Profile of a DVCer ...

[Dreamfinder2]

I was just wondering - what kind of folks are we? Stated differently, is there a profile of a "typical" DVC member? I'd guess we're all Disney fanatics, or else we would've taken our money elsewhere. It's apparent that we cover the spectrum of being married, single, no kids, a bunch of kids, grandparents, etc. For us personally, we are not what you'd call well-to-do; we're firmly entrenched in the middle class, but I'm sure there are plenty of y'all who have relatively opulent lifestyles.

So, in the spirit of "getting to know the neighbors," how would you describe yourself as a DVC member? I'm just curious (hopefully not coming across as nosy) as to what the common threads are that bring us to this amazing community.

Any takers?

 

[keenercam]

Hey, Dreamfinder--I have often wondered this myself. It is such a huge financial outlay, that I have wondered at the fact that there are over 60,000 DVC members.
My DH and I are both professionals who feel incredibly blessed to be able to give our children Disney vacations, each having had no similar opportunities growing up (we both come from much less fortunate economic backgrounds).
We have a DD14 and DS9, who know that they are very lucky to have these opportunities. But, I must confess that I am somewhat self-conscious about the situation when around either of our families, since I know it would be viewed as "pretentious," and "obscenely expensive" to some people. The reality is that we are doing Disney vacations every other year on the average and this is actually an exceedingly economic way to do it. And I would hope that at some point we will be in a position to share vacations with our families because we can do it so economically. (we just joined -- recorded yesterday-- so still stumbling around figuring out how to maximize points)
Still curious about every one else.

 

[Richyams]

We bought in when we were both almost 30, ten years ago. We have a twelve, oops, just turned thirteen year old daughter. My wife is an upper level TV exec, that is what brought us to Florida, I am a bit of an enigma. I owned a stair company in New York and since moving to Florida, have done everything from stay at home dad to stock broker, commodity broker, day trader and now I own a computer company.

I am more of a Disney nut than my wife. My whole family is. There are three other DVC owners in my family, none in my wife's.

I drive a big SUV and so does my wife.

I enjoy helping others and truly want to make the world a better place.

 

[crisi]

If you are interested in household income (and I think that's your primary goal), you might be best off with a poll where people can post their range anonymously.

Me, married, two young kids. Both of us work in IT and have liberal arts degrees (Art History, Sociology, History, Anthropology, Comparative Literature), have Liberal politics (with a dash of Libertarianism), non-Christian Unitarians, mid-30s, live in a suburb of Minneapolis, avid readers. Well off compared to the average Bangladeshi, poor as churchmice compared to Warren Buffet.

 

[Rock'n Robin]

We joined 2 years ago. I pay our points off out of my check every other week so I "don't miss it", but hope to get ahead of the game soon. My husband owns a small remodeling business and he really needs to take breaks--he would never take time off to stay here in Ohio. I teach HS English. Our kids are 4, 7 and 10 and we have the usual middle class nonsense--dance lessons, soccer, etc. Lilke Keenercam, I feel funny talking about DVC with people unfamiliar with it because they think we are rolling in $$. We just feel that family vacations are a priority because soon enough, they will be grown and gone.
Robin M.

 

[yasuern]

Hi Dreamfinder2,

We are the average run of the mill middle class family. My husband with little college works as a technician and makes more than I will ever make as a RN. We have 1 DD 7y/o and are trying to adopt a 6y/o little boy. I come from a what some would say tough childhood in the city - but we learn from everything - my DH comes from the Ozzie and Harriett household so we are a good blend of econimic backgrounds. We love WDW and after our 3rd trip (actually during our 3rd trip) we bought DVC as a bargain way to get WDW vacations for years to come. We own at VWL and after a recent trip to OKW we loved it soooo much we are currently in the middle of purchasing a resale at OKW! When I retire I want to be a Main St Greeter for Disney!

 

[zulaya]

Married, 2 kids, live inthe northern suburbs of Minneapolis/St.Paul. Dh turned 30 this year and I wil next year. Started my career as an environmental engineer, but I currently am primarily a stay-at-home mom, but I work in direct sales as a kitchen consultant which brings in good money for the time I put into it. DH is a systems engineer. We are middle class and both come from middle class backgrounds, though I have to agree that I do'nt talk about DVC much. Haven't yet told either of our parents that we bought in March. His parents find out in December when we go to WDW - we are staying at the Polynesian but will visit BCV. My parents just can't fathom why I am so interested in going somewhere that I have already been 4 or 5 times. For me, and DH now that he's hooked on WDW, it forces us to take a vacation away from MN. He works a lot and we do go up north to grandma's cabin in the summer a couple times, but other than that, it was hard to make him (and me too for that mattter) to take a vacation. Now, it's already paid for. We'll lose out if we do't use those points. It's totally psychological here - but in a good way, in making us go. I am already planning through 2004 and amazed at the fact that I may have to bank to some points because we might not use them all in 2003. Strange! But exciting.

 

[Dreamfinder2]

Really, I'm not interested in specifics as to household income - I was raised to not ask others that kind of question, and I'll bet you were, too!

My gut has been telling me that we're a diverse group, and many have been willing to make some sacrifices now for some extraordinary long-term benefits down the road. To be able to provide my kids (and, one day, my grandkids!) the opportunity for some great vacation experiences at my favorite place on earth - well, shoot, that comes pretty close to priceless.

So, puh-LEEZE forgive me if I sounded as though I were prying into your financial status! We're just folks, and I had a hunch many of y'all were, too.

 

[MrsG]

Dreamfinder,

I don't think you were prying, just curious like most of us are about why we would plunk down a chunk of money with the Mouse.

We just closed on our first purchase. We have been tossing DVC around for years and it is only within the past few that we felt we could actually afford it. We've been to DisneyWorld approx 6 times with the kids over the years and stayed at the Carribbean Beach each time (most times on a shoe-string). We've had some of the best vacations of our lives at Disney. Now that both kids are in college, we decided that we'd like to travel to other destinations as well, but still want to occassionally vacation with the Mouse. DVC gives us this flexability.

No matter where I've travelled and what I've seen, there's something about walking down Main Street, USA in the Magic Kingdom that brings about such child-like joy that it is hard to describe. Hopefully, we've passed this joy to our children, and maybe someday, our grandchildren. It's almost like leaving a legacy.

 

[magic cruiser]

Bruce and I love making memories at WDW ! That's why we joined DVC. Our home is BWV, but we have points at VWL and BCV. The best part is sharing these good times with our children, grandchildren and our sisters family. We say, one of these days we'll take a trip by ourselves .This month we'll be at VWL with our 6 yo gson, next mo we'll be at BWV w/ youngest son and dau-in-law, then in Jan we'll be on the western carib cruise- Magic w/ 8 yo gson ! Then next Aug we'll be at the BCV w/my sisters family !!

We spend more $ on vacations than anything else. We believe that you can't take it w/ you ! Bruce is a pediatrician and has many Mickey & friends' ties. His office has alot of DISNEY memo. I'm a RN but not working now.... worried I wouldn't get enough time for MICKEY ! Plus, I need time to visit my children & Gchildren. We're now emptynesters and everyone is out -of- to

wn
One day we'd like to retire in FL. Bruce would like to drive one of the boats at WDW and I would be a waitress at Prime Time !

 

[gracelrm]

We've been members a little over a year now and just received notice that our add-on has been recorded! DH and I are both teachers so income level certainly isn't up there in the high range , but we managed to make vacationing a priority. We have three kids - 9, 6, and 2 and I am in my very late 30's and DH is early 40's. DH loves WDW and would read books, websites, etc... to prepare for our trips prior to WDW and plan, plan, plan! I was the one who had to be convinced to commit to DVC, but now I spend my time planning how to use points wisely. I believe everything is planned out through 2005 now! Like several other posters have said, we don't tell too many people about our DVC membership, in fact we're planning a big family trip for DH's family in 2004 and guess we'll have to tell them by then!

 

[sitchu2]

Nurse and Construction Operator. 2 Very stressful careers, and 2 teenage DS and a 7 y/o DD =much need for some bi-annual family bonding and Escape.

 

[R.J.'s Dad]

Everyone had very interesting comments about being a DVC'er. My wife and I are both 35 and live in a suburb of Chicago. We bought 2 yrs. ago after we had our son. I can't understand why someone would be afraid to talk about being in DVC. I'm very proud of myself for being able to do this for my family. I look forward to taking all members of my family not to show off, but to show them how much we love them.

(On my soapbox now)- I think that it's getting to the point in our country that you are supposed to feel guilty for being able to buy nice cars or go on nice trips. All part of the class warfare we hear daily from certain politicians. My wife and I both went to college and worked for what we have now and we pay plenty of taxes for who knows what. I wouldn't call us rich, but maybe my idea of middle class is different from others.

I'm proud to be in DVC and the more people I can tell and get involved, the better.

 

[ZerasPride]

We joined DVC this past December. DH is definitely not a Disney fan but he really enjoys the laid back atmosphere of Hilton Head so we bought DVC there. For us it was the perfect compromise.

Also, owning DVC makes hubby take a vacation and I think he'd find ways to wiggle out of them if it wasn't for DVC.

I don't talk to family much about our purchase because they already think we're rich (far far far from it) and if most knew about DVC they would have more ammo against us (lol). They also think its "crazy" to go to the same place for vacation over and over again - at this point they don't ask IF we're going to Disney but WHEN we're going back!

I'm a legal assistant for a large law firm and DH is a welder for a small company - we are what I like to term the "working poor" but we like luxury on our vacations and the DVC accommodations give us that. Vacations are a priority for us and that's how I justify this purchase - DVC purchase: $12,000 - family memories: priceless!

 

[POOH&PIGLET]

What a great topic!

We are a family of four. My DW & I have two DD's the oldest is almost 3, the youngest is 7 months. I am a prosecutor in NYC and I love my job! Being on the city payroll, I don't make that much money. We financed our DVC, we have a mortgage, and I still have student loans to pay off. We have an 8-year old car that we bought used 5-years ago (& paid cash).

We think DVC is a good investment / purchase. It works for us. When we can afford it, we hope to add on some more points.

DW & I are Disney nuts, not just DVC. We have almost every Disney animated movie available. We are "corrupting" our oldest DD daughter, she loves the Disney movies, the Disney channel, Disney clothing, Disney bed linens, etc.

 

[SJUGuy]

My wife and I have been DVC members for about a year now. We are both 25 and both graduated from college with degrees in Management and Info Systems and accounting. Currently my wife is working as an accountant at a hospital but......We are going to be having our first child within the next two weeks. (DVC Child). So she will not be working full time any longer. I currently work in the family business which is a Real Estate and Insurance Agency.

We both grew up on a barrier Island on the Jersy Shore where we met in High School. I guess we probably were pretty well off.(When I was a child I always thought that there was a money tree.) Now that we are out in the real world I have learned quickly that Money does not grow on trees. But to be honest I can't even imagine using my money for any other vacation then WDW. We started going as a couple for our honeymoon when we were married two years ago, and now we go evey year.(We both had many trips prior to getting married).

And by the way it is nice hearing about everyone. We have both enjoyed reading all about you.


SJUGUY

 

[Kelly&John]

Hi!

I work for a professional sports / entertainment complex. DH works for an insurance company. I am a college gradute. DH has no college but received a Marine Corp education.

We have no children but borrow our nephews and neices whenever possible. We bought into DVC to guarantee ourselves some "quality time" together. (We work opposite shifts) It also provides us with a great escape from reality - if only for a week.

Kelly

 

[GrammieMame]

So nice to meet you all. I'm a 62 year old retired State employee married to a 73 year old small businessman. Neither of these is the path to financial glory, but we make vacationing and travel a high priority in our lives (mostly me, actually, but he reports for duty when I get to urge to go). I have always felt that no matter what you buy and how much you love it, the excitement of a material object (be it car, clothes, etc), fades with time. For me, the only things that don't are the memories that come from fabulous vacation experiences. I wasn't able to do that much for my children because we were pretty poor, but I take great pleasure in being able to give my daughter and grandchildren vacations that they aren't able to afford. DVC fits right in, since we all love Disney and have the most wonderful time there. Next year, we are using DVC points to go to Hawaii. I love the flexibility and the ability to stay in really nice places that I probably wouldn't consider otherwise.

 

[Credit Man]

I work in finance and my DW is the worlds best stay-at-home mom, and the one who keeps everything together. We are firmly entrenched in the middle class, and have been DVC'ers for 2 years. We have a DS and A DD who enjoy WDW almost as much as their parents.

 

[LisaR]

Originally posted by GrammieMame
Neither of these is the path to financial glory, but we make vacationing and travel a high priority in our lives (mostly me, actually, but he reports for duty when I get to urge to go). I have always felt that no matter what you buy and how much you love it, the excitement of a material object (be it car, clothes, etc), fades with time. For me, the only things that don't are the memories that come from fabulous vacation experiences. I wasn't able to do that much for my children because we were pretty poor, but I take great pleasure in being able to give my daughter and grandchildren vacations that they aren't able to afford.

I couldn't have said it better myself!

People seem to think we are rich because we go to WDW so often. Of course, we are far from rich. I say it is all about priorities. It doesn't mean my priorities are right and others are wrong. It simply means that vacations are a high priority for our family. The great times and the memories we make and share at Disney (thanks to DVC) are priceless. On the other hand, the excitement from a new car or new house wears off shortly there after.

By the way, we are a family of 4. DH is an engineer. I quit working a week before dd was born (7 years ago) and we adopted the most wonderful little boy in the world from Korea 4 years ago (he will be 5 next week)! Life couldn't get any better!

Lisa