DVC Ownership Approach

I think we are at the point where we are done adding on unless we sell something. We are at 553 spread out among five resorts, I don't want to increase our dues any more. We do use our points and occasionally bank. I used to change my mind all the time on what I wanted. Thought I wanted Bay Lake, but changed my mind, then Beach Club, Old Key West, at one point I wanted Copper Creek. We never bought any of those, lol. I would love one of the beach resorts, but can't stomach the dues and still have been able to stay there without owning so I think we are content. There would have to be something really intriguing to make me sell one of our contracts to buy new- like Coronado Springs DVC. lol

Bought 150 direct at VGF and after our welcome home stay I knew we needed more. I went with 100 more direct for the Poly. We have 2 teens and will longer allow them to miss school so we’re on that schedule now. I’ve toyed with adding on another small resale 2042 contract. On the one hand I could use it for runDisney but not sure how school calendar friendly that approach is. On the other hand I love the Riv but hate the restrictions. For now I think we’re good. Plus my wife reminds me every time I’m looking at contracts the answer is no.

We bought the cheapest smallest direct contract we could to qualify for a blue card at the time, three months before they increased the minimum. I researched obsessively so I already knew I could add on through the resale market.

In hindsight I would have picked a different use year because my travel habits have changed post-divorce but that's really the only thing I'd "fix".

After this (brutally cold) winter though, I'm thinking I need a small point contract just for me. I did a last minute solo resort-only at the Poly in Feb and let me tell you, it was absolutely lovely. Just 50 points, I'll go every other year, that's the next plan.

Way back in 1999 when we joined (direct) the lowest number you could buy was 150. Our guide left the room for us to think it over and Annie and I said "Well, I don't wanna come across as cheap so lets just buy 170" - that was how we wound up with 170. Sad but true ;)

We currently own at BRV and Poly with enough points to do two week long vacations each year plus a little left over. My Poly contract is a favorite week in December (thanks Carrie for mentioning about it on a DVCFan episode- it really opened my eyes to FW). We won't be using our favorite week for a couple of years, but will likely use it regularly from then on. We like to go to WDW in December and in the spring for Flower and Garden. I do have some addonitis and would like to get a contract at VDH to add in some CA trips, but that will be a while since the ink is still drying on our new Poly contract!

I ran out of money is how we settled on the number of points we have 🤣 Just kidding. Total I think we currently have 715 points.

We started with 100 points at BLT in 2019 because that was the minimum number of points you need for direct benefits at the time. Shortly after we bought a 160 point resale contract at BLT so we could stay in a 1-bedroom most of the time.

We love Beach Club too though, so we decided to purchase another resale contract there and found a resale contract with our use year.

VGF we bought simply because the direct price was such a good deal during the "fire sale" and when VDH was announced with the ToT, I got FOMO and decided to buy VGC - probably the worst time to buy it lol.

We actually probably have too many points, once in awhile I think about selling a contract. The amount we have is actually a little too much for us.

It's so interesting to hear how everyone decides this! We initially went with 175 BWV points thinking it would be enough for a few short studio stays throughout the year since that was how we traveled as a couple at the time, but add-on-itis was inevitable. It seems that the more you use your points, the more you realize you wish you had just a little more lol. We added on BLT 75 points less than a year later before the minimum for a blue card went up to have an MK home resort, and then added 50 more points when VGF resale contracts were relatively cheap during the pandemic.

I love the Poly and would consider adding there (why not complete the monorail loop trifecta!), but until then, only the prospect of Yacht Club Villas would make me add on immediately lol.

1,927 points here…. 2 bedrooms and Grand Villas….

Probably would do it differently, knowing what I do now, but…

Bought 150 RIV Direct while captive on Disney Fantasy because of incentives/benefits/what we could afford, and wasn’t really aware of resale market at the time. After using points for first time (at Aulani!), realized the 1-BR is where it’s at for us, so added another 200 Direct (I know, most expensive way to do it this whole thing), to make it easy. Then took a WDW trip and stayed at a 2-BR…and added 60 more to total to hit needed points for a week for that in desired season, so now at 410.

Will we ever add more? Eh, probably not. Do I still look at resale contracts? Absolutely. @DVCDerek, I’ll be the call with a Michigan area code when I call asking about VGC contract availability 😁

Woah that’s a lot of points! What are the home resorts? Curious how you have them split up.

Feb UY 175 Grand Floridian (resale). 230 Boardwalk (resale).

March UY 950 Aulani (200 direct, 400 resale, 350 resale subsidized). 150 Disneyland Hotel (direct).

Dec UY 422 Grand Call (97 direct, 325 resale).

Oh wow! Lot of Aulani ocean view grand villa points there. That’s a bucket list dream room!

An Aulani Grand Villa or a war chest of SAPs to upgrade to YOLO rooms while the kids are still in the house.

@yamkriegs maybe that could be a good DVC Fan episode…. diving into the YOLO rooms at every DVC resort.

LOL I just wrote an article on those a few days ago that hadn’t been published yet, but a show is a great idea!

When I joined in 2004, it was just for me, I used some of the cash my mother got me when she passed, to pay for it. Scott and I had been dating a few years by then but he hadnt been to WDW yet, didnt care ( my how times have hanged LOL) so it was for me and whoever wanted to come fine. I didnt care where I owned then. and the 150 SSR was fine with me. Then I has my first stay LOL and added on 50 more:) Fast forward to 2009 when my dream of AKL having DVC came true and I added on 75 there. Fast forward a few more years and we had an emergemcy and needed cash fast, we had no choice we sold the 150 SSR I was devasted but I still had the other 125 points...Many vacations later , and 3 months after making the move from MA, we added on 50 at BWV as Scott and I always wanted points there. We'd love a GF contract but not in the position at the moment.

Years of research and showing my wife numbers and we finally agreed to jump in with 130 at Saratoga. Our first stay last year was at Copper Creek and she fell in love and decided we needed just a little more so got 75 there.

She has off tuesdays and I have alot of vacation time so we plan to do more longer weekends then the full weeks. One coming up in the beginning of May actually. Will we need more? Right now she says no but we'll see lol. She already is spoiled and likes the 1 bedrooms so we know how that goes.

I have a feeling you'll be adding on in the future. Those 1 bedrooms will get you! (They got me.)

I love hearing everyone's stories! I am thinking I want to end up at ~400 points for a mix of studio long weekends and 1 bedroom trips, but we like the point heavy resorts, so....we'll see. Probably eventually more than that!

We kind of did everything wrong….

Having breakfast one morning at Disney’s Vero Beach we decided to buy a resale contract… then realized that contract wasn’t enough points, so we bought more…

Then there were the really great direct sale prices that summer so we bought more direct at that point…

Then we sold the first resale contract… It was very small… barely an appetizer…

Realized we needed those points - but at VGF- so we bought more direct…

Then we discovered these beautiful places called 2 BR so now we are buying more again…

In hindsight i wish we had just bought one big contract… And probably a different UY too… but no way am I giving up those direct points… way cheaper than what you can find now and days…

We bought 210 initially at BLT after a year of watching dis and what would become dvc fan shows in early 2020. It was a fairly loaded resale contract so se had a lot of points to start.

We actually burned out by the end of 2023 and decided not to go to Disney at all in 2024. But by September in 2024 we realized how much we missed it and needed more points. We ended up getting 203 points at riviera. I think we have the same favorite week as you and we did another 50 points to get the 200+ point incentives.

We had looked at the island tower and while we really liked it the riviera incentives were just too great at the time especially since it was a longer contract. And we already owned at BLT so having an Epcot area resort also a desire.

I think we are set with our current points. We do a mix of studios and 1 bedrooms. Usually a split stay and having a 1 bedroom for half the trip is a game changer. But we are early into have this many points. Also with the membership magic BOGO points we’ve been running with an extra 24 points the last 2 years so our points are stretched even further.

Hi there @Carrie

We’ve been on a rollercoaster!

Now have 410 points but we’ve bought 6 contracts and sold 3!

Every trip we stay at AKV and try and do value or club level (waitlist behind walkers works for us)

Then use VGF as best value Sleep Anywhere Points, to explore other resorts.

We go for 17 night stays once a year so that amount of points fits great!

Sold BCV as we realised a year or 2 after buying we preferred BWV

Sold OKW as dues got a bit scary!

Just sold BWV, great contract and will miss it but got a great price given so few years left!

But…… found we can patch together BWV stays using VGF contract, not as easy but doable!

We initially bought 360 points at Beach Club via resale in June 2022. Addonitis hit quickly on our first DVC stay at Grand Floridian. We went 175 direct at Grand Floridian the following April.

Our decision process for our add in was we wanted enough points to stay a week annually in a studio and enough to get membership extras. By the time we get 4 rounds of Sorcerer passes for our family of four, the savings vs incredipasses will be more than the additional cost buying direct,

We went completely against the grain and have two different use years (Feb and August) so we can always book within a banking window for one contract or the other.

I wouldn’t add on to an additional home resort unless I have enough points for a full regular stay at each home resort. So if I add on again, I would add on to Grand Floridian unless buying at least 100 points.

We started in 1996 at BWV. We bought 250 points (a real stretch for us then). This would allow us to have a 1 or 2 bedroom stay for a week. By Banking and borrowing points we could make 2 or more week stays. We had many great family trips at BWV, and OKW. We even used our points to stay at Grand Californian and Disneyland Hotel. Back then using points at hotels was not all that bad. Now it is a very poor use of points.

Since then we have added on at BLT, AKV, VDH and VGC. This gives us 5 home resorts and 1008 points all June use year. All of our points are direct. I am just not one to negotiate on resale.

Our approach was buy where you want to stay. We bought enough points for the length of stay and room type we want. We always stay in either a 1 bedroom villa or(2 bedroom if the grandkids are in tow). Not a snob, but a 1 bedroom just feels more like home than a hotel room. (this is a topic for a different thread). I dont think we will add on again, but may sell our VDH and buy more VGC (resale this time). Dues are the limiting factor.

With our point totals at different resorts, we do split stays. Love split stays. Disney takes care of the luggage and we get different experiences. Our next trip will be 5 days VDH and 5 days VGC with the Grandkids. We are West Coast so tend to alternate DLR and WDW. As We age, flying across country is not all that fun anymore.

So it is old advice, Buy where you want to stay. Buy the amount of points for the length and type of room you want. Unfortunately making reservations 7 months out is not as easy as it once was. So dont buy the cheapest points thinking you can snag a stay at BWV or BCV.

If we had to do it all over again, I dont think I would do things differently.

I purchased my first contract (resale) in September, so I’m a newer DVC member. I had been renting DVC points for a few years to get a week in December because I love the parks at Christmas time. When I did the math, it was obvious that buying my own contract was the way to go. I purchased a small 100 point contract at Bay Lake Tower because I adore walking back to the resort after MVMCP and not being stuck in a long line waiting for a bus or the monorail.

I definitely need more points so I’m sure I’ll be adding on at some point! 🤣

I started with a very small resale after doing the math while on a AU rental point stay. It was a super quick decision -as in— the day I learned about the resale market was the day I put the bid in.

I realized I needed some direct so I could stay anywhere. By the time the resale points dropped, I picked up a direct, even smaller contract. Yes, addonitis hit.

Shortly after, I found a loaded BW (the big, small one) because the point chart made a lot of sense, Epcot and multiple transportation options.

Then I secured a waitlist at VGC. After experiencing it, I couldn’t resist picking up a tiny contract against all logic.

Eventually, I realized the heart wants what it wants and will aim there until satisfied. I finally got “my” Beach Club (love at first sight- boy, I fall in love a lot) 2 years from initial DVC purchase and I’m done. For me, I chose based on heart and the availability advantage to plan and purchase flights early. Use years didn’t matter bc I would use BC and VGC only at those properties.

My wife and I own 175 points at SSR.

We co-own another 230 points at OKW.

At some point in the future, but hopefully NOT too soon, we will acquire another 350 points from my in-laws.

So that will be 755 points at some point...

As we want to spend 4-6 weeks of the yucky PA winter on property, we may need another contract...yes, I have "add on-itus" real bad. Would love to add a Boardwalk or Riviera contract to the portfolio, probably about another 100 or 150. I check the listings multiple times a day :)

My plan was very complicated:

Retire…. Check

Contact Derek about a 150 pt SSR resale…. Check

Buy SSR….check

First trip to SSR buy 150 pts Riv Direct… check

Second trip to SSR buy poly pts…check

Like everyone says, going to Disney is expensive

Reading every story, fulfills a part of the research process that can not be completed by stats , youtube shows, point charts, seven months probability spreadsheets or all the different analogy. Thank you for sharing.

Soon to be DVC owner 🤞

Welcome Home, John!

We started with a small contract at PVB, back when the minimum buy in for new members was 50 points. I couldn't just get the minimum, so we ended up with 85 points. We ended up adding on at CCV, but sold that to get our VGC contract. Although, once you stay in a 1br, you never go back to a studio.

We own 230 direct pts at AKV. Sept Use Year.

After taking our kids to DW twice, and paying for rooms…my wife actually started talking to a cast member at a DVC kiosk, and since we had a resort day coming up…we booked an appointment. We met with Anne (English accent, wonder if Derek remembers her?) and she just broke down the numbers of what we were paying. She just put it bluntly to us… “Are you coming back? More than once?” Lol 😂 we bought a 100 pt contact, then added on, during return visits and on a cruise.

We bought into the same resort, because we usually do long stays, and like to book in advance. We’ve never had trouble getting reservations at other DVC resorts at 7mo (obviously depending on time of year).

We started with a loaded 200 point resale contract at BWV. The loaded points allowed us to take more time at Disney which meant needing more points. We eventually added on 150 direct at the VGF when they had their sale on that. In large part we did it direct because the price dropped so much and that would give us access to the Sorcerers pass and figured it was good to now have access to any restricted resorts as well. We recently added another 75 points via resale at VGF which amazingly snuck through ROFR.

I learned about DVC resale contracts from a coworker in late 2019. We were living in Pennsylvania at the time and had just gotten back from staying 6 nights at the Poly on cash. I was determined to figure out how to afford to stay at the Poly every year for the rest of our lives, so I started researching DVC. I found the original DVC Show on YouTube and then joined DVC Fan once that evolved. About a year later, we bought our first contract in the fall of 2020, 150 points resale at the Poly.

Our resale contract went up in value quickly so we sold it two years later to pay for 150 direct points at the Grand Floridian 2.0 when that went on sale for a steal of a price. After a few years of using our Grand Floridian points to stay at the Poly and not the Grand Floridian, we started to regret selling our Poly contract just to get Direct benefits.

We eventually moved down to the Orlando area and started doing short staycations instead of 1 or 2 longer trips per year. And we started frequenting Disneyland as well and then Aulani last year. After that, it became clear our DVC points needed to be retooled. We decided it would be better for us to own several smaller contracts scattered across our favorite resorts so we could get the 11-month booking advantage for most of our recurring staycations and Disneyland/Aulani trips. So we sold our Grand Floridian contract and picked up four new contracts, all with the same Use Year.

50 points direct at Poly

50 points direct at Copper Creek

65 points direct at Aulani

50 points resale at Grand Californian

Our plan:

• Use the Poly contract for 2 nights in a preferred view deluxe studio (longhouse) for July 4th every year.

• Use the Aulani contract and bank & borrow to use three years worth of points to stay in an Ocean View Deluxe Studio for our anniversary every 5 years.

• Use the Grand Californian contract and bank & borrow to use two years worth of points every other year for a week at Disneyland.

• Use the Copper Creek contract, as well as any unclaimed points from our other contracts for short stays at Walt Disney World like our anniversary when we’re not going to Hawaii, my wife’s birthday weekend, or an occasional special staycation like Poly for New Year’s Eve or the Cabins at Fort Wilderness with two golden retrievers.

We’re pretty much set on points now, although I would love to own 50 points at Disneyland Hotel so we could go to Disneyland more often and alternate between Disneyland Hotel and Grand Californian. And that lazy river at the upcoming Lakeshore Lodge calls to me. :)

I have 150 direct points at the Polynesian and the Island Tower has been a deciding factor over other resorts. We really enjoyed our recent stay.

With the new system starting of cracking down on commercial buyers, hopefully 7 month reservations will be easier.

We have 400 total points as of this month. After taking a family trip in January to DisneyWorld in a 2 BR at Beach Club that cost me a five figure sum, my wife and I decided to look into DVC. We have a daughter with special needs who loves DisneyWorld and Disneyland. We realized that we'd likely be taking annual trips to the parks going forward and the DVC decision became a no brainer at that point (especially given what we paid in January!).

We first bought a 250 pt resale contract at BWV as we loved the area and accessibility to EPCOT, our favorite park. As we deep-dove into DVC, we also realized that since our daughter loves Disneyland as well, we needed to look at VDH points (and we could use the extra points😀). So a few weeks after the BWV contract closed, we bought VDH direct for an additional 150 points that just closed. So we ended up with the 400 points. That should cover us for our needs!

We are currently at 610. Our first was 210 at BWV bc its our true love. We then added 250 at SSR for sleep around. Then, we added 150 to Poly to ensure we locked in direct benefits (yes, we know they can change), but after doing math and using our points, how we do this allows us to donate a decent vacation for a charity auction and still not lose anything in terms of how we vacation.

Being able to donate trips to charity was also something I thought about as well. Will keep that in mind!

For sure. For us, it was about the options that the points provided to us and not having to stress about when, if and how we wanted to use our points. Total first world problem, admittedly and yet because of DVC we are able to provide financially to foundations and charities that we otherwise couldn't so it's a win-win.

"I would have bought at BWV but they got rid of the clown."

Do you want to be new best friends? Lollll

BWV is my home resort, and I never got to see the clown slide in person. 😭 I'll riot if they touch the nanny chairs!!!

We recently bought our first contract at Saratoga because we never plan far out and the contract that popped up fit our life. We researched for months and went on multiple sales pitches both in parks and on DCL before buying resale. The sticking point for us was the sorcerer pass but that's a whole lot of years' worth of passes before those numbers meet in the middle. We will definitely be getting another contract - I know just because we already have trips planned on banked points 🤣. We might decide to go direct just to ensure against the unknown - like a ground zero for any further restrictions Disney adds. In the meantime, I'm stalking the app hoping that sweaty John Smith needs to sell all his points so I can find the unicorn I'm looking for!

You have a lot of replies already, but I'll reply with my own experience.

For the next 11 years, we are stuck with the same school vacations and the same amount of PTO every year, so I basically backed into how many vacations we could have at Disney World and still do a couple international trips every year, as well as visiting family here and there. Then I factored in various critiera, like whether all 3 of us would go, or just me and my son (I'm semi-retired, so I can go with him in the summer when my wife has to work, since she uses up all her PTO around the other vacation periods and one week or so of summer). Other criteria include where I'd like to be for certain vacations (e.g., BCV for spring break to be near Flower & Garden Festival), and working in a visit every 3 years to Aulani, which is about as often as I can imagine spending the money to travel to Hawai'i from the East Coast. In the end I settled on (all same use year, though I'm open to Aulani being any use year):

1. Grand Californian (our first contract, resale, 125 points): This contract allows us to book a 2BD every 2 years when I visit my mom and stepdad. We put them up at the resort and, when they no longer want to make the journey up from San Diego, we have friends not far who have a kid near our son's age that enjoys going to Disneyland with him, so we'll invite them.

2. Polynesian (second contract, direct, 200 points): This one can flex for a variety of options, but right now I'm primarily planning to use it for annual Presidents' Day Weekend visits in a 1BD. If we can't make it that year, we may use this for a 1BD every 3 years at Christmas.

3. Grand Floridian (our third and fourth contracts, direct = 30, resale = 100): Our first stay will be at a 2BD at VGF for my mother-in-law's birthday, and afterward we plan to use these every 3 years for a 1BD during "Jersey Week" (typically the first week in November). This will rotate with two other resorts, so that every year for 3 years we stay at a different resort that week, and then cycle back to the first one.

4. Beach Club (hopefully our next contract, resale): We plan to use this for annual spring breaks at BCV to enjoy Stormalong and the Flower & Garden Festival.

5. Aulani (in time to be there 3 years after our first visit, which was a Welcome Home stay using PVB points): Triennial visits to O'ahu and one other islands (rotating between Big Island, Maui, and Kauai each time), staying in a 1BD for 6 nights, which is about the ideal amount of time for us at Aulani if we want to spend time around the island, too.

6. Beach Club (again, bonus contract, resale): Ideally we could get one more BCV contract before long, so we can still get a dozen or so years out of it. I want to be able to use it during the summer every year to take my son for a week and stay in a deluxe studio. However, under my current plan we may not get to these points until he is 10, so I'm not sure how long he'll want to keep doing these visits just the two of us. We may just keep combining some "spare points" with buy one, get one OTU points via MMB to spend 3-4 nights at one resort while spending the rest at a moderate like POFQ or even a value like POP, which for now we are enjoying when we run out of points.

7. Polynesian (second PVB contract, first resale): This would complement the VGF contract for the rotating Jersey Week resort, so we would stay in a 1BD here Jersey Week every 3 years.

8. Polynesian (final PVB contract, resale): This would be another annual week over the summer with my son, just a deluxe studio. Like the BCV contract above, this one is sort of a bonus. We seem to have fun together at value and I'm looking forward to trying a split "spare" DVC points with OTU points at OKW and POFQ this summer. But it would be nice to have an 11-month window on a Poly stay every year.

9. Riviera (final DVC contract, resale): This would be the third triennial stay as part of our Jersey Week rotation, 1 week in a 1BD every 3 years. Even if we end up changing how we visit, we don't see a problem owning one contract with Riviera, despite the restrictions, because a) buying resale means not losing a ton of value like buying new, and b) even if we don't use it for the triennial visits, there are other RR visits we have in mind together as a couple, and of course, c) there's no reason to think we couldn't still sell it later if we want, and we shouldn't take much of a loss, since a lot of the devaluation is baked into the current resale price.

So, that's how my strategy developed. Obviously plans change, and we may not end up using these points exactly as described, but between being able to use them in other ways for DVC, to rent the points out, to do swaps for other sorts of vacations, whether cruises (or renting to pay for the cruise, yes) or II, we'll have plenty of points to be able to do different things, especially if we reduce how often we go, want to fund other vacations, or if we just go less after our son gets older (I have a feeling my wife and I will want to go more after he graduates high school, though; just a feeling).

We settled on 860 points.

Our breakdown is 335 direct Riviera points, 125 resale Animal Kingdom points, 200 resale Aulani points and 200 direct Polynesian points.

Originally I chose these resorts because I wanted to own a home resort that covered every area of WDW. RIV for Epcot and Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom for well Animal Kingdom, Poly for Magic Kingdom and Aulani for Aulani. We don't own at DLR as we will soon be locals at DL again and didn't see ourselves using the 11 month priority when 11 month priority at DL comes at a premium.

Why do we own so much direct? We love Riviera. But also, we like knowing we're not locked out of any future resorts and now with the addition of our Poly direct points, we don't always have to steal points from our RIV stays but we can flex them around on an as needed basis.

Our preferred room is generally 1BRs. Taking away the Aulani points leaves us with 660 points to be used at Disney World. The general thought process was to go 1-2x a year to Disney World in a 1BR for a week and that should be fine for most of the time. If I'm running short on points, worse comes to worst I'll book a 1BR value with AKV which are easier to come by than value studios. If we don't take that second WDW trip, we'll probably book a couple random nights in VGC or VDH on a random weekend just to surprise the kids.

For Aulani, the 200 points gives us enough to go every year in a studio or every other year in a 1BR which is plenty for us most of the time. If we want more, we'll just use our resale AKV points in combination with our AUL points like we did last month. These points were subsidized dues points from DVC resale market and I'm so glad we bought them resale because the price differential is so huge from direct.

We've already had many amazing trips and even managed to host my wife's family and my family and our wedding party in Riviera for 5 nights in a grand villa and a 2BR and a 1BR at the same time and are looking forward to many more.

Like many here, I found out about DVC from the original show. I spent years being jealous of all of the members until New Year's Eve 2022, when I put in a lowball offer on a 25pt partially stripped BWV contract. The magic of the holidays paid off, and my offer was accepted!

My intention was to use my contract to stay in standard view studios for an annual short weekday trip during low point times. However, I've had a series of injuries back to back, and have given away my reservations to family and friends.

I will say that even with the 11 month advantage, I have to put together my reservations piecemeal by cleaning up after walkers.

My next/first trip 🤞 will be a split stay in early September, to take advantage of the free water park deal. I'm looking forward to experiencing all of the resorts, but dreading packing up and moving every morning!

2011 while in Disneyland we bought 160 direct points at AKL. 10 years later we added on 250 OKW extended. Being from the west coast this is perfect for us we can spend 10-12 days in 2BR each year.

No plans to add on unless we win the lottery then the sky is the limit

1. Starter direct contract a Saratoga Springs.

2. Stayed at Copper Creek + AKL. Loved Copper Creek.

3. Bought Copper Creek Studio Fixed Week. Was staying at Aulani before Hawaii Cruise. Was ready to purchase in prior holiday cruise but the DVC person on the cruise never got back to me. Switched to the Aulani DVC agent and he was able to honor an expired deal. Also asked about VGC Waitlist.

4. Almost bought VDH when it went on sale. But declined as we wanted VGC. Transient Occupancy Tax was also a downer.

5. Bought VGC. Several months later (and years after we first talked), Aulani DVC agent called out of the blue one day and said he had some points but it was take it or leave it on the amount and he had to know by that night. We took it.

6. Bought 2 resale Aulani contracts pretty much within 2 weeks of each other. Knew I was going to stay at Aulani for major anniversary milestone in 1.5 years. Got outbid for a subsidized contract. Kept looking. Didn't see many other ones after several months. However, saw and negotiated a great deal with an unsubsidized contract. As that was pending. A few listings for subsidized contracts appeared. I was able to negotiate a great price and purchased another contract. Might've gotten an even lower priced contract but the other party did not respond.

7. As a benefit of the Aulani contract, I can book 1 BR stays when we're not going to Hawaii. We can also use the Copper Creek contract to book 1 BR contracts every other year.

8. Next contract? Will have to consider Lakeshore Lodge when it goes on sale.

Our first contract was 100 points at BLT via resale. We knew BLT was our go to, and it was a great way to get in. Our family of 4 (2 kids, ages 4 and 2) can easily fit in a studio, and so I thought 100 would be sufficient. Before that contract finalized I had agreed to another contract, via resale, at the Poly for 50 points.

About 3-4 months later, I decided to add on a small contract direct. I was increasingly wanting to get access to the perks of a direct member, specifically the ability to purchases the Sorcerers Annual Pass. We added on 30 points direct at the Poly. At that point, we had 180, all resale.

Fast forward to today. This month I decided to pull the trigger. I sold my 50 point Poly contract (Thanks for the help, Derek!) and put that towards a purchase of 120 points direct at the Poly. We now have 250 points (150 direct at Poly, 100 resale at BLT). And it feels like a good place to be. I am confident I will add on more in the years to come, but probably exclusively small contracts at specific resorts. (Would love to get VGF points, possibly new Lakeshore depending on dues.) The direct price is ridiculous, but the annual pass benefit is very helpful, as is the discounts. The hybrid membership, I think, is the best way to go if you can swing it.

We had a trip scheduled for March 2020 and we were upgraded from Caribbean Beach to Yacht Club. That trip was canceled by Disney shortly after being notified of the upgrade but once we researched Yacht/Beachclub/BoardWalk area we decided to stay there for our rescheduled 2021 trip we booked at Yacht Club. That 2021 trip made us realize how much we love that area. So much so, we really didn't want to stay anywhere else, so we started researching DVC and decided on BoardWalk because it was more affordable than Beachclub. I searched for months until in 2022, I found a contract we could afford, a 70 point contract. Our reasoning was 70 points could get us 4 nights annually in a studio every season except the most expensive. Well we banked the first year, and borrowed from 2024 to have 210 points, and in 2024 we grabbed a 2 bedroom and all of my kids and grandkids went with us. Needless to say, now we will probably only stay in 1 bedrooms or larger. We bought another 25 points at BoardWalk in January 2025. We just got back from our Spring Break 2026 trip. It was our first time with a BoardWalk view. We are now spoiled, we are currently planning our next trip for December 2027. We currently have 95 resale points total but will probably get 50 more at some point after our 2027 trip. We love our BoardWalk DVC contracts.

In the beginning of 2023, my husband got a cancer diagnosis. 7 months later, he was gone. We went to college together at the University of Florida and went to DIsney for our spring breaks. We moved to Melbourne, Florida and were AP holders. We had that love for Disney.

Upon his heart wrenching loss, I had a conference (May 2024) in Orlando and went to Disney after many years of not going. It was rough not having him with me; however, I came home and knew a friend that was a DVC owner. My husband had left me a pot of money -- I had no clue about this pot of money. After some soul searching, I went to the DVC site and pinged someone on the chat. They called me and my first purchase was made. It was direct (I had no clue about resale then), 150 point at the Riviera. Yes, it was site unseen.

My welcome home visit was in November 2024 with my son. Before our visit (3 days before), I lost my dad in a Gainesville hospital. My mom told me to go on my trip. That trip was life changing and oh so hard, but beautiful too. My son & I hugged tightly when the Photopass photographers took our photos. I will never forget falling apart on a meet&greet with Mickey. Mickey had asked me why I was wearing a button that said "Celebrating a new home". I explained my husband left me this money to buy DVC and come see Mickey more. I was sobbing. He would not let go of me. It was the best therapy ever!

Needless to say, my son & I have made many memories at DIsney and honoring my husband and his dad. We've added on 2 resale contracts since. We now own 100 pts at Copper Creek and 100 pts at Saratoga Springs.

Who knew DVC would have changed my life...