The 2042 DVC Resorts are getting up there in age. These are still excellent resorts with beautiful rooms and plentiful amenities. Disney does a great job of maintaining and renovating their deluxe resorts. Consequently, I wouldn’t think twice about staying at any of these older resorts on a Disney World vacation.
On the other hand, the age of the 2042 resorts certainly matters to prospective DVC owners. We strongly considered Old Key West and Boardwalk when we first bought into DVC. However, the contract lasting until 2057 at Animal Kingdom Lodge ended up being important in our eventual decision.
Some Background on DVC Expiration Dates
Disney Vacation Club is Disney’s timeshare program. I would generally advise against purchasing a timeshare. However, there are several features of DVC that make it different. Importantly, DVC contacts have a 30 year track record of appreciating in value. This is unheard of in the timeshare space. There is also a thriving resale market, making it easy for contacts to be bought and sold so that you are never “stuck” paying dues on a timeshare that you no longer use.
Another key feature of DVC is the expiration dates. Every DVC contract will expire 50 years upon the initial sale of the associated DVC resort. The first round of DVC resorts were sold beginning in 1992, and therefore all DVC contracts at those resorts expire in 2042. This is true regardless of when the contract was purchased. In some ways, this is a good feature of DVC – another assurance that you won’t be stuck paying annual dues indefinitely.
Which Resorts Expire in 2042?
The resorts set to expire in 2042 are the following: Beach Club, Boardwalk, Bolder Ridge, and Old Key West. Note that this list doesn’t include DVC resorts outside of Orlando. Old Key West is a bit different, as there are some contracts that have been extended to 2057. This is a bit of a controversial topic – some people have questioned the legality of the extension. Some others have claimed that the extension will be granted to all Old Key West Owners – extended or otherwise. Feel free to go down that rabbit hole here.
What Happens When A DVC Contract Expires?
No DVC resort has ever reached its expiration date and Disney has not given any guidance on what happens upon expiration. To make matters worse, there is nothing written into the underlying contracts that indicates what will happen. In other words: no one knows, including Disney themselves.
Another interesting question is what will happen to resale values as we move closer to 2042. This is also uncharted territory. Since DVCs inception, the time horizon has felt so far off that it was an afterthought. This has kept resale prices of 2042 resorts somewhat in line with others up until now. However, I believe that will be changing soon. People may not care whether their contract expires in 30 years compared to 40 years. But what about 15 years? 10? This starts to feel like an amount of time that people can get their heads around.
As such, my prediction is that 2042 resorts will stop going up in value (i.e. not keep up with inflation) over the next 10 years. After that, they will steadily decline to nearly zero over the last 10 years before expiring.
Who Should Buy a 2042 DVC Contract?
These resorts won’t make sense if your primary focus is value. There are simply better options to maximize your investment on a Disney Vacation Club contract. On the other hand, if you really enjoy one of these resorts, it might be a good idea to purchase still. These contracts can make sense for people who love the resort and want to stay at the resort. Additionally, they only make sense for someone who plans on buying and keeping the contract, as a resale may become more difficult as the expiration date approaches.
Take Beach Club as an example. It is walking distance to Hollywood Studios and throwing distance to Epcot. It has the best pool on property. There is convenient access to the skyliner to get to various other resorts (breakfast at Topolino’s Terrace, anyone?). However, Beach Club is a relatively small resort that books up fast. If you really enjoy staying at here and plan on going during peak times of the year, a Disney Vacation Club contract might be a great option for your family.
Who Shouldn’t Buy a 2042 Contract?
These resorts can’t compete on the basis of long term value. Even if you can get a great deal on an initial purchase price, the early expiration makes it hard to make a financial case for these resorts. For example, Boardwalk and Animal Kingdom can be purchased for a similar per point price in the resale market. But consider that Animal Kingdom will have 15 years by the time Boardwalk expires.
So if your priority is anything other than being able to book at the 11 month mark at one of these resorts, we’d suggest you look elsewhere.
Final Thoughts
Overall, you can still save money by purchasing DVC at a 2042 resort when compared to paying cash for Disney hotel rooms. However, you will certainly get more bang for your buck at a different resort. Then again, there are some really special resorts that happen to be expiring in 2042. If you love staying at one, you certainly won’t regret getting 20 years of enjoyment out of a resale contract.
