Disney Vacation Club Mistakes! | Common New DVC Member Mistakes & How to Avoid Them

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Have you made any of these mistakes? If you’re considering becoming a member, did you get any helpful tips today?

[@tammymccall8842]

I made the mistake of booking a trip and then buying a DVC contract before that trip. Was unable to cancel it but I used my points for another trip. My biggest problem seems to be never having enough points. I've already borrowed from 2024 for a 2023 trip later this year, and I currently have 345 points annually! I generally get 1 and 2 bedrooms though, and take others with me. It's fun to take friends along and they help offset the annual dues.

[@CarouselofDouglas]

Thankfully I watched a lot of your videos before buying on resale, and I’ve never screwed up my membership, my purchase, or my bookings!! Your stuff is great!!

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Thanks for watching! 👋😎

[@timc.8391]

I just bought resale at SSR last month, quite a bit of my research was watching your videos, they were SUPER helpful. Thank you for all you do!

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

I’m so glad that you found the videos to be helpful. Congrats on the new contract! 🍾👏

[@jayoungrn]

Great video , as always. I would also add that it is important to join forums and keep watching videos like yours to learn all of the tricks or you wont be able to maximize your vacations. You have to keep up with the constant changes and new information for the parks and resorts. I would also add that renting points is not as easy as some make it seem and with the taxes it is rarely more than a break even. Better to buy less points and rent a few yourself for occasional big trips rather than buy too many points and think you will rent them each year untill you need them.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Thanks for your insight. I have never had enough points left over to rent, so that's something that I don't have any experience with.

[@vocaljazzfan]

Great video! For someone who's been in DVC for a while you just shake your head in agreement and giggle at the ones you wish you would have known at the beginning. So listen up potential DVC family and let her (earned) wisdom save you some grief. Of the ones you mentioned, I wish we would have broken our original direct contract into smaller ones for easier resale. We won't make the same mistake when we buy at Villas @ Disneyland Hotel. Love the new t-shirt designs - you're so clever and they are so attractive. XOXO

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

I think of you every time I hear anything about the DL DVC tower! Thanks so much for watching! 👋😎

[@vocaljazzfan]

@@TheMagicInTheMusic so excited!!!

[@vocaljazzfan]

@@TheMagicInTheMusic Oh - someday when you get a chance can you price out some sweatshirts for the Thank You Cast Members design? (and colors). And/or can add them as options to the Etsy page. When we are at DLR and it's cold we end up wearing a sweatshirt or coat and can't show off the TYCM t-shirts (which they LOVE when they see them). Appreciate you!

[@kathleenproctor5207]

Great advice! I would also add to set an alert on your calendar for you banking deadline so you don’t miss it.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Yes! Great advice! I added a repeating alarm each year for that.

[@KateKosisko]

Yes! We are planning our next trip for 2024, but just bit the bullet and purchased a DVC contract!

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

That's wonderful! Congratulations!!!

[@tammymccall8842]

Great video! I couldn't agree more with you on buying several small contracts instead of one big one. Small contracts are easier to sell and you get more per point than you do with the large contracts. It's also good to know that you can sell some points and keep some points if you decide you don't need as many as you have, and you don't have to worry about how to handle leaving 1 large contract to multiple people. I'm up to 5 contracts now LOL. Addonitis is REAL. My biggest contract is for 120 points. The others are 100, 50, 50 and 25. Made sure to get them all in the same use year. I also wanted to have the benefits of direct buy, so I have a total of 150 points bought direct. All other points were bought on the resale market for much less per point.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Awesome! Sounds like you absolutely maximized your DVC portfolio! 150 for the benefits, then the rest resale. Well played!

[@JustinCredible31]

Did you purchase a 150 point direct contract or can you get multiple 50 point direct contracts and if they add up to 150 you still get direct benefits?

[@mimipatten3598]

Thanks again. Love your content!

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Thank you for watching. Best wishes!

[@pattismercani8656]

Love your shirt, just ordered one. I already have your riviera shirt 😍

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Thanks so much! This one is so cute! I’m going to wear it a lot!

[@Jmmmd]

Very good advice (direct BLT since 2009).

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Thanks so much for watching! 👍😎

[@robertratz5305]

Great video 🎉

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Thanks so much for watching.

[@cyclechickmary]

Great video! With vacation planning, we bought a contract to Aulani and then booked our trip. The cash cost was about 2/3 of the contract! It was an easy decision.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

I can't wait to hear all about your Aulani trip! 🌴

[@AnnetteHeadley61]

Do you know if there are resale restrictions on the new Poly tower DVC??

[@beverlybeisgen3822]

I bought direct in 2017 and wanted Beach club but there was no availability. I declined any other resort and within a week Disney found a Beach Club contract for me. I didn’t even know about resale market at that time.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

DVC would rather that you didn't know about resale. While it's a great fit for some, there will always be some owners who prefer direct, though. We like having a combination of both.

[@sarahnoll8533]

I made the DVC post big expensive visit mistake 🤦🏼‍♀️ I assumed DVC was too expensive and only began researching when we got home - could have paid for almost half of our DVC contract with the lodging we had just paid for our big trip!

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

OMG! We did the same thing before buying our first contract! We avoided it for a long time, ignoring the info because we thought "timeshare=bad". Finally I decided to do a little research and quickly realized that we could stay in Deluxe resorts for what we were already spending on moderates. I wish we had known sooner.

[@atropos0754]

My biggest mistake was booking trips that use all my points but I had a solution buy more points but then I booked all of those points….

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Lol! The struggle is real! 😆

[@jessmercado1833]

Looking at resale. If I want to travel to Grand Floridian first week of December every year, what is my best use year to maximize my chance of booking that week?

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

I have a video about use year. You may find it helpful. Side note - the first week of December is a VERY POPULAR time for DVC members to travel. There is high demand for rooms that week. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fJu2ZmOChZd-atU

[@JAChrysler19]

Thank you for all your information. It definitely helps as I'm a new potential DVC member and trying to figure this all out. My question... if I'm reading materials correctly, if I buy resale, it looks like I don't get the extras that you get if you purchase at least 150 points direct? Is this correct?

[@sarahd621]

That’s correct. You only get the extras when you buy directly from Disney. This includes staying at some new resorts, parties, discounts, lots of things.

[@RockSpuds]

When it comes to reselling a direct buy contract, does Disney have the first right of refusal to buy back the contract before it is sold to another person(s)?

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Yes, they do. This is no big deal if you're the seller, but as a buyer it can be very frustrating. There isn't really any rhyme or reason to what Disney chooses to buy back, so you just have to try and hope for the best. We've lost a resale contract ROFR, and it's frustrating, but we eventually moved on and found other contracts that did pass.

[@thomasburen16]

Have you made the mistake of buying cheap resales for a resort that you probably won't visit much but you can use for other resorts and how hard is it to book for those resorts using other points? I'm thinking buying Old Key west for the cheap points and using it for our yearly February vacation to places like Grand Floridian or Beach Club. Thoughts? Thank you in advance for your help on this and love your channel.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

It depends on when you like to travel. Generally speaking, the resorts with the best availability are Saratoga Springs, followed by Old Key West, then maybe Animal Kingdom Lodge Kidani Village. Grand Floridian and Beach Club have historically been more difficult to book. If you’re willing to book a 1-bedroom, you’ll have the most flexibility. Thanks so much for watching! 👋

[@lisagriffiths3531]

Hi, I’m at the early stages of looking at DVC. I’m wondering if you buy a sold out contract direct, is it a cheaper price per point than the current $217 they are selling the new resorts at? Thanks - we’re finding your videos really helpful.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Welcome! I'm so glad that you're finding the videos to be helpful. The "sold out" resorts are actually priced higher if purchased directly through Disney. Disney is trying to sell their "current" resorts, so those will have incentives and deals most of the time. If you want one of the resorts that is not currently being advertised, that is "sold out", they will charge a higher premium for that. That's why most DVC members who wish to buy at those resorts will do so on the resale market, because they are much less expensive.

[@lisagriffiths3531]

@@TheMagicInTheMusic thanks so much for answering. That’s interesting. Guess resale is definitely the way to go for us then.

[@jennaaw9073]

I really like Boulder Ridge but am nervous about the ending year of 2042. Copper creek is a bit different and more costly. I know you said it isnt for investment purposes but it still is and it leaves me wondering if I will kick myself for buying into a 2042 contract.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Hmm... that's tough. The 2042 expiration date for several resorts used to be a non-issue, but it's starting to feel kind of close. I personally don't own any resorts with that expiration date for that reason. Maybe look into a resale contract at Boulder Ridge to keep the cost down?

[@nycp1969]

I'm still not exactly sure what I did wrong, but I think I made a mistake of banking points too early. I didn't want to forget my banking date, so I went ahead and did it. When I booked trips for the next UY, they used points for the next UY. I wasn't able to reallocate the banked points. Again, not sure, but whatever I did, I ended up with points that can't be applied to the next available trip. I used the points to gift a CM friend a night at AKV, so I'm not at all upset. Just would like to know exactly what I did wrong.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Yeah, unfortunately banking points is irreversible. That would probably be a good question for a Member Services agent to look at your points use and walk you through it. Thanks so much for watching. Best wishes!

[@VillagePerson47]

My use year is February. Prior to last September 30th I banked 29 points that I want to use this November at Riviera. My home resort is GF so I need to wait 7 months prior to book. If I can’t get a booking at Riviera what is my time limit on using these points before they expire? Thanks for your help.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

If the points were banked into your 2023 use year, you should have until the end of January 2024 to use them.

[@rebeccakrueger0229]

Question. If I buy more points than I need (to allow for things to come up, date changes, etc), can I, for example, bank 20 points from 2023 into 2024, then in 2024 use those 2023 points with some of my 2024 points and bank the rest? It would be like a rolling bank if that makes sense. Can I do that as many years as I need to?

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Yes, as long as you use the banked points before they expire. Banking points is fine to do, it’s just that the clock is always ticking on those points.

[@rebeccakrueger0229]

@@TheMagicInTheMusic thank you!

[@jevs402]

Thinking of buying 150 pts this month (March 2023). Can I turn around and use some of these points in June of 2023 for a few nights? Or is there a waiting period to use points? I will obviously ask the DVC salesperson too when going through everything.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Yes, if you buy points directly from Disney, you’ll be able to use them right away to book a stay. Just be aware that many resorts will already be fully booked for June.

[@cassiewhite879]

That's ridiculous!! No one can avoid Disney vacation just because they did mistakes to people or something.

[@NoOne20277]

Huh?

[@codymitchell90]

Is it a bad idea to buy DVC If you usually book your travel based on the airfare that’s available. This means we wouldn’t know the exact travel dates until closer to the trip.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

I can see what you mean about buying airfare closer to the trip. We have to fly to the DVC properties, so we just always commit to our travel dates 11 months out and book at our home resorts. Then at 7 months we sometimes switch resorts. At that time we can choose to add or subtract a travel day, but we basically lock down the dates with our DVC bookings and they're set by 7 months. Then we just buy airfare for those dates. You just have to decide if that's going to work for you. It's unlikely that you'll be able to add/change dates much inside the 7 month windows.

[@codymitchell90]

@@TheMagicInTheMusic yeah that’s what I’m afraid of, the non stop carrier from our city only flys to Orlando certain days a week so I guess we could just book on those days and hope to find flights once they list them. Thanks!! We love your videos! And we also have a Tesla! 😆❤️

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

@@codymitchell90, we have only one carrier that does direct flights to Orlando, so we always know what flight we’re booking and we just set Google flight alerts to monitor when the price drops. That’s the best we can do for airfare.

[@RankingDfK]

Crushed it

[@56strine]

The Bad Economy is causing DVC to go down in value.

[@TheMagicInTheMusic]

Resale prices are down a bit, but still higher than what we paid just a few years ago.

[@56strine]

@@TheMagicInTheMusic You are correct! Let’s pray that the Swamp gets Drained and our Economy improves. I keep hearing about a stock market crash that could break records.