There are new changes coming for anybody planning to join the Disney Vacation Club via the resale market.
Beginning January 19, anybody who purchases a resale contract for one of the 14 original Disney Vacation Club resorts will be limited to staying at those resorts.
That means that anybody who buys a resale contract after January 19 would not be able to use their points to stay at Disney’s new Riviera Resort or at the new Reflections- A Disney Lakeside Lodge at Walt Disney World.
Once sales for the Riviera Resort begin, those who purchase a contract for that resort on the resale market will be limited to staying only at that resort.
That means anybody who purchases a resale contract with the Riviera as their home resort would not be able to use their points to stay at any of the existing Disney Vacation Club resorts or, presumably, at any future resorts.
Any contracts that have been submitted to Disney for right of first refusal before January 19 will be grandfathered into the change, and therefore those people would be able to use their points to stay at Riviera or Reflections when they open.
The change appears to only apply to Disney Vacation Club contracts bought through the resale market. Current Disney Vacation Club members and new members who buy directly from Disney should still be able to use their points to stay at any Disney Vacation Club property.
It is not clear when Disney Vacation Club sales for the Riviera Resort will begin, but the hotel is expected to open this fall.
Reflections: A Disney Lakeside Resort, was announced in November and is billed as a nature-inspired resort that will feature more than 900 hotel rooms and Disney Vacation Club villas. No opening date has been announced.
The changes to the resale of Disney Vacation Club contracts are the second major change made to the program for 2019. We reported last month that members saw dues increases of as much as 11 percent for this year.
So if you bought a resale contract prior to January 19, you will be able to book at the Riviera at 7 months?
Yes
According to this, yes.
Actually, this is the 3rd major change impacting DVC Members and potential members recently. Last week, DVC provided the 2020 point charts and there was a significant increase in nightly points needed for Studios and 1 bedrooms while a small but not significant drop in the 2 bedroom points (overall). Many DVC members are in an absolute uproar as many are questioning DVC’s “right” to alter the point chart in the manner that they did. To be honest, I’m indifferent about this change but do understand why so many members are banding together to push back on this change.
We need to push back. We don’t even know where all this new money for dues is going. Time for a monitoring organization to be formed.
I haven’t checked the charts but they are not legally allowed to increase without an equal decrease somewhere else. Otherwise it would devalue the investment. I’ll have to look closely at the charts.
So, the sales pitch talked about the value of the contract, how it could be deeded to your children or sold. How this was an investment….. But it’s not, at any point, Disney gets to make decisions on what the “owner” can do with their share and we just have to trust that Disney won’t do something bad… You know, like make the share worthless on the resale market.
I’m sure it’s legal, but there will be lawsuits anyway. Is it ethical?
When you say anybody who purchases a resale contract for one of the 14 original Disney Vacation Club resorts will be limited to staying at those resorts, do you mean that they can still use points at any of those 14 resorts or only the resort they buy art?
If you buy an original resort contract on the resale market, you’ll be able to stay at any of those 14 only. If you buy Riviera, and presumably Reflections et al on resale (when those eventually come up), you’ll only be able to stay at that specific resort you bought into.
Twisting and upcharging everything over the past few years, Disney hopes few will realize a trip in 2020 is 75% more expensive than it was just 5 yrs past.
What are your thoughts on long term resale value of a 14 classic resort?
What is the motivation for making this change, you know, the story behind the story?
They want people to buy direct.
Lame But anyone worth prepaying vacation (which is essentially what this is, the DVC isn’t even as good as a time share scam), they deserve it. DVC has never been a good deal, and as Disney cuts quality, lowers staffing, reduces hours, reduces safety, and increases crowds, it’s becoming less of one.
Interesting take Beth, but I ran the numbers (as I imagine most buyers did), and I’m definitely coming out on top (financially speaking) having bought resale. Even after our third vacation, I’ll be paying significantly less to stay at these resorts than I would otherwise, and within 15 years, I’ll be paying a fraction of the rack rate. In regard to reducing hours, staffing, safety, I’m curious where this information is coming from. I certainly haven’t seen any downgrade during my visits.
I am in agreement with Adam. I have not noticed any decrease or downgrading.
How is this even legal. They are forcing people to not be able to sell their property with the same amenities they bought it with. They are literally devaluing the price of the resale. I am sorry but you are selling the rights to the contract you purchased to a different person. Disney has the right to refuse that sale and buy it themselves. They don’t have the right of devaluing the product.
I’m sorry but the how does Disney have the right to do this. If Disney doesn’t buy your contract back they don’t have the right to devalue your contract. They are literally taking away parts of the contract during a resale. How in God’s name do they have that right? The new buyer is not going to Disney and buying a contract. They are taking over the contract I bought. Meaning if Disney is not allowing the new buyer to use parts of it Disney is devaluing my property.
Disney makes money on the “prepay,” think DVC, dining plan, “packages,” anything they can get you to pay the money upfront for and unless you have the actual number breakdown you won’t know if you are overpaying. Before buying into DVC, one should look at the excel file on mousesavers to calculate the “breakeven point.” Mine was 13 years, calculating going every two years, of course that number lessens the more frequently you go, using points that is. If you are ok with your break-even point being that far out, then you might save money in the long run. We have four kids, ages 8 and under, and anticipate going at least once a year for that long. Disney writes in the fine print they reserve the right to do with the points whatever they wish, basically, even suspending the ability to “bank” or “borrow” your points for use in a different year than the current. Going into a contract with your eyes wide open is key, however many get drawn in by the sales pitch then sold way too many points. BTW, the interest rate on the loan from Disney is astronomical, best to pay in cash. I see the best idea for those needing to resale is to hold onto the contract and renting to places like DVCRental store to make some money on it, if they aren’t using it… Until Disney stops this practice as well.
That’s what you get when you rent something. Timeshares are a huge waste of money no matter what the branding of it is. You don’t own anything and pay fees every year which pretty much equal the cost of a hotel for a week anyway.
I’m sorry for everyone who got sucked into Disney’s version of the scam.
Thanks. I have been tossing this idea around for over a year. If I don’t have cash to buy in full, I figured I wouldn’t be able to even go while paying it off and with the fees yearly, can’t I simply stay in the hotel of choice for a similar amount.. plus someone makes my bed daily and cleans my room. DVC has to make this bed and empty their trash as needed is the way I am told. Now reading this article and comments, I think I will buy the annual passes and book the vacation from there.
That is the absolute best way to do it. Stay where you want. Go when/where you want and don’t get scammed and lose good money.
Some more food for thought – Using Disney’s own timeshare calculator, you would pay at a minimum $18200 up front. Think about that, that’s 15 6-night vacations at a hotel that costs $200 per night. That’s money you will never see again and goes to nothing other than profit for Disney.
After, you pay at a minimum of $720 per year in maintenance fees. Disney recommended 200 points which would actually cost $1440 per year, for the next 50 years, at a cost of $72,000 (not counting the rates going up!)
Your minimum total sunk cost for the time share will be $90,200. It’s insane. No one will ever buy it.
Run the other way from any time share.
Has anyone seen a breakdown for what all of these outrageous increases are. I one at 3 DVC Resorts and my increase was outrageous. Do we have an organization to monitor what’s going on a WDW. Employees there are telling me that hours are being cut and austerity programs are being put in place. Billions being spent on infrastructure that could have been done in stages instead of all at once !!!
I have owned D.V.C. since 2006 and every time i go to use it its never available for points but for cash it always is . To me i think it was a waist of my money, the sold more than what they can handle. I kuve in miami and i see no reason why i would need to book a vacation 11 months in advance. This issue has been going on for years and its only getting worst every year.
My parents bought into the DVC back in 2003 originally at the Beach Club. My biggest complaints are that the points get devalued every year (enticing you to buy more points) and with a smaller property like the Beach Club it’s hardly ever available unless if you book 11 months in advance (which I rarely have the ability to do). Disney sold way more DVC contracts than they can handle and they obviously are trying to deter people from coming to the resorts as shown by drastic the dues and point increases.
How do points get devalued every year, Liam? They can’t change the overall point structure for any resort. Since the cost of staying on property goes UP every year, it seems to me the points increase in value.
Yes, the value of a resale DVC contract goes down compared to non-resale, but how does the value of the points go down?
I’ve been a member since 2007 and am disappointed in the continued erosion of my membership. I bought into DVC with certain terms and conditions and the changes they are making at will is astonishing. At this point, I would not recommend DVC to friends or family – to buy into this scam. So disappointing from a company such as Disney. It’s a shame! It’s all about profits and money….. not about the people who purchased into the membership over the past several yrs. Take your money and try something else. Invest into real property…..not something that costs you every year in dues and that will eventually expire…. I will prob sell!!
Boy were we lucky to sell our points late last year, and actually made a small profit when we sold. That’s def not gonna happen any more!
Actually, the wording states new resales can only book at the original 14 resorts.
“Effective January 19, 2019, only Members who purchase directly from Disney will be able to use their Vacation Points at the 14 existing Disney Vacation Club Resorts or future Resorts—such as Disney’s Riviera Resort or Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge. Resale contracts purchased for the existing 14 Disney Vacation Club Resorts will only be able to exchange Points into those 14 Resorts.
This change does not apply to contracts purchased prior to January 19, 2019. Contracts gifted to family members will continue to have the same Resort access as before the ownership transfer.”
This caps the number of people booking into DVC to current numbers and might make any contracts for those “original 14 resorts” actually increase as people buy to get into these desirable resorts.
The owners it most affects will be Riviera/Reflections resale as they only currently have the 1 resort. This should depress the resale price for this resort only.
Owners who have purchased DVC contracts before Jan 19 still get to book anywhere, including Riviera and Reflections. 🥳