Hi all. We’re a family of 7, and recently we’ve been toying with the idea of buying a static home to use as a retreat.
Complete novice to it all. We’re not looking for an investment, just somewhere to maybe head off to, to relax. We currently live in the north east of England and would like something within 1-2hr drive.
As a first venture it would be an older van to test the water. It would need to be 3 rooms too. I’ve seen many for sale and noticed most were ‘off-site’ sale. I assume this means they’re too old for the park and need to be moved?
Parks that take older vans, are they few and far between? Is the moving of a home expensive?
I’m getting my head around the different costs:
Park fees
Ground rent (albeit I’ve not been informed of this sort of cost)
Utilities
TV license
You would be better off going to the toilet and flushing the money away. At least you can enjoy the noise of the flush.
If you bought a static today for £40k and decided to sell in 3-5 years time, you will be very lucky to get £10k back and you are at the mercy of the site owner who can stipulate how and when it can be sold. On some sites there is an age restriction on the caravan.
This year the annual fee may be £4000 for the caravan to be sited on a pitch however in 3 years time the site owner could increase the annual fee to £8000 or more and there is not much you can do about it as you are trapped on that site.
I appreciate the concept. Others will advise on the static idea, but you might want to consider getting a big enough towing caravan & leaving it on a site as a seasonal pitch. There are threads on UKCS about firms that will tow it for you if you can’t, you can move to another site in another year if the area hasn’t suited you, the caravan should retain value.
Good luck with making the dream a reality.
Whatever you do, DON'T even think about buying a static off-site then looking for a pitch for it as 99.9% of sites won't touch it with a barge-pole, even if it's only a year old. They make their money from selling caravans and charging site fees, they don't want statics people have bought elsewhere, and they all have it neatly sown up between themselves. Hence unsited static sell for peanuts, usually to people who want to put one in their garden while they are doing up a house, or to companies as site offices. I have seen some nice looking ones sell for £hundreds, and one went on ebay once while I was watching it, quite by chance, for £120. Or somewhere in that region.
If you seriously want one, find a site you like the look of and see what they have on offer.
Be honest with yourself how much you're going to use it. Let's say the purchase costs you £20000 over 10 years, and £3000 per year site fees, that's £5000 per year cost every year for 10 years .... so if you only use it for 6 weekends a year those are very expensive weekends. We've looked at this idea frequently (as a way to escape our very noisy neighbours) but it always comes out too expensive.
Another thing to factor in is that many sites won't allow owners to sell on site, especially if the static is more than about 5 years old. If you can't sell on site you will almost certainly find yourself being forced to sell it back to the site owner for the price of a cup of coffee as nobody else will touch it if they have to take it away.
Static sites can be a proper rip-off. People have been caught out buying a very nice 10 year old static from the site, often for an exorbitant price, then tried to sell it 2 - 3 years later only to find it is absolutely worthless as they can't sell it to remain on the site as it is over 10 years old. They sell it to the site owner for peanuts, and the site owners sell it on again to their next "victim". Please do be very careful!
Having had statics and tourers I would advocate going the touring caravan route, get a 6 berth van with an awning put it on a seasonal site in an area you would like, you will not loose anywhere near what you would loose going the static route if you dont like it, and if you do like it you have the option to look in different areas for seasonal sites in the years to come.
A bit late looking for seasonal sites this year although in some areas there are some still available.
Personal example of the static con - my mother and father bought a brand new static just under 40grand some years ago, my father passed within 2 years of purchase and my mother was told by the site she didnt use it enough so could she arrange removal of the van off site - the van was just 5 years old when she was told this, and had probably been used by them over time for less than a year in total. The site wouldnt buy it as they wouldnt pay as much as it was worth (their words) so she had to take it off site in the end she sold it to Barons for £3,800.00 and no doubt they sold it for a pretty penny or two as it still looked like new inside and out.
She hadnt missed any site fees, or water, electric,council tax fees, and obviously being a widdow was quiet when on the site.
I now have a touring caravan and have it on a seasonal site so i can move areas if i want, another option is look for store and pitch sites, where they store it for you and then put it out on a pitch on their site when you want to use the van, those sites are the most reasonalble priced option
Whilst the notion of the 'property' and 'location' may appeal, what you have to be ACUTELY aware of is that you are really investing in a VERY restrictive and expensive contract which will cost every way you turn!
On most contracts, typically you HAVE to buy the static from the site (no 'bring on's' from outside allowed) at whatever price they demand, service charges in the future are unknown and at the mercy of what the site thinks it can get away with, at a certain age, as little as 10 years old on some sites, you HAVE to replace the static with a new(er) one or terminate your contract, or course if you wish to sell, you HAVE to sell to the site at THEIR valuation! ... you bet, it won't be good! Also most sites have a closed period or limit on your use to prevent permanent occupation.
The contracts need ALL the small print reading and digesting in minute detail if to avoid getting fingers severely burnt!
A tourer on a seasonal pitch has most of the advantages, but far fewer risks and expense, and infinitely more flexibility of ownership. Alternatively some sites with storage yards will shuttle the van back and forth to/from the pitch for you when you want to use it, without the cost of the seasonal pitch, of course, you need to book the pitch when you need it, and it comes with the risk at busy times that there may be no vacancies, but nothing stopping you planning and booking at start of season.
There are tales galore of people getting caught with static contracts, it's amazing anyone goes for them, but I guess they suit some.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Potentially looking into static ownership
via mobile 13/4/2024 at 8:43am
