DVC rental - pricing and what if the owner cancels the reservation?

I’ve been poking through the mouse owners forum to get a sense of the going rate for DVC rental points, and I’m surprised at how many owners are trying to rent their points at or above $16. I’ve seen as high as $18. I don’t want to be unreasonable, but as long as you’re not talking about a peak time or room type, isn’t $12-14 more reasonable? If you rent from Dave’s you can get $16-$17 plus the peace of mind knowing he’s definitely not a scammer and he’ll refund your money if the owner backs out and try to help you find another reservation. Why would I spend more for a riskier transaction?

Also, if an owner cancels a reservation on you (I know it’s rare but I like to think through even small risks), do you lose your ADRs and FPs? I’m sure that’s not the first thing you’d think about if you were standing in the resort and being told you had no room, but I’m trying to think through how salvageable the trip would be if you lost the reservation.

You would never lose your ADRs, you do not need a resort reservation to make dining reservations. As long as you have tickets and it is within 30 days you would keep your FPs. If it was cancelled in that 31- 60 day range you would know right away since Disney would email you they were canceling your FPs.

I am doing a private rental, and I assumed someone else’s reservation. I checked it every day until the recent MDE issues.

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I suppose the high asking prices are just a matter of supply/demand. They can set the price at whatever they like, but that doesn’t mean anyone is buying.
If these are owners of properties that are in the highest demand (Beach Club during Food & Wine, for example) and there is availability, they can command a higher price. If it’s Saratoga Springs, I’d go with David’s.

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I’m about to stay at Kidani through a private owner. And I’ve also done plenty of “Vacation Rentals” through private owners in the past. For me, it’s really all just about having conversations with an owner and feeling comfortable with them. There’s plenty of con-artists out there and plenty of good people. My experience has always been good by just having conversations with the people I’m renting from. I find that when you find a person who enjoys talking to you on the phone about their rental property, and more importantly, your vacation (restaurants, things to do, stores etc…), they are always good people to deal with. The owner I’m dealing with right now LOVES to talk Disney… pretty good indicator. On the other hand, I have a co-worker who got scammed on a vacation rental because he had paid his money to an unknown online “person” without ever so much as having a phone conversation.

As for the price, personally, I have no problem with an owner charging whatever they can get. If I don’t want to pay it, I won’t. I find that around $15 is probably a good gauge to use for planning. Also, if you want a highly sought after property, you need to book and pay 11 months prior to your arrival. David’s DVC will often struggle to help you with that… you need a DVC owner who’s “home resort” is the one you want. Other DVC owners (who own in some other resort) have to wait until 7 months prior, and by then the whole resort can/will be booked if it is popular. For example, you will NEVER get the cheapest DVC rental of them all (AKV Value Studio) unless someone books that at 11 months for you. And at around $15-$17 per point, that studio rents for about the price of one of the All-Stars or Pop Century. A lot of advanced planning, and a good owner to work with, can get you what you need. And there’s definitely a lot of value in that. For the record, you can also try to get the “distressed points” (points or reservations that are about to expire) and get the points much cheaper, but you have to wait until close to the time of your vacation to even know if you can get these, and you’d have to be totally flexible about where you stay. Great for a last minute trip, but not what I’d want to do for a planned vacation.

My advice to you: 1) Don’t try to get rock-bottom pricing on a DVC rental. On the contrary, if you see someone on MouseOwners charging too little, you’ll also often see that they have no established history of posting on MouseOwners… RUN and don’t look back from these “owners”. As for the legitimate ones, these are owners of property, not Wal-Mart. It’s true that these private owners are not an established business like David’s, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have as much value. A good owner is invaluable and will be there to help you. The owner I’m dealing with, for instance, has had a wait-list going for me for Beach Club because that’s where I most wanted to be. We haven’t gotten it, but she’s trying. And if you’re not comfortable with the private owner route then just go with David’s… easy. 2) Plan on paying around $15 per point (for planning purposes) and be flexible enough in your thinking to allow it to go a little higher or lower. Definitely plan on higher if you’re asking someone to help you get booked at the 11 month window. Whatever you end up paying per point, it’s going to allow you to stay in a DELUXE Disney resort for the price of a moderate in most cases. And if you have the planning time and ability, you could literally stay in Animal Kingdom Lodge for the price of an All-Star. I’m about to be in a Savannah View studio at Kidani Village for 7 nights at roughly $200 per night… that’s less than I paid for Port Orleans last year. How awesome is that?!? The deluxe resorts are really awesome in comparison to the others.

Edit: If you’re looking to book 11 months out, and I do recommend this, be looking for and cultivating relationships with people on MouseOwners for a couple of months earlier than that… 13 months before your vacation. getting the MOST desired rooms isn’t necessarily even easy for people who own in that resort. They need to be logged in at 6AM to the DAY of 11 months prior… so you need to be set up with them before this day arrives.

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You have to do your due diligence and check out the owner. Check their name and address against the register of owners, to make sure they have the contract they say they have. Check out that they are actually that person, does their social media match the info they’re giving you?

If you’ve been on Mouseowners, there are stickies that advise on how to check people out. Make sure they are genuine members of Mouseowners. If they only ever post on the RTB board then beware. On the other hand if they have an established posting history on the main boards, you are more likely t9 be dealing with a legit owner.

Always phone and have a conversation with them. And before you pay more than a deposit, make sure the reservation is in your name and viewable.

If the risk is too high for you to be comfortable, then go through a broker. And always take out cancellation cover, you just don’t know what life will throw at you and you want to be able to recover your money if you have to cancel.

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Thank you guys for your thoughts and perspective. And @rch2101, thanks especially for your detailed response. Having that reality check that $15 per point is considered a good price these days is really helpful. Have a blast at AKL!

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Like I said, you could get lucky and pay less, or you might pay a little more. Just figure out what your maximum budget for a resort room is and be prepared to spend it. IF YOU GET LUCKY ENOUGH TO PAY LESS, GREAT!

My family are not “park commandos”. A few hours each day (maybe 4-6) in the parks combined with the other activities, swimming, resort hopping/exploring, and the awesome extras that they have available at the Deluxe resorts make a great vacation to us. Another co-worker of mine likes the value resorts because, in his words, “all we’re doing is sleeping there.” But if you’re like me, you’ll REALLY appreciate everything the Deluxe resorts have to offer in the way of amenities, dining, activities, bars etc…

You’re welcome, and thanks! I can’t wait!!!

Edit: Re-reading this, I don’t know how that one whole sentence got into all caps LOL… I certainly didn’t mean to do that.

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