To ask for advice with a financial/camping dilemma?

Go and sit in one of those micro campers first......... I did and even though only for me I found it too cramped/claustrophobic. I bought a van and kitted it out myself very cheaply with a kit off ebay so it has a sliding double bed with cupboards under, I made blackout curtains by sewing magnets into the seams and cut up a foam mattress which I covered using cheap cotton duvets (end of season sale asda £5 each) sewn to size which look like seat cushions by day then slot together to become the bed's mattress by night. Small camping stove and magnetic battery light and only cost about £600 for conversion. Much more comfortable than a tent 👍

Why did you do it for one - without thinking how you would do it for the others?

Not "a first home", "your first home". Whoever owns the lisa, needs to be buying their first home (and anyone else buying with them needs to be buying for the first time too I believe).

You can't open one until you're 18. Therefore op must be saving under their names. Therefore, money can only be withdrawn once they're over 60. If they had kids in their mid to late 30s, this works well.

Don't do it. Tent camping is a hassle (we do it a lot). Setting up is easy but you won't go if you're going to be packing away wet on a Sunday morning and having to repitch in your garden on Tuesday but then have to leave work early to take it down by 3pm before the rain comes blah blah blah. If you sell the van you will do far fewer weekends away and you'll be sad, even if you do less due to budget you'll still have the option.

Sell van, buy sports car and lightweight hiking tent.

Is he sure this is a good idea? I bought a flat in 2019 (in a modern block in a city centre), it’s now worth about half what I paid for it (if I could sell it), my deposit is long gone and I had to save for a new deposit to move out.

I’d be beside myself if I knew my parents had remortgaged and sold their hobby vehicle to fund that.

I voted YABU simply because you should not take on extra debt to fund a child’s house deposit.

It can be accessed for buying a first home. I thought that was the point of them

Buy a second hand camper van
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/227338680286?_skw=camper+van&itmmeta=01KRGMWKK713Y43VBZ7F9AXVJT&hash=item34ee70f7de:g:bp4AAeSwzrlp-QlY&itmprp=enc%3AAQALAAAA8GfYFPkwiKCW4ZNSs2u11xBes3XxlWfJ5apH4QHQlpqpszplhxGKB%2F%2BfkaQ5vAJe3ZFBKWU2RdP5uVl7AdR1S8fStWjQQDaRkJ%2FyMlT4NMVZdoXPKJ9ROM4gin%2BxxUWlVck7fm%2BwtcAvR9jx2OPgkq3bBo1DPbzxMvGXx4fG32vyjbuPEWBjG%2BogHFts4douDU1%2Bhwpawvt2eGAdHrzfNy4cq5jKV%2Bm7eSYbty5RYH5o4cJKqH8u%2FM1ljuXHExVzBPzcfp0XmUPBnWHi5vDmeOzr8TE3EJIpOpb2Hbinj3QpmuVkLYUXtw5eNJ2HdE8saA%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR6C68pTEZw

You could sell camper van

Buy a cheaper car with a tent box onto
Or
Buy a cheaper car & a trailer tent

I would not remortgage existing property

I don't think you're in a financial position to give your son a deposit. Remortgaging your home for that, bad idea, and you would be giving up a van that you use on your vacations. Tent camping really sucks if you're used to vehicle camping. You said you'd have to cut back on house maintenance as well as vacations to do this.

You'd be compromising your biggest asset by remortgaging and taking away the vacations you enjoy to give your son a deposit that he could work for and save.

Do you have other kids?

Keep campervan

Can you downsize to a smaller property & release some money that way to your children & for your own holidays ?

Don't go back to tents

Tents are crap once you’re in your 50s ( I’m assuming you are around 50 something if your son is of housebuying age) - cold, often wet, a pita to put up and take down. A lot of hassle for one weekend.
I also think you’re mad remortgaging at a time when you want to be looking forward to the end of its term, not adding to it (again, I’m making certain assumptions about your age here) - are you sure it’s the right thing to do?

How many nights a year do you spend in the van and how much does that cost in site fees?

If you still need a vehicle, you'd be better buying the vehicle and the kits for the micro camper separately. You get boot jump options for Citroen Berlingo style or those designed for taking the seats out of the back. Lots of good options second hand now. You'll pay a lot more to buy it converted.

Do you stay on campsites? if so a micro camper is a sensible option assuming you still need a vehicle.

I'd love a campervan but I can't justify the cost while still working. I book camping pods instead and do cheap caravan holidays which come to less than the running costs of a van.

What it's worth to you is different to anyone else though but you do need to get a full handle on the costs and compare.

Does your son know you are remortgaging your house and considering giving up your van? I would be thoroughly ashamed of my children if they took money from me under these circumstances. We all want to support our kids but this is ridiculous. You've got one hell of a spoilt brat if they allow you to do this.

Well, I think it needs to be negotiable.

You haven't currently got the funds to give away money to your DC. You need to think about your own needs, especially as you get older.

There's no way you should be remortgaging your house. What about your security? You have no idea if you'll always be able to pay the mortgage.

In this context, assuming the lisa is in their name, it can only be accessed near retirement

Don't sell your van if you enjoy it. YourDS needs to save up a bit longer himself. You can't give what you don't have.

How much is in the LISA for the youngest? When will they need that? I'm not sure how they work but could this not be used and replaced later?

Agree with this.

Also the price of vans seems to have rocketed over recent years. If this continues and you subsequently regret selling your camper, it could be very expensive to replace it.

Looking at the things you would have to forgo for four and a half years, would you miss them as much as permanently giving up your weekends in the van?

Our van is so intrinsic to our quality time together and to our general enjoyment of life that it would take something really detrimental to our quality of life to balance out the detriment of getting rid of the van. I've seen from a subsequent post that helping your son out is non-negotiable, so I'd say if the extra cost is affordable for you then take that hit instead of the combined financial/wellbeing hit/

Maybe I'm being dim but how much are you trying to raise here? If you can sell the van for £21k I'd do that, give him the £21k, don't remortgage, and maybe help him again later down the line if/when you can afford it.