April 2021 Resales and Buybacks: +26% Increase In Private Sales Volume

Data from private sale deeds transfers in April 2021 show resale median pricing rising modestly for most of the resorts. The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa and Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney's Wilderness Lodge saw median pricing remain flat for April. Disney's Polynesian Villas & Bungalows median pricing is down slightly by $2 per point from March while remaining ahead of January and February median pricing.

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.

Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge increased in median pricing by $10 per point from $103 per point in March to $113 per point in April. However, there were a higher number of small contracts recorded in April vs. March which contributed to this median price increase. Four contracts of less than 50 points each were transferred in April, while March had a single contract sub-50 point contract. Smaller contracts tend to yield a higher per-point price due to increased buyer interest.

Applying regression to account for price vs. contract size, the general pricing for Boulder Ridge does not appear to have changed significantly.

Resale prices for Disney’s Riviera Resort continue to fluctuate. Useful conclusions remain elusive with only 18 total contracts sold in 2021, five of those during the month of April.

In total, 113k points across 743 private sale deeds were recorded in April 2021 with the Orange County (FL) Comptroller. This number is comparable to the 149,605 direct points sold in April for the same resorts.

Disney Vacation Development’s buyback activity in April suggests maximum prices have also modestly increased from March. Buyback volume has fluctuated across all resorts with Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa having the largest change, a reduction from 8.5k points bought back in March to 3.2k in April. Saratoga Springs was the only resort where the maximum buyback price decreased, likely due to the reduction in 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 $100 each at resorts like Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas and Disney’s BoardWalk Villas. Disney then sells the points to new buyers, with published prices currently $186 each for Animal Kingdom and $210 for BoardWalk.

Disney’s Old Key West Resort remains a prime target of buybacks with DVD exercising its Right of First Refusal on the majority of recorded sales (59% of recorded points) for a maximum price of $103 USD per point. Overall, 23% of points (35k points across 173 buyback deeds) were recorded in April 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 sales for at least three resorts: Old Key West, BoardWalk, and Bay Lake Tower. In 2021, DVD has reacquired 42k points at Old Key West, 11k at BoardWalk, and 22k at Bay Lake Tower. Sales at those three resorts totaled 24k , 7.5k, and 10k respectively over the same time period.

At dvc.market, there are resources including additional market data, pricing regression analysis, and a DVC listing search engine--featuring 10 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.