2019 Dues

[skier_pete]

I’m wondering too if the 30% increase in security might have something to do with the gondolas coming on line next year. Even if security doesn’t move back to the resorts I imagine with unprecedented access to the Boardwalk area (simply hop on the gondola at AOA, Pop, or Caribbean Beach/Riviera) they will need to increase security presence there. So much for the low crowds and enjoyable atmosphere we’ve grown accustomed to....I suspect that will be long gone by this time next year

It something that took a little while to get through my head, because we head to the boardwalk almost every trip (for Jellyrolls) regardless of where we stay, but I do agree that there will be a uptick in the "traffic" at the Boardwalk. I don't think it will be quite as big as some think, depending on what Disney does with marketing it. They've never really tried to "push" people to Boardwalk the way they do Disney Springs. I think the majority of people at CBR/AOA/Pop won't even think too much about it unless Disney starts to advertise. Riviera maybe a little more so since DVC people tend to have a better perception of what's available on property. Just overall I think we could see boost there by maybe 40-50%, and that really would be only in the evenings.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I bet you're right. I wouldn't be surprised if that whole Boardwalk/Epcot/DHS area isn't turned into a big security area.

That could be similar to Disneyland and the entire DTD being in the security theatre with the ability to go right into the parks from there.

 

[han22735]

Looking at SSR security fees actually went down so for BWV to go up 30% may have something to do with the security bubble. For SSR housekeeping had the biggest increase at 28%

 

[pkrieger2287]

So does the 30% bump in security indicate what we all expect to happen - that the security is going to "move back" from DHS and Epcot park entrances and be at the Friendship Boats/Skyliner - meaning we are paying for the security at the boat dock?

Also, wonder what "Member Activities" increased to make that rise so much?

Security increase is not consistent among all DVC properties. AKV actually decreased from $551,509 to $522,645.

 

[skier_pete]

Looking at SSR security fees actually went down so for BWV to go up 30% may have something to do with the security bubble. For SSR housekeeping had the biggest increase at 28%

Security increase is not consistent among all DVC properties. AKV actually decreased from $551,509 to $522,645.

These both would indicate that it is indeed plans for a "security bubble". If so - would expect BCV and BWV to be the only two thus impacted. Anyone have access to the percents for all resorts?

 

[Jerry5788]

I'm not too worried about security - it increased 30% at BWV sure but that is only 2 cents to the dues. Housekeeping was 22 cents or almost 11x the amount of impact to my wallet.

 

[Mumof4mice]

With housekeeping soon earning $15 per hour, is anyone going to continue this relatively recent practise (socially, and unheard of in many countries) of tipping house keepers? I'm not.

Are you from the UK, @Wakey ? The US minimum wage is rough! We're amazed by the level of service delivered by minimum wage workers in the States (disclaimer: we're from Australia, which is practically socialist with the powerful union collective bargaining and employment laws). The only time we grumble about the tip culture is when the waiter is rude and 18% tip is still auto-added.

Housekeeping is more physically demanding than waiting tables. $15 to strip bed linen, vacuum, scrub an entire floor of rooms non-stop… I'd still want to top up their hourly rate.

 

[Wakey]

Are you from the UK, @Wakey ? The US minimum wage is rough! We're amazed by the level of service delivered by minimum wage workers in the States (disclaimer: we're from Australia, which is practically socialist with the powerful union collective bargaining and employment laws). The only time we grumble about the tip culture is when the waiter is rude and 18% tip is still auto-added.

Housekeeping is more physically demanding than waiting tables. $15 to strip bed linen, vacuum, scrub an entire floor of rooms non-stop… I'd still want to top up their hourly rate.

Hi mumof4. Yep in UK.Housekeepers in UK and Europe aren't on anything like $15 an hour generally, and rarely get tipped. I'm glad they are getting $15 an hour but will not be tipping. It's low skilled work, and my dues have gone up a lot albeit hard work I agree.

 

[skier_pete]

Not really on topic of the thread, but I tip for DVC housekeeping and still probably will. I agree at $15 a hour that is no longer necssarily a tipped position - but I feel my income is such that I can give them a extra few bucks for a job well done. (My wife makes not much more than $15 a hour.)

 

[skier_pete]

One other comment - while not thrilled about a 10% increase in dues - when it comes down to it, my 235 pts went up $155 per year. My 3 trips this year used 330 pts and cost ~ (using an weighted buy-in cost + MF) $3,169. The same rooms under a 25% cash discount would've cost me $ 9,509.40. Another $200 or so is still a massive savings. I'm not going to sell my points over this. I AM going to hope it goes up less in 2020.

It's really pretty easy to trace this to the wage increase. If you figure we are going from $10 a hour to $13 an hour in 2019 alone, that's a 30% increase in wages in a single year. We should NOT be surprised that this gets passed on to us. (And you better realize it will also be passed on to the guests on cash reservations!

 

[DebbieB]

Here's a brief review of the increases at BWV for various categories. Not sure if this is representative of other resorts.

Line item, 2018 pp, 2019 pp, difference $, difference %

Annual Operating Budget 3.9923 4.4380 0.4457 11.16%
Reserves 1.0596 1.1628 0.1032 9.74%
Ad Valorem Tax 1.4977 1.5714 0.0737 4.92%
Total Member Dues Per Point 6.5496 7.1722 0.6226 9.51%

Significant Sub Categories for the Operating Budget
Administration / Front Desk 0.6891 0.7804 0.0913 13.25%
Housekeeping 1.0977 1.3176 0.2199 20.03%
Maintenance 0.7587 0.7346 -0.0241 -3.18%
Management Fee 0.4973 0.5521 0.0548 11.02%
Member Activities 0.1848 0.2368 0.0520 28.14%
Transportation 0.4104 0.4252 0.0148 3.60%
Utilities 0.2747 0.2678 -0.0069 -2.51%
Security 0.0768 0.1004 0.0236 30.73%

Where is Member Services paid? I thought i heard one time it came out of the Management Fee. They probably had a salary increase also.

 

[Mumof4mice]

Hi mumof4. Yep in UK.Housekeepers in UK and Europe aren't on anything like $15 an hour generally, and rarely get tipped. I'm glad they are getting $15 an hour but will not be tipping. It's low skilled work, and my dues have gone up a lot albeit hard work I agree.

I see your point and agree $15 isn't horrible pay that cries out to be subsidised with tips.

All a matter of perspective. I can't get a good housekeeper (that comes in a couple of mornings a week) for less than $25 cash here. So as soon as mousekeeping on $10 an hour starts setting up folded towel animals on the children's beds, I'm toast!

 

[crisi]

I see your point and agree $15 isn't horrible pay that cries out to be subsidised with tips.

All a matter of perspective. I can't get a good housekeeper (that comes in a couple of mornings a week) for less than $25 cash here. So as soon as mousekeeping on $10 an hour starts setting up folded towel animals on the children's beds, I'm toast!

That's assuming its a $15 an hour full time job. And as someone said, it won't be $15 an hour until 2017.

For reference my daughter was making $13 an hour at Target. My son loads trucks at UPS for $15+. But the problem with this sort of low wage work is that it usually isn't full time. My son will get a ton of hours from now through Christmas, but usually its only about 20 hours or so a week.

I don't know where Disney is in terms of hours security, but because health care is such a huge cost, many big corporations keep their hourly staff below health care hours to keep health care costs in line. If Disney does that sort of cost management, they are only getting something like 28 hours a week.

 

[PaintsWithAllTheColors]

A question about the budget - what is included in member activities? And am I, as a resale member, subsidizing costs for events for direct members?

(Not at all begrudging direct members of their perks, I knew what I signed up for and chose acoordingly, just trying to understand the budget)

 

[Mumof4mice]

That's assuming its a $15 an hour full time job. And as someone said, it won't be $15 an hour until 2017.

For reference my daughter was making $13 an hour at Target. My son loads trucks at UPS for $15+. But the problem with this sort of low wage work is that it usually isn't full time. My son will get a ton of hours from now through Christmas, but usually its only about 20 hours or so a week.

I don't know where Disney is in terms of hours security, but because health care is such a huge cost, many big corporations keep their hourly staff below health care hours to keep health care costs in line. If Disney does that sort of cost management, they are only getting something like 28 hours a week.

Getting even further off topic, yes the American healthcare system is crazy expensive! How does anyone on low income afford healthcare in the US? A major illness would be crippling even for a solid middle class family.

I don't think the alternative would be palatable to most Americans though. We have amazing "free" healthcare in Australia, funded by 49% tax plus 2% Medicare levy. Let's stick to things within our control, like tipping housekeeping $10 heh?

 

[Jerry5788]

A question about the budget - what is included in member activities? And am I, as a resale member, subsidizing costs for events for direct members?

(Not at all begrudging direct members of their perks, I knew what I signed up for and chose acoordingly, just trying to understand the budget)

Interested as well! I assumed it meant common areas, pools, and the like.

 

[cde48]

We have had some time to look over the new dues. We have considered selling for a year or two, because our kids are getting older and our travel habits have changed quite a bit. I’m just not sure if we should look to sell now, or give it a bit. If the dues keep going up at even 3-5% per year, we will see our dues around $12-$15 per point in 10-15 years. I think this will affect the resale market substantially. Not sure if we should pull the trigger on selling now, before it gets affected too much. As it is now, we are spending about $7000 a year on dues, transportation to WDW, and food while there.

 

[cde48]

Interested as well! I assumed it meant common areas, pools, and the like.

We bought resale before 2011, and aren’t restricted. But, for those that are, and are paying for special events (if that’s the case), you should be entitled to the same access to those events. Not sure if that is the case or not.

 

[lovethesun12]

Yes I will continue to tip. We pay thousands to come from Canada for a trip. A few extra hundred for the lowest earners isn't going to break us.

With housekeeping soon earning $15 per hour, is anyone going to continue this relatively recent practise (socially, and unheard of in many countries) of tipping house keepers? I'm not.

Are you from the UK, @Wakey ? The US minimum wage is rough! We're amazed by the level of service delivered by minimum wage workers in the States (disclaimer: we're from Australia, which is practically socialist with the powerful union collective bargaining and employment laws). The only time we grumble about the tip culture is when the waiter is rude and 18% tip is still auto-added.

Housekeeping is more physically demanding than waiting tables. $15 to strip bed linen, vacuum, scrub an entire floor of rooms non-stop… I'd still want to top up their hourly rate.

 

[cde48]

Eh, I'm not super happy about the unexpected increase (about double what I was expecting), but I think that the current Disney landscape (TSL just added, 50th anniversary, Galaxy's edge), other hotels will see >= 10% price increases as well. Would be interested to seeing an updated "most economical DVC resorts" chart that get put out comparing the "complete" cost of a point.

Yes and no. We as owners Are paying dues that keep increasing year after year, whereas those that may go for those events may go that year, and skip for a few years. We just moved from FL, and when we ran out of points, we’d get some killer deals either with our AP or FL resident discount. We’ve stayed at AKL, YC, SSR, WL...from anywhere between $250-300 a night, often.