Static caravan ownership

[Clappingforjoy]

Hi posting here for traffic.
I will shortly come into some money and was thinking of buying a static caravan not an expensive one just second hand and then renting it out for a income but I clueless on costs my responsibilities this end. Will the holiday park take care of practicalities such as cleaning between guests and giving out keys etc and what would my costs be such as land rent insurance etc and what other costs will I have.

We looked into this, we then discovered a mortgage on a nice little cottage works out at a similar cost, but the cottage won’t need replacing in ten years.

We have one and absolutely love it. It is private but right on the costal path facing the sea.

They are expensive but we use is most weekends from March to November. For us it is worth it for the relaxation we get. We also use it as a base to climb Mount Snowden and go paddle boarding etc. Lots of places to visit and eat out.

I even work from there which is fabulous because there are no distractions other than walking the dogs, looking at the sea or sitting in the sun.

Have lots of friends and family visiting.

Don't rent it out and still go skiing and on a foreign summer holiday (when it was allowed).

We are lucky that we can afford to do all of these things but it is a lifestyle choice, not an investment.

Expensive but for us well worth it.

Our site fees are £2500. Not as bad as many places but they don't allow you to rent out your van and nothing on site ie pool or restaurant but we are in a village with plenty of takeaways, restaurants and supermarkets.

It is lovely and quiet.

Not worth it. Our site fees were £7k and that was about 8 years ago. The site clean the van at a cost. Sold it for £2k back to the site who then sell on for a lot more. It’s hassle renting it out as well

I'm looking to buy a static, however not with the view of renting it out. I will let close family use it for free but I'm not looking at it as an investment.

My happiest memories were spent on a beautiful caravan park with my grandparents, and I want a retreat like that for DD. Somewhere to pack up shop for the weekend if we're bored at home.

If the site meets my criteria I'm happy to pay the fees, my grandparents had a huge lake and I had a canoe that I could jump in whenever I liked. I had true adventures and to me that would be worth every penny. But as investment? No.

please please PLEASE, do not buy one, ive worked on these sites, we did.buy one,,it nearly bankrupted us, you will purchase on monday,& by the following week you will be sent details of how to upgrade,SERIOUSLY! you only got it last week. Site fees will increase every year,then the.insurance comes in,then repairs, wow betide when that hapens, example.. the shower got damaged in ours,& without our knowledge was replaced by the site,we got the bill,& i blew a fuse,because they only buy from the caravan shops,this stuff is seriously expensive, i took.it out & replaced with a£9.99 one,& put the one they had installed,on reception table telling them in no uncertain terms,were they to replace anything without our say so.

Everything you do has to conform to the site standards. we left a small hoover in.ours for the guests,well that didnt get past friday.
If you have ever seen a film called The Money Pit. this is the direction you will be heading.
They loose money faster than cars,& when you sell,a mandatory guide is used to purchase like the books that are published for cars.
If you value your sanity D O N T !!& i cannot stress that enough.

[quote whatwedontknow]@CherryRoulade
That’s fine by us. We’d have frittered it anyway.

Well there's your answer @Clappingforjoy it's a great idea if you've got £1000's to fritter away and if you can commit to a hobby of renting out and maintaining a caravan that you can't use in peak season for 15 years. As others have said it is a lifestyle choice not an investment.

That's without the site making you buy a new caravan after 10 years, or hiking the fees up or changing the rules or chucking you off. While site fees are always reduced the first year as part of the sell there are lots of hidden costs in owning a static caravan.[/quote]
Yes, i would not look on it as an investment opportunity. It is a hobby that works out very cheaply for us. Its neither a drain nor a money maker - except through saving us paying to go elsewhere.

We could use in peak season but choose not to - a full site would not be something we want to experience. We have no desire for 'entertainment' or crowded splash sessions. We prefer off peak, most definitely.

Ours came with the hiring package, but we have our own nicer additions that are kept secure - so our own mattress topper and decent bedding, pillows and towels are vacuum packed during letting, period and things like our coffee machine and flutes are put away. We leave out the garden furniture and hoover, the rotary washing line for swimwear and the non-standard pans and knives. Obviously we can't pack away the additional televisions.

We've not had any damage at all, but it is insured and the site maintenance team are good for odd jobs. We did have a broken bed but it was replaced immediately at no cost to us. They also installed an external tap, so that we can clean off the dog before it comes inside and hose off the decking areas and outside. Twelve weeks was the minimum you could do the hire arrangement for - but that is more than enough for us; we don't want overuse by renters with children.

I wouldn't want it as the only holidays we had, I wouldn't want it instead of a seafront cottage but as an add on, its good.

We looked into it, but working it out it was a serious money pit. Site fees, cost of van, repairs, insurance etc and the fact that some sites want you to move it after it becomes a certain age. I would get seriously bored going to the same place, and I doubt I'd be able to afford to travel anywhere else after the costs involved. Seriously cheaper just renting somewhere.

Pugdogmom I think that depends how often you want to go away - we go away to island about once a month usually and will continue to do so in the future, hopefully. If you stay in a hotel its going to be about £500 per weekend, so quickly adds up to around £5, 000-£6, 00 per year. Multiply that by 15 years and the caravan wins especially if the children use it too.

Our cottage rent out at just over £2, 500 a week average - so it doesn't take long for cottage rentals to become much more expensive than caravan lodge ownership.

If you use it one a year for a week, then it is going to be cheaper to rent somewhere. If you want a bolt hole, then there are advantages; not least housekeeping and caretaking. Few hobbies make money and that is the way we look at it, I guess.

Thanks alot all I am going to steer clear this is certainly not for me

Buying a static caravan is possibly one of the worst 'investment' ever IMHO.

Good decision I suspect, OP. Way more pitfalls than perks, and either way, it will cost you ££££.

Good decision OP, the only people I know who have thought it would be a good investment have been seriously burned - I love my static but I have no illiusions as to its worth regarding money - it is worth a fortune to me for the peace, the surroundings and the pleasure I get from having family and friends over. The truth is I proberbly have more money tied up in handbags

Be prepared to lose all your money its not an investment

I think you've made a wise decision OP. I know 4 or 5 people who bought static vans between 5 and 10 years ago. All but 1 have now got rid of them.