So you have purchased through Timeshare before? That is who I would probably look at since they have some pretty good pricing on some of the contracts.
Yes, our first contract was at SSR through the TimeShare store. Then, we did a BLT add on through Disney. With the Timeshare store, you have to wait to see if Right of First Refusal is exercised by Disney. Some have reported not making it thru, but I think TSS advises people on what they think Disney will except, and that is why you see the prices the way they are. We had to wait quite a while, as we picked a contract that had a pending vacation, and thus, we could not close until it finished. This, however, worked well for us as we put down the deposit but then did not have to close until much later, closer to our next vacation. The downside was that we only had a few months before our vacation when we closed, and since we did not go thru Disney, we could not get a studio and had to stay in a 1 br (darn the luck). The whole process started in October and we didn't close until December and did not get accepted until January.
When we bought thru Disney, the points were in our account later that day before we ever had a contract. Our sales guy offered to book us a room, but we already had something booked, and we bought our add on later in the year, which allowed us to bank our points forward. It was so smooth.
In both cases, they mail you all the paperwork and you will have to make photocopies of stuff and have the paperwork notarized. They both offer financing, with Disney providing their own in house which does not go on your credit report. TSS partners with a bank and will make a referral for you. You can always go finance through whoever you want or pay outright. We did finance, and then paid it off a few months later, stupidly becuase I was afraid to send them a large lump sum. (Dave Ramsey's stupid tax.)
Anyway, I had a great experience through TSS and would go thru them again. The pros is the lower resale amount. The con is waiting for everything to go thru. Also, with resale, you have the chance to pick your UY. It has never been a big deal for us, but if your vacation may change, then you may need to consider. They advise that you don't vacation in the last 4 months of your use year, as if you needed to cancel your vacation, you could simply unbook and then bank your points forward to next UY. If you are within the last 4 months, you cannot do that. Then, you may cancel (no fee), but your points become "holding points", which you cannot bank, transfer, and must use by the end of your UY.
Our UY is June and we still vacation in April for our Spring Break and it is not a big deal. We originally picked June as we thought we would only vacation in October (Fall Break). Then, you can get a new contract with a new UY and transfer points ..blah, blah, blah, but I just left it alone. Besides, once children are old enough, I would like to go in December or January. I posted Vero pics on main thread.
We know we are going to WDW at least once per year (or more) for a vacation and stay at a DVC resort. So, resale was the way to go for us. If I can find another BLT contract through TSS with June UY for another 50 to 100 points, I will buy it thru them. Or, I may have to buy through Disney if they are getting close to being sold out, but I'll pay a lot more. I'm considering a OKW 2057 expiration contract if I could find the right deal.
Good luck with your decision.
