I’ve recently heard a lot from several people about the potential savings in renting DVC points and it’s got me curious. We’ve only ever booked directly through Disney, and I am just beginning to read up on the DVC point rental process. It seems interesting and like it could really work for us, we’re planning on possibly taking a shorter trip this year and trying to save where we can.
From what I’ve found so far there are two reputable rental sites that keep coming up - David’s and DVC Rental Store. Any thoughts/info (good or bad) on either would be very appreciated as I am a total newbie to this! Is it advantageous to book w/ one of them vs the other? Anything different I should know about ahead of time before deciding to book this way vs directly through Disney? A big question we have - we don’t miss out on the 60 day FP+ selections do we?
Thanks!!
Haven’t been able to secure a reservation through David’s, but I was impressed with their responsiveness and customer service for our deposit note, David’s requires payment in full upfront, including a $98 deposit (which is promptly returned if they can’t get you your requests). Would have no qualms working with them again.
I use DVC rental store. Great customer service (Katrina is my contact), they don’t charge to check availability. You don’t pay the entire payment up front once they find a match, you pay about half with the other half due 6 weeks out. It is such a great way to stay deluxe, for April we are staying at BCV and paying about 43% less than we could have gotten on the Disney website, so it is substantial savings. Everything is the same as if you booked it yourself, once the stay is booked and the contract is signed, you will get the confirmation number to link to MDE. You will get FPP at 60 days. If you haven’t already, read this as it will help to understand the process. How It Works - DVC Rental Store
We rented through David’s, and have had no issues as of yet. Our trip is in March, so until the trip actually occurs, I guess there’s still opportunity to have an issue. Everything shows up properly in MyDisney Experience, so as far as I can tell, everything is fine now
We chose a DVC rental because we wanted a 1BR room and most of those appear to be in DVC units. The costs were significantly less than renting from Disney, and we were to book in May for a trip next March. We would have had to wait until June or July to rent from Disney. And as it turns out, the savings were in that 40% range over what Disney offered later on…and we had a confirmed reservation. I couldn’t find much availability in April and May for any dates for a 1 BR unit at BLT or the Contemporary through Disney later in the year, which led me to believe that the only way to get it was through a DVC rental. And when I later realized that it’s only costing me $100 more a night to stay at BLT on the monorail (and walk to the Magic Kingdom) vs. a suite at Art of Animation (my second choice), it confirmed my choice.
Biggest downside to me was making it a non-refundable transaction through David’s. But I felt we were pretty much going to go to Disney, so paying up front wasn’t a show stopper. (We typically never cancel our plans anyway.) Adding Magic Express was a little more complicated IMHO, after we secured our flights. And since you depend on the DVC owner to handle the logistics, I wouldn’t use a DVC rental if you want the dining plan. (But if you are renting a unit with a kitchen, you aren’t going to use the dining plan either, so that’s not an issue either.)
Check out this TP Blog post: Tips For Renting Disney Vacation Club Points | TouringPlans.com Blog. The author is a really cool guy, and will probably answer any follow-up questions you may have. 
I’ve only rented directly through a friend, but for me it’s the only way I could ever afford to stay at a deluxe resort. Granted, my friend has given me a very (unusually) good rate, but I was able to stay at AKL for under $120/night during a “value” season… But even double that is a big savings over “rack rate”…
I’m a DVC owner who has rented my points out through David’s several times and found them to be very reputable and professional. I’ve always felt that they are very straightforward and good at communicating clearly.
With the David’s rentals (can’t speak for any other ones, but they are likely similar), I have to make the reservations in the name(s) of the people who are staying at the resort on my points. They receive the confirmation number, and the reservation is in their name. When they buy their park tickets/passes, they can attach them to their confirmation number, so as long as they do that far enough in advance, they can make their FastPass+ reservations and use their MagicBands for party entry, FP+, and door keys. They can also use the confirmation number to make dining reservations up to 180 days in advance.
The only things you really can’t do as someone renting DVC points is get anything that is available to DVC members only, so you can do pretty much the same things that anyone staying on property can do.
Such good info., thanks everyone! Excited to look into it. Anyone have any experience renting at WL?
Yes, I rented a Studio at VWL direct from an owner. I rented the points about 10 months before the stay in early December, and even then it was difficult to get room availability.
We have rented through David’s twice and have had no problems at all. We tried to rent a third time but they did not have the availability we wanted and they were very prompt with the refund of the deposit. Just know that it’s hard to modify or cancel once you’ve booked, and there is no daily maid service. Not huge issues, but something to be aware of.
Also, there was nothing different about fast passes or ADRs.
I have rented points several times (once through Davids and 3 times through Mouseowners) and never had an issue with either one. Mouseowners can save you some extra money but you have to do all the work and there is no “insurance”. Davids is very easy and secure. So its kind of a risk/reward thing.
We’ve stayed at WL a few times, but not since the construction started. Is there anything specific you want to know? It’s one of our favorite resorts.
Yeah I think the only downside is not being able to cancel. You can buy "insurance at I believe $1.45 per point BUTTTT that still does not get you a 100 percent refund unless you cancel very early on. I am still waiting to hear on Poly Villages for November (still no word and it’s been two weeks)
I used Dvcrentalstore Katrina the first time and stayed at BLT one bedroom and this time used David’s for a 2 bedroom in April. Both have been great. We’ve been very pleased with renting points. We were able to go up to the top of world lounge at BLT when we stayed there.