First Timer

[kcdsny]

First time on. Thanks for all the great Disney info.

Just got back from Orlando 1/8 an am considering DVC? We arent really sure if we would need 150 points however? Noticed you could by smaller increments at some of the resale websites. Is this a viable option? If you do this do you have to bank points forward and backward in order to make a reservation 11 months out? Was also wondering how easy it is to buy (transfer) points from other DVC Members? Thanks again.

Carl

[tjkraz]

Carl,

Welcome!

Yes, you can buy smaller contracts via resale. DVC will only sell a minimum contract of 150 to a new member. But after becoming a member, one can add points to ther contract in incriments of 25 or more. Those 25+ pt contracts are then stand-alone entities which the member can later sell if needed. That's where you see the small contracts on the resale market.

The problems with buying small contracts like that are they are fairly rare (at least compared to 150+ contracts.) They are also in great demand by people like yourself who may not want to buy 150. I don't think it's uncommon to see a contract of less than 150 sell at a 10-20% premium over the cost of a 150+ contract. That's on a per-point basis. In other words, if BWV points are going for about $85 each, a BWV contract of less than 150 could easily be bid up to $95 or more due to demand.

Closing costs can also see a bit cumbersome on the smaller contracts. The buyer normally pays closing which starts around $400 regardless of the size of the contract. On a 200 pt contract, that's just $2 additional per point to close. But on a 75 pt contract, that's more than $5 per point extra for the closing.

You don't necessarily need to bank or borrow points if you have less than 150. It all depends on how you want to use them. Studio rooms at Old Key West start at just 8 pts per night. With just 40 points you could book 5 nights per year at OKW without having to borrow. But if you're considering using the points on a less-than-annual frequency (i.e. every-other-year), then you can certainly bank points and combine two years' worth for a single trip.

Transfers are pretty easy, but do realize that there is a limit of ONE transfer per contract, per year. You would have to make sure you get all of the points that you will need in a single transaction because you would be unable to receive more points later in the year.

One other approach to at least consider is that you could buy a 150-pt contract of your own and rent-out or transfer (to another member) the excess points you don't need in a given year. I guess it depends a lot on how many points you are really considering. If you think you will use about 120 per year, then buying 150 is (in my opinion) the way to go. You can keep banking the 30 excess points each year and after 4 years you will have enough for an extra trip. Or you could rent/transfer them to someone else and make a little profit off of the points.

Right now DVC is running a special on points at Saratoga Springs of just $86 per point with a referral from a current member. Honestly you can't even beat that price at SSR via the resale market now. If you're interested, send me a private message and I can get you the referral info in order to obtain that price.

The $86 price is only good until this SATURDAY, 1/20. Given past practices, I can pretty much guarantee that DVC's prices will go up at least $5 per point after Saturday, and there is an additional $3 price increase coming around March 4th.

But if you do want to buy less than 150 and/or won't be ready to make a commitment by Saturday, then by all means contact some of the resale agents and see what they have to offer. Many people have had excellent experiences buying resale.

Hope that helps.
Tim

[mushu]

:welcome:

[CptJacksPrincess]

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