October 2021 Buybacks Outpace Private Sales

Data from private sale deeds transfers in October 2021 show resale median pricing remained flat with the exception of Old Key West.

Median prices represent the midpoint of all transfer values for each resort and period in question. Transactions occurred at rates both higher and lower than the median, as illustrated in the chart below.

Old Key West median resale price increased by $9 per point to $136 per point after holding steady in August and September at $127 per point. The median price change at the remaining resorts varied due to fluctuations in contract sizes.

Smaller contracts generally attract a premium and can skew monthly market summary metrics. In October 2021, Disney's BoardWalk Villas showed a $5 per point increase in median price from $140 per point to $145 per point. However, when comparing individual sales and trend lines between September and October, the effect of contract size explains the price increase and there is no month-on-month change in the underlying value at BoardWalk.

Resale prices for Disney’s Riviera Resort continue to fluctuate. Useful conclusions remain elusive with only 65 total contracts sold in 2021, seven of those during the month of October.

In total, 57k points across 399 private sale deeds were recorded in October 2021 with the Orange County (FL) Comptroller, a decrease of 23% over the prior month. This number is lower than the 100k direct points sold for the same resorts.

Disney Vacation Development’s buyback activity in October suggests the maximum buyback price increased across all resorts except Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort which decreased by $2 per point from $110 to $108 per point. Disney's Beach Club Villas and Disney's Polynesian Villas and Bungalows resumed buyback activity after a 4 and 2 month hiatus. For the first time in 2021, Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge had buyback activity. October was the first month in 2021 where The Villas at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort had no buyback activity.

Buyback volume increased significantly overall by 48% to 60k points.  This places buyback activity above the 57k points of private resale activity for the month.  Disney Vacation Club has been pursuing buybacks directly with owners which likely contributed to this.  Most resorts increased proportionally in activity compared to September with Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort, Old Key West, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas being the top three resorts with buyback activity.

Exercising its Right of First Refusal to buy back points can be a profitable venture for DVD. As the above price range data illustrates, DVD is frequently able to reacquire points for under $110 each at resorts like Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas and BoardWalk. Disney then sells the points to new buyers, with published prices currently $186 each for Animal Kingdom and $210 for BoardWalk.

Old Key West remains a target of buybacks with DVD exercising its Right of First Refusal on a significant portion of recorded sales (75% of recorded points) for a maximum price of $131 USD per point. Across all Walt Disney World resorts, 52% of points (61k points across 353 buyback deeds) were recorded in October 2021. In the case of Old Key West, Disney is able to re-acquire contracts slated to end in 2042 and bundle them with the resort’s 15-year extension.

The price range data at the top also includes listing prices (green). Listing prices generally outpace prior sales but ultimately buyer interest will dictate market value.

Disney Vacation Development’s buyback activity currently outpaces direct sales for at least two resorts: BoardWalk and Bay Lake Tower. In 2021, DVD has reacquired 29k points at BoardWalk and 33k points at Bay Lake Tower. Direct sales at those two resorts totaled 19k and 30k points respectively from January to October 2021.

At dvc.market, there are resources including additional market data, pricing regression analysis, and a DVC listing search engine--featuring 12 well established brokers who specialize in Disney Vacation Club timeshare ownership transfers.

Chris Dantès is a contributor to DVCNews.com and has been a Disney Vacation Club owner since 2020 at Disney's Riviera Resort. You can find Chris posting on many Disney forums under the username i<3riviera.