Villa 4 or 5 times, while we had a 2 bedroom + studio or just a 2 bedroom depending on how many of us went the other times. My parents have used their points to stay at or to let family members stay at Saratoga Springs, Hilton Head and Vero Beach at least 7 or 8 times, too. They also used their points to set up my brother's honeymoon at Aulani in Hawaii and have done the concierge collection a few times as well. Most recently they were able to use their points to stay at one of the hotels in Tokyo Disney when they came to visit me in Japan. Depending on where you want to stay, when you are going, and what kind of room you are willing to stay, you can often still exchange your points closer to the day of your trip and get a room somewhere (so long as it isn't the busy season), but getting a villa or into one of nicer resorts does usually require booking right at that 11 month mark.
Oh and I love reading the Disney Files Magazine. We took a picture with a copy at Tokyo DisneySea a few months ago actually to submit. Not sure if we will make it in, but hey my parents brought it along on their trip to Japan to visit me (I'm working in Japan for the next year).
So many great memories! I hope my boys have those too. How cool that you are working on Japan! My oldest visited last year and fell in love with it. Thank you for sharing your memories and for watching!
Thank you SO SO MUCH! Seriously makes my day. I'm doing research right now for a video about all the rules so be watching for that. And I hope pretty soon, I'll be able to tell you Welcome Home and we will be DVC "neighbors"!
We bought DVC several several years ago. We loved it at first, but quickly ran into the problem of missing out on special offers and staying at our home resort. We where able to do the cruise, and we loved that. But we sold it, we felt like it didn’t fit our style. Instead we took that money and put it towards a Florida house. So now we are set :)
Trevor, tell me more about THAT process?? We've been looking at doing that and renting it out. Did you use a realtor that specializes in that? But you may not even rent yours out so I could be making an assumption there. It's definitely not for everybody and sounds like you found a path that works for you!! Love it!! Thanks for watching!
Jen Lefforge Long story short, we worked with a realtor for several years. We had the idea of purchasing a house and renting it out, because we live in philly and we thought renting it out when we aren’t there would help pay for the expenses. She was a fantastic help, very patient, and never gave up. We had a few bumps in the road with sellers, but we found a development called Terra Verde. When I say it looks like a Disney resort, IT LOOKS LIKE A DISNEY RESORT! We where lucky to find a seller who rents their home. The home is listed on VRBO and Air bnb, and has amazing reviews. So we bite the bullet, sold the time share, and bought the house. We made settlement in February and have been renting it out. We would go whenever it’s not booked ( which is harder than I thought). It’s almost like running a business, we work with the people at Terra Verde and VRBO and it’s great! We love love love Disney. We liked the time share too, but we needed more. It was a commitment we wanted to take, and I’m great full we did.
We are seriously considering this but more for the business piece of it. We're a good year away from doing anything but I may hit you up for that realtors name! Thank you! I will check out the development as well.
This was a GREAT video but the reason we decided to buy was for all of the extras. In addition, you save $8000 buying resale because the contract is usually shorter. You are purchasing the remainder of someones contract. Just saying😉
No, you are 100% correct! But a lot of people don't want to buy what's currently selling so if they buy a different resort direct they're still stuck with the shorter contract (no matter how you buy it if you buy the older resorts you get the earlier expiration). It's a FABULOUS point! I'm old and will be almost dead by the time ours expires so it wasn't as important. Thanks so much for watching!!!!! And thanks for the kind words:).
Jen Lefforge This is a good tip. I wasn't aware you could buy a shorter contract (direct and thru resale?) I also am 'old' and don't need this when I'm 90.
I bought direct through Disney I took a 15 day panama cruise in 2016 with ocean view port hole it does take a lot of points but it saved me about $6,000 dollars the whole trip only cost me $900.00 bucks that's only for one person you have to look at the price vs points it is double points for cruises plus $95 dollars save $6,000.00 I'm going on a cruise it was a nice cruise nice video
that cruise sounds amazing!! We've only been on one Disney cruise and I am itching to go on another one. So fun! Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!😍😘😍
your welcome the upcoming panama cruise is 500 vacation points the ticket price is $5,782.00 for inside state room I had extra points to bank and borrow some for next year to go on that cruise worth it
I was thinking about buying a small membership direct from DVC then buying more points on the resale market. This way I get all the perks plus the cheaper points. We visit WDW a lot and so a lot of points means a lot to us.
That's a great way to go and had we not bought before the new restrictions, probably what I would do as well (we were grandfathered in so still get most of the perks even though we purchased resale). Very smart!
Timeshares have always been the worst investment ever..you pay twice. Once to be part of the timeshare, and again when you pay the nightly rates. Just go and have your vacation, and without the timeshare, you can go more places than just where the timeshare is
Actually, we don't pay a nightly rate when we use our points so we don't pay twice, but I agree it's not an investment. More a way to pre-pay for our vacations. Thanks for watching!
My wife and I have been thinking about this for some time. I grew up 2.5 miles south of Disneyland and had an annual pass for as long as I could remember. We now have an 11 year old and take at least 1 big trip a year with SEVERAL weekend trips to different locations. Lately we have been thinking about WDW for Mardi Gras and this would be the perfect option. Plus with the talk about the River Country Hotel and part of it being for DVC...this is more of a possibility.
Michael Barbu seriously cannot wait to see the plans for the River Country DVC!!! As a huge lover of Ft Wilderness, this is very exciting to me! Thanks for watching!!!
Also, you’re so right about the perks you don’t receive with the direct. For my 160point VGC contract, I saved $12k!!!! For my Poly contract I just saved $7500! Living on the west coast as well, I’m all good about not getting those perks with that almost $20k savings in my pocket.
We're timeshare owners (RCI) and I agree with your first two "Cons" whole hardheartedly. Not just with DVC, but with RCI, which is the largest Vacation Ownership Company (RCI lets you book at Disney properties too but waaay down the priority list so forget about it). We own 2 Weeks. Maintenance fees are high but like you said, still cheaper than paying a room for $400-500/night. Other issue -- one of our timeshares is in Maui. We were told that having a timeshare in Maui gives you GREAT exchange privileges. That was B-S. Having a Gold Resort property in Hawaii in prime season is no different than any other Gold Resort so Resort Owners in CA or FL have same exchange points/priority as my Hawaii Resort.
My parents were given the same "Oh, having a timeshare here in Maui gives you WAY more flexibility than anything else!" spiel when buying from RCI. They've had two different RCI memberships and one with Interval, and while they've been fun, they're a pain in the rear. My wife and I were approached by RCI and DVC on multiple occasions while on vacation and frankly, while you do save a little money per night on an overall basis when you factor maintenance fees and exchange fees into it, I like the flexibility of being able to book 1-3 months out (or less!) if I need to and not being held hostage to the "Sorry, nothing is available!" machine.
We purchased DVC back in the late 90’s when it began and enjoyed it. We eventually ended up moving to Orlando area and even still kept our membership until about 2007. We sold our points through the resale broker you mentioned. Living here it didn’t really make sense to keep them. Especially since I’m aware that I can rent them if I want to.
I live 9 miles away from the entrance of Hollywood Studios and still own mine. You should have kept it for when comes and visits so you can a little time off from them when they come LOL
Dawn - I SO GET THIS. In fact, I'm working on a video (hopefully to go up this week) all about who it may NOT be right for. Do you mind sharing why? Might be good to include in the video. You can message me if you don't want it shown here. Thanks for watching!!
For one thing, since we don't have a huge chunk of money for the purchase, the value of doing this goes down because we would have to finance it. And, my husband is a bargain hunter and is always looking for deals. Also, we are local, so we really don't HAVE to stay at a resort, so unless the savings were huge, it would seem to me to be very wasteful. We stay on property 2-3 times a year, and many times get good deals on last minute stays. One time my husband found a great deal at the Contemporary for less than 200 dollars a night and that was in July!
One of the points for the next video is definitely going to be that if you are financing, it's not a good value. I think people may throw things at their screens when I say it, but truly, you quickly erase any savings when you pay interest. And as an annual passholder I've found some amazing rates as well (and that's why we're not adding on right now). Contemporary Garden Wing has been our favorite place to find really good values on deluxe rooms and I LOVE it over there! Sounds like you all are very wise and have made a great decision! Thank you for sharing that!
Wife and I have researched DVC a lot and decided it’s not for us as with just the 2 of us DVC limits us. But it is a wonderful thing for families for sure.
Thanks for watching, Robert!! Scott and I are wondering how our kids being gone (well, soon, anyway) will affect how we use our membership. Such a different phase in our lives and I'm not sure how that will play in! I so appreciate your taking the time to comment. I hope you have a magical day!
My only real issue with the DVC is not the price, the price is SO WORTH IT, if your a Disney family. Its that I toured 3 of the DVC resorts along with 4 of the Deluxe resorts and found the lack of what I call Disney Magic at the DVC and Deluxe resorts.. My wife and I have been to WDW 14 times and a Disney cruise. I have stayed at 2 deluxe resorts, 3 value and 9 mid level resorts. Our favorite has been Port Orleans French Quarter and its the benchmark for what I mean. When I walked into the lobby of the 2 deluxe resorts (Polynesian and Contemporary, also Wilderness lodge is technically an entry level deluxe but I don't count it) and the 3 DVC properties I could not tell I was in WDW except for the pins on the employees. They were beautiful but they lacked the Disney magic I have come to expect. When I get off the Magical Express at POFQ I see mickeys in the tiles of the beautiful foyer, I see wrought iron mickeys on the aged iron fence tops. I see High quality Disney movie paintings. As I walk to the room and through the lobby and into the room there is ZERO doubt whos house I am in. As nice as the deluxes were they lacked the magic. I really wish WDW had a Deluxe resort or a DVC resort with the same attention to detail for the Disney magic immersion. I would buy it tomorrow. But as it stands we like the freedom and level of service and magic that comes with Ala carte even though its a LOT more expensive than DVC would be for us.
That's a great point and so true for some people! If you don't like the theming of the DVC resorts, then it doesn't really matter if the value is there or not because it's YOUR vacation!! Great thoughts, Robert, thank you!
I travel all around the world... not just Disney, and I have never and will never waste the amount of money that these clubs ask. There is a thing called AIRBNB and it works amazingly and is cheap. Wyndham once tried to get me on their hook... but I am soooo glad I just ran out of there. They still owe me 150 usd though...
I think I speak for a lot of people here, and this might really surprise you TimmyME, but there are a LOT of people who travel frequently who do not enjoy Airbnb and will never use Airbnb.
I travel all around the world and vacation 4 times a year for 1-2 weeks a time (I live in UK). I bought my DVC resale 18 months ago and could sell tomorrow for 35% more than I paid. I can rent the points with zero effort (one email to David’s Vacation Club) for 15% return. They are in such demand they will often go the very same day. Next week, I’m staying in a 2 bed, sleeps 10 at Boardwalk (4 of us, 2 kitchens, 2.5 baths, walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios etc), next week for a dues cost of $160 a night (even with the best deal you couldn’t get it less than about $800 a night, rack for that room is $1100 and they sell them, nearly 100% occupancy). So with my contract, I could have bought it, made a couple of thousand on rentals, gone on 3 vacations in ridiculously expensive (overpriced certainly, but if you want to stay onsite in deluxe suites you have to pay it) accommodations and make money selling it. Or I can use it when I want and make a healthy return in renting the points until 2054. So in my case, not a waste of money at all.
I've rented fort wilderness, boardwalk, polynesian, saratoga springs, and animal kingdom lodge all on eBay. I'm an AP 2 hrs away so I don't really care for all the other perks, just the room.
If Disney is the place you and you family love then DVC is the best investment you can make. I would buy direct though so you can also take advantage of annual pass discounts and adventures by Disney etc.
Thank you so much for watching, Terry!! We bought resale back when most of the member benefits applied to both, so we're lucky but now it's not quite as easy of a decision. I so appreciate you taking the time to comment!!
Love the video! I know each contract is different but is the initial amount super expensive? I know you mentioned yearly maintenance fees and when you divide that by the amount of nights you use for that year it's not that much, but don't you have to factor in the initial cost too? Love the info!!
Hi Jen! I just stumbled across your channel and love your content:) I have a question, you said if you buy resale, you don’t get discounts on annual passes or merch, BUT if you buy your annual passes do you still get to take advantage of those discount perks? Therefore you’d still get a discount on food and merch... I’d love to know! Thank you:)
Yeah, it's a lot of money even when you go the resale route like we did but you could purchase a smaller amount of points and use them every OTHER year which can make it a more reasonable option! Thank you for watching!!
Grateful for this candid explanation. DVC sounds like a professional shell game. Even the best descriptions I've heard with the most positive spin can't seem to mask the intentional convolusion that goes into arranging things like this. I almost feel bad for DVC members.
"Effective January 19, 2019, only Members who purchase directly from Disney will be able to use their Vacation Points at the 14 existing Disney Vacation Club Resorts and Disney Vacation Club’s future resort, Disney’s Riviera Resort. Resale contracts purchased for the existing 14 Disney Vacation Club Resorts will only be able to exchange Points into those 14 Resorts."
Correct. This video was filmed before that new restriction but thanks for putting it here!! I would also refer you to some of my latest videos for more on that. Thanks for watching!
You are so very welcome! I remember how much information we were trying to process before we finally purchased! It's a lot of information. Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!!
Let me get this straight $8,000 to $13,000 in advance and upwards of $1,500 in maintenance fees. You have to book 11 months out and you still might not get the resort and dates you want..... What a complete waste of money!!!
Jen, thank you for the great information. This was so unbelievably helpful. We are actually getting ready to go all in on a Resale. We keep having some concerns about not buying direct but the savings is hard to get over (plus we really prefer the home we can get on resale versus direct). My question was: do the cast members know you are a "resale" versus direct contract? Has that ever affected the service you receive? Second, I am right that if we buy an Annual Pass (non-discuounted) we could then get into the Tables of Wonderland to get the dining discount? Thank you again.
So Kyle, those are fantastic questions. I'm actually editing a video interview I did with Shontell Crawford of DVC by Resale as we speak and that will answer a ton of questions so be looking for that tomorrow or Thursday! In 8 years, I have never once been treated any differently in speaking with DVC because we are resale buyers. I know that's a concern to some people but I can tell you honestly it's not a founded one. And on TiW, YES, Annual Passholders can absolutely buy it and it's a great perk! Thanks for watching! Seriously you're going to love the info from this next video. It's going to be long (right now sitting at 35 minutes!) but I'm leaving it all in because it's everything you ever wanted to know about the resale process!
Jen thank you for the response, I really appreciate it. And I can't wait to see the new video. We went ahead and put in an offer and had it accepted via resale. We are extremely excited. Your videos definitely helped us make this big (and amazing) decision. So thank you very much. One last (I think sillly) question. One thing I still can't figure out is that I think I'm right in assuming that because we are buying resale we will not get a DVC "member card." If that's true then how will cast members or places where we do have benefits "know" we are DVC contract holders. For example, I think you noted we can still use Top of the World. How would we "prove" that we are DVC members to access that benefit? Thanks again.
LOL. Do the math. If the maintenance fees go up 3% per year and start at $1,279/year, you'll pay $63,882 in maintenance fees alone over the 49 years of the contract.
LOL YES, we know. But for that money we are getting a week's long vacation every year that most of us would spend 3-4K for the same level of accommodations so we still save money. LOL
LOL. Do the math. If you spend the rest of your life alone (trust me you will) then you’ll have two more years worth of lonely nights of freezer burned pints of ice cream and reruns of Matlock you single, ancient geezer.
From what I’ve gathered if your a hardcore Disney goer like myself every other month, this will not work. I would need to spend 100k on points to keep up with my vacations. And honestly the way points are looking right now 150 points at $188 to only be able to go twice a year is RIDICULOUS! that’s 28k for 8 nights at Disney?!? NOOOOOOO!!!
I realize this was filned years back, but when you referenced OKW bei g $500 a night compated to your maintenance fee rate, what room category did you stay in? Thanks much.
Loved the great information! I did have a question. You said that using the points for a cruise was a waste. I was wondering why? My husband thinks that using the points for a cruise would be a great use. Is it just cheaper to pay up front for it?
Definitely run the math yourself, but typically the value of the points isn't there when you use it to cruise and you'd be better of even renting out your point and using the money to buy a cruise In fact, David's rentals has a way for you to do just that and they're a great company. But honestly i've only ever heard that from others and since we bought resale, I've never used our points that way! Great question!
You kept saying that you only paid your maintenance fees per year... but you paid your contract on top of that... you have to factor that into your yearly vacation math...
Marshall H because we purchased resale we broke even very quickly. Yes, everyone has to factor that in and it’s why I advise against financing. Thanks for watching!
Great video! Very informing. I have a question. Do they do financing or is it a one time purchase? If it isn't too invasive of privacy, which one do you prefer? Thanks in advance!
You can absolutely finance (Disney offers it and also many of the resale brokers can refer you to someone for that) but keep in mind that it may not be a great call financially as any savings you achieve can quickly get wiped out by interest. But many people go that route so just do the math and figure out what works for you! Thanks for watching, Mauricio!
First and foremost.. don't count on getting studios! They will always be the first to go. If you are booking even at seven months, you need to do the math for at least a one bedroom. If a studio is there, GOLD!
I am totally finding this to be the case! We always stayed in at least a one bedroom, usually 2, when the kids were little and now that there are typically only 2 or 3 of us going (kids are getting older and have jobs, college schedules, etc) it's TOUGH. This is a fantastic point. May I use it for a future video?? Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!
Of course! We are empty nesters; Yes a one bedroom is great for the extras.. IF the extra points are there. We are already planning next year for a wedding in Hilton Head that I can't book until October. I'd love to nab a studio.. but have to plan for a 1 br. It will be the choice of staying 4 or 3 nights.
Saving money can’t possibly be one of your reasons to purchase one of these. I was only looking into this because Disney hotels hate families of more than 4. We have 6 in our family and there are only a couple hotels that have those size of rooms. But at 58k buy in- that is simply insane!
I've watched a lot of these and this is the best one I've seen on DVC. Others got too mixed up in the emotions of the magic and left out the facts. Love the facts! Question if you have time and if you know. If I bought a resale contract for one resort but later bought a different contract through Disney, would I start getting the additional DVC perks with the second Disney contract purchase? Also, with if one has two contracts, does that mean I would have two home resorts now for 11 month booking? Thanks again!
Ryan Dierking wow, Ryan, thank you so much!! I honestly feel like that’s part of the problem when people buy and let their emotions control what is really a financial decision. So glad you enjoyed it!!!😍
Ryan only the points attached to the purchase from Disney will have the "benefits" as far as converting them for use outside of the Disney Vacation Club properties and the World Passport Collection (which can be used by all purchasers including resale). But once you have "full perks" from that second purchase, you will receive invites to all the special DVC events and have your blue ID card to access entry into the lounges and such. Two different home resorts won't help you combine them to be able to book 11 months in advance at both. Only the points respective to each home resort can be used to book greater than 7 months in advance. Once the 7 month window hits, they can be combined without any issues.
Thank you SO MUCH for responding, Shontell!
My pleasure, Jen!
I've been a DVC member since 2002. Purchased as a resale and have been able to enjoy all of the Disney perks. Want to reduce your maintenance fees? Get a Disney Visa card and use the Disney Reward points towards payment of your fees. Been doing this for years and have been able to use the points towards 50% of our fees.
I ABSOLUTELY should do this. I used my Disney points just recently to renew my annual pass but I love the paying for dues with it idea! Thanks SO MUCH for watching and taking the time to comment!!!!
That is what I do also, saved $320 that way, maintenance fees went down to $890 after that saved about 33% of our fees
Phillysub I love DVC. I wish I bought resale. I also have a Disney Visa Card. We use the points fr on our Visa to pay for food and fun at Disneyworld.
We do the same!! We use the card and pay if off every month! I try to max it out every month to get as many points as possible and use them for dues every year.
We just bought our dvc club resale and it's good for 38 more years. I'm glad I came to this video since I know we have the Visa and I'm sure my wife, the financial guru that she is, would have figured it out but now I can pretend this was a brilliant idea from me. Thanks for the win ;)
We've been members since 2000 and have taken many vacations at WDW. But now that we're older and don't travel as much, we have found extra points each year that we don't use. We've banked the unused points which means we have EVEN MORE to use the following year. I thought of selling some of them, but instead I tried putting them out on the rental market. Had them all rented in just over a week of listing them. The rental income more than pays for the maintenance fees. Will be doing this each year that I have unused points.
GaryD that’s a great point, Gary, and I know a lot of people do just that! That way when you do want to use them (or gift them to someone) they’re there for you to use! Thanks for watching!!
Been a DVC Member since 1992, 400 points, with Old Key West as my home resort. Things were much much different back then as Disney was just getting into the Time Share business. Included free theme park tickets, member socials, and an on site ice cream parlor. I still like Old Key West because the rooms are by far the largest of all the DVC resorts. Each new resort that is built, the rooms are getting smaller and more compact. We enjoy the extra room in the evening when you return from wherever, and you want to relax. Even the bathrooms at Old Key West are spacious. We kid about being able to hold a card game in the studio bathroom, and still room for more.
We bought around the same time and so did 3 of my cousins but once they started getting rid of all the perks like the tickets included and the socials being gone we got rid of it.
We now just book vacation packages and it is cheaper most times then what we would have spent paying for our Dvc membership
Thanks for covering this. I considered buying into DVC several years ago, but decided against it as I would not break even for a very long time.
I came up with these three points, a couple of which you touched on:
It does not include park tickets or meals, only the resort. You will, however, get a DVC discount on tickets, purchases and meals.
You will only see a savings in the long term. Figure out how much you would spend on the resort without DVC and determine how many trips you plan on taking over the course of the contract. That will give you an idea as to where you will break even.
Do you really want to visit Disney that often?
On the plus side since you technically now own property, you can include it in your will and even rent it.
BTW, I use my Disney Visa rewards points to pay for my meals when I go there. That’s a savings you can count on.
When you said “Disney is our lake house” and your kids have all their childhood memories there, it rang so true! We’ve taking our kids at least once if not twice a year their whole lives and that’s where they have all those family adventure memories. I’ve never regretted buying it when our son was 1. My grandmother had left me a little money when she passed so we used it to buy our favorite resort via resale. She’d be so happy with how we used it
DVC member for 8 years. What I wish I knew:
RCI is useless - don't bother trying to use it.
DVC excludes you from most promotions that Disney offers the public, many of which would save you money.
As mentioned, the best rooms are booked a year in advance.
Pop Century is the best value there and excluded from DVC.
In summary, don't do DVC... just stay in Pop Century because the other hotels are overpriced and have worse transportation, so it's not worth the price they claim anyway. Spend your time in the parks, not the hotels.
I'm so sorry you're not happy with your membership. It's definitely not for everyone! Thank you for watching! (and I 100% agree with you on RCI)
You said that perfectly!!
After she said $1,000 a yr for maintenance, I was out. Damn, I'll stay at the four seasons every year instead and they will still remember me.
The Four Seasons is lovely! But doesn’t work well for a family of 5 and would be way more than 1k for the week. Thanks for watching!
Lol but you get over a weeks worth of stay. Well worth it
I am catching up with your channel.. we have been DVC for 10 years now.. it’s Da Bomb!!
You're such a natural on camera! I wish we could have watched this video when we bought back in 2017. We researched for months and put together an excel spreadsheet to calculate the rising maintenance fees when making our decision. Our "we wish we had known" is that you can ask the DVC guide to let you know when a contract for a specific resort becomes available when purchasing direct from Disney. We will go the resale route if we decide to add on points.
I'm going to do a follow up video (most likely in the next couple of weeks) to talk about all the rules. So. Many. Rules. And if you don't understand them it can really hurt how and when you can use your points. It's like we all need a DVC PhD! And that rhymes if you say it together. Ask L'il Man if he thinks I'm good at rhyming:). Oh, and than you for the kind words! Much appreciated!!!!!😍😍😍
I think a video on the rules is an excellent idea! It will be helpful to those considering buying in and newcomers like us. I think I have most the rules down, but it really is confusing. I'll ask Lil' Man about the rhyming when he gets home from school. :) You are such a natural on camera. I'm still trying to not be nervous. After years of teaching, I actually find it easier to talk to people when I can see them (which is what most people fear). Lil' Man, on the other hand, has absolutely no problem with public speaking in any venue. :p
Thank you for creating your channel and making these videos. It is SO nice to get Disney tips tricks, advice and so on from a Adult!🥰🤩🏅. No offense to all the other great Disney channels (I watch many of them) but it is challenging to really get good advice from someone whose parents are still paying for their vacas or they haven't just yet started really adulting and they blow all their money on Disney. Thank you for putting yourself out here! You are appreciated🤗🏆
Thank you so much, Chelli! That means the world to me.🥰🥰🥰
Yes, yes, yes! I would advise that anyone that can take the tour of the DVC should do so with a note pad and do it at least twice. The second time things will be much clearer and your questions will be shorter. There is no pressure during your personal presentation (from my experience) to purchase. Simply take notes and try to understand the first time what you are told. Then if still interested go do another tour. All of the things mentioned in this video SHOULD be understood before you sign. I would add on I was told many people buy too few points the first time, then need to add on. That is a personal preference dictated by your vacation needs. If you are going to use points outside of the the Disney properties, 160 points is a key number to own. I have owned through Disney and through resale. Personally I love owning a piece of the magic! I agree with you, Jen, on the main reason for owning points is to secure a great room in Disney when you want...everything else is a perk that can go away for any owner.
Thank you for your great comment!! That's funny because our initial contract WAS 160 points and it's served us well. And I'm always amazed that people buy on the spot after just touring the models once (especially when they walk in with no prior knowledge of DVC) but to each his own?? I'm a huge researcher so it takes me forever to make a decision like this (6 years in this case!). But now, we are VERY happy owners. Thank you so much for watching!! And I love your tip about going twice and taking a notebook. Excellent suggestion.
Man, those Disney ears are the bomb. They look good on you Miss.
So glad I found your channel! I've been watching DVC resale offers since my first Disney vacation last December. Super excited to have finally gotten a contract within my budget (150 points at Vero Beach) since I was outbid on my first two attempts. Am definitely looking forward to learning more about Disney vacationing from you and your channel (I just hit the SUBSCRIBE button). Thanks so much for all you do :)
Thank you SO MUCH! Once I started thinking of different topics for the future, I realized how much I've learned over the years the hard way! Be looking for more in the coming weeks on how we actually use our points in a given year and stuff like banking and borrowing and how you can buy one time use points. And congrats, Neighbor! We ADORE Vero (that's our home, too). When's your first DVC trip??
Very true! Good info!! I love DVC.....I love the cruises 👍
Nicely done! You touched on EVERY SINGLE THING I'd wish I'd known.
Thank you, Tina!! That was my sincere hope so that means a lot. Thank you for watching and commenting!
Great information! You have a great presentation style and covered every question I might have thought up. Thanks. :)
Thank you so much, Julia!! Be watching for more DVC videos soon and feel free to ask any questions you might have!
Also you can't forget the purchase price along with the maintenance fees. Anyone buying needs to calculate at what point you would break even with adding them together. They are definitely beautiful accommodations but if you're ok with staying in a value resort and are only a family four like we are it really isn't a savings.
Absolutely! In one of my other videos I go into more detail on that but you are 100% correct that if you typically stay in a value or a moderate, the savings are not really there. Everybody has to do the math FOR SURE. Thank you so much for commenting! Very much appreciated!!
Worked great for us. We always stayed at Grand Floridian and Wilderness Lodge. We are saving big time!
Yup. I am a Deluxe Girl. Basically, if I'm not staying Deluxe (or at least moderate) I'm probably not going to Disney;). My husband feels like he's over here printing money with our DVC membership!😂😍😂
Very nice presentation. We have owned for 5 years and very happy. With our 140 pts we have been going twice a year, stay in Studios for 5 nights each time, and go Sunday night through Thursday night to save on points (points are higher Friday and Saturday)
A big thing I think people forget is to compare apples to apples. I frequently see people say to rent a house off-property...no thanks, that is not "going to Disney" that is going "near Disney". Or they say they can stay at Pop Century cheaper. Yes you can, but if you prefer nicer vacation resorts like those on the monorail route it isn't a fair comparison to staying in a Value Resort.
Yes, great way to put it! There’s no question there are cheaper ways to go to Disney but the cheapest way may not be what you’re after 😍
That was very helpful. I don’t see too many videos on DVC Resale and you explained it very well.
Thank you so much and I TRULY appreciate you taking the time to comment!! Have a fantastic day!
Great advice, as a DVC owner I agree with every statement 👍🏼
Buying a DVC membership was a massive dream for my wife we finally made it come true. Decided to go with animal kingdom as our home. The contract process is taking quite a long time so technically not owners yet but well on our way. So excited for our first time as DVC members. Thank you for your video in still trying to get acquainted with all the little.bits of info people don't really tell you with these. The hunt continues...
Matthew I so get this and it's honestly why I started doing the videos in the first place! It's a lot to navigate!! But good luck on your journey and I'm sure your first DVC trip as members will be here before you know it!
Such a helpful video! I’ve been trying to convince my husband for years, but he just cannot get past the dreaded “TIMESHARE” label. In the past 3 years, we’ve spent at least $15,000 on resort stays, anyway! However, we do get to go to any resort that we want, so it’s good to know that you can’t always go wherever, even at the 7 month mark. I had no idea about that.
A nice compromise might be to buy a small contract for those big trips maybe every couple of years (that you'd plan far in advance so more likely to get what you wanted) and then still pay cash for your other visits. That's sort of where we've landed and it's worked out nicely. I honestly don't mind staying at a mod resort if it's just for a few nights but for the big, longer trips I NEED that kitchen and washer and dryer! Thanks for watching and for taking the time to comment!! Makes my day!!
I honestly get kinda irritated when people refer to DVC as a "timeshare". It is SO NOT a "timeshare" in the sense that people think of. It's not shady. Disney is very much an open book and DVC agents are VERY helpful and go above and beyond to make every trip special. The flexibility that Disney tells you about is not a myth or just a sales pitch. It's really true.
Thank you for explaining DVC! I'm a huge Disney fan and can see myself going to Disney once a year, and it seems like DVC can help! But right now until I'm more established, just not the right timing.
You're so very welcome! We considered it for about 6 years before we finally make up our minds so I absolutely get this. And you can still go to Disney every year without it, of course, just not with the financial commitment that DVC has. Have a great day and thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
Saw your tube buddy 1900 subs cert on twitter. Needed to come make it 1902!!! :) We just signed up for DVC on our last trip! Excited to be a member!!! :) Congrats on 1900! 2K coming soon!!!
Awww . . THANKS DOLE WHIP DAD! With a title like that, clearly I need to go check out your channel;). LOVE IT. Thank you so much for encouragement, it is greatly appreciated!
We bought resale though Disney and we get all the magical perks that a regular DVC client gets. Love your videos!
That's awesome, Erika, congrats! I really wish we owned some BLT points but since we already get all the perks (we were grandfathered in because we bought before the restrictions) we might as well go resale and save some $$ on our initial buy-in. Out of curiosity, where's your home resort??
Or just buy a 4 brm 3 bath house in the WDW bubble, in a gated community on a golf course, with a pool. Rent it out and have it pay for itself with a nice profit. Use it when it's not rented and go whenever I want with our AP. With almost all the same perks you get. Downside it's almost always rented out, so it's hard to block out time for us. Damn 1st world problems.
LOL!! We have actually considered this very thing. Glad it's worked out so great for you guys - and yeah, what's with those people wanting to go to Disney all the time?!? 😂😁😜
Not knocking the DVC program. We have friends who use it. Just not for us.
Oh we go a lot. My daughter just started working there.
Love that!!! I didn't think you were knocking it at all. It DEFINITELY isn't right for everyone. I love that she's working there - how awesome! And hoping that means you get free friends and family tickets from time to time?? Between that and the house, ya'll are set!😍
Yes. She has to work a few hours before we can. She just started .
Hi! I just made my husband watch this video with me... I’ve been pushing for DVC for a few years now... When he heard 2042 he threw his hands up and walked away 😂 LOL!!
Thank you for the video! Happy to subscribe and support your channel 😊💜👍🏼
Yeah, I'm not always such a big hit with the reluctant spouses, LOL!!!! Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!! If you purchased, where would you want your home resort to be?? There are so many great choices!
Jen Lefforge when we stay at Disney properties, we usually stay at Boardwalk. We are an adult couple with no kids, so we REALLY enjoy EPCOT 👍🏼 Boardwalk is super convenient for EPCOT visits. We also love spending evenings walking the boardwalk, enjoying dinner, and the shows. It’s very peaceful and relaxing sitting by the lake 💜
That is a lot of money to spend to go to the same place year after year. Disney is good but I don't want to be be forced to go to Disney every single year.
Than I definitely think DVC might not be the right call for you. We travel many places throughout the year, but always visit Disney at least once so for us it works but weird a little odd that way, I'm the first to admit! Thank you so much for watching!!
DVC is not for you then.
I have used my DVC points and used them to stay at a resort near Busch Gardens in Virginia.
We have yet to use them on any of the other timeshares aside from Disney. What did you think?? Were the villas nice??
Nancy Farkas You can use your points on RCI. We are going to use our points for Puerto Vallarta this year.
We've looked into DVC, a couple of times . . . This, to me, isn't a good deal. Add your maintenance fees, to your contract cost (Most people will pay the contract on a monthly basis) and you're paying a LOT. . . We have found that we can rent a house, with 3-4 bedrooms, 3-4 bathrooms, a private pool, full kitchen, washer and dryer, etc. It's just much more economical to rent the house, plus far more space to spread out. . . For some people, staying on property means everything. To me? The cost differential is the key. . . Also, your description is inaccurate. You speak as if the maintenance fee is the ONLY cost, completely leaving out the cost of the contract itself, the points you're paying for. You can't equate JUST the cost of your maintenance fees as the total cost of a DVC vacation.
+michael silver I do mention that there comes a point when you’ve recouped the cost of your initial investment - for us that happened rather quickly as we bought a contract with banked points, purchased resale and paid cash. But is sounds like for you DVC wouldn’t be a good deal. We only ever stay on property so for us it’s worked out. Thanks for watching!
You have such an informative channel- I already have 2 DVC contracts but all the runDisney and review videos you do are awesome. Subscribed!
Thank you, Niki!! I so appreciate your kind words! Thank you SO MUCH for watching and taking the time to comment.
Nice video! Love that you objectively covered the pros and cons and pointed out that resales make sense!
Thank you! I get why some people want to buy direct from Disney but really, financially, it just doesn't make sense to me. We are looking at adding on YET AGAIN and resale is the only way that's possible. Thank you for watching and commenting!
I WISH I HAD BOUGHT SOONER! So very true! I purchased resale the same year you did and I have not regretted my purchase. In fact, I have purchased two additional point contracts. I WISH I HAD BOUGHT SOONER! The luxury of resale: you can choose your home resort. Choose your home resort wisely! It is the resort you most want to stay in and it is the resort you will get first opportunity to book, so it is important. Also, if someone in your party purchases an WDW Annual Pass, you will get the discount on food & merchandise that way!
You're so right, Deb! We can't purchase until next year most likely (kids college is really putting a cramp in my style;) but we loved buying resale and will definitely do it next time! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!!
Costs too much for all the complicated, convoluted, and counter-intuitive rules. ..YIKES!!!
Yes, I am the first to admit, in order to make the most of your membership there really are A LOT of rules. Like, a whole lot of rules!
It is really simple, it is not convoluted at all. Don't make a mountain out of a molehill. There are just two options - 1) Buy from Disney and get all the perks or 2) Buy resale and get Room Only - It's that easy to remember.
@@kenyoung3817 I don't think he means convoluted way to buy the club membership but rather book vacations.....which yea...this seems like a boatload of hurdles for how much you pay.
Good video. Been a member since 2008. Agree with all you have stated. Exept welcome home. They have been saying that in ever hotel for years. Used to be a dvc thing. Now it's just a thing.
LOL! Yeah, you're right.
Also. Don't forget your points are locked in at time of purchase. The amount per night per room will roughly be the same. The price for rack rate will go up. Akl studio in 2008, for weekday. Still same now.
I LOVE that part!! Thank you for watching!!
Great video Jen. I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and inputs and doing it in a very realistic way.
Thank you, Mike! That's always my goal.
We've been a DVC member since 2008 and I totally agree with all you said. We purchased SSR versus Aulani at the time due to the maintenance fees difference in price but have never stayed at SSR and have stayed at Aulani twice! The biggest thing i agree with, I wish we had done it sooner!
Thank you so much for watching, Leigh Anne and taking the time to comment! Aulani is just spectacular. Only ever had dinner there (we were at the Marriott 2 doors down;) but it's just enchanting!!
Great video, and i totally agree with your 4th point. we wish we had done it years ago! Our home resort is the beach club and we love it! If you can afford the up front cost, go for it. Then you have years of inexpensive holidays ahead of you, which to me is such peace of mind.
Tracy Robinson I’m currently sitting in a studio at BLT and it’s awesome. Very glad we bought!!! Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment!😍😍😍
I couldn't imagine not being a DVC member. We've been members at BLT since 2008 and we take 3 trips a year and spend about 24 or 25 days a year there. It's just so awesome knowing that we always have another adventure guaranteed just right around the corner and we don't have to stress about trying to save up to stay in the best accommodations in the world. It's just great knowing that we can walk right over to the MK in 10 minutes and especially at the end of the night when you're watching everyone else wait like crazy for the chance to maybe get on a bus. Also the discounts on the Annual Passes is great as well. If you're a family that absolutely loves Disneyworld and can't imagine a vacation anywhere else then I really think the DVC is a no-brainer.
So we had stayed many times at the Contemporary but I just stayed at BLT for the first time last month and I'm thinking of adding on there. Seriously LOVED it so very much!! Thank you for sharing your experience - I share your view and we would be giving the mouse that money anyway so it might as well be as part of DVC;). We used to live in Dallas but now that we're much closer (Atlanta area) I think we need more points. Don't you think we need more points?
It totally depends on the accommodations you want. We bought in at 160 before we had kids and were in our mid to late 20's. We then quickly saw that we were gonna need more when we had kids because the studios are pretty small there. So we bought 90 more points. Now we have a 7 and a 4 year old and in order for us to take 3 trips per year we have to use studios so we are about to add on more by buying our first resale contract. We always go in like the 3rd week of May. Then in October. Then back in the 2nd week of May and that gives us 3 trips per pass. A standard view 1br there in May is 250pts for a 7 day stay and we usually do 8 day trips. Our dues as of right now are a little over a thousand bucks per year and that's actually a really awesome price for dues. BLT is considered one of the best dues rates in the whole DVC.
Another thing people should know is that points are also valued by "seasons". So like a 1br will cost you LESS points in September as opposed to the summer if that's when people have to go. So like if you wanted to buy less points at BLT you could get more mileage out of them by using them in the non busier times and then use your bigger contracts for the busier times. If that makes any sense. We live in east TN so we're not that far from you guys actually. I will tell you my Disney dream and how it came true.
All my life my mom and dad took me to Disneyworld and I loved it and would literally cry as a kid when it was time for each trip to end. LOL! I would ride through the Contemporary on the monorail and think "when I grow up I'm gonna stay there and have a view of the Castle from my room". So when I finally did grow up and got married I we saved up and spent a week in a MK view room from the Contemporary and made my dream come true... for about $5,000 for ONE trip. So we knew that someday we'd love to join the DVC and finally when they announced they were gonna build right by the MK we KNEW that it was time to join. So we did and now I have access to a MK view room as much as I want and every trip is literally like a dream come true all over again for me. The crazy thing is that basically we spent $25,000 on ALL our points and get $5,000 accommodations THREE TIMES PER YEAR. THAT is what makes the DVC so awesome. My little boy LOVES animals and so sometimes we will spend a couple of days at AKL with a savannah view before moving to BLT for the rest of the stay and he wakes up to giraffes at our balcony. There is just truly "something for everybody" and I don't feel like anyone else can offer that except for Disney but DVC makes that possible.
we just bought resale at OKW~ I was told that we can enter the Epcot lounge. After 21 years of trips we finally took the plunge! We also bought resale and saved a huge amount of cash!
Oh, hurray on the lounge! Although, truly, it's not that great. Well, it's great in the summer because it's quite cool in there. Welcome home!! We ADORE OKW. Seriously my favorite on property aside from a savannah room at Kidani. Woohoo!
Thanks!!!! I'm sure the lounge isnt amazing, but we will check it out in 10 days for a cold drink! I remember back in 1999 the AP lounge above the land pavilion that was neat and a million years ago!
1999 was the year my twins were born and to me that feels like yesterday!!
and our oldest son was born 1998, and youngest 2000!
Great video. I agree with those points and I'm so happy we bought ours 11yrs ago when I was 24. The wife and I go at least twice a year, and we have brought our parents, nieces, nephews and friends. We wish we had bought into the Polynesian but Saratoga is good too. lol But our plan has paid it self over a few times.
I think bringing family along is one of the sweetest parts of our membership! Looking forward to when we can bring our son's families as well. Thank you so much for watching and commenting!!
I love the DVC lounge in Epcot. Going to Hawaii next year with our points. Everyone saying welcome Home and not gonna lie I like getting the extra attention/help from cast members.
No, I get this on a very deep level. Because I have 3 teenagers so, you know, being treated super great is AWESOME.😂😂😂 Have you been to that part of Hawaii before? We stayed right next door (at the Marriott) for 2 weeks last summer and it is honestly heaven on earth. We made it over to Aulani for dinner one night and just wow. You'll love it there!
Jen Lefforge we've never been but we're gonna stay at Aulani for a week. We're really looking forward to it. We just got back from Disney World stayed at the polynesian. We love it there.
There is a great restaurant right across the street (you can walk) called Monkeypod. I think they take reservations (if so do that it gets crowded) but GREAT food, super fun atmosphere and very reasonable prices (I mean, compared to Disney;). We did day trips to Diamond Head and the north shore as well.Oh, and there's a Costco literally right around the corner from the resort and their prices were the same as at home so you can pick up sunscreen and maybe groceries if you're cheap like I am (Hawaii is EXPENSIVE). Let me know if you have any other questions! OMG, now I want to go back.
Jen Lefforge all good information to know! Thank you. I'll fir sure keep that in mind.
You're going to love Aulani!!! Just got back from there. Don't forget to make reservations for you and your family to check out the member hour.
Good video. One thing that I think needs to be considered when looking at cost per night is not just the maintenance dues but also the initial purchase price (amortized in). On a 100 point Vero contract bought at $66/point over 22 years, it's ~$320 per year. Not huge but it's something that has to be taken into consideration.
We bought direct from Disneyland in right before the Grand Californian resort opened. We paid $90.00 a point there and points at Saratoga Springs and Animal Kingdom. We had 545 points with 245 of them at the Grand. We enjoyed many stays at the Grand and never traveled to Florida. My wife died suddenly of cancer in 2012. I was devastated and decided to sell everything. I’m so sorry I did now because my $90.00 Grand points are going for well over $200.00! I sold them for $150.00 which still was good
I had 245 points at Disneyland
Rod I am so sorry for your loss. I can't imagine how hard that must have been for you. But yes, you still made a great return on that investment - $150 is VERY good!
I love the information you give in your videos just straight to the point :)
Thank you so much for watching!
I love our DVC signed up back in 2011, with Saratoga, Best decision we ever made I love when they say to us welcome home! We could have never stayed at the resorts that are so extremely nice!
Happy 4us we couldn’t either! Or if we did we would be in one hotel room with all 5 of us. Thank you so much for watching!!
We have been seriously considering this. Thought it would make sense with our annual passes. It seems so confusing. Thank you for sharing. From one Disney fanatic to another, have a magical day sprinkled with pixie dust! :-)
Have fun doing your research! It took us a long time to finally pull the trigger as it is a big decision! And yes, have a magical day!! Thanks for watching!
Great video... clear and concise. Thank you.
You are absolutely welcome! Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!!
Great job. We contiguously analyze the value of the DVC investment. we haven't made the leap yet as the numbers just don't pan out since we normally stay moderate. But as the moderate resorts creep up in price we are considering resale again. Wish they didn't black out so many DVC benefits.
It's a big decision! PLEASE let me know if you have any specific questions. I have loved our membership but I researched the heck out of it before we took the plunge.
I do have one question is there discounts for AP and Park Passes?
Thanks!!
Yes, if you purchase direct from Disney you save about $200 on your annual pass. Great question! And they sometimes do promotions fro park passes (they did last year but I honestly don't remember what it was) so all of that is subject to change from year to year.
Very informative. Excellent job on this video.
TheMouseandMore thank you so much! I so appreciate you taking the time to watch and comment!
Great video, you've got lots of good facts. We LOVE Disney but the analytical part of my brain won't let me do DVC; my husband and I discussed and it just doesn't ever make financial sense, even in the resale market. It's a timeshare and I can't justify spending money on something we don't own. DVC booking times are too far out for our planning schedule, we have never booked a trip 11 months in advance no matter where we've gone, just doesn't work with our work schedules.
It's a great point, Dana. If you can't plan your vacations out at least 7 months in advance, I really don't think it's a good call. I try to present all the sides of the equation and why it worked for us but it's definitely not for everyone. Thanks for watching!
Some sensible advices. Maybe give advice on non home resort availability different seasons and accommodation types. For example, Jan to Sept avoiding holidays and run events you can literally book any resort at 7 months in a 1 bed, and quite decent studio availability also.
+wakeywarrior great point!! Thanks for watching!
Good video! If you can buy resale for $1 on eBay for this or any other timeshare good for you as you saved some money. BUT If you want more flexibility on your travel plans (and no contracts) then do not do any timeshare, vacation plan, etc. - not even Disney! I have been able to book top hotel rooms in high season in Disney Orlando, Rome, Santorini, New York, Paris, Chicago, San Francisco, Miami, Singapore and Berlin for less than $300 a night - and my family have had many good memories as well.
Absolutely there are other great ways to save on vacations. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much for doing this video. It was top class and very informative.
It's my pleasure! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment!
The first time I heard welcome home I started crying hahaa
100% same. At Vero Beach (our home resort) they have a bell they ring when it's your first time home. I cried like a baby. Perfectly normal. Or not, but you're in good company either way;). Thanks for watching and commenting!
Thanks! It's always been a mystery to us how it works, so interesting to hear a little about it.
It can be really confusing!! Thanks for watching!
We had bought into DVC and tried to use at the 7 month mark right when I got the packet for another resort other than the home resort and could not get availability where we wanted. It didn’t really seem like it was going to work for us because of that. We cancelled and they gave us our money back right away.
72277rolling it’s a shame they weren’t more up front about that being a possibility when you purchased. But also glad they made it right!
We were disappointed because we were really excited to be members. They told us staying at other resorts wouldn’t be an issue unless we were going spring break, Christmas, or Easter. We were going to book in October (7months out) a low period, and we couldn’t get into anything on the monorail loop. We were looking for a studio because we didn’t need all the extra space and it seemed like a waste of points for the 1 bedroom. They said the studios fill up first and October is a pretty busy time because of the food and wine festival. The recommended booking at my home resort 11 months out and set an alarm on my calendar 7 months out and call them right away in the morning to try to get something else. Essentially booking my vacation twice. Our home resort was going to be Copper Creek which is nice but we weren’t in love with the theming. We might look at buying into the Riviera when it open. The renderings look amazing. Still love Disney but was disappointed how they presented and sold the DVC.
72277rolling I have not had any problem using my points at different resorts.
My parents bought into DVC in 1993 when Old Key West was the only place actually built.
They had the foresight or just luck to buy in early on when the price per point was much lower.
I spent a lot of my childhood and even part of my adulthood staying there and going to Disney especially because the park tickets were a really good deal through resort back in the 90s. Now it isn't really much of a deal so we buy our tickets elsewhere and just link them to our magic bands.
I think we've stayed in a Grand Villa 4 or 5 times, while we had a 2 bedroom + studio or just a 2 bedroom depending on how many of us went the other times.
My parents have used their points to stay at or to let family members stay at Saratoga Springs, Hilton Head and Vero Beach at least 7 or 8 times, too.
They also used their points to set up my brother's honeymoon at Aulani in Hawaii and have done the concierge collection a few times as well.
Most recently they were able to use their points to stay at one of the hotels in Tokyo Disney when they came to visit me in Japan.
Depending on where you want to stay, when you are going, and what kind of room you are willing to stay, you can often still exchange your points closer to the day of your trip and get a room somewhere (so long as it isn't the busy season), but getting a villa or into one of nicer resorts does usually require booking right at that 11 month mark.
Oh and I love reading the Disney Files Magazine. We took a picture with a copy at Tokyo DisneySea a few months ago actually to submit. Not sure if we will make it in, but hey my parents brought it along on their trip to Japan to visit me (I'm working in Japan for the next year).
So many great memories! I hope my boys have those too. How cool that you are working on Japan! My oldest visited last year and fell in love with it. Thank you for sharing your memories and for watching!
You did a very good job with this video. Thank you.
thank YOU, Michael, for watching and taking the time to comment!!!! Much appreciated!
AMAZING VIDEO!!!! We really plan on becoming members soon
Thank you SO SO MUCH! Seriously makes my day. I'm doing research right now for a video about all the rules so be watching for that. And I hope pretty soon, I'll be able to tell you Welcome Home and we will be DVC "neighbors"!
Jen Lefforge cannot wait for the next video. I’ll be sharing these videos with my whole family :)
Hurray!
Herschel Martinez Buy resale. Buy the annual pass and you get the same discounts.
We bought DVC several several years ago. We loved it at first, but quickly ran into the problem of missing out on special offers and staying at our home resort. We where able to do the cruise, and we loved that. But we sold it, we felt like it didn’t fit our style. Instead we took that money and put it towards a Florida house. So now we are set :)
Trevor, tell me more about THAT process?? We've been looking at doing that and renting it out. Did you use a realtor that specializes in that? But you may not even rent yours out so I could be making an assumption there. It's definitely not for everybody and sounds like you found a path that works for you!! Love it!! Thanks for watching!
Jen Lefforge Long story short, we worked with a realtor for several years. We had the idea of purchasing a house and renting it out, because we live in philly and we thought renting it out when we aren’t there would help pay for the expenses. She was a fantastic help, very patient, and never gave up.
We had a few bumps in the road with sellers, but we found a development called Terra Verde. When I say it looks like a Disney resort, IT LOOKS LIKE A DISNEY RESORT! We where lucky to find a seller who rents their home. The home is listed on VRBO and Air bnb, and has amazing reviews. So we bite the bullet, sold the time share, and bought the house. We made settlement in February and have been renting it out. We would go whenever it’s not booked ( which is harder than I thought). It’s almost like running a business, we work with the people at Terra Verde and VRBO and it’s great!
We love love love Disney. We liked the time share too, but we needed more. It was a commitment we wanted to take, and I’m great full we did.
We are seriously considering this but more for the business piece of it. We're a good year away from doing anything but I may hit you up for that realtors name! Thank you! I will check out the development as well.
Jen Lefforge no problem! Anytime!
This was a GREAT video but the reason we decided to buy was for all of the extras. In addition, you save $8000 buying resale because the contract is usually shorter. You are purchasing the remainder of someones contract. Just saying😉
No, you are 100% correct! But a lot of people don't want to buy what's currently selling so if they buy a different resort direct they're still stuck with the shorter contract (no matter how you buy it if you buy the older resorts you get the earlier expiration). It's a FABULOUS point! I'm old and will be almost dead by the time ours expires so it wasn't as important. Thanks so much for watching!!!!! And thanks for the kind words:).
Very good point
Jen Lefforge This is a good tip. I wasn't aware you could buy a shorter contract (direct and thru resale?) I also am 'old' and don't need this when I'm 90.
I bought direct through Disney I took a 15 day panama cruise in 2016 with ocean view port hole it does take a lot of points but it saved me about $6,000 dollars the whole trip only cost me $900.00 bucks that's only for one person you have to look at the price vs points it is double points for cruises plus $95 dollars save $6,000.00 I'm going on a cruise it was a nice cruise nice video
that cruise sounds amazing!! We've only been on one Disney cruise and I am itching to go on another one. So fun! Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!😍😘😍
your welcome the upcoming panama cruise is 500 vacation points the ticket price is $5,782.00 for inside state room I had extra points to bank and borrow some for next year to go on that cruise worth it
I was thinking about buying a small membership direct from DVC then buying more points on the resale market. This way I get all the perks plus the cheaper points. We visit WDW a lot and so a lot of points means a lot to us.
That's a great way to go and had we not bought before the new restrictions, probably what I would do as well (we were grandfathered in so still get most of the perks even though we purchased resale). Very smart!
Timeshares have always been the worst investment ever..you pay twice. Once to be part of the timeshare, and again when you pay the nightly rates. Just go and have your vacation, and without the timeshare, you can go more places than just where the timeshare is
Actually, we don't pay a nightly rate when we use our points so we don't pay twice, but I agree it's not an investment. More a way to pre-pay for our vacations. Thanks for watching!
My wife and I have been thinking about this for some time. I grew up 2.5 miles south of Disneyland and had an annual pass for as long as I could remember. We now have an 11 year old and take at least 1 big trip a year with SEVERAL weekend trips to different locations. Lately we have been thinking about WDW for Mardi Gras and this would be the perfect option. Plus with the talk about the River Country Hotel and part of it being for DVC...this is more of a possibility.
Michael Barbu seriously cannot wait to see the plans for the River Country DVC!!! As a huge lover of Ft Wilderness, this is very exciting to me! Thanks for watching!!!
Thank you so much for this video! Such great explanation!
Thank you so much for the great encouragement and for watching!!!
Also, you’re so right about the perks you don’t receive with the direct. For my 160point VGC contract, I saved $12k!!!! For my Poly contract I just saved $7500! Living on the west coast as well, I’m all good about not getting those perks with that almost $20k savings in my pocket.
Exactly! I can buy myself a lot of "free" stuff for that kind of money;).
2 great points!! We do the opposite we use ours at the Grand Californian because we love Disneyland
We're timeshare owners (RCI) and I agree with your first two "Cons" whole hardheartedly. Not just with DVC, but with RCI, which is the largest Vacation Ownership Company (RCI lets you book at Disney properties too but waaay down the priority list so forget about it). We own 2 Weeks. Maintenance fees are high but like you said, still cheaper than paying a room for $400-500/night. Other issue -- one of our timeshares is in Maui. We were told that having a timeshare in Maui gives you GREAT exchange privileges. That was B-S. Having a Gold Resort property in Hawaii in prime season is no different than any other Gold Resort so Resort Owners in CA or FL have same exchange points/priority as my Hawaii Resort.
I hate when consumers can't get all the facts or they're sold something that isn't EXACTLY as represented. Thanks for watching, Steven!
My parents were given the same "Oh, having a timeshare here in Maui gives you WAY more flexibility than anything else!" spiel when buying from RCI. They've had two different RCI memberships and one with Interval, and while they've been fun, they're a pain in the rear. My wife and I were approached by RCI and DVC on multiple occasions while on vacation and frankly, while you do save a little money per night on an overall basis when you factor maintenance fees and exchange fees into it, I like the flexibility of being able to book 1-3 months out (or less!) if I need to and not being held hostage to the "Sorry, nothing is available!" machine.
We purchased DVC back in the late 90’s when it began and enjoyed it. We eventually ended up moving to Orlando area and even still kept our membership until about 2007. We sold our points through the resale broker you mentioned. Living here it didn’t really make sense to keep them. Especially since I’m aware that I can rent them if I want to.
We've rented points before as well and and had a great experience! Thank you for watching and taking the time to comment!!
I live 9 miles away from the entrance of Hollywood Studios and still own mine. You should have kept it for when comes and visits so you can a little time off from them when they come LOL
Thank you for the video. DVC is not for us, I've learned.
Dawn - I SO GET THIS. In fact, I'm working on a video (hopefully to go up this week) all about who it may NOT be right for. Do you mind sharing why? Might be good to include in the video. You can message me if you don't want it shown here. Thanks for watching!!
For one thing, since we don't have a huge chunk of money for the purchase, the value of doing this goes down because we would have to finance it. And, my husband is a bargain hunter and is always looking for deals. Also, we are local, so we really don't HAVE to stay at a resort, so unless the savings were huge, it would seem to me to be very wasteful. We stay on property 2-3 times a year, and many times get good deals on last minute stays. One time my husband found a great deal at the Contemporary for less than 200 dollars a night and that was in July!
One of the points for the next video is definitely going to be that if you are financing, it's not a good value. I think people may throw things at their screens when I say it, but truly, you quickly erase any savings when you pay interest. And as an annual passholder I've found some amazing rates as well (and that's why we're not adding on right now). Contemporary Garden Wing has been our favorite place to find really good values on deluxe rooms and I LOVE it over there! Sounds like you all are very wise and have made a great decision! Thank you for sharing that!
Wife and I have researched DVC a lot and decided it’s not for us as with just the 2 of us DVC limits us. But it is a wonderful thing for families for sure.
Thanks for watching, Robert!! Scott and I are wondering how our kids being gone (well, soon, anyway) will affect how we use our membership. Such a different phase in our lives and I'm not sure how that will play in! I so appreciate your taking the time to comment. I hope you have a magical day!
My only real issue with the DVC is not the price, the price is SO WORTH IT, if your a Disney family. Its that I toured 3 of the DVC resorts along with 4 of the Deluxe resorts and found the lack of what I call Disney Magic at the DVC and Deluxe resorts.. My wife and I have been to WDW 14 times and a Disney cruise. I have stayed at 2 deluxe resorts, 3 value and 9 mid level resorts. Our favorite has been Port Orleans French Quarter and its the benchmark for what I mean. When I walked into the lobby of the 2 deluxe resorts (Polynesian and Contemporary, also Wilderness lodge is technically an entry level deluxe but I don't count it) and the 3 DVC properties I could not tell I was in WDW except for the pins on the employees. They were beautiful but they lacked the Disney magic I have come to expect. When I get off the Magical Express at POFQ I see mickeys in the tiles of the beautiful foyer, I see wrought iron mickeys on the aged iron fence tops. I see High quality Disney movie paintings. As I walk to the room and through the lobby and into the room there is ZERO doubt whos house I am in. As nice as the deluxes were they lacked the magic. I really wish WDW had a Deluxe resort or a DVC resort with the same attention to detail for the Disney magic immersion. I would buy it tomorrow. But as it stands we like the freedom and level of service and magic that comes with Ala carte even though its a LOT more expensive than DVC would be for us.
That's a great point and so true for some people! If you don't like the theming of the DVC resorts, then it doesn't really matter if the value is there or not because it's YOUR vacation!! Great thoughts, Robert, thank you!
I travel all around the world... not just Disney, and I have never and will never waste the amount of money that these clubs ask. There is a thing called AIRBNB and it works amazingly and is cheap. Wyndham once tried to get me on their hook... but I am soooo glad I just ran out of there. They still owe me 150 usd though...
I think I speak for a lot of people here, and this might really surprise you TimmyME, but there are a LOT of people who travel frequently who do not enjoy Airbnb and will never use Airbnb.
Christopher Johnson ...and I wish them a nice stay.
I travel all around the world and vacation 4 times a year for 1-2 weeks a time (I live in UK). I bought my DVC resale 18 months ago and could sell tomorrow for 35% more than I paid. I can rent the points with zero effort (one email to David’s Vacation Club) for 15% return. They are in such demand they will often go the very same day. Next week, I’m staying in a 2 bed, sleeps 10 at Boardwalk (4 of us, 2 kitchens, 2.5 baths, walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios etc), next week for a dues cost of $160 a night (even with the best deal you couldn’t get it less than about $800 a night, rack for that room is $1100 and they sell them, nearly 100% occupancy). So with my contract, I could have bought it, made a couple of thousand on rentals, gone on 3 vacations in ridiculously expensive (overpriced certainly, but if you want to stay onsite in deluxe suites you have to pay it) accommodations and make money selling it. Or I can use it when I want and make a healthy return in renting the points until 2054. So in my case, not a waste of money at all.
I've rented fort wilderness, boardwalk, polynesian, saratoga springs, and animal kingdom lodge all on eBay. I'm an AP 2 hrs away so I don't really care for all the other perks, just the room.
Very well explained! Thanks for the video.
Your very welcome, Bernardo! Thanks for watching!
If Disney is the place you and you family love then DVC is the best investment you can make. I would buy direct though so you can also take advantage of annual pass discounts and adventures by Disney etc.
Thank you so much for watching, Terry!! We bought resale back when most of the member benefits applied to both, so we're lucky but now it's not quite as easy of a decision. I so appreciate you taking the time to comment!!
The hybrid strategy is to buy a minimum contract directly from DVC and then buy extra points on the resale market at the same home resort.
I think that's a fantastic way to go!
Very well said
Love the video! I know each contract is different but is the initial amount super expensive? I know you mentioned yearly maintenance fees and when you divide that by the amount of nights you use for that year it's not that much, but don't you have to factor in the initial cost too? Love the info!!
Yes, your total costs are your initial buy in price PLUS the annual dues and those will go up each year. Great question!
Hi Jen! I just stumbled across your channel and love your content:) I have a question, you said if you buy resale, you don’t get discounts on annual passes or merch, BUT if you buy your annual passes do you still get to take advantage of those discount perks? Therefore you’d still get a discount on food and merch... I’d love to know! Thank you:)
Briana Lane yes you do!! Your AP comes with 20% off merch and lots of dining discounts. 😍Glad you found me!!
Thanks for the info..didn't realize it was so expensive
Yeah, it's a lot of money even when you go the resale route like we did but you could purchase a smaller amount of points and use them every OTHER year which can make it a more reasonable option! Thank you for watching!!
Jen Lefforge thanks for your time
You're buying deluxe hotel level accomodations (or better) for potentially 50 years.
Christopher Johnson didn't realize it was for such a long. That makes a little more sense
I don't think they like to let you know it's that long. Come to think of it, I probably shouldn't have mentioned that. LOL
Grateful for this candid explanation. DVC sounds like a professional shell game. Even the best descriptions I've heard with the most positive spin can't seem to mask the intentional convolusion that goes into arranging things like this. I almost feel bad for DVC members.
"Effective January 19, 2019, only Members who purchase directly from Disney will be able to use their Vacation Points at the 14 existing Disney Vacation Club Resorts and Disney Vacation Club’s future resort, Disney’s Riviera Resort. Resale contracts purchased for the existing 14 Disney Vacation Club Resorts will only be able to exchange Points into those 14 Resorts."
Correct. This video was filmed before that new restriction but thanks for putting it here!! I would also refer you to some of my latest videos for more on that. Thanks for watching!
Great Video! Very informative! Thanks!
You are so very welcome! I remember how much information we were trying to process before we finally purchased! It's a lot of information. Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!!
Let me get this straight $8,000 to $13,000 in advance and upwards of $1,500 in maintenance fees. You have to book 11 months out and you still might not get the resort and dates you want..... What a complete waste of money!!!
Yeah, it's definitely not for everybody! But yes, you have the math correct.
Jen, thank you for the great information. This was so unbelievably helpful. We are actually getting ready to go all in on a Resale. We keep having some concerns about not buying direct but the savings is hard to get over (plus we really prefer the home we can get on resale versus direct). My question was: do the cast members know you are a "resale" versus direct contract? Has that ever affected the service you receive? Second, I am right that if we buy an Annual Pass (non-discuounted) we could then get into the Tables of Wonderland to get the dining discount? Thank you again.
So Kyle, those are fantastic questions. I'm actually editing a video interview I did with Shontell Crawford of DVC by Resale as we speak and that will answer a ton of questions so be looking for that tomorrow or Thursday! In 8 years, I have never once been treated any differently in speaking with DVC because we are resale buyers. I know that's a concern to some people but I can tell you honestly it's not a founded one. And on TiW, YES, Annual Passholders can absolutely buy it and it's a great perk! Thanks for watching! Seriously you're going to love the info from this next video. It's going to be long (right now sitting at 35 minutes!) but I'm leaving it all in because it's everything you ever wanted to know about the resale process!
Jen thank you for the response, I really appreciate it. And I can't wait to see the new video. We went ahead and put in an offer and had it accepted via resale. We are extremely excited. Your videos definitely helped us make this big (and amazing) decision. So thank you very much. One last (I think sillly) question. One thing I still can't figure out is that I think I'm right in assuming that because we are buying resale we will not get a DVC "member card." If that's true then how will cast members or places where we do have benefits "know" we are DVC contract holders. For example, I think you noted we can still use Top of the World. How would we "prove" that we are DVC members to access that benefit? Thanks again.
Kyle Longest for top of the world all they did was scan my magic band and check my picture ID. Hope that helps!!
One scam with the DVC is "they initially priced it wrong and didn't realize it, buy it while it's cheap." Total phony sales scam.
I don't remember Disney saying that? But if they did, yes, I agree, that's not right.
LOL. Do the math. If the maintenance fees go up 3% per year and start at $1,279/year, you'll pay $63,882 in maintenance fees alone over the 49 years of the contract.
LOL YES, we know. But for that money we are getting a week's long vacation every year that most of us would spend 3-4K for the same level of accommodations so we still save money. LOL
LOL. Do the math. If you spend the rest of your life alone (trust me you will) then you’ll have two more years worth of lonely nights of freezer burned pints of ice cream and reruns of Matlock you single, ancient geezer.
My son isn't a fan of trolls.
From what I’ve gathered if your a hardcore Disney goer like myself every other month, this will not work. I would need to spend 100k on points to keep up with my vacations. And honestly the way points are looking right now 150 points at $188 to only be able to go twice a year is RIDICULOUS! that’s 28k for 8 nights at Disney?!? NOOOOOOO!!!
Well that’s 8 nights at Disney every year for 50 years or so but yes you’re correct that you’d need a lot of points to go every month!
Great info!!!! Thanks so much!
You're most welcome!
Thanks for the info , I got a bit distracted by that gorgeous art behind you of the profile pencil picture where did you get it? TIA xx
It’s from a NY Times article years ago and was a gift from a friend. No idea where to find it!
I realize this was filned years back, but when you referenced OKW bei g $500 a night compated to your maintenance fee rate, what room category did you stay in? Thanks much.
Loved the great information! I did have a question. You said that using the points for a cruise was a waste. I was wondering why? My husband thinks that using the points for a cruise would be a great use. Is it just cheaper to pay up front for it?
Definitely run the math yourself, but typically the value of the points isn't there when you use it to cruise and you'd be better of even renting out your point and using the money to buy a cruise In fact, David's rentals has a way for you to do just that and they're a great company. But honestly i've only ever heard that from others and since we bought resale, I've never used our points that way! Great question!
You kept saying that you only paid your maintenance fees per year... but you paid your contract on top of that... you have to factor that into your yearly vacation math...
Marshall H because we purchased resale we broke even very quickly. Yes, everyone has to factor that in and it’s why I advise against financing. Thanks for watching!
Great video! Very informing. I have a question. Do they do financing or is it a one time purchase? If it isn't too invasive of privacy, which one do you prefer? Thanks in advance!
You can absolutely finance (Disney offers it and also many of the resale brokers can refer you to someone for that) but keep in mind that it may not be a great call financially as any savings you achieve can quickly get wiped out by interest. But many people go that route so just do the math and figure out what works for you! Thanks for watching, Mauricio!
Great video!
Thank you so much!!
First and foremost.. don't count on getting studios! They will always be the first to go. If you are booking even at seven months, you need to do the math for at least a one bedroom. If a studio is there, GOLD!
I am totally finding this to be the case! We always stayed in at least a one bedroom, usually 2, when the kids were little and now that there are typically only 2 or 3 of us going (kids are getting older and have jobs, college schedules, etc) it's TOUGH. This is a fantastic point. May I use it for a future video?? Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!
Of course! We are empty nesters; Yes a one bedroom is great for the extras.. IF the extra points are there. We are already planning next year for a wedding in Hilton Head that I can't book until October. I'd love to nab a studio.. but have to plan for a 1 br. It will be the choice of staying 4 or 3 nights.
It's funny, we live 5 hours from Hilton Head and we've never been! Need to put that on the list!
Thanks for the fab tips x
You’re most welcome, Mark!
Saving money can’t possibly be one of your reasons to purchase one of these. I was only looking into this because Disney hotels hate families of more than 4. We have 6 in our family and there are only a couple hotels that have those size of rooms. But at 58k buy in- that is simply insane!
There are lots of ways to purchase without it costing 58k. I’ve done lots of videos on resale and we only paid a fraction of that for our points.
Beautiful Channel, new subscriber!!
Awesome!! Thanks so much!! Glad you're here.
Great information, thank you :) :)
My pleasure, Kevin!
We didn’t really have an option of where to buy. They were only offering Copper Creek
You can buy the other resorts, but direct from Disney there can be a waiting list for the others. Glad you bought! We love Copper Creek!