In Part 1 of Disney Mom and Dad’s DVC 101 we provided an introduction to DVC. As we mentioned we are owners in DVC, but even if we weren’t we wish we would have understood DVC before our first trip and more specifically we wished we understood the rental of DVC points rather than paying rack rate at the Grand Californian. The ability to rent points from an owner creates the potential for you to stay at some of the most amazing Disney resorts for a price you may not have thought possible.  

We watch many Facebook groups and see the disagreements between the camps that stay on-property and that stay off-property.  For the most part the argument revolves around a difference of opinion of whether the convenience and amenities that come with an on property hotel are worth the extra cost (which difference can definitely be significant) As we’ve talked about in our other posts time and again, we are in the camp that believes the value of staying on property is the extra time you have to enjoy your vacation and avoid lines through benefits like the Extra Morning Magic Hour, and that when you look at your time savings as being equal to cost savings, you can make your decisions weighing one set of costs vs. another (such as the extra cost of rooms on property).  Well, what if you could get the benefit of staying on property, and not have to pay as much of a premium to do so?

A big caveat on this Part 2 and the thoughts we outline here is that we do not and cannot  provide any legal advice of any sort on the type of arrangement you should make with an owner or a rental company, and we do not and cannot provide any assurances that you won’t have a bad experience with an owner. Please do your own research on all topics included here, as our intent is to raise your awareness with this possibility, in hopes that after doing your research you’ll find the best avenue for you and your family to enjoy your vacations. 

In this Part 2 we’ll focus primarily on the example of renting DVC points to use at the Grand Californian, but the same concept would apply at any DVC resort, such as Beach Club, Bay Lake Tower or Animal Kingdom Lodge in Orlando, or Aulani in Hawaii.  The fact is that your cost is usually much less renting points through a DVC owner than you would pay booking a room direct through Disney, and in our opinions the accommodations are far superior.  This Part 2 of our Disneymomanddad DVC 101 Series will walk you through the benefits of renting DVC points and the process of how you can do it.

In Part 1 we talked about the annual allocation of points that each member gets.  If, for example, an owner buys 200 DVC points with a June “Use Year” then they get 200 vacation points to use at the DVC resorts deposited into their account every June until your contract expires (anywhere from 2043 to 2070).  As you can imagine, people buy more points than they can use, their plans change, they are short on cash in a particular year, or they just get tired of going to Disney and take a year or more off from their Vacation Club use, and those people then have unused DVC points that will expire if they aren’t used.  Those members have paid a pretty high price for those points, and continue to pay their annual dues on those points, so if they aren’t going to use them they’d prefer that they don’t go to waste.  This is where the DVC “rental” market comes into play.

There is an entire market for the rental of DVC points that is there for your benefit.  There are DVC rental companies such as the DVC Rental Store, the DVC Store and David’s Disney Vacation Club Points Rentals.  Those companies usually pay an owner somewhere between $12 and $14 a point and then turn around and find a renter who they charge $16-$18 a point.  They provide the valuable service of matching owners and renters for their fee, and they will usually take care of the documentation to give some level of protection of the parties.  Besides the companies that specialize in DVC rentals, there are also Facebook groups dedicated to helping people rent points.  These pages are mostly populated by DVC Owners, but they are a hidden gem for the renter looking to connect with owners who have points to rent out.   If you’re looking to rent points, we suggest doing your research on these companies as well as joining and watching the Facebook pages and asking questions there. 

When you rent points from an owner you need to understand the “home resort booking priority”  that we discussed in Part 1. If you want to rent points for a room at the Grand Californian and are renting points from an owner at the Hilton Head Island DVC resort, that owner cannot book your room at the Grand until you are within 7 months of the beginning of your stay, and by that time the room will likely be unavailable.  If you want to rent for a hard to get resort (Grand Californian, Beach Club, etc.) you’re better off renting from an owner at that resort who can book your room before the 7 month mark (they can book up to 11 months from the beginning from your stay).  If possible, our opinion is that the best option is to connect with an owner who has home resort priority at the resort where you want to stay and, more than 11 months out, agree upon your deal. This way, you can have them book your room exactly at the 11 month date providing you with the best odds of getting the type of room you want on your dates before it is gone.   Of course, with that added benefit of booking early and having that home resort priority comes the premium on the price per point.  For example, you may have to pay $18-20 per point for to a Grand Californian owner to rent their points, whereas you may be able to rent Saratoga Springs points for $14 dollars per point.  In order to avoid the risk of your room being gone by the 7 month mark, you may have to pay the premium of $6 per point or so. 

As a non-DVC owner, how would you go about renting the points?  FThe best bet is to be connected with the owner and have them know exactly what room you want so they can be on the DVC website the first morning that your reservation can be booked (again, 11 months in advance of your first night). Before you’re even connecting with owners or rental companies, however, put some research in to find out what type of room, what location and what dates (DVC locations can be found at https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/destinations/list/ and the room types, capacities and floor plans can be found within the page for each resort).  You can also look up the point charts to find out how many points the room you want to rent will cost (https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/vacation-planning/points-charts/). As a reminder, the cost in points will vary based on the resort, the time of year, days of the week, the size and type of room and any special categories such as “preferred view”.

The next step is to find a source of the points you want to rent, either by contacting the rental companies or by finding an owner on the Facebook pages who has the points available for you to rent, and agreeing on your rental arrangement.  Once you’ve connected with the Owner, they will make the reservation and they can then put your name on the reservation for check in.  .

Again, we are not saying that the above plan is risk proof.  It is absolutely possible that you could come to a deal with someone, even potentially pay them for the rental of points, and then they cancel the reservation, in which case you’ll be looking for legal remedies against that owner.  This could happen if renting through a private party arrangement on Facebook, or through a rental company (though the rental companies would at least refund any money that you paid).  We’re not telling anyone how to negotiate or document their deal, but if you’re concerned, note that there are owners who have contracts that they use, and there are owners that have references from past renters.

Let’s go through a couple of examples, so that you know what you’re potentially saving.  Below are tables for the Grand Californian that compare the rack rate of booking through Disney with the price you would potentially pay renting through a DVC Owner (for these purposes we are comparing one week stays and assuming you’d pay $19 per point from a Grand Californian Owner).  Note that DVC owners get free parking at the DVC resorts and as a renter of DVC points you’ll get that same benefit, providing a little bit of extra savings. We are looking at rooms at this exact moment and telling you the prices we see on the Disney web page and then comparing them to the amount of points it would cost to rent a similar DVC room.  This is the same research you can do on your own once you decide what dates and room type you need for your trip:

At the Grand Californian

Room Type	Dates	Disney Rack Rate	DVC points and Cost (at $19/point)
Studio (sleeps 4) Compares to standard hotel room on the hotel side which sleeps 5	July 18-25	$5,500-$6,500 (depending on view)	194 points or $3,686
Studio	April 19-26	$3,600 to $4,200 (depending on view)	148 points or $2,812
1 Bedroom Villa (sleeps 5 with full kitchen, washer/dryer 2 bathrooms) Compared to 1 bedroom suite on the hotel side which sleeps 6	July 18-25	$11,781	388 points or $7,372
1 Bedroom Villa	April 19-26	$8,659	291 points or $5,529
2 Bedroom Villa (sleeps 9 with full kitchen, washer/dryer and 3 bathrooms) Compared to 2 bedroom suite on the hotel side which sleeps 11	July 18-25	$14,112	526 Points or $9,994
2 Bedroom Villa	April 11-18	$9,422	390 points or $7,410

These are just a few examples.  Disney does run special rates from time to time, and the rates above are just for a couple of specific weeks.  We would suggest that it is worth researching your particular desired week and resort to determine how much better of a deal (if any) you would be able to get going through the DVC rental process outlined here, and it is then up to you and your family to determine if the reduced cost, along with the extra room amenities, are worth the added process of renting a DVC room.  We also note that the assumption of $19 per point is just an estimate, based on what we typically see in the resale listings for the Grand Californian home resort priority.  You may be able to find or negotiate a lower price per point from an owner, and on the other hand there may be times when you can’t find an owner at the Grand Californian willing to rent for less than $20 per point.  You may also find better deals in some instances working with one of the DVC rental companies, and in other instances you’ll find the best deal directly through an owner. The only way to get the best deal is to put in the research time. If you have a price in mind and want to see if an owner is willing to sell you points at that price, create a post asking the question.  Many owners just wait to see a post looking for points, and don’t actively advertise points that they would be willing to rent.

A last couple of things to consider when evaluating a rental of a DVC room.  First, don’t overlook the advantages (and financial benefit) of a full kitchen.  Especially when you are staying for more than a few days, this can be a huge cost savings benefit.  We pre-order an amazon fresh delivery to arrive the same day that we do, and that allows us to prepare breakfasts in the room, come back for lunches (since the Grand Cal is never more than a few steps away from where we are in the park), and we’ve even cooked dinner in the room.  As you all know (or will soon find out) dining in Disney can add up in a hurry, and the savings we get by preparing food in the room is significant. Even if the savings weren’t so significant, after a few days eating park food only, the ability to cook your own food for a few meals can be a relief.  We wouldn’t be able to do this in a standard hotel room.  Also add into your calculations the money you’re saving with free parking (if you’re driving), and the overall savings above are enhanced even further.

We also really like having the washer and dryer in the room.  It allows us to pack just a little bit lighter, and we can do one load of laundry while we’re back in the room at lunch.  The studios don’t have in room laundry, but there is a DVC laundry room available if you aren’t staying in a one or two bedroom. 

Hopefully, all of this information can save you a bit of money, enhance your vacation experience or both.  Once you’ve rented points and stayed in the DVC rooms we think you’ll start to understand what the Cast Members mean when they say “Welcome Home” to DVC members whenever they check in.