Beginning to look at DVC

[Pdollar88]

Hi all,

I'm planning on budgeting for a yearly trip to Disney. In doing this, I wondered if DVC would be right for me. I'm relatively young - 33 - and would be looking to purchase in about 5 years or so.

I know there's no way to see into the future to know what prices will look like then. However, using today's pricing, is there a way that I can relatively easily calculate whether DVC is right for me? I am looking at upping how often I go to WDW, so I was looking at the 175 point option at Riviera for ~35,000, annual dues $123. Currently, for a single trip per year, I'm budgeting $2400. I know that DVC will likely be higher than that, but I will be going more often and staying in a much nicer hotel.

Just curious about how to decide, and if there's a handy calculation or spreadsheet I can use.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

There are some folks that have some ideas laid out, I'm sure. But there are so many things to take into account. What size rooms do you need for the immediate future - studio, 1BR, 2BR? How about in 10 years, depending on any growth in your family? What time of year would you typically go, since points go faster during certain times of the year. How often would you go?

Also, not sure where $123 annual dues comes from, but for a 175 point contract, you're looking between $1450 and $1500 annually.

Not sure what Riviera looks like in 5 years either - it's currently not sold out, but I'm betting DVC is expecting it to be sold out in 5 years, so it could be more expensive to buy direct. And buying resale at Riviera has some issues, such as not being able to use your points at most of the other locations.

I'd recommend you keep asking questions, hopefully find someone with that spreadsheet you seek, do more research, list out pros and cons for you, and then keep saving! Good luck.

 

[Pdollar88]

There are some folks that have some ideas laid out, I'm sure. But there are so many things to take into account. What size rooms do you need for the immediate future - studio, 1BR, 2BR? How about in 10 years, depending on any growth in your family? What time of year would you typically go, since points go faster during certain times of the year. How often would you go?

Also, not sure where $123 annual dues comes from, but for a 175 point contract, you're looking between $1450 and $1500 annually.

Not sure what Riviera looks like in 5 years either - it's currently not sold out, but I'm betting DVC is expecting it to be sold out in 5 years, so it could be more expensive to buy direct. And buying resale at Riviera has some issues, such as not being able to use your points at most of the other locations.

I'd recommend you keep asking questions, hopefully find someone with that spreadsheet you seek, do more research, list out pros and cons for you, and then keep saving! Good luck.

Thank you for your response! Apologies about the dues - I meant 123 per month.

It would only be a couple traveling, and I don't anticipate that changing. I'm also looking to travel twice a year, probably once in September and once between January-March.

I'll just keep squirreling away a little money each month - I will have more than enough for a medium-sized down payment in 5 years. I'll take your advice and keep researching, asking questions, and evaluating what I think my needs will be in the future.

 

[stwaldman]

I'm in a similar age range and purchased in a couple of years ago. People will probably thread all sorts of fun ideas or complicated calcs which are all wonderful and useful, but feel free to PM with any questions about my initial buy in experience.

At a high level, we were starting a family, felt there was a value to our family in staying on site and at the deluxe resorts, and we're pretty committed to frequent travel for at least the next 10 years since the flight for us is short and affordable. The other details can be fun, but can also be a little nitpicky in my eyes (this isn't my 401k, it's vacation). I will also say I agree with those who suggest taking however many points you think you need, and building in some cushion. A few nights in an AKV studio sounded fine when we purchased and our last stay was off property, but nobody wants to turn down the extra points for that hard to get theme park view or clutch 1 BR when it pops up and you weren't expecting it.

 

[stwaldman]

I'm in a similar age range and purchased in a couple of years ago. People will probably thread all sorts of fun ideas or complicated calcs which are all wonderful and useful, but feel free to PM with any questions about my initial buy in experience.

At a high level, we were starting a family, felt there was a value to our family in staying on site and at the deluxe resorts, and we're pretty committed to frequent travel for at least the next 10 years since the flight for us is short and affordable. The other details can be fun, but can also be a little nitpicky in my eyes (this isn't my 401k, it's vacation). I will also say I agree with those who suggest taking however many points you think you need, and building in some cushion. A few nights in an AKV studio sounded fine when we purchased and our last stay was off property, but nobody wants to turn down the extra points for that hard to get theme park view or clutch 1 BR when it pops up and you weren't expecting it.

And to be fair, I still do some excel modeling on the side just to see how I compare to booking direct or staying off site

 

[thanxfornoticin]

If you can, take a look at the points chart for Riv in Sept and winter seasons. Keep in mind, there will be some variation in the Jan-Mar seasons. If there's a year with an earlier Easter, March rates will be higher. After NY's and until before Valentine's Day/Pres Day, the rates are lower, but will go up after.

I'd recommend looking at a 1BR point structure to start with. If you opt to do studios later, then you'll have extra points. But if you base your contract only on studios, you're likely to be disappointed at some point. And if you opt to stay somewhere else at the 7-month mark, depending on that location, studios are usually the hardest to get (because they're less points).

I hope this all works out for you and you have lots of memorable opportunities!

 

[crisi]

I think the question that comes before the financial is "is DVC a good fit for me." Read a lot. Spend the next five years learning the system and listening to people's complaints about it and decide whether its something that fits you. Things like cancellation policies, no late checkout, room availability, Disney changes to policy. Then, once you decide that DVC is a good fit for HOW you travel you can think about whether its a good financial fit. You may come to the conclusion that you'll save some money - but having to plan vacations way out and not having daily housekeeping isn't worth it. You may come to the conclusion that you will actually spend more money, but having vacations practically enforced (we need to use our points, let's plan a vacation) is worth the extra money.

 

[defrogger]

I just bought 4 months ago, I kind of compared it to Moderate resorts at Disney from a pricing perspective. We were going once a year and wanted to stay in moderates over economy resorts, couldnt afford Deluxe. But Moderates over the last 5 years have gone up, ide say average is now close $300/night depending on when you go. So roughly $2100 a week for the room. Granted you mentioned going in Sept/Jan, Moderates are cheaper at that time.
Rivera at $35000 for 175 points, one way to look at it, Rivera is 47 - 48 years left on it, so roughly $729/per year plus dues, or roughly $12.50/point/year. Currently each year costs you $2205 if i did the math right.
Studios at Rivera will probably be for Sept/Jan 129 - 143 points, so you will have points left over to bank. roughly a trip in Sept will cost you $1620/week and Jan $1788/week at Rivera.
Just be aware at Rivera, not allot of standard studios will be available, so 129-143 is for Preffered rooms, but if you get lucky with a standard its even less.
Riveras point chart is high, but they have the larger rooms with split bathrooms, and you can stay elsewhere at 7 months, usually easy to get Saratoga, OKW and Animal Kingdom at 7 months and there point charts are lower, so your cost goes down if you ever want to change it up.

We were going every year so it made sense to us, we will get to say in Deluxe resorts for less money then Moderates.

You mentioned you might go twice a year, that might be tough on 175 points at Rivera because of the high point charts, but if your willing to go to places like Saratoga/OKW/Animal Kingdom you can definitly go twice a year on 175 points. But if you really like Rivera and want to stay there all the time you will need more points, or go once a year and then every other year go twice.
Granted im assuming 1 week stay, if there shorter trips it might work out.

One thing to think about Rivera, is if you think you will sell inlets say 20 years, Rivera has the new resale restrictions on it, so a buyer can only stay at rivera. So people think it will make its value go down and hard to sell. I dont think it will be bad, i think that will become the norm for new resorts and in 20 years it will still be worth a nice junk of change if you do sell down the line, but thats just my opinion.

 

[havoc315]

Hi all,

I'm planning on budgeting for a yearly trip to Disney. In doing this, I wondered if DVC would be right for me. I'm relatively young - 33 - and would be looking to purchase in about 5 years or so.

I know there's no way to see into the future to know what prices will look like then. However, using today's pricing, is there a way that I can relatively easily calculate whether DVC is right for me? I am looking at upping how often I go to WDW, so I was looking at the 175 point option at Riviera for ~35,000, annual dues $123. Currently, for a single trip per year, I'm budgeting $2400. I know that DVC will likely be higher than that, but I will be going more often and staying in a much nicer hotel.

Just curious about how to decide, and if there's a handy calculation or spreadsheet I can use.

There are a number of spreadsheets online. But there are a lot of factors that are very hard to calculate, including the opportunity cost of spending up front.

But a general rule of thumb: If you are truly going to go every year, for 10-15+ years, then you will see value out of DVC, it will likely save you some money, purchasing a Riviera contract.
Where things get iffy -- some of the shorter contracts, and people who might not actually go every year.

 

[Uh_Oa]

We have owned DVC for a year now. I spent about two to three years deciding if it made sense. The six months before I finally did it, I researched the heck out of it. I had spreadsheets, spent many, many hours on this board, watched the first several episodes of DVC Fan over and over again. Do your research. Everyone will have a different way they make the numbers work for them. For us it was length of contract. The further we went out with the contract the better off we were. But everyone has different reasons why it works and why it doesn't.

But... after taking our first trip as DVC owners the bigger impact will be the experience. There was something about that trip that made it special compared to our previous trips to WDW. You can't put a dollar value on that. It's knowing you "own" a piece of the magic. It's hearing "Welcome Home" and seeing the purple ring when you enter a park. It's being at the best locations on property.

And now that I've finished drinking the Kool Aid, good luck in your research. This is a great place to find answers to help you make a decision.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

We have owned DVC for a year now. I spent about two to three years deciding if it made sense. The six months before I finally did it, I researched the heck out of it. I had spreadsheets, spent many, many hours on this board, watched the first several episodes of DVC Fan over and over again. Do your research. Everyone will have a different way they make the numbers work for them. For us it was length of contract. The further we went out with the contract the better off we were. But everyone has different reasons why it works and why it doesn't.

But... after taking our first trip as DVC owners the bigger impact will be the experience. There was something about that trip that made it special compared to our previous trips to WDW. You can't put a dollar value on that. It's knowing you "own" a piece of the magic. It's hearing "Welcome Home" and seeing the purple ring when you enter a park. It's being at the best locations on property.

And now that I've finished drinking the Kool Aid, good luck in your research. This is a great place to find answers to help you make a decision.

I agree with you 100% about the 'magic' and the 'feel'. You really can't put your finger on it, but it's definitely there. Sounds a bit like we work for Disney, but we don't!

 

[DisneyOutsider]

If you have to finance a significant amount of your DVC purchase, then it will just about destroy any value that you otherwise could have gained from DVC. From a financial perspective, you'll come out ahead renting DVC points for your stays so that you're not paying 9-10% APR on a purchase like this.

 

[E2ME2]

Hi all,

I'm planning on budgeting for a yearly trip to Disney. In doing this, I wondered if DVC would be right for me. I'm relatively young - 33 - and would be looking to purchase in about 5 years or so.

I know there's no way to see into the future to know what prices will look like then. However, using today's pricing, is there a way that I can relatively easily calculate whether DVC is right for me? I am looking at upping how often I go to WDW, so I was looking at the 175 point option at Riviera for ~35,000, annual dues $123. Currently, for a single trip per year, I'm budgeting $2400. I know that DVC will likely be higher than that, but I will be going more often and staying in a much nicer hotel.

Just curious about how to decide, and if there's a handy calculation or spreadsheet I can use.

Buy Sooner & Buy More
I bought originally in 2011, and not buying more points, sooner has been my only regret.
I was well beyond 35 when I bought in, and I can easily justify the costs compared to the "would have been" costs
when compared to what we were paying for our average trips, and now we stay in nicer digs!

 

[RoseGold]

DVC has a lot more options to buy than just whatever is currently being sold, which will be RIV for a long time. DVC is a complicated product with a lot of different point charts and products. IMO, buying resale is the right option for most and if you have to finance it, you shouldn't do it.

If your goal is cost efficiency, I would take a look at the AKL/SSR/OKW/even BLT charts and the resale pricing. If your goal is a really nice hotel, I'm not sure DVC is the right fit at all, but nothing else would be either on that budget.

I found this chart very helpful when I was getting started on the math. But the point charts are just as important. The chart does a lot of the work for Disney at RIV. If I were buying into the RIV chart, I might as well buy into VGF for a few points more, which is what I did. I don't know when or what you are booking or what the point cost is, but you should. There are a lot of sweet spots in the charts to get good value for points, and they're not at RIV.

There is no rush. DVC is not going anywhere. You really need to understand this product before you buy into it, and it is not right for everyone.

https://www.dvcresalemarket.com/blog/best-economical-dvc-resorts-to-purchase-spring-2021/

 

[Suzabella]

I gotta agree with RoseGold; resale is your best option. We bought in with a small resale contract of 50 points. It came in around $4K at the time and we paid cash. Once we were members, we could buy any number of points direct so we've added on 3 small direct contracts for hard to get reservations and one 150 pt. resale contract where we really want to stay every trip.

Even with the borrowing restrictions right now, that 50 pts gives you 125 pts every three years. It's a start and you can add on when able.

 

[Travel60]

I'll just keep squirreling away a little money each month - I will have more than enough for a medium-sized down payment in 5 years.


This sentence bothers me. If it's going to take you 5 years to save up for a down payment, I question whether this is a purchase for you. You will incur a lot of interest over the next several years paying it off. I would only finance a DVC purchase if I had no other outstanding debts (school, credit cards, vehicles). Home mortgage ok but not a second.

 

[dvc lover 1970]

With all the changes to Disney I would not recommend buying DVC right now. I would opt to rent points for a while - see how you like DVC and see how you enjoy the "new" disney. DVC is a big purchase and you need to be certain that you are willing to go to Disney every year or at least every other. With the proposed changes I would hold off to see if it is still worth it. Just my opinon - but I would rent points first for a couple years. If you decide it is for you - then yes I would purchase

 

[Leight19]

With all the changes to Disney I would not recommend buying DVC right now. I would opt to rent points for a while - see how you like DVC and see how you enjoy the "new" disney. DVC is a big purchase and you need to be certain that you are willing to go to Disney every year or at least every other. With the proposed changes I would hold off to see if it is still worth it. Just my opinon - but I would rent points first for a couple years. If you decide it is for you - then yes I would purchase

This would also be my recommendation. There has been so many changes lately with parks and benefits that it’s hard to tell where things will stabilize. Adding in the resale is at historic highs it may make sense for a wait and see approach.

 

[brazzledazzler]

My family just bought last month. We are also in our 30s. My tips would be:

- Do your research.
- Watch YouTube videos on DVC from DVCFan and others.
- Create spreadsheets.
- Read the DVC Disboards.

DVC is a complicated product, in that there is no “one size fits all” purchase for everyone. So, you really need to understand what you are getting for what you pay.

For example, last month both my parents and my husband and I both made DVC purchases.

My parents bought a 50 point resale at Polynesian. They want to stay there 3 nights a year for the Christmas events.

My husband and I bought 200 points direct from RIV to stay at Riviera and other resorts with our kids for the next few decades.

Do you research and understand what you are getting into. However, if you are thinking of a purchase in 5 years you may be premature. A lot can change in 5 years. I would say keep saving and look into DVC closer to when you plan to purchase.