Looking for a good Chatel/ Caravan Park to buy. East South coast. help!

[Starbear]

There is no way we can afford a real holiday home. So we thought we might look into a chatel/caravan on a nice site.
DH really can be a snob so he would like a wooden chatel We have an only Ds who is about to be 5 yrs, so a kids club, swimming pool,child friendly place would be nice. Any recommendations/

[Helennn]

I presume you mean a chalet? [smile}

[Starbear]

Yep! Spelling is not my best skill! that why I'm not rich.

[HerHonesty]

why buy a holiday home at all if you cant afford one you want? go on nice holidays. the type you are trying to buy are rarely good investments.

[Starbear]

Do you think so! Why? I don't think we want the investment just to get away from London at the drop of a hat knowing our stuffs is already there. Do you think we will just lose our money? Thanks for making us pause and think

[HerHonesty]

will you have to borrow money to buy this place? or is cash you already have?

I just think, if say you have to borrow money - 60k mortgage, about 300 quid a month, that 3600 a year you could spend on holidays and away breaks.

we did look into this and from doing a bit of research they dont appreciate in value greatly compared to other sorts of investments (thats not to say you will not loose money, just wont make heaps.

so over 25 years you will have paid out in the region of 90k, that excludes annual charges and maintenance fees and any other holiday costs, and may only just get that money back. you may be able to rent out that sort of place when you are not there, but given you want somewhere you can just get up and go to then you may not want to do this.

now, if its money you have sitting round, that is sort of another issue!

also, you have to think very carefully about tying yourself to somewhere, will you really always want to go that place? will it always be nice, well maitained etc... because once you have it you will feel guilty about going anywhere else!! Holidays and breaks are about fun, not investments.

[Starbear]

Good points. You might be right, DH is happy to go back to the same place every year but, you've got a point I might not. He is in Croyde N. Devon now he has been going there since he was 6 yrs old. maybe we should stick to a tent and he could keep going to the same place with Ds and his friends and leave me at home to go on MN unfettered!
Hey! I know what we can keep looking in Sussex/Dorset (where I would like to go) and I can keep find reasons why places aren't suitable e.g too Chavy (High on his no no list) too scruffy, too old, to expensive then I can see those parts of the UK.
We have various pockets of money coming through in the next few years (I think we will invest in an extension)

[paisleyleaf]

I've got friends with a caravan at Coghurst Park (near Hastings). It's lovely: lake, woodland, swimming pool.

These caravans/chalets aren't like buying property though
and only go down in value as they age.
So they really are a treat if you can afford it, rather than an investment.
In fact some sites do stipulate that they don't want units over 10 years old on them.

Having a camper (even renting a garage for it if need be) might be cheaper and give you more options to go where you like when you like.

[Starbear]

Thank you Paisleyleaf. I really can't see my DH going for a camper! (I'm making him sound awful) He's not really a traveller. He went to a friends Beach Hut in Lyme Regis and love it. I think he wants the same thing but they are even more expensive.