The Poojer Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 does anyone own one of the Disney Vaction Club shares? I don't know much about anything, but they seem like a decent deal without the restrictions of specific weeks, i know you have to pay points to do things, but can anyone provide insight into the pros and cons of "investing" thanks in advance.
BillsWatch Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 POOJ, I do not have Disney Timeshares but I have Fairfield. I bought in Orlando and thought it was a good deal at the time. I was told I had first prioroity and if I called the first day I could I would automatically get a room of my type since owners at a resort get first choice. I called several times to make sure I was booked at the earliest possible point and each time I was told I was too early, I called several days in a row before the date to insure that I was going to be first. The exact date I was allowed to book I called right when office opened up and I was told 'booked'. It appears that the rules are different at timeshares if you are a 'regular' owner or one of these 'super' owners are like many of the agents are. They oversell many of the points packages which are low as ways to get people to join and then they keep pushing you to buy more. I have not been able to stay at my resort since I bought my points and have had to stay at other resorts during off periods to get to stay at all. I you buy and I do not recommend you do, buy used; there are plenty of dissatisfied customers for good reasons and you can buy for a lot less. Glenn
LabattBlue Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 does anyone own one of the Disney Vaction Club shares? I don't know much about anything, but they seem like a decent deal without the restrictions of specific weeks, i know you have to pay points to do things, but can anyone provide insight into the pros and cons of "investing" thanks in advance. 298279[/snapback] Pooj...Here is a good link for DVC. There are additional links at the bottom of this one... http://www.allearsnet.com/acc/dvc.htm
obie_wan Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 does anyone own one of the Disney Vaction Club shares? I don't know much about anything, but they seem like a decent deal without the restrictions of specific weeks, i know you have to pay points to do things, but can anyone provide insight into the pros and cons of "investing" thanks in advance. 298279[/snapback] Poojer- what the hell are you doing investing in a timeshare? If you want to vacation in Orlando- rent a house. If you want an investment property- buy a house and contract with a mgmt company to rent it. do not buy something that you can't easily sell and have no control over its use.
2003Contenders Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 It's funny you bring this up, because I went on one of these time share tours when I was down there in Orlando a few weeks ago. I just did it for the free Disney tickets. 1. The price for a 1 bedroom (for just one week out of the year) was about $20 K. If you break that down (considering 1/52 of the total cost), that makes it over $1 Million for a one bedroom condo! 2. They try to break it down for you to pay for it on a monthly basis over five years. The interest rate is crazy (like 17%) -- and it winds up costing several hundred dollars per month. They will argue that you spend the money for just 5 years and it is yours for life. The reality is that what you pay per month for this thing is probably more than your lodging would cost for a week of vacation anyway. So, if you consider 60 months worth of payments, you realize quickly that you are spending as much or more than you would be spending for vacation lodging for the next 60 years! They will also make you believe that this is a real estate investment -- and that you will make a great deal of money when you sell it. However, you have to go through them to sell it, and it's not as easy as they make it sound. And with that crazy interest rate you paid at the time of buying it, you aren't likely to make as much as you'd think upon re-selling it. 3. The maintenance fees are ridiculous. It's like $500 per year... Make that $500 for your one week per year! 4. They will sell you on being able to trade your week for another week or another location. (Big deal!) They will also tell you that you are eligible for discounted cruises. Hmmmm. I see these discounted cruises available to the public all the time! 5. Don't get me wrong. The resort(s) are very nice. In fact, they sell themselves when you see them. It's just not worth the money, even if you like the concept of buying a condo for just one week out of the year. With real estate being so cheap (comparatively speaking, of course) down in Orlando, if you really want a vacation home down there, you are better served buying one outright. That's just my two cents worth...
The Poojer Posted April 7, 2005 Author Posted April 7, 2005 it may not be the best logic in the world, but here goes. in a nutshell, dvd is like pre-paid vacations thru 2054, you finance @$14,000(less downpayments etc..) for 10 years, you are not restricted by weeks of use, although you do "spend" more for peak times v non-peak. you are not limited to 1 location, rather a whole butt load including disney cruises. I would have absolutely no problem doing a disney related trip every year/every other year for the rest of my life, and the way the thing is set up, you can bring or give your families a vacation as well. it sounds like a really good deal(to me who loves disny and all its glory) I am looking for fair and honest feedback from those more learned than I. maybe i am crazy(I do hang around with eric), but hey as long as i am having fun! Poojer- what the hell are you doing investing in a timeshare? If you want to vacation in Orlando- rent a house. If you want an investment property- buy a house and contract with a mgmt company to rent it. do not buy something that you can't easily sell and have no control over its use. 298323[/snapback]
The Poojer Posted April 7, 2005 Author Posted April 7, 2005 more determined to hear someone say HELL NO!!!! it really does seem like a decent enough deal, if you can commit to a life of disney related vacations(i can), and not too too too expensive in the process. and frankly, after alot of googling and yahooing, I cannot find a bad thing said about it, and i am looking. i realize i am not going to become the next donald trump with this "investment", i just want to be sure I will not get hosed if I do jump. Determined to do this, eh? 299003[/snapback]
Gavin in Va Beach Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 The wife has been doing DVC for some time now. She loves it and the rooms you get are first rate. Since we haven't had the time to go in the last year, she sold her current points (they accumlate year to year, you can roll them over with some limitations) to someone who was looking to get a Grand Villa (a house that can room about 5 families give or take). When she posted she was looking to sell her points on the DVC message board, she had like 20 requests within the first hour of posting. If you want more info, PM your email addy and I'll get her to email you when she can.
obie_wan Posted April 7, 2005 Posted April 7, 2005 it may not be the best logic in the world, but here goes. in a nutshell, dvd is like pre-paid vacations thru 2054, you finance @$14,000(less downpayments etc..) for 10 years, you are not restricted by weeks of use, although you do "spend" more for peak times v non-peak. you are not limited to 1 location, rather a whole butt load including disney cruises. I would have absolutely no problem doing a disney related trip every year/every other year for the rest of my life, and the way the thing is set up, you can bring or give your families a vacation as well. it sounds like a really good deal(to me who loves disny and all its glory) I am looking for fair and honest feedback from those more learned than I. maybe i am crazy(I do hang around with eric), but hey as long as i am having fun! 298997[/snapback] ask Eric where we stay in Orlando. I would never consider buying a time share. They are a horrible investment.
gmac17 Posted April 8, 2005 Posted April 8, 2005 it sounds like a really good deal If you go in with that attitude there is no way they won't sell you on it. The guys are very good salesmen, who sell a lot of the people who go on the tours "just for the tickets". As far as an investment goes, I feel pretty strongly that it is not a good deal. Put that $14,000 away today and in 30 years you can have $225,000 (if you can earn 10%. ). As far as convenience and having a place to go every year, it may be worth it for you. Back to the other question though - why not just rent a house / condo on site every year?
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