Who SHOULDN’T buy DVC?

I think most, if not all, of the posters on this thread are DVC owners. Here's the perspective of someone who goes to WDW usually at least once a year and I don't own DVC and wouldn't. It's true that I probably pay more than I would if I owned DVC, but I much prefer it this way for a few reasons, as follows:
  • Except for OKW, which doesn't have elevators in all the buildings, which rules OKW out for me, there are no DVC studios that I know of that have 2 queen beds. That'd be fine if I were traveling only with DH, but my sister and I often go to WDW together and we each want a real, actual bed, not a sleeper sofa or a cot, and we don't want to share a bed. And we wouldn't be buying 2-bedroom accommodations.
  • Planning in advance is fine, but not being able to easily change those plans is not fine with me. I've had several trips where I had to change my reservations for one reason or another--most recently a reservation I had to move twice due to weather/transportation issues--and doing it direct with WDW room reservations has, so far at least, been pretty darn easy.
  • I'm going to ask kindly here to please not jump on me for what I'm about to say. But--when I go to WDW and stay deluxe, I want to be satisfied with my room. If I check in and the room isn't what I want, I do go back to the front desk and ask for a change. Yes yes yes yes yes, I realize, they don't owe me any particular room and no, I'm not talking about asking for an upgrade. For example, last year my sister and I checked into AKL and were given a room that was significantly smaller than any other room I've ever stayed in there. How much smaller? It didn't have the second dresser in it, because there was no space for it. I didn't even know such a room existed at AKL. We went back to the front desk and they moved us right away. No big deal. As I understand it, if we owned DVC and checked into our room and weren't pleased with it for whatever reason, the odds or us getting moved--unless it was something like the electricity didn't work or something significant was broken and couldn't be fixed--are slim to none. Please, I beg of you, do your best not to insult me for this. I'm just not the "anywhere is fine with me" kind of resort guest. I never give anyone a hard time, I don't ask for--unless I intend to pay for it--or expect or even want any kind of upgrade, and I'm not unreasonable. But I am somewhat picky. And, btw, I often check in and have a perfect room. So it's not like I do this every trip or every other trip. But it has happened and I like being able to ask, anyway, even if nothing can be done. With a DVC reservation, as I understand it, nothing is what can be done.
  • What if I don't want to go to WDW next year or for a couple of years or more? Yes, I could rent out the points or bank them or whatever, but, really, I don't want to be bothered.
  • I'm not a fan of the sort of tiered membership that DVC now has. That resale buyers are second- or third-class DVC owners. Even if I bought direct I wouldn't be a fan of this because maybe I'd want to sell someday and this may be becoming more difficult to do.
  • I don't want to be tied into paying the membership dues every year. And they raise them. Etc.
  • I don't mind complexity, but when I read posts by DVC owners where they discuss UYs, banking, borrowing, and how it's getting more difficult to book certain room types 7 months out, etc., etc., etc., my immediate reaction is: I'm so happy I don't have to think about this!
  • I don't have access to a time machine. If I did, the items above might be moot, because I think at $50 or $60 per point, DVC was a pretty good purchase. Now? Absolutely not.
There are other reasons as well, but I think these are the main ones.
 
I think most, if not all, of the posters on this thread are DVC owners. Here's the perspective of someone who goes to WDW usually at least once a year and I don't own DVC and wouldn't. It's true that I probably pay more than I would if I owned DVC, but I much prefer it this way for a few reasons, as follows:
  • Except for OKW, which doesn't have elevators in all the buildings, which rules OKW out for me, there are no DVC studios that I know of that have 2 queen beds. That'd be fine if I were traveling only with DH, but my sister and I often go to WDW together and we each want a real, actual bed, not a sleeper sofa or a cot, and we don't want to share a bed. And we wouldn't be buying 2-bedroom accommodations.
  • Planning in advance is fine, but not being able to easily change those plans is not fine with me. I've had several trips where I had to change my reservations for one reason or another--most recently a reservation I had to move twice due to weather/transportation issues--and doing it direct with WDW room reservations has, so far at least, been pretty darn easy.
  • I'm going to ask kindly here to please not jump on me for what I'm about to say. But--when I go to WDW and stay deluxe, I want to be satisfied with my room. If I check in and the room isn't what I want, I do go back to the front desk and ask for a change. Yes yes yes yes yes, I realize, they don't owe me any particular room and no, I'm not talking about asking for an upgrade. For example, last year my sister and I checked into AKL and were given a room that was significantly smaller than any other room I've ever stayed in there. How much smaller? It didn't have the second dresser in it, because there was no space for it. I didn't even know such a room existed at AKL. We went back to the front desk and they moved us right away. No big deal. As I understand it, if we owned DVC and checked into our room and weren't pleased with it for whatever reason, the odds or us getting moved--unless it was something like the electricity didn't work or something significant was broken and couldn't be fixed--are slim to none. Please, I beg of you, do your best not to insult me for this. I'm just not the "anywhere is fine with me" kind of resort guest. I never give anyone a hard time, I don't ask for--unless I intend to pay for it--or expect or even want any kind of upgrade, and I'm not unreasonable. But I am somewhat picky. And, btw, I often check in and have a perfect room. So it's not like I do this every trip or every other trip. But it has happened and I like being able to ask, anyway, even if nothing can be done. With a DVC reservation, as I understand it, nothing is what can be done.
  • What if I don't want to go to WDW next year or for a couple of years or more? Yes, I could rent out the points or bank them or whatever, but, really, I don't want to be bothered.
  • I'm not a fan of the sort of tiered membership that DVC now has. That resale buyers are second- or third-class DVC owners. Even if I bought direct I wouldn't be a fan of this because maybe I'd want to sell someday and this may be becoming more difficult to do.
  • I don't want to be tied into paying the membership dues every year. And they raise them. Etc.
  • I don't mind complexity, but when I read posts by DVC owners where they discuss UYs, banking, borrowing, and how it's getting more difficult to book certain room types 7 months out, etc., etc., etc., my immediate reaction is: I'm so happy I don't have to think about this!
  • I don't have access to a time machine. If I did, the items above might be moot, because I think at $50 or $60 per point, DVC was a pretty good purchase. Now? Absolutely not.
There are other reasons as well, but I think these are the main ones.

Not knocking you at all - these are all really really good points. People staying deluxe are paying it for convenience. DVC doesn't always give you that.

To the point about room changes. DVC DOES try to be accommodating when it comes to room issues, but because DVC is usually booked at near 100% capacity, it is often difficult for them to move you same day, so you may have to wait until the following day.

DVC is NOT exactly the same as a hotel stay as @Miffy here points out. It IS a timeshare regardless of what the sales pitch tells you. You don't get the same level of service in your hotel room. And in fact it's a good point - if you MUST have maid service every day - I would suggest that DVC may not be for you.

Last comment - to me as a member - I bought the membership to have deluxe resort stays at prices I could afford. It helps a lot that we got our points for $74 / point buy-in and bought resale before many of the perks/benefits went away. But DVC has allowed us to stay at many deluxe resorts that we would never ever be able to afford otherwise. In 2018 we had 20 nights at deluxe properties (staying at AKV, BWV, WLV, BCV). I looked up the cash room prices for the views/dates we had - and even assuming a 25% discount over rack rates - it would've cost us $ 9,509.40 for 20 nights, or $475 a night. When I factor in buy-in price (over 42 years) and maintenance fees, what we ACTUALLY paid for those 20 nights is $ 3,169.19, or about $158 a night. I couldn't stay at a moderate for that price. I personally take the long booking windows, the lack of housekeeping, the single bed in the room, tracking my UY and my points, banking, borrowing and all the 2nd class citizenship issues and enjoy my $158 a night room with a view like this...



DVC doesn't work for everyone - there's lots of people that buy and are not happy with it. If anyone follows what I post, you know I am not "blinded by the Disney light" when it comes to DVC, There's certainly a lot of game-playing that goes on and the recent stuff has turned me off (for now) to buying additional points. I put a lot of work into my membership. (If you check out the "Studio and 1-bedroom availability thread" you'll know how much work I put in.) But in the end I am ecstatic to own DVC...the good to me outweighs the bad. It let's me stay where I always dreamed of staying but never dreamed I could afford to stay. That's where it works for me.
 
As much as things scare me with the direction they're going in (really the point reallocation thing with lock-off premium is my primary concern), DVC is still a way better deal than paying cash for deluxe rooms. 2BRs at GF go for like $1500+ a night. They're insanely expensive.

Most of the 2 bedrooms are over $1000/night at all DVC resorts....... if you can book them.

This is why this family of 5 bought in...... and yes we did finance some of it, but with 3 year loans, so the interest on the loans was much cheaper than waiting and paying for rack rates over the past 3 years.
 


Most of the 2 bedrooms are over $1000/night at all DVC resorts....... if you can book them.

This is why this family of 5 bought in...... and yes we did finance some of it, but with 3 year loans, so the interest on the loans was much cheaper than waiting and paying for rack rates over the past 3 years.

You can’t even book the boardwalk view rooms we always get with points. That’s why we.bought BWV points resale 12 years ago. We determined what we wanted, that said we have booked studios, 1 bedrooms and 2 bedrooms but all boardwalk view. More points but it makes the trip for me.
 
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The first type is someone who cannot pay cash. Getting into debt for a luxury purchase is a bad idea.
Second type is someone who doesn't visit WDW at least every 2 years. Whilst there's 3 years use to points with banking and borrowing, timing can become tricky over 3 years.
Third type is someone who is happy staying in value and possibly moderate. Moderate is not so clear cut but if you are happy with value, DVC will cost you a lot of money for something you possibly do not want or need.
The fourth type is someone who cannot book vacations at least 7 months out, particularly if they want a studio, as availibility may disappear quickly after 7 months.
 
The first type is someone who cannot pay cash. Getting into debt for a luxury purchase is a bad idea.

I continue to argue against this particular idea. It really depends for how much, how long, and at what interest rate. We purchased our first contract in 2014 at AKV. I financed a loan through my HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) at the time for around $12,000. It was a 10-year fixed at 3.74%. My original intention was to try and pay it off in 5 years instead of 10. Subsequently, we got some extra cash in 2017, and I instead ended up buying a 2nd (75 pt) contract at BWV, which I then paid cash for. Instead of paying off the loan.

All told, I have paid a little over $1000 in interest on the loan over the last 5 years. I don't have the extra # but last year's interest was $194. I have about 2 years left for payoff, and I was debating about paying it off this year, but total interest left over two years is $157, so I may just use that money towards paying other things with higher interest (mortgage).

In the end - I bought AKV in '14 at $74 a point, and BWV in '17 at $105 a point. If I waited until I had all the money today - I would have to spend $105 a point on AKV and $125 a point on BWV - so it would've cost me $6,460 MORE to wait 5 years - AND I wouldn't have gotten 5 years worth of vacations at DVC prices AND I would not have all the membership perks since I bought before MOST of the restrictions were in place. Admittedly I did not KNOW prices would go up so much and perks would be taken away, but even without that, it was a reasonable plan versus continuing to pay cash for rooms.

What I would say is that IF you are buying on credit - you need to really look at what the interest rate you are paying and how it affects the price of the purchase, and what the results could be. ESPECIALLY when buying direct, realize that much like a car - your property will depreciate in value the second you "Step off the lot". Are you in a financial situation where you could easily run into trouble? Will financing add tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of the purchase, and in doing so mean it makes little financial sense? DO you have somewhere that you can get a loan at a reasonable rate? IF you are financing through Disney at 12% on a $25,000 purchase over 10 years, Understand you will be paying $3000 the first year in interest alone, and close to $16,000 extra over the length of the loan. Does it still make financial sense if you do that? You really need to know.
 


We financed a resale purchase in October paid it off in January. We recently purchase direct at CC which we financed. Plan to pay it off in less than 3 years. I think financing is fine as long as you have a plan to pay it off quicker. I always see people saying they wouldn’t buy at these prices but in 10 years everyone will be saying I wish I had bought in 2019. Disney will continue to raise the price per point. It’s not going to magically get cheaper. Same with resale. If you want it and can afford it do it (cash or financing). It really depends on your situation.
 
Respectfully, financing a luxury purchase is a poor choice for most people. Having worked in the financial services industry for several years, I came across far too many who financed and lived to regret it.

Life happens - unforseen medical bills, divorce, job loss, etc. IMO, if one doesn't have an emergency fund, adequate health, life and (maybe long term care insurance and college savings for the chilfren) and isn't on track for a secure retirement, he/she can't afford luxury purchases. That's even more true if one has credit card debt. YMMV
 
I continue to argue against this particular idea. It really depends for how much, how long, and at what interest rate. We purchased our first contract in 2014 at AKV. I financed a loan through my HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) at the time for around $12,000. It was a 10-year fixed at 3.74%. My original intention was to try and pay it off in 5 years instead of 10. Subsequently, we got some extra cash in 2017, and I instead ended up buying a 2nd (75 pt) contract at BWV, which I then paid cash for. Instead of paying off the loan.

All told, I have paid a little over $1000 in interest on the loan over the last 5 years. I don't have the extra # but last year's interest was $194. I have about 2 years left for payoff, and I was debating about paying it off this year, but total interest left over two years is $157, so I may just use that money towards paying other things with higher interest (mortgage).

In the end - I bought AKV in '14 at $74 a point, and BWV in '17 at $105 a point. If I waited until I had all the money today - I would have to spend $105 a point on AKV and $125 a point on BWV - so it would've cost me $6,460 MORE to wait 5 years - AND I wouldn't have gotten 5 years worth of vacations at DVC prices AND I would not have all the membership perks since I bought before MOST of the restrictions were in place. Admittedly I did not KNOW prices would go up so much and perks would be taken away, but even without that, it was a reasonable plan versus continuing to pay cash for rooms.

What I would say is that IF you are buying on credit - you need to really look at what the interest rate you are paying and how it affects the price of the purchase, and what the results could be. ESPECIALLY when buying direct, realize that much like a car - your property will depreciate in value the second you "Step off the lot". Are you in a financial situation where you could easily run into trouble? Will financing add tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of the purchase, and in doing so mean it makes little financial sense? DO you have somewhere that you can get a loan at a reasonable rate? IF you are financing through Disney at 12% on a $25,000 purchase over 10 years, Understand you will be paying $3000 the first year in interest alone, and close to $16,000 extra over the length of the loan. Does it still make financial sense if you do that? You really need to know.

Exactly this. We had the savings, but didn't want to pull it out for a luxury purchase. We wanted it to keep building up in the bank. Our philosophy is one purchase at a time: So one car is paid off before we buy another car. With only one reasonable loan at a time, we were never at risk.
 
Exactly this. We had the savings, but didn't want to pull it out for a luxury purchase. We wanted it to keep building up in the bank. Our philosophy is one purchase at a time: So one car is paid off before we buy another car. With only one reasonable loan at a time, we were never at risk.

I'm in the same boat. Hoping to goodness that my 07 accord with 140k on it makes it 4 more years. I consider it to be a fun challenge, but have the savings in case something terrible happens to it.
 
I think most, if not all, of the posters on this thread are DVC owners. Here's the perspective of someone who goes to WDW usually at least once a year and I don't own DVC and wouldn't. It's true that I probably pay more than I would if I owned DVC, but I much prefer it this way for a few reasons, as follows:
  • Except for OKW, which doesn't have elevators in all the buildings, which rules OKW out for me, there are no DVC studios that I know of that have 2 queen beds. That'd be fine if I were traveling only with DH, but my sister and I often go to WDW together and we each want a real, actual bed, not a sleeper sofa or a cot, and we don't want to share a bed. And we wouldn't be buying 2-bedroom accommodations.
  • Planning in advance is fine, but not being able to easily change those plans is not fine with me. I've had several trips where I had to change my reservations for one reason or another--most recently a reservation I had to move twice due to weather/transportation issues--and doing it direct with WDW room reservations has, so far at least, been pretty darn easy.
  • I'm going to ask kindly here to please not jump on me for what I'm about to say. But--when I go to WDW and stay deluxe, I want to be satisfied with my room. If I check in and the room isn't what I want, I do go back to the front desk and ask for a change. Yes yes yes yes yes, I realize, they don't owe me any particular room and no, I'm not talking about asking for an upgrade. For example, last year my sister and I checked into AKL and were given a room that was significantly smaller than any other room I've ever stayed in there. How much smaller? It didn't have the second dresser in it, because there was no space for it. I didn't even know such a room existed at AKL. We went back to the front desk and they moved us right away. No big deal. As I understand it, if we owned DVC and checked into our room and weren't pleased with it for whatever reason, the odds or us getting moved--unless it was something like the electricity didn't work or something significant was broken and couldn't be fixed--are slim to none. Please, I beg of you, do your best not to insult me for this. I'm just not the "anywhere is fine with me" kind of resort guest. I never give anyone a hard time, I don't ask for--unless I intend to pay for it--or expect or even want any kind of upgrade, and I'm not unreasonable. But I am somewhat picky. And, btw, I often check in and have a perfect room. So it's not like I do this every trip or every other trip. But it has happened and I like being able to ask, anyway, even if nothing can be done. With a DVC reservation, as I understand it, nothing is what can be done.
  • What if I don't want to go to WDW next year or for a couple of years or more? Yes, I could rent out the points or bank them or whatever, but, really, I don't want to be bothered.
  • I'm not a fan of the sort of tiered membership that DVC now has. That resale buyers are second- or third-class DVC owners. Even if I bought direct I wouldn't be a fan of this because maybe I'd want to sell someday and this may be becoming more difficult to do.
  • I don't want to be tied into paying the membership dues every year. And they raise them. Etc.
  • I don't mind complexity, but when I read posts by DVC owners where they discuss UYs, banking, borrowing, and how it's getting more difficult to book certain room types 7 months out, etc., etc., etc., my immediate reaction is: I'm so happy I don't have to think about this!
  • I don't have access to a time machine. If I did, the items above might be moot, because I think at $50 or $60 per point, DVC was a pretty good purchase. Now? Absolutely not.
There are other reasons as well, but I think these are the main ones.

Starting with Riviera, studios will have a queen bed and a queen Murphy bed where the couch is. 1 and 2 bedrooms will get the Murphy bed in the Living room. When pulled down it will have a queen size mattress, no more sofa beds, it’s a real mattress. The refurbishment happening at SSR later this year will have Murphy beds installed too. I believe they will be putting them in all resorts during refurbishments where they can. People have been complaining how bad the sofa bed is. It appears they are listening.
 
Starting with Riviera, studios will have a queen bed and a queen Murphy bed where the couch is. 1 and 2 bedrooms will get the Murphy bed in the Living room. When pulled down it will have a queen size mattress, no more sofa beds, it’s a real mattress. The refurbishment happening at SSR later this year will have Murphy beds installed too. I believe they will be putting them in all resorts during refurbishments where they can. People have been complaining how bad the sofa bed is. It appears they are listening.

Yes, it will be interesting though. I know that the Murphy bed will have a "real" mattress, but some of the worst beds I've ever been on are Murphy beds, so I am in "Wait and see" mode on this concept.
 
I continue to argue against this particular idea. It really depends for how much, how long, and at what interest rate. We purchased our first contract in 2014 at AKV. I financed a loan through my HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) at the time for around $12,000. It was a 10-year fixed at 3.74%. My original intention was to try and pay it off in 5 years instead of 10. Subsequently, we got some extra cash in 2017, and I instead ended up buying a 2nd (75 pt) contract at BWV, which I then paid cash for. Instead of paying off the loan.

All told, I have paid a little over $1000 in interest on the loan over the last 5 years. I don't have the extra # but last year's interest was $194. I have about 2 years left for payoff, and I was debating about paying it off this year, but total interest left over two years is $157, so I may just use that money towards paying other things with higher interest (mortgage).

In the end - I bought AKV in '14 at $74 a point, and BWV in '17 at $105 a point. If I waited until I had all the money today - I would have to spend $105 a point on AKV and $125 a point on BWV - so it would've cost me $6,460 MORE to wait 5 years - AND I wouldn't have gotten 5 years worth of vacations at DVC prices AND I would not have all the membership perks since I bought before MOST of the restrictions were in place. Admittedly I did not KNOW prices would go up so much and perks would be taken away, but even without that, it was a reasonable plan versus continuing to pay cash for rooms.

What I would say is that IF you are buying on credit - you need to really look at what the interest rate you are paying and how it affects the price of the purchase, and what the results could be. ESPECIALLY when buying direct, realize that much like a car - your property will depreciate in value the second you "Step off the lot". Are you in a financial situation where you could easily run into trouble? Will financing add tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of the purchase, and in doing so mean it makes little financial sense? DO you have somewhere that you can get a loan at a reasonable rate? IF you are financing through Disney at 12% on a $25,000 purchase over 10 years, Understand you will be paying $3000 the first year in interest alone, and close to $16,000 extra over the length of the loan. Does it still make financial sense if you do that? You really need to know.

OK good point Pete, you are saying you paid less with the good interest rate deal you got. It worked for you, and a good example of the exception to every rule (I continually point out on here that buy where you want to stay and you cannot get availability at 7 months is not always the rule if you go in 1 beds). However, stretching oneself with credit to buy non essential luxury purchases is not always sound, and many people who buy DVC on credit do via DVC financing which is frankly appalling value for money. It is essentially secured debt where DVD retain total control if a loanee defaults, but they charge - what- 10%? Cheers.
 
Yes, it will be interesting though. I know that the Murphy bed will have a "real" mattress, but some of the worst beds I've ever been on are Murphy beds, so I am in "Wait and see" mode on this concept.
Assuming Pete it is the same bed as the ones already in operation at Pop (but over a sofa rather than a table) all the feedback thus far seems to be it is just as good as the normal bed in the same room. I am holding out hope as they are putting in Saratoga and the refurb there looks lovely. The murphy bed in the 1 beds at Saratoga will have a chaise section to it by the looks of it, I am hoping that would make a sleeping area for a 5th body (it seems to stay in place as the bed is lowered from the photo shown at the DVC meeting).
 
Late to the party and didn't read thread. I am sure all my bullet points will have already been mentioned:

*those who can't afford the annual dues for the life of the contract
*those who can't plan trip 11-7 months out (who can only do last minute plans)
*those who do not want to go to WDW, at least, every other year (I'd really say you should want to go every year, but every other is still viable)
*those who want more concierge service like club lounges and/or daily housekeeping
*those who have to refinance (take out home equity) or take some extreme measures to buy in
* this one is more a personal thought...those who are good with their family staying in a regular hotel room...we bought, as a fam of 5, for the separate sleeping spaces of the 1/2BR villas otherwise we would have continued booking moderates with free dining. But I know many folks buy with intent to always do studios...I just don't get that...just my opinion. I'd have rather stayed not locked in to annual/biannual trips (DVC locked in by having to use points) and able to get free dining and daily housekeeping...if we could have all been comfortable in a regular hotel room.
 
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Late to the party and didn't read thread. I am sure all my bullet points will have already been mentioned:

*those who can't afford the annual dues for the life of the contract
*those who can't plan trip 11-7 months out (who can only do last minute plans)
*those who do not want to go to WDW, at least, every other year (I'd really say you should want to go every year, but every other is still viable)
*those who want more concierge service like club lounges and/or daily housekeeping
*those who have to refinance (take out home equity) or take some extreme measures to buy in
* this one is more a personal thought...those who are good with their family staying in a regular hotel room...we bought, as a fam of 5, for the separate sleeping spaces of the 1/2BR villas otherwise we would have continued booking moderates with free dining. But I know many folks buy with intent to always do studios...I just don't get that...just my opinion. I'd have rather stayed not locked in to annual/biannual trips (DVC locked in by having to use points) and able to get free dining and daily housekeeping...if we could have all been comfortable in a regular hotel room.
Mandatory Archer rant on biannual vs biennial post!

 
Batting around ideas for a show, and thought about this. I have my opinions (surprise), but I wanted to see what the experts had to say. Who shouldn’t buy DVC? Or, when is DVC not a good option?
Just seeing this post now but I think this is a great topic. I live in South Florida and I'm a planner. 1. It's my personality (currently looking at RCCL cruises for Spring 2021) & 2. because my husband is a PD, we have to plan in order for him to get time off. However, most of my friends decide to go to Disney on a whim or if they "plan" it's like 2 months in advance. DVC doesn't work for them. I've met several people locally who bought into DVC way back when (or their parents did) and they hated it and sold it.
 

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