Torn Between SSR (Resale) and VGF (Direct)

[memma720]

I heard that the new VGF contracts have 2070 expiration dates - can anyone confirm?

 

[Genie+]

I heard that the new VGF contracts have 2070 expiration dates - can anyone confirm?

All VGF expires 2064. SSR expires 2054.

 

[Genie+]

The dues are very close, which is why I initially was drawn to them. Initially I would have said SSR, but with the VFG incentives it has me thinking between the two of them. I no doubt like VFG more, but the analytical part of my brain is having a hard time getting over the price difference....

We were intending to buy resale when this VGF direct offer came and for us it became a very easy choice.

This is a big purchase. I didn’t want to buy something that hopefully I liked, I felt better buying something we’d very likely enjoy. Here’s a little deeper dive:

It depends what you want, what you buy, how you’re able to use it, and what you may get should you exit down the road. There are differences. They can be little to great. It’s not automatically $20k increase for nothing.

Enter at your own risk lol:

I did not want Saratoga Springs at $90pp or whatever it goes for, spending this kind of money to settle on something that might bring us frustration/regret instead of joy/excitement. It’s a gamble I’ll find out the answer in 20+yrs when I looking back at our actual experiences and comparing salvage values.

Our direct cost is $3.93pp/yr buy-in with $7.33pp dues and priority to stay somewhere we truly enjoy. I bet on direct being the best value over time. SSR is about $3pp/yr with $7.86 dues. It’s ~$75/yr difference on our 150pts. TVM could be applied to the price difference, though even a high estimate wouldn’t double that. There’s the future unknown of salvage value (and dues) changing that difference up or down. What does it get? Could be more choices, discounts and perks. Easy to live without. Nice to have especially if it ends up near the same cost.

SSR is great because the smaller outlay can make DVC possible. Accessing deluxe rooms for $200/nt is fantastic. That’s exactly what I should’ve done years ago in stead of hemming and hawing. But today I felt VGF direct had the best value.

The DVC landscape will continue changing, we have clues but don’t know precisely how. I know someone who bought SSR resale when BLT went on sale and later kicked themselves. They compromised on what priorities they got with their points and lost out on BLT payday when they later sold. BLT would’ve ended up cheaper and more enjoyable.

Beside currently being a great deal, VGF direct is very possibly a last opportunity to buy direct without being encumbered by resale restrictions should you ever decide to sell. And it’s a monorail resort. Altogether it gave me that extra confidence we wouldn’t look back with regret. We’ll enjoy using it, love that we’re getting the perks and not shut out of booking new resorts, and if we decide to part ways down the road -imho- it’s likely to hold a strong value.

SSR is not a bad choice. For me though, when I think about how DVC may evolve over the years, VGF direct seems like we’ll enjoy it more over the decades. That was worth spending a bit more now.

 

[LittleBitGoofy]

VGF direct is very possibly a last opportunity to buy direct without being encumbered by resale restrictions should you ever decide to sell.

That's a concern I keep coming back to. I'm expecting this could likely be the last opportunity to buy direct on an active sale that won't hold those resale restrictions. That could be a big deal for holding value.

 

[PolyRob]

So.. I have to ask.. do you own Poly as well or is your name fake news?

I know it's confusing with the DIS name (can't be changed) and Stitch avatar, but I do not own PVB.

I love Poly overall as a resort and it was actually the first WDW resort I ever stayed at with my family. It will always hold a special place in my heart. Over the years after taking more and more trips Grand Floridian became the MK resort we preferred staying at while visiting Poly via walking path for the fun aspects it offers. I was tempted to purchase PVB direct when it was actively on sale, but after staying in a PVB deluxe studio I was very turned off by it. I did not like how DVC repurposed the largest cash rooms on WDW property. They were also extremely dark for my taste. I also find being in Pago Pago or Moorea a bit too far from GCH for my liking. I could almost overlook the larger accommodations missing since a majority of the deluxe studios connected, but the bungalows selling studio sized contracts scared me. I didn't know what was going to happen over the next 49/50 years (at the time) with reallocations. VGF was the clear winner for me when I joined DVC with it's beautifully appointed villas, dedicated concierge in the lobby, and separate parking lot and porte cochere. The conversion of Big Pine Key years later didn't actually upset me. I am ok with having resort studios as an option and I like that it's one of the closest buildings to the main Grand Floridian lobby so I purchased even more at what I thought was a good price in 2022 and am adding on again in 2023 at an even better price.

I still enjoy Poly's vibe and if the tower is a new association with a reasonable accommodation mix like Riviera I will most likely add there since it should offer what I loved about VGF1. If it's rolled into PVB I will probably just try to stay a few nights here and there in a low demand season with my leftover ~$161 VGF points for a Poly fix.

 

[Genie+]

That's a concern I keep coming back to. I'm expecting this could likely be the last opportunity to buy direct on an active sale that won't hold those resale restrictions. That could be a big deal for holding value.

Especially as expirations start drawing near, the options that are left to trade into with resale.

SSR ‘54 - 14m, OKW ‘57 - 7.7m, AKV ‘57 - 7.4m, BLT ‘60 - 5.7m, VGF ‘64 - 4.5m, Poly ‘66 - 4m, CCV ‘68 - 3.3m.

When 2040 approaches, what is availably like at 7 months. I’m sure we’ll be thrown some curveballs along the way. Copper Creek is likely to have alot more value than OKW.

 

[Sandisw]

Especially as expirations start drawing near, the options that are left to trade into with resale.

SSR ‘54 - 14m, OKW ‘57 - 7.7m, AKV ‘57 - 7.4m, BLT ‘60 - 5.7m, VGF ‘64 - 4.5m, Poly ‘66 - 4m, CCV ‘68 - 3.3m.

When 2040 approaches, what is availably like at 7 months. I’m sure we’ll be thrown some curveballs along the way. Copper Creek is likely to have alot more value than OKW.

I agree. I think we will start to see those that own at the nesr park resorts left…all MK area…potentially trading out less.

So, I can definitely see those resorts having more value resale than the big three will!

 

[D-Trick]

@TheHauntedMark - I vote SSR. I see many similarities with your situation and when I started out with my DVC journey. $10k+ is a lot of money! Save that money now and see how 200 points work for you first. Everyone's situation is different, but the safe play is take the more affordable option and dip your toes first. Addonitis is a real thing, and that 10k you save buy going resale can buy you even more points, or be used toward direct later.

You may be surprised with what you're able to book with the 200 SSR and find you don't need direct points (yet). Expirations dates are important, but should not be the be all end all. Remember-- there will ALWAYS be sales incentives, so don't feel like you need to jump on the 150 VGF now unless you really want VGF. Starting with resale, you'd be eligible for member pricing direct.

 

[LittleBitGoofy]

You can definitely save money with SSR resale and I agree starting with lower costs is a smart move. The only catch on SSR resale for SAP as a starter contract is whether you plan to visit more than once a year. I was very intrigued by SAP resales until I did the math on tickets.

When you go twice a year, say with a 4-day park hopper, with 4x people it comes out to around $5500/yr for those two visits. Sorcerer APs renewed for 4x comes out to about $3200. Incredi APs renewed comes out to around $5000/yr (obviously these AP prices are current and should be expected to increase).

So saving $10K on SSR resale will be eroded if you're going more than once a year and decide to start buying APs. You'll be limited to Incredi without blue card. Sorcerer vs Incredi renewals is about $1800/yr savings for our family of four. In 5.5 years we'd wipe out the $10K savings and with 40 years left on VGF I expect we'll do that enough.

Now if you really stick to once a year, no APs in the future plans, then yes, I'd say SSR resale for SAP is the way to go. If you plan on the possibility of 2+ trips a year, then VGF direct for SAP provides cheaper AP options down the road.

 

[intamin]

You can definitely save money with SSR resale and I agree starting with lower costs is a smart move. The only catch on SSR resale for SAP as a starter contract is whether you plan to visit more than once a year. I was very intrigued by SAP resales until I did the math on tickets.

When you go twice a year, say with a 4-day park hopper, with 4x people it comes out to around $5500/yr for those two visits. Sorcerer APs renewed for 4x comes out to about $3200. Incredi APs renewed comes out to around $5000/yr (obviously these AP prices are current and should be expected to increase).

So saving $10K on SSR resale will be eroded if you're going more than once a year and decide to start buying APs. You'll be limited to Incredi without blue card. Sorcerer vs Incredi renewals is about $1800/yr savings for our family of four. In 5.5 years we'd wipe out the $10K savings and with 40 years left on VGF I expect we'll do that enough.

Now if you really stick to once a year, no APs in the future plans, then yes, I'd say SSR resale for SAP is the way to go. If you plan on the possibility of 2+ trips a year, then VGF direct for SAP provides cheaper AP options down the road.

Yeahhh I agree with this. I was calculating the difference in the cost of passes and between the incredipass and sorcerer pass its a 458 dollar difference per person. If you don’t plan to go during Christmas/Thanksgiving that’s a pretty nice perk that adds up over time especially if you have more kids down the line. I know the perks aren’t guaranteed as shown by the recent 1.5 year pause on annual pass sales but they sure are nice.

 

[TheHauntedMark]

I appreciate the input from everyone. We pulled the trigger on VGF. I was able to get a September UY which is what we needed for our travel habits, and my guide was able to get approval for them to do MB on 2022 points, so we will be receiving 2023 points in 10 days. All in all I am excited!

 

[LittleBitGoofy]

I appreciate the input from everyone. We pulled the trigger on VGF. I was able to get a September UY which is what we needed for our travel habits, and my guide was able to get approval for them to do MB on 2022 points, so we will be receiving 2023 points in 10 days. All in all I am excited!

Congratulations!

Now when addonitis hits you'll already have your direct covered and opens you up to either/or options with direct and resale down the road.

 

[PolyRob]

I appreciate the input from everyone. We pulled the trigger on VGF. I was able to get a September UY which is what we needed for our travel habits, and my guide was able to get approval for them to do MB on 2022 points, so we will be receiving 2023 points in 10 days. All in all I am excited!

Congratulations and welcome home!

 

[intamin]

I appreciate the input from everyone. We pulled the trigger on VGF. I was able to get a September UY which is what we needed for our travel habits, and my guide was able to get approval for them to do MB on 2022 points, so we will be receiving 2023 points in 10 days. All in all I am excited!

Welcome home! Now that you’re a member I hear Epcot/Crescent Lake is nice this time of year

 

[TheHauntedMark]

Welcome home! Now that you’re a member I hear Epcot/Crescent Lake is nice this time of year

Good thing I will be at Boardwalk on Saturday....

 

[intamin]

Good thing I will be at Boardwalk on Saturday....

Addonitis:

 

[wmm1126]

I'm in a very similar situation. I have my 200 points @ 86pp SSR resale contract that I only signed 6-7 days ago. But the incentives for direct VGF is so incredible right now. I would love to buy both and have direct UY match the resale UY but that is not in the cards for us right now. Also, I would only be able to afford 150 points at VGF direct.

I don't know what to do. I could still cancel the SSR resale in the next 3 days and get my full deposit back if I wanted to do direct. But my goodness, 86pp SSR is a great deal.

Extra info:
-We are a family of 5 with the youngest kiddo being 2.
-We fly to Disney 1 time a year and stay for 1 wk. We rely on Disney transportation throughout our stay. (this could change as the kids get older)
-I love the idea of being able to stay at any resort on property old or new
-From the great info I got from DVC Availability Tables — DVC Field Guide, it looks like VGF usually has resort studios available at the 7-month out mark.
- We are going in Jan 2024 to Disney World and we would love to use our points for our stay. (I know that the only thing still available this late in the game is SSR 1 BR or some kind of split stay.) But I have heard if you buy direct, MS may be able to work a little magic and get us in for a non-split stay.

What are your thoughts? Help this crazy lady. I feel like a hamster on a wheel.

 

[LittleBitGoofy]

I'm in a very similar situation. I have my 200 points @ 86pp SSR resale contract that I only signed 6-7 days ago. But the incentives for direct VGF is so incredible right now. I would love to buy both and have direct UY match the resale UY but that is not in the cards for us right now. Also, I would only be able to afford 150 points at VGF direct.

I don't know what to do. I could still cancel the SSR resale in the next 3 days and get my full deposit back if I wanted to do direct. But my goodness, 86pp SSR is a great deal.

Extra info:
-We are a family of 5 with the youngest kiddo being 2.
-We fly to Disney 1 time a year and stay for 1 wk. We rely on Disney transportation throughout our stay. (this could change as the kids get older)
-I love the idea of being able to stay at any resort on property old or new
-From the great info I got from DVC Availability Tables — DVC Field Guide, it looks like VGF usually has resort studios available at the 7-month out mark.
- We are going in Jan 2024 to Disney World and we would love to use our points for our stay. (I know that the only thing still available this late in the game is SSR 1 BR or some kind of split stay.) But I have heard if you buy direct, MS may be able to work a little magic and get us in for a non-split stay.

What are your thoughts? Help this crazy lady. I feel like a hamster on a wheel.

Just on one aspect here, but I suspect that kinda of SSR deal could be captured again down the road. The VGF sale right now though, we already know those prices go up in a week.

Doesn't sound like you need the AP benefits of Sorcerer Passes with one trip a year though, so maybe that's a non factor.

 

[PolyRob]

I'm in a very similar situation. I have my 200 points @ 86pp SSR resale contract that I only signed 6-7 days ago. But the incentives for direct VGF is so incredible right now. I would love to buy both and have direct UY match the resale UY but that is not in the cards for us right now. Also, I would only be able to afford 150 points at VGF direct.

I don't know what to do. I could still cancel the SSR resale in the next 3 days and get my full deposit back if I wanted to do direct. But my goodness, 86pp SSR is a great deal.

Extra info:
-We are a family of 5 with the youngest kiddo being 2.
-We fly to Disney 1 time a year and stay for 1 wk. We rely on Disney transportation throughout our stay. (this could change as the kids get older)
-I love the idea of being able to stay at any resort on property old or new
-From the great info I got from DVC Availability Tables — DVC Field Guide, it looks like VGF usually has resort studios available at the 7-month out mark.
- We are going in Jan 2024 to Disney World and we would love to use our points for our stay. (I know that the only thing still available this late in the game is SSR 1 BR or some kind of split stay.) But I have heard if you buy direct, MS may be able to work a little magic and get us in for a non-split stay.

What are your thoughts? Help this crazy lady. I feel like a hamster on a wheel.

200 SSR at $86 will still beat the price of 150 VGF. It just depends on what you think you want for the future.

VGF won't be available for a welcome home booking so if you want a VGF resort studio for January I wouldn't weigh that too heavily in the final decision. I am sure MS could find you something, but not VGF or VGC.

I know you mentioned an annual week long vacation, but is it always the same season? Big Pine Key is fully declared, but not completely sold out so the booking trends won't really be accurate when all the VGF points are sold. There are 202 resort studios so there is definitely a lot of studio inventory, but it may be harder to book November to December and some holidays without home resort advantage. There are actually weeks in April and May that weren't completely open in the 7-11 month window this year in a standard view resort studio.

Relying solely on WDW transportation at SSR would get tiring, but buying SSR points doesn't mean you will always stay at SSR. Do you think you want the walking path to MK? Will you over the years travel to WDW more than once a year and want access to the discounted Sorcerer Pass?

You're not crazy at all! It's a very hard decision.

 

[wmm1126]

VGF won't be available for a welcome home booking so if you want a VGF resort studio for January I wouldn't weigh that too heavily in the final decision. I am sure MS could find you something, but not VGF or VGC.

I know you mentioned an annual week long vacation, but is it always the same season? Big Pine Key is fully declared, but not completely sold out so the booking trends won't really be accurate when all the VGF points are sold. There are 202 resort studios so there is definitely a lot of studio inventory, but it may be harder to book November to December and some holidays without home resort advantage. There are actually weeks in April and May that weren't completely open in the 7-11 month window this year in a standard view resort studio.

Relying solely on WDW transportation at SSR would get tiring, but buying SSR points doesn't mean you will always stay at SSR. Do you think you want the walking path to MK? Will you over the years travel to WDW more than once a year and want access to the discounted Sorcerer Pass?

You're not crazy at all! It's a very hard decision.

We go any time of year except in the summer. We went in summer once and NEVER again. It was so hot and the food didn't taste as good (could have been the heat) and a vast majority of the CMs were rude (could have been the heat as well). We never have had an experience like that before in DW.

Our 100% goal for the SSR points would be for SAP. I have read from other people that using SSR points for SAP is getting harder but still very doable.

When the kids are bigger I see us coming for smaller stays, but more often a year. Or maybe still week long stays but not doing DW the entire time, doing universal, discovery cove, etc. Also, we plan on doing Aulani in 3-5 years.

In your opinion (or anybody reading) what resorts and rooms are most likey to be open @ the 7-month out mark? We never travel peak times. (no week of thanksgiving, week of xmas, new years, run disney events, cheer comps, spring break, etc)

My biggest concern is that this is going to be the best deal VGF is going to offer (maybe ever, if it sells out.) And it's probably going to be the last new build that doesn't have resale restrictions.

Also, I know with buying direct, I can get the points immediately and go ahead and book our Jan stay now instead of having to wait another 4-8 weeks. That's what I meant by MS getting us a welcome home, I know they will have better access now than I will in those 4-8 wks to get my resale points loaded.

I'm also kind of scared my SSR contract will get taken by ROFR. 86pp is pretty cheap and they took 3 contracts not long ago. (none at SSR luckily)