We live in California in the Bay Area, and we own VGC and BLT. We are able to plan pretty far in advance, so in our case I think VGC is a must. The thing to consider about WDW is that there are so many resorts there, if you book at 7 months you usually don't get completely shut out there (though you may not get your favorite resort). At DLR, VGC is the only DVC resort, so there is no alternative there other than paying for a hotel.
If you can't plan in the home resort window, then SSR is really your only choice. There is literally no reason to buy anywhere else if you cannot use the 7-11 month window. In fact, if you can't plan 7 months ahead, you might want to avoid buying DVC altogether to be honest. If you are consistently booking out 3 months in advance, it may get difficult to get what you want.
I think that VGC has one of the most valuable Home Resort advantages of any DVC. The reason is that VGC is a small, very high demand resort. However, it's usually relatively easy to book there until even 7 months + 1 day except for special events. It's only after the 7 month window hits where it becomes difficult. On the other hand, at places like VGF, the studios sometimes fill up right at 11 months (usually December), so if you're not on top of it, even Home Resort advantage may not help.
Regarding waitlisting, I don't know about VGC specifically, however I have a friend who waitlisted for 25 points from Disney at BLT in March, and they got their points in a week or two. However, they had to call their guide to ask if the points were available, so if you do waitlist, I would make sure to check in with the guide every so often.