Riviera Resale Restrictions- Rumour and Speculation

[YorkshireT]

According to someone on another board, the guide told them there had been a meeting about the resale restrictions where guides were complaining, and to expect changes.

Now personally I am unconvinced by this, but I do note that direct sales are down.

What do you think? Do you think DVD got too greedy here? They have what we are told is the most successful and profitable timeshare product on earth, but they decided to hit their direct customers by tanking the value of their directly bought contracts at Riviera? For what- to try and knock out resale, which is actually a reason many people buy- the good resale value if they sell? Is that good business sense? Does it instill the trust in the company, that trust having always been the DVC backbone?

Personally I’m rather sad in a way that DVC has gone. It’s still a fabulous product, so why not keep the core values? I’ve read up a lot on the history and ‘not being another timeshare’ and rock solid efficacy were at its very core. To me, the product has been somewhat tarnished, it seems in the pursuit of silver.

To me it seems madness to damage such an amazing and profitable brand which DVC was unto itself. I won’t even get back onto the lock off premium as that has been covered in great length already. We see things reported now like questionable sales techniques. The stuff I’ve seen reported would originally have resulted in instant sackings or removal and retraining from what I’ve read. In fact originally they refused to sell you a contract on the day. I read there’s plenty of good old school guides still, but some seem to be diverging a world away from the original vision. Pete Warner summed it up on his show, when he said ‘DVC- you are better than this’ or words to that effect.

Would simply having high levels of efficacy and stopping all this nonsense make them more money long term? I remember when it was almost constant praise for DVC on forums, now it’s changed to regular gripes.

Maybe they thought people would buy anyway and are surprised as to the negative effect, the old adage you can fool some of the people some of the time etc?

[act1980]

Really hope this is true. Disney are taking the ≈≈≈≈ and need a kick up the backside! Hopefully the reduction in sales is an eye opener and this news will become more than just a rumour!

[lov2dibb]

I'm not bothered about the Riviera restrictions.

In fact I quite like not having yet more owners competing for the same rooms at 7 months.

Even if I was buying resale now (original resorts) I wouldn't be concerned. There's ONE resort I couldn't now book and its location doesn't interest me. I know that'll change going forward but I'm happy with the other 14 I can go to now.

I just sold one of my BLT contracts and got a really good price so other resale buyers don't seem bothered either.

As long as buyers know what the restrictions are (and from reports most do and aren't concerned) then that's fine by me.

I do however agree that they are being greedy and it is overpriced but (being selfish) I hope they don't remove the restrictions.

[Mr Tom Morrow]

Trust is a hard earned thing that is highly valued. I trusted and respected Disney for many years and felt valued and worthy.

However I now feel like nothing more than a cash cow to be milked. I no longer trust Disney and am constantly on my guard to avoid being fleeced.
The lock off changes were the final nail in the coffin for me.

In conclusion I look past the new rides, the fawning ≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈ that Management spout and instead I am always on edge to see what's coming from the blind side.

Enterprise innovation and profit are to be admired. But not to the customers detriment.

[YorkshireT]

Originally Posted by lov2dibb

I'm not bothered about the Riviera restrictions.

In fact I quite like not having yet more owners competing for the same rooms at 7 months.

Even if I was buying resale now (original resorts) I wouldn't be concerned. There's ONE resort I couldn't now book and its location doesn't interest me. I know that'll change going forward but I'm happy with the other 14 I can go to now.

I just sold one of my BLT contracts and got a really good price so other resale buyers don't seem bothered either.

As long as buyers know what the restrictions are (and from reports most do and aren't concerned) then that's fine by me.

I do however agree that they are being greedy and it is overpriced but (being selfish) I hope they don't remove the restrictions.

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A good view but a few things here I would argue against.

The competing for resorts bit- I do not agree. Many are saying it will make Riviera and others harder to get. Any current resale owners can book there, but as Riviera contracts are sold, they will only be able to book there- nowhere else, thus putting great pressure on Riviera as all these people who have bought resale will be booking it on 11 months- wait and they could get nowhere. So I think we will have to see how it pans out.

I agree the fact buyers of the original 14 resorts are not being put off buying resale- they can use the original 14. The resale restrictions do not really bother those buying the original 14 as they simply decide not to stay at Riviera or if they are a current owner and adding on, the older contracts they hold can still be used for Riviera.

The only sellers it is hitting in the pocket at the moment are direct buyers for Riviera as their contracts are the ones that can only be used at one resort and have been suppressed in price (the few that have hit the market) as a result. For me, that is a very bad message- be a loyal customer and buy the latest resort direct and because of changes which appear to have been implemented to make DVD more cash long term, it is you the customer who takes the brunt of that if you sell.

[Guest]

I saw this too and I'd be happy if it were correct.

We decided to add on direct this month because we wanted more points and it suited our circumstances. We love the Riviera rooms and plan to switch to 1 beds by the time there are a significant number of resale owners. Our guide was awful and tried to tell us that the resale restrictions wouldn't affect availability. He also told us it wouldn't be a problem to get tower or standard studios. We knew what we were buying, but it makes me sad that people who don't get the same spiel.

I still feel like a cash cow for Disney and ironically one of the things that pushed me to buy was a poor experience with a cash stay at the Contemporary. My kids had a fantastic holiday though and we want to continue going for the foreseeable future. I'm not too fussed about selling low if we can at least hold on to the contract until the break even point.

[lov2dibb]

Originally Posted by YorkshireT

The only sellers it is hitting in the pocket at the moment are direct buyers for Riviera as their contracts are the ones that can only be used at one resort and have been suppressed in price (the few that have hit the market) as a result. For me, that is a very bad message- be a loyal customer and buy the latest resort direct and because of changes which appear to have been implemented to make DVD more cash long term, it is you the customer who takes the brunt of that if you sell.

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You've hit the nail on the head there.

It's a LONG TERM business strategy and kind of makes sense. I think they're planning 30, 40+ years into the future with this and Reflections and other future resorts (and maybe the older ones after the contracts end).

It's obviously not good for Riviera owners selling up at the moment but if they wait for Reflections etc I think that might change and prices go up.

[timnlaura]

When we were there in September I had said about how unsure I was about the resale part of Riviera. the cm said that it shouldn’t affect it at all as although resale riviera buyers can’t use their points at the original DVC, they will be able to use them to stay at any of the new DVC resorts?

[YorkshireT]

Originally Posted by timnlaura

When we were there in September I had said about how unsure I was about the resale part of Riviera. the cm said that it shouldn’t affect it at all as although resale riviera buyers can’t use their points at the original DVC, they will be able to use them to stay at any of the new DVC resorts?

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Hi, the CM gave you the wrong info if that’s the case- the points if sold can only be used at Riviera, not any other new resorts thereafter.

[Mr Tom Morrow]

Originally Posted by YorkshireT

Hi, the CM gave you the wrong info if that’s the case- the points if sold can only be used at Riviera, not any other new resorts thereafter.

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YT. This probably went past me as I'm not interested in Riviera.

Am I reading your post correctly so if somebody buys in Riviera and in a few years time sells it then the new buyer can only stay there and not even in ones yet to be built?