DVC - How Did You Do It?

[Cruelladeville]

We financed our first contract with Disney for 10 years, and paid extra so it was paid off in 3 years.
Immediately, we bought the second contract and paid it off in 1 1/2 years, financed. Bought 25 pts, then 50 pts, then 100, and paid cash with them.
Bought 270 more pts resale, and paid cash. The financed contracts were during the years we were paying for college for 3 of us. After college was done we were able to pay cash.

 

[Mr.Monk]

We used bonus money. I'd have considered financing if it hadn't been for the bonus.

DVC was the best decision we'd made regarding vacations. It has changed our outlook and expectations when we travel.

 

[flyerron]

We charged it all to our air miles credit card & paid that off with a home equity loan. Got mucho miles & the financing interest is tax deductable. You can call your credit card company & get a temporary increase in your credit line for the purchase if necessary. Lots of folks use their Disney CC for the purchase.

 

[3DisneyKids]

Reading these boards convinced me not to finance, so I knew that we would pay cash upfront. Then the question became how...

I did this on my own as a surprise for DH..so no way to use Home Equity, etc. (it was all very clandestine...it felt like I was having an affair with my Guide!)

So, first I got a Disney card in just my name (so I could get the points). Then, since I am a WAHM, and I do contract work, I picked up a contract that just happened to be in the same amount at a 150-point SSR contract! Hmmm...fancy that!

I should also mention that I purchased during Friends & Family (a great discount a year or two back), plus they let me stack a CM discount on top of that (my brother works for ABC and since we are immediately family, we can use his discount). So, we were able to buy in for about $74/point and this was only 18 months ago or so.

Anyway, once my contract money came, I paid off the Visa in full (within the month, so no interest), and viola--DVC is ours!

Then, I had to sit on the news until surprising him with it (at the airport on the way to our first adults-only Disney trip!).



We started with a 150-point contract, btw, for the exact reason of paying for it in full.

 

[stingmom]

we bought in small, utilizing Timeshare Store and a small "vacation" loan from the bank (cheaper than CC%). most recently we added on direct through DVC at AKV, another small amount on a CC this time (to get some reward points) and then paid it off immediately. you won't regret your purchase! leaves money when you do go for the *extras* like Cirque, character meals daily and spa treatments! (these were hard to justify when we were already paying almost $1,000 for a room, plus tickets! for a stay!)

 

[brandip22]

We paid about 30% down in cash from my bonus. Then, we financed the rest for 5 years. Comes out of my checking and I have 3 years left. We only have 150 points, but no more until these are paid off. If we do not pay off early, we will get this paid off and our two cars at the same time. I expect at that time, we will do an add-on with the extra cash. However, I plan to do 25 point add-ons at a time with cash. Should only take a couple of months each time. I'd like 300 points total, but we'll see.

 

[MouseHouse71]

We just bought in at SSR through Disney. Although we could have gotten the same points for a lower price (resale), I was comfortable buying from Disney. I did not want to buy a stripped contract through resale and not be able to use it for 8-12 months. The double points incentive made sense to us. The incentive points will come in useful for a cruise or extended vacation. Kind of lets you start out a little ahead!!!

We did finance through Disney. Although a bit pricey (10.75%). It was extremely simple. I am sure that we will pay it off in the next couple of years.

Enjoy and Good Luck!!!

JP

 

[Chester's Mum]

I've just started by buying a small 60 pt contract at BWV. I don't sleep well over debt, I couldn't afford to put out upwards of $16,000 in advance, and I don't want to wait to save that much money. I bought what I could afford, with the intention of adding on every couple of years until I get to "enough" points. You should be aware though that the much discussed "adonitis" is extremely contagious. I haven't even had a stay at my new home and already I'm trying to figure out how to buy more points. I really have to talk myself down from this, I think its an addiction, sort of like gambling. Yikes! I thought I was so sensible.

 

[naf917]

Both my DW and I work so we used our bonuses and tax return and paid cash for our resale contract. Now we need to save some more before I try to get her to let me add on some more points.

 

[flyerron]

There are a bunch of great creative ideas on this thread. Our ingenuity never ceases. We charged everything on our air miles charg card then paid it off with home equity loan.

 

[disneydenisel]

After renting points at BCV and loving it, I came home and found a resale contract. I ended up selling my piano to pay for it! It was very sad for me, and I still miss the piano, but am happy to own the DVC points!

Timeshare vacations are addictive. We purchased our first timeshare using a mileage credit card and then transferring the balance to 0% credit cards every 11-12 months.

 

[dsneygirl]

We used our HELOC. The interest is less than what we were paying to stay moderate or value for a week so we figured it was worth it in the long run.