We bought a static caravan it was 4 years old when we bought it we paid £25000 We needed to sell it in Dec 2023 because I had been ill and the fact that the site fees were £5200 a year with really no amenities on site. The van had central heating 39x12ft in excellent condition we sold it back to the site they only gave us £2500. They were offering me £18000 for it 7 months before if I purchased a newer van from them. So in hindsight was it worth it the answer is no you will get robbed so spend your money on something else.
Depreciation is faster than a car. They only offer (good) money if they think they are going to get another sale out of you, it really is a horrible industry & needs seriously looking into
Depends what you pay. Alot of these new vans that are 150,000-200,000+ brand new you'd be better off buying a property in a rural area that isn't going to depreciate in value overtime and fall apart
@@felixscamp They don't depreciate that quickly. It's just because people would rather sell it to the site rather than privately to avoid the delivery headaches etc. If they had sold it privately they would've got a decent amount for it.
Ivan I am loving your videos from the caravan; there is almost something magical about them. It was lovely to hear your story. I could not have accepted a council flat either Ivan, it would have destroyed my soul as I am sure it would have yours. You made a good choice. You seem to be creating a little piece of paradise.👌🙏🌱❤
Hi, could you tell me which site you are on please, we are currently living in Bulgaria, so it's very difficult to find out about different sites, thankyou.
We bought a caravan in a Spain with site fees of £2600, it cost us €11,000 which included our site fees for the year. I was very interested and impressed by your site, we would like to continue caravan living when we return to the UK, but are concerned about having to change/upgrade our van every 5 to 10 years and be off site for however long each year. You have made it seem a lot more doable so many thanks
I'd imagine it's a lot easier to live in a caravan in the Spanish climate. Mid April to October is as much as I can cope with in the UK and that's with central heating! It would cost a fortune to keep warm in one in the Winter.
You legally aren't allowed to live in a caravan full time unless its in a residential park or you get planning permission to place it on your own land because councils need you to pay council tax. You are meant to have a permanent home address.
Because they are basically a tin box. Boiling in summer, freezing in winter. In Spain maybe. Definitely not in the UK unless you have unlimited income to spend on heating.
Me and my misses have got a mobile home in Norfolk and we are there 11 half months it’s great and have a club house and beach 1 min walk away. Not looked back
Hi, we are hoping to move back to Norfolk could you tell me which site you are on please. We are living in Bulgaria at the moment. So it's hard to look at different sites. Really miss Norfolk. Esp wells. Thankyou.
That’s a lovely van and thanks for sharing all that information. We live in a residential Park Bungalow and our ground rent is almost £200a month and doesn’t include water, however I do have a large wrap around garden which is very private and we own the home . The gas bottles are £74 each we have four and a central heating boiler and in the coldest winter months can use two a month so we find electricity is a bit cheaper. So we can stay twelve months as it is fully residential , if I was you I would do your visiting in December and January it will save money on gas. I think you definitely did the right thing as you say you’re not getting chucked out and you have a lovely convenient home to live in . And I love your container garden you’ve got it looking lovely. ❤️
Ivan, the caravan looks absolutely beautiful, wish I had somewhere to put one. I truly hope you and Ginny, have found your happy home. Good luck to you both. Thanks for sharing.
😊 We love living on a site, it's a lovely community feel to it, it's an over 55s site and at least 50% are late 50s,early 60s, definitely cheaper living costs, our site owner is happy to have older units on if they are kept in good order, ours is at least 30 years old but we have clad it for extra insulation. I think you have found a bargain my lovely! Best wishes to you both!
As a previous static van owner i was on a holiday park with no age restriction,people did live full time on it as the site owners 'turned a blind eye' but if the site changes hands or the owners decided to change their mind you are leaving yourself open to loosing a lot of money and the caravan itself.....to live in a van fulltime it needs to be a residential park,NOT a holiday park no matter what any sales person tells you,anything they do tell you get it in writing or an email....hope it all works out for youand despite what ive said i would live in a van tomorrow lol
@CaravanLifeUK no probs,hope it all works out for you,can be a very good lifestyle if it does,I know when we had our static when it came to going home I never wanted to head back,now got a tourer on a seasonal pitch and I feel the same at times lol
Very informative video, something I'm considering doing myself but in early stages of research etc as tbh know next to nothing on the subject so can seem daunting, answered a lot of my questions and surprised how great they seem and can see your happy with your home, definitely kind of living that would suit me 👍
Be carful… lots of information in the video is general sales patter that Sale Team across sites us. Site license will not be renewed if the site is struggling for plots you’ll be asked to upgrade or leave. Your site fees are increased annual and with no regulated body this is down to the individual site owners discretion. “Who can afford to lose 3k per annum?” Caravan parks can - the average ownership life in 7.5 years of ownership across the industry and average spend is 100,000k. Parks require turnover for the business model to work ideally 8% per year. Happy to discuss in detail the ins and outs of the holiday park industry. Fee free to reach out.
They want to keep us competing over housing to keep the prices inflated, more people chasing fewer goods is only good for those at the top, that's why they won't stop uncontrolled immigration...
I've lived in Caravans on both residential & 11 month ones. Both times I got fleeced by the Site management/owners. The 11 month one was the worst. Site fees were extortionate over £5k per year (10 years ago), plus utilities on top. I used to dread getting letters with their logo on them because it was always some kind of demand for money for something they had done which I didn't ask for. They also charged double the price for the gas bottles. This one nearly bankrupted me, so anyone considering getting one, be extremely careful and make sure the caravan is rated for residential use not holiday use because the build quality & amount of insulation is completely different.
Same with myself and sister, never trusted the site owner,the person we bought it of at the last minute before we moved in, took most of the best stuff, and did a runner, never encourage anyone to live in one, freezing in the winter 🤬👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻
How the statics have changed since my gran parents and auntie and uncle co owned one. Yours is like a house! theirs had stuff that was more geared for touring caravans, But that was down to the age of it, it only had one master bedroom, the dinning room table would double up as a double bed, a long with the front seats, which were all fixed in place, and had storage. I remember it having gas mantles and electric lights too. So it could run on either. The oven and fridge was very small, like i say something out of a touring caravan. I think the most house hold item, that had been third party fitted was a toilet, that just say worked and was installed in the most narrowest of cupboards, i don't think it even had a light installed. The site fees i think were only a £1000 for the year, and i think they may have paid that for the caravan at the time. Most ranged from £300 to £4000 for the new ones on site, but that site was what you would call cheap and cheerful, due to the age of vans and how cheep the site was, it did have its washrooms etc. It wasn't an all year site from what i remember, but a few people would spend months up there anyway, and i don't think the site owner cared. As long as there was no trouble. I think they had it from 1996 till 1999, it was getting used regularly when they 1st bought it, but as soon as the novelty wore off from my uncle and Auntie, it wasn't really getting used. My grand parents ended up selling it for £50 scrap in the early 2000s. By that time the site owner had sold the site on to someone else, who started to change the policy of older vans, a fare few people bailed from the site, because of this, some even moved sites, followed the old owner to his new site. Also i think the site fees doubled too by that point, so another reason why my gran parents pulled the plug. Great to hear you have a roof over your head, My mates have said i should look into one, and move out of my parents place. But there are no local sites that are all year around, or would be cheap enough for me.
You didnt mention about insurance for the caravan and contents. Is the caravan covered by the site owners or do you need to get your own personal insurance If anything were to happen to the caravan?
Why didn't you just move it? That's what we did with our caravan, our ground rent increased by 35% over 2 years and it worked out cheaper to get the caravan moved than pay the extra rent increase. The fee to move it also included all the disconnecting of Sewer and water connections, electric connections, then reconnecting at the new park as well. Our ground rent is now £220 per month compared to £410, and we are in a much better park. Also, I would do the same thing again if we encountered the same rent increases......I seriously don't know why more caravan owners do not do this, it is a very simple process that usually works out cheaper in the long term.
Hi there very informative videos. Can I ask where did you source your caravan from ? You definitely got a great deal ! and it was already on great site which seems like it has nice owners I understand that you recommend not going to one of the big boys but where should I start looking? I think this would make a great video Thanks for the great video
There's no doubting that static caravans are expensive. Especially if you get one of the newer and more insulted models. On the plus side, all of your furniture and white goods come with the price. As for pitch fees, yes it can be a lot. Some larger parks may charge £5k-6k per year. But you generally get quite a lot of on-site facilities, including clubhouse, restaurants and swimming pools. It really depends on what you intend to use your static caravan for. If you're only going to use it a couple of time a year for a couple of weeks, then clearly it's a waste of money. But if you spend quite a lot of weekends there and holidays, it makes more sense. Usually, the park will operate a letting scheme or you can let it out yourself when you're not using it. This can in some cases completely cover the cost of the pitch fees. Statics can be costly and they can make sense, especially if you have a family. Think about it, a decent family holiday abroad with flights and decent accommodation would probably set you back about £5k these days and that's just for 2 weeks. For the same price, a static can give you a break every weekend if you want. Clearly, they aren't for everyone. You have to remember that holiday parks are businesses. They are there to make a profit. And parks are always dreaming up ways to get just a bit more money out of you. But they can also be a home from home. If you accept the pitfalls and see some of the positives, they can be great get away whenever you want to get away! I have never understood why if you buy a piece of land, you can't live on it in a static? They make so much sense in a world where cheap affordable accommodation is becoming a rare commodity. It is almost like they don't want you to live cheaply, they want you in the system, beholden to the utilities and councils. In a lot of respects, my static is better than my house. it has everything I need to live comfortably. Every modern convenience you would find in a house. In fact, if it was legal, I'd sell my house and live in my static..
we have had 2 static caravans, the first one 3 years and the owners changed the site to park homes, the second static caravan 10 years and again the site changed to park homes. As for the electric the law says you should only pay what it costs the site, but you have to put up with it.
Looks lovely but think you will need central heating it will be very cold in the winter. We have a lodge in Cornwall beautiful and very big. They will expect you to keep your caravan updated if it starts to look a little shabby. Our neighbours have got to get of the site in the next six weeks as their caravan is quite old. Site fees will go up annually which they don’t tell you about. Enjoy your caravan but things aren’t as plain sailing as you think. We wish we knew what we know now at the beginning of our lodge journey. There are a lot of sneaky things that the site owners do not tell you. Sorry to be a negative but can cost you dearly.
You have to look at what it costs to remove the static when it come to you not affording the site fees or your finances change. i was told to scrap a static on our site cost the owner £2000. our gas bottles are £100 on our site. you need to look at gas checks every year. i know some one who used 6 bottles a year. but they did keep there caravan very hot. your caravan insurance can be as much as you pay for a house. moving a caravan transport cost will be depending on distance for point a to b. And getting to a new site you will have leveling and connection fee dependant on what the site charges. in the same way as disconnection fees when leaving a site.
Thanks Ivan, for this update as I was a bit concerned about some details but I do know that one site can be different from another. It looks like you've got a really good set up there mate. Take care and all the best. Stevie
It is such a shame that this country does not embrace the "Tiny homes" movement. There are so many young couples who would benefti form buying a Tiny Home and being able to rent a plot on a Tiny Home park.
Have you enquired or intrested in building decking around the caravan, some sites will require you to use their on-site guys to do that or will they allow you to construct your own decking etc
Very interesting Ivan, why do you have to leave for a while , could you explain it please, My daughter in law mentioned something regarding this but she wasn't sure. Will you be staying there indefinitely, it's obvious that you both seem to be enjoying it there. It's just right for the two of you, I can't fault ya at all. Thanks for the update...
He has to leave because the caravan park does not have a residential licence and so people aren't supposed to live in them full time, they are meant to have a permanent residential address and the caravan is meant to be a holiday home. If you are living permanently in an area you have to pay council tax to that council.
I think buying your static caravan is an innovative solution to your impending homelessness. As you have a five-year contract to keep your caravan on that site, it gives you at least five years of having a home which far outweigh the alternative prospects of being homeless. I don’t know what kind of rent you were paying on the home you were evicted from but if you add up the cost of that rental over five years and compare it to what you will have spent on buying your caravan and the site fees for the same amount of time And also factoring your peace of mind then I think you have probably made good choice In fact, it seems it was likely the only choice you had anyway from what you say. The total amount you will have spent on site fees after five years including a 3% rise every year is £15,926 Added to which you invested £8000 of your pension. Even if you are asked to leave the site after five years the total you will have spent is £23,926. That works out to be less than £400 a month, which is I would imagine less than you were paying in rent and as I said you have gained the peace of mind for the foreseeable future, Which is absolutely priceless!! I’m really enjoying watching your videos and I hope it all works out as you have planned
One last comment is that while your expenditure is so low over the five years You have a contract to remain on , it would be really good if you could save up the £8000 you used to buy the caravan
Hi mate great video thanks for posting 👍 I was wondering how long do you have to leave the caravan for after 60 days has past? Can you just spend one night away and then come back for another 60 days? Or do you have to be away longer? Thanks
On the site I’m on they advertise restaurant,bar golf course, swimming pool, fishing lake ,bowling green. The restaurant is closed, they say there’s no fish in the lake, there’s weeds everywhere. They say they can’t get the staff. Now the water is a murky colour we’ve to buy our own in bottles. It wasn’t like this when we first bought our static. We know they’ve got the site up for sale even though they don’t communicate this with us. Will we get compensation if they try to make us leave.? .
I just came across your channel. You live there 10 months a year that brings your rent to £300 a month. You are reliant on friends and relatives for your time off site. It's also up in the air if you can keep your van on site once it has come up to maximum age. You also must be reliant at being registered at another address for council tax purposes. Also what do you do for a doctors surgery as I wonder would you be able to register living on a 10 month site. Lastly are your yearly site fees fixed in any way or can the owners raise each year as much as they choose. I'm am not being critical but I don't think everything is as rosey long term as short term.
It's a shame the sites not all year round. Some sites are. There's also some sites with chalets on that are all year round. You mentioned water is included with your ground rates but I'm guessing there's no council tax to pay due to the site closing for 2 months a year. What age is the caravan?
90% of sites close over winter. You can find some that are all year round but it costs extra - sort of a penalty fee to stay out of season. This is usually down to covering the site paying council tax
Usually, it’s more to do with the planning permission for the site. Where they are classed as ‘holiday homes’ they have to be unoccupied for a period of time. These sites will be in places where normal planning permission wouldn’t be given for building brick and mortar houses. Check on the internet for stories about unscrupulous site owners that claim you can live there all year round, but in fact you can’t - this lovely couple have done their homework, so are well aware of the requirements and have plans for the time they have to be offsite, but other people have been caught out and faced real hardship.
so the site can be classed as a holiday park and not a residential park as they would need a licence for that off the council. You are not allowed to live permanently on a holdiay caravan site, you are meant to have a permanent residence elsewhere too. I'm guessing he puts a relatives address as being his permanent one.
Not a safe thing to disclose i am afraid Thank you Darren
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My sister inlaw had a static on the east coast and lost alot of money in the 6 years she had it.!! She sold back to the site and got next to nothing for it unfortunately.!! You’re better off saving your money and renting I think.?
Why dont the government give the people loosening there homes due to rents and landlords selling up.but thy will have to be suitable for catavan life.i lived in a caravan as a kid 5 siblings mom and dad.its was hard going but we managed.
Loved my static until site put fees up £500 so was £. 3250 a year, I kept my van mint and it was in excellent condition but site said it had to go due to it being 10 yr old which they said was stated in rules, they wouldn’t budge so I cut my loses an abandoned it
Site owners in my personal experience are greedy and unprincipled, many of them have their roots in the traveler community- They can and do raise the rents annually by as much as they like. You have been warned.
😊😊Most site fees up and down the country now are around £5000 plus per yr so nearly £500 amonth plus gas plus elec, And its not covered residential if ever that exists anyway, All in all check before you leap its not all rosy, Most decent vans £40,000 to £50,000 you have to change most after 10yrs check the maths please save your money, Most sites do not have a 20yr lease on vans, My neighbours had to leave their van after 12yrs far to expensive to update they literally left it and walked away be warned.
It is because they are HOLIDAY homes and legally you are not allowed to live in them full time. Many people do of course, and many site owners turn a blind eye, although it will be stated somewhere in your site license. If the local council does decide to investigate, then site owners can and usually do (otherwise they are likely to lose their site license and hence their business) will throw people off for breach of their conditions. The other possible pitfall is that site ownership regularly changes and new owners will often have totally different ways of working and will issue new individual licenses. The owners practices are totally unregulated and if anyone is unlucky enough to fall foul of the the above (the holiday park action group on Facebook has over 50,000 members, many with horror stories), then you can find yourself homeless and with a huge financial loss, without any legal redress except possibly an expensive court case for mis-selling by the site owners (very difficult to prove).
They should allow more residential sites but the government won't as they want to keep us competing over housing to keep the prices inflated, more people chasing fewer goods is only good for those at the top, that's why they won't stop uncontrolled immigration despite the housing crisis...
@@CaravanLifeUK I speak from bitter experience. As long as you accept you don't have a secure tenancy agreement, and have the financial capability of buying a new caravan every ten years, taking into account the horrendous depreciation of second hand caravans as well.
@@CaravanLifeUK Occasionally we hire a static for a week. Inevitably I am accosted by the sales rep. I express an interest and tell him if he buys me lunch I will give a purchase serious consideration. Normally their greed forces their hand after saying hi for a few days. Love a free lunch.
Has to be up there with the top 3 worst investments you can make. Each to their own, but having a site manager lording it over you every day and extortionate fees...no thanks.. Its a dying sector - I know 2 people who have sold up as site amenities/entertainment have dried up. Far better to buy a camper van for 20k and having the freedom and less hassle selling when you tire of it..
You would be reliant on family or friends to register you at thier address otherwise it's a non starter. If you are living a long distance from where you are registered then how do you get on going to a Surgery? Would it involve long distance travel just for somthing minor. I think short term this life is OK. But I think friends and relatives might get fed up providing accommodation every year.
Flushing money down the toilet buying a static caravan, to rent a week in north wales is £700 t0 £1000 daylight robbery tbh its cheaper to go abroad ground rents £3k to £5k 5 weeks rent cover geound rent plus on fb its all cat and mouse to rent no prices advertised its put of going now ,we actually got cheaper accommodation in heaven parks, i think owners have become greedy
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We bought a static caravan it was 4 years old when we bought it we paid £25000 We needed to sell it in Dec 2023 because I had been ill and the fact that the site fees were £5200 a year with really no amenities on site. The van had central heating 39x12ft in excellent condition we sold it back to the site they only gave us £2500. They were offering me £18000 for it 7 months before if I purchased a newer van from them. So in hindsight was it worth it the answer is no you will get robbed so spend your money on something else.
That is terrible sorry to here about that
Thank you David
Was it Lyons oakfielfd place was once good
Depreciation is faster than a car. They only offer (good) money if they think they are going to get another sale out of you, it really is a horrible industry & needs seriously looking into
Depends what you pay. Alot of these new vans that are 150,000-200,000+ brand new you'd be better off buying a property in a rural area that isn't going to depreciate in value overtime and fall apart
@@felixscamp They don't depreciate that quickly.
It's just because people would rather sell it to the site rather than privately to avoid the delivery headaches etc.
If they had sold it privately they would've got a decent amount for it.
Great flower show looks good you have squeezed a lot in there 👍🏿👍🏿
Ivan I am loving your videos from the caravan; there is almost something magical about them. It was lovely to hear your story. I could not have accepted a council flat either Ivan, it would have destroyed my soul as I am sure it would have yours. You made a good choice. You seem to be creating a little piece of paradise.👌🙏🌱❤
Thank you Jen
Our site is brilliant. No age limit on vans and the site fees are only £1800 a year. Only 50 vans and no noisy clubhouse. It is perfect for us.
Sounds great Thank you
Where’s that ?
Hi, could you tell me which site you are on please, we are currently living in Bulgaria, so it's very difficult to find out about different sites, thankyou.
what site
I say that sounds rather splendid correct.
We bought a caravan in a Spain with site fees of £2600, it cost us €11,000 which included our site fees for the year. I was very interested and impressed by your site, we would like to continue caravan living when we return to the UK, but are concerned about having to change/upgrade our van every 5 to 10 years and be off site for however long each year. You have made it seem a lot more doable so many thanks
I'd imagine it's a lot easier to live in a caravan in the Spanish climate. Mid April to October is as much as I can cope with in the UK and that's with central heating! It would cost a fortune to keep warm in one in the Winter.
Thank you too
We will see Thank you
@lynnegeddes7532 hi do you mind tell me how to find a site for rent for full year I have my caravan and I would like move abroad
I don't know why more people don't live in caravans Ivan. With the housing crisis it absolutely makes sense!
You legally aren't allowed to live in a caravan full time unless its in a residential park or you get planning permission to place it on your own land because councils need you to pay council tax. You are meant to have a permanent home address.
The cheapest ones can be found .... near cliffs 😐
Because they are basically a tin box. Boiling in summer, freezing in winter. In Spain maybe. Definitely not in the UK unless you have unlimited income to spend on heating.
You can live in them permanently, we live near a stately home that has permanent residents, it depends on the site rules.
Ivan has already stated that you have to leave for two months of the year. So he is not misleading anyone.
Me and my misses have got a mobile home in Norfolk and we are there 11 half months it’s great and have a club house and beach 1 min walk away. Not looked back
Sounds great Thank you John
Hi, we are hoping to move back to Norfolk could you tell me which site you are on please. We are living in Bulgaria at the moment. So it's hard to look at different sites. Really miss Norfolk. Esp wells. Thankyou.
Nice van Ivan! Most splendid, correct.
Thank you Martin
That’s a lovely van and thanks for sharing all that information. We live in a residential Park Bungalow and our ground rent is almost £200a month and doesn’t include water, however I do have a large wrap around garden which is very private and we own the home . The gas bottles are £74 each we have four and a central heating boiler and in the coldest winter months can use two a month so we find electricity is a bit cheaper. So we can stay twelve months as it is fully residential , if I was you I would do your visiting in December and January it will save money on gas. I think you definitely did the right thing as you say you’re not getting chucked out and you have a lovely convenient home to live in . And I love your container garden you’ve got it looking lovely. ❤️
Great tips Thank you Lynda
Ivan, the caravan looks absolutely beautiful, wish I had somewhere to put one. I truly hope you and Ginny, have found your happy home. Good luck to you both. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you Sheila
😊 We love living on a site, it's a lovely community feel to it, it's an over 55s site and at least 50% are late 50s,early 60s, definitely cheaper living costs, our site owner is happy to have older units on if they are kept in good order, ours is at least 30 years old but we have clad it for extra insulation. I think you have found a bargain my lovely! Best wishes to you both!
Great stuff Thank you Sally
I wanted to buy on a site near Tring, in Herts, but htey do not accept more than one cat, i have two.
Thanks Ivan. Very clear and succinct. You are a natural presenter.
Thank you Mick much appreciated
So generous of you to share your space and turning a negative into such a positive and helping others find a solution clearly you’re very kind soul
Thank you much appreciated
Just wonderful Ivan. And you look so happy. I am so happy for you and Ginny 😁😁😁
Thank you Gail much appreciated
As a previous static van owner i was on a holiday park with no age restriction,people did live full time on it as the site owners 'turned a blind eye' but if the site changes hands or the owners decided to change their mind you are leaving yourself open to loosing a lot of money and the caravan itself.....to live in a van fulltime it needs to be a residential park,NOT a holiday park no matter what any sales person tells you,anything they do tell you get it in writing or an email....hope it all works out for youand despite what ive said i would live in a van tomorrow lol
Thank you for the info Derek
@CaravanLifeUK no probs,hope it all works out for you,can be a very good lifestyle if it does,I know when we had our static when it came to going home I never wanted to head back,now got a tourer on a seasonal pitch and I feel the same at times lol
Very informative video, something I'm considering doing myself but in early stages of research etc as tbh know next to nothing on the subject so can seem daunting, answered a lot of my questions and surprised how great they seem and can see your happy with your home, definitely kind of living that would suit me 👍
Be carful… lots of information in the video is general sales patter that Sale Team across sites us. Site license will not be renewed if the site is struggling for plots you’ll be asked to upgrade or leave. Your site fees are increased annual and with no regulated body this is down to the individual site owners discretion. “Who can afford to lose 3k per annum?” Caravan parks can - the average ownership life in 7.5 years of ownership across the industry and average spend is 100,000k. Parks require turnover for the business model to work ideally 8% per year. Happy to discuss in detail the ins and outs of the holiday park industry. Fee free to reach out.
Thank you
It makes sense Ivan if you can afford all the start up fees , in today's world they should let people live in them full time 🙌
Thank you
They want to keep us competing over housing to keep the prices inflated, more people chasing fewer goods is only good for those at the top, that's why they won't stop uncontrolled immigration...
You can, if its on a residentail site. however, a lot of residentail sites are for over 55's, no children and they have rules about pets as well.
I've lived in Caravans on both residential & 11 month ones. Both times I got fleeced by the Site management/owners. The 11 month one was the worst. Site fees were extortionate over £5k per year (10 years ago), plus utilities on top. I used to dread getting letters with their logo on them because it was always some kind of demand for money for something they had done which I didn't ask for. They also charged double the price for the gas bottles. This one nearly bankrupted me, so anyone considering getting one, be extremely careful and make sure the caravan is rated for residential use not holiday use because the build quality & amount of insulation is completely different.
Thank you for the info much appreciated
Same with myself and sister, never trusted the site owner,the person we bought it of at the last minute before we moved in, took most of the best stuff, and did a runner, never encourage anyone to live in one, freezing in the winter 🤬👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻
How the statics have changed since my gran parents and auntie and uncle co owned one. Yours is like a house! theirs had stuff that was more geared for touring caravans, But that was down to the age of it, it only had one master bedroom, the dinning room table would double up as a double bed, a long with the front seats, which were all fixed in place, and had storage. I remember it having gas mantles and electric lights too. So it could run on either. The oven and fridge was very small, like i say something out of a touring caravan. I think the most house hold item, that had been third party fitted was a toilet, that just say worked and was installed in the most narrowest of cupboards, i don't think it even had a light installed. The site fees i think were only a £1000 for the year, and i think they may have paid that for the caravan at the time. Most ranged from £300 to £4000 for the new ones on site, but that site was what you would call cheap and cheerful, due to the age of vans and how cheep the site was, it did have its washrooms etc. It wasn't an all year site from what i remember, but a few people would spend months up there anyway, and i don't think the site owner cared. As long as there was no trouble. I think they had it from 1996 till 1999, it was getting used regularly when they 1st bought it, but as soon as the novelty wore off from my uncle and Auntie, it wasn't really getting used. My grand parents ended up selling it for £50 scrap in the early 2000s. By that time the site owner had sold the site on to someone else, who started to change the policy of older vans, a fare few people bailed from the site, because of this, some even moved sites, followed the old owner to his new site. Also i think the site fees doubled too by that point, so another reason why my gran parents pulled the plug. Great to hear you have a roof over your head, My mates have said i should look into one, and move out of my parents place. But there are no local sites that are all year around, or would be cheap enough for me.
Thank you for the story much appreciated
You didnt mention about insurance for the caravan and contents. Is the caravan covered by the site owners or do you need to get your own personal insurance If anything were to happen to the caravan?
I would definitely like to live in a caravan if anything changes in my housing situation thanks for sharing.
Thank you too
I've always had a hankering to live in caravan..I love them. Don't suppose I will but I like looking,and hearing the up,s and downs of it.👍
Thank you for sharing such personal information. Does the site close at the same time for all residents?
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
We had a static, it became a noose around our necks. The site put the annual fees up 40% like it or lump it.
Thats terrible
Thank you Andrew
Absolutely why I'd never ever buy one.
Pure bloody greed! Should be regulated by a proper body!
Why didn't you just move it? That's what we did with our caravan, our ground rent increased by 35% over 2 years and it worked out cheaper to get the caravan moved than pay the extra rent increase. The fee to move it also included all the disconnecting of Sewer and water connections, electric connections, then reconnecting at the new park as well. Our ground rent is now £220 per month compared to £410, and we are in a much better park. Also, I would do the same thing again if we encountered the same rent increases......I seriously don't know why more caravan owners do not do this, it is a very simple process that usually works out cheaper in the long term.
Hi there very informative videos. Can I ask where did you source your caravan from ? You definitely got a great deal ! and it was already on great site which seems like it has nice owners
I understand that you recommend not going to one of the big boys but where should I start looking? I think this would make a great video
Thanks for the great video
I love how you can talk and say it in semaphore eyebrows at the same time!
Haha Thank you Chris
Enjoyed your videos
Thank you Steve much appreciated
Is there anything, as an American, I would need to know about moving to a park such as yours. Or any advice you would give? Thank you
A really good deal, glad your settling in ok
Thank you
There's no doubting that static caravans are expensive. Especially if you get one of the newer and more insulted models. On the plus side, all of your furniture and white goods come with the price. As for pitch fees, yes it can be a lot. Some larger parks may charge £5k-6k per year. But you generally get quite a lot of on-site facilities, including clubhouse, restaurants and swimming pools.
It really depends on what you intend to use your static caravan for. If you're only going to use it a couple of time a year for a couple of weeks, then clearly it's a waste of money. But if you spend quite a lot of weekends there and holidays, it makes more sense. Usually, the park will operate a letting scheme or you can let it out yourself when you're not using it. This can in some cases completely cover the cost of the pitch fees. Statics can be costly and they can make sense, especially if you have a family. Think about it, a decent family holiday abroad with flights and decent accommodation would probably set you back about £5k these days and that's just for 2 weeks. For the same price, a static can give you a break every weekend if you want.
Clearly, they aren't for everyone. You have to remember that holiday parks are businesses. They are there to make a profit. And parks are always dreaming up ways to get just a bit more money out of you. But they can also be a home from home. If you accept the pitfalls and see some of the positives, they can be great get away whenever you want to get away!
I have never understood why if you buy a piece of land, you can't live on it in a static? They make so much sense in a world where cheap affordable accommodation is becoming a rare commodity. It is almost like they don't want you to live cheaply, they want you in the system, beholden to the utilities and councils. In a lot of respects, my static is better than my house. it has everything I need to live comfortably. Every modern convenience you would find in a house. In fact, if it was legal, I'd sell my house and live in my static..
Thanks for the info and as far as i know you have to get planning permission from the council even if you put it on your own land
Thank you
Thank you for the informative information what site are you on please
Thank you too Robert but i dont give out my exact location im afraid
we have had 2 static caravans, the first one 3 years and the owners changed the site to park homes, the second static caravan 10 years and again the site changed to park homes. As for the electric the law says you should only pay what it costs the site, but you have to put up with it.
Thank you for the info Sidney much appreciated
whats best to get internet in your van? thanks
Looks lovely but think you will need central heating it will be very cold in the winter. We have a lodge in Cornwall beautiful and very big.
They will expect you to keep your caravan updated if it starts to look a little shabby. Our neighbours have got to get of the site in the next six weeks as their caravan is quite old.
Site fees will go up annually which they don’t tell you about.
Enjoy your caravan but things aren’t as plain sailing as you think.
We wish we knew what we know now at the beginning of our lodge journey.
There are a lot of sneaky things that the site owners do not tell you.
Sorry to be a negative but can cost you dearly.
You have to look at what it costs to remove the static when it come to you not affording the site fees or your finances change.
i was told to scrap a static on our site cost the owner £2000.
our gas bottles are £100 on our site. you need to look at gas checks every year. i know some one who used 6 bottles a year. but they did keep there caravan very hot.
your caravan insurance can be as much as you pay for a house.
moving a caravan transport cost will be depending on distance for point a to b.
And getting to a new site you will have leveling and connection fee dependant on what the site charges. in the same way as disconnection fees when leaving a site.
Thank you for the feedback David
Think I’m going to live in caravan when I retire
Shop around and pick widely
Thank you
Thanks Ivan, for this update as I was a bit concerned about some details but I do know that one site can be different from another. It looks like you've got a really good set up there mate. Take care and all the best. Stevie
Thank you Stevie much appreciated
It is such a shame that this country does not embrace the "Tiny homes" movement. There are so many young couples who would benefti form buying a Tiny Home and being able to rent a plot on a Tiny Home park.
Thank you for the feedback
Have you enquired or intrested in building decking around the caravan, some sites will require you to use their on-site guys to do that or will they allow you to construct your own decking etc
Very interesting Ivan, why do you have to leave for a while , could you explain it please, My daughter in law mentioned something regarding this but she wasn't sure. Will you be staying there indefinitely, it's obvious that you both seem to be enjoying it there. It's just right for the two of you, I can't fault ya at all. Thanks for the update...
So you don't pay council tax.
He has to leave because the caravan park does not have a residential licence and so people aren't supposed to live in them full time, they are meant to have a permanent residential address and the caravan is meant to be a holiday home. If you are living permanently in an area you have to pay council tax to that council.
Updated on the next video Thank you
Updated on the next video Thank you
Thanks 🙏 from Australia 🇦🇺
Thank you too
Those site fees are a killer. Also you have to keep good relationship with the site managers. Long term arrangements are discouraged.
Thank you John
I think buying your static caravan is an innovative solution to your impending homelessness. As you have a five-year contract to keep your caravan on that site, it gives you at least five years of having a home which far outweigh the alternative prospects of being homeless. I don’t know what kind of rent you were paying on the home you were evicted from but if you add up the cost of that rental over five years and compare it to what you will have spent on buying your caravan and the site fees for the same amount of time And also factoring your peace of mind then I think you have probably made good choice In fact, it seems it was likely the only choice you had anyway from what you say. The total amount you will have spent on site fees after five years including a 3% rise every year is £15,926 Added to which you invested £8000 of your pension. Even if you are asked to leave the site after five years the total you will have spent is £23,926. That works out to be less than £400 a month, which is I would imagine less than you were paying in rent and as I said you have gained the peace of mind for the foreseeable future, Which is absolutely priceless!! I’m really enjoying watching your videos and I hope it all works out as you have planned
One last comment is that while your expenditure is so low over the five years You have a contract to remain on , it would be really good if you could save up the £8000 you used to buy the caravan
Thank you much appreciated
Thank you
Hi mate great video thanks for posting 👍
I was wondering how long do you have to leave the caravan for after 60 days has past?
Can you just spend one night away and then come back for another 60 days?
Or do you have to be away longer? Thanks
I believe it is a couple of days but not 100%
@@CaravanLifeUK If its only for day or two thats fine. If you had to leave for a month or so that would be more difficult.
On the site I’m on they advertise restaurant,bar golf course, swimming pool, fishing lake ,bowling green. The restaurant is closed, they say there’s no fish in the lake, there’s weeds everywhere. They say they can’t get the staff. Now the water is a murky colour we’ve to buy our own in bottles. It wasn’t like this when we first bought our static. We know they’ve got the site up for sale even though they don’t communicate this with us. Will we get compensation if they try to make us leave.?
.
Thinking of buying one my budget is £12000
how much to have your van moved please
I just came across your channel.
You live there 10 months a year that brings your rent to £300 a month.
You are reliant on friends and relatives for your time off site. It's also up in the air if you can keep your van on site once it has come up to maximum age. You also must be reliant at being registered at another address for council tax purposes. Also what do you do for a doctors surgery as I wonder would you be able to register living on a 10 month site. Lastly are your yearly site fees fixed in any way or can the owners raise each year as much as they choose. I'm am not being critical but I don't think everything is as rosey long term as short term.
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
@@CaravanLifeUK
Thanks for the reply
I got a council bungalow in a rural setting without this expense.
That is what we wanted but could not get one and the clock was ticking as to being homeless or having something
Thank you
It's a shame the sites not all year round. Some sites are. There's also some sites with chalets on that are all year round.
You mentioned water is included with your ground rates but I'm guessing there's no council tax to pay due to the site closing for 2 months a year.
What age is the caravan?
Updated on the next video Thank you
Did you have a habitation report done before you bought the van ?
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
Hi Ivan, I guess I'm missing something. Why do you have to leave for a couple of months?
otherwise its liable for council tax.
90% of sites close over winter. You can find some that are all year round but it costs extra - sort of a penalty fee to stay out of season. This is usually down to covering the site paying council tax
So you do not become liable for council tax
Usually, it’s more to do with the planning permission for the site. Where they are classed as ‘holiday homes’ they have to be unoccupied for a period of time. These sites will be in places where normal planning permission wouldn’t be given for building brick and mortar houses. Check on the internet for stories about unscrupulous site owners that claim you can live there all year round, but in fact you can’t - this lovely couple have done their homework, so are well aware of the requirements and have plans for the time they have to be offsite, but other people have been caught out and faced real hardship.
so the site can be classed as a holiday park and not a residential park as they would need a licence for that off the council. You are not allowed to live permanently on a holdiay caravan site, you are meant to have a permanent residence elsewhere too. I'm guessing he puts a relatives address as being his permanent one.
What about TV licence? Are you still liable or is it paid by the site owners?
No we dont have to have one
Thank you Keith
Hi where is the caravan park located
Not a safe thing to disclose i am afraid
Thank you Darren
My sister inlaw had a static on the east coast and lost alot of money in the 6 years she had it.!! She sold back to the site and got next to nothing for it unfortunately.!! You’re better off saving your money and renting I think.?
Thank you
Why dont the government give the people loosening there homes due to rents and landlords selling up.but thy will have to be suitable for catavan life.i lived in a caravan as a kid 5 siblings mom and dad.its was hard going but we managed.
Thank you for the feedback
Loved my static until site put fees up £500 so was £. 3250 a year, I kept my van mint and it was in excellent condition but site said it had to go due to it being 10 yr old which they said was stated in rules, they wouldn’t budge so I cut my loses an abandoned it
All sites do vary and some do not have any restrictions it is a shame if the van is in good condition but that is the rules of certain sites
Hi Ivan do you pay council tax? Insurance if it burns down? Car park?
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
Great news that you have a base although with the 60 day rule. Can you keep your place on the council waiting list as a back up ?
Yes i believe so
Thank you Roderick
I think maybe it was A Keycamp van!!!?????.Is the roof pitched or flat????...
Never looked actually will check tomorrow Thank you Douglas
Site owners in my personal experience are greedy and unprincipled, many of them have their roots in the traveler community- They can and do raise the rents annually by as much as they like. You have been warned.
Hope we make it through Thank you David
Were is you’re site.
Never disclose that info it is not safe
Thank you Lynda
Is it a mobile home or caravan?
A static caravan
😊😊Most site fees up and down the country now are around £5000 plus per yr so nearly £500 amonth plus gas plus elec, And its not covered residential if ever that exists anyway, All in all check before you leap its not all rosy, Most decent vans £40,000 to £50,000 you have to change most after 10yrs check the maths please save your money, Most sites do not have a 20yr lease on vans, My neighbours had to leave their van after 12yrs far to expensive to update they literally left it and walked away be warned.
Thank you for the info Tony
Can you stick solar panels on the roof (temporarily of course)
Worth asking Thank you Graham
Would You Yourself invest in a Caravan Site?
No not if it causes people upset
Thank you
Whats the reason you have to leave for 8 weeks? Is it because of the cold or something else.
It is because they are HOLIDAY homes and legally you are not allowed to live in them full time. Many people do of course, and many site owners turn a blind eye, although it will be stated somewhere in your site license. If the local council does decide to investigate, then site owners can and usually do (otherwise they are likely to lose their site license and hence their business) will throw people off for breach of their conditions. The other possible pitfall is that site ownership regularly changes and new owners will often have totally different ways of working and will issue new individual licenses. The owners practices are totally unregulated and if anyone is unlucky enough to fall foul of the the above (the holiday park action group on Facebook has over 50,000 members, many with horror stories), then you can find yourself homeless and with a huge financial loss, without any legal redress except possibly an expensive court case for mis-selling by the site owners (very difficult to prove).
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
Thank you for the info much appreciated James
They should allow more residential sites but the government won't as they want to keep us competing over housing to keep the prices inflated, more people chasing fewer goods is only good for those at the top, that's why they won't stop uncontrolled immigration despite the housing crisis...
Thank you
Do you have to pay council tax ?
Only been here a couple of weeks and awaiting the contract so will update soon Thank you
How long you got to be off site a year thats the biggest question
Updated on the next video Thank you
So 10% + VAT @ 20% = 30%? How is it Really Calculated?
10% + VAT
no, that would be 12% not 30%
Does not make sense you pay 8k for a caravan then pay 30k over the next 10YEARS that’s if the sight fees do not go up
True. They're a money pit. You buy into a lifestyle. We enjoy it but we accept that it's a very expensive hobby owning a static!
Had no other option but the annual increase i think is 3% fixed will update when i know more Thank you
Left with no other option we took this one lets see how it goes Thank you
You could go away on holiday every month to different locations, instead of .I do
Site fees are guaranteed to go up.
The simple answer, don't do it.
Unless like us it was our only option so we will see how it goes and at the moment all seems fine
Thank you
@@CaravanLifeUK I speak from bitter experience. As long as you accept you don't have a secure tenancy agreement, and have the financial capability of buying a new caravan every ten years, taking into account the horrendous depreciation of second hand caravans as well.
@@CaravanLifeUK Occasionally we hire a static for a week. Inevitably I am accosted by the sales rep. I express an interest and tell him if he buys me lunch I will give a purchase serious consideration. Normally their greed forces their hand after saying hi for a few days. Love a free lunch.
Has to be up there with the top 3 worst investments you can make. Each to their own, but having a site manager lording it over you every day and extortionate fees...no thanks.. Its a dying sector - I know 2 people who have sold up as site amenities/entertainment have dried up. Far better to buy a camper van for 20k and having the freedom and less hassle selling when you tire of it..
By law, are you allowed to live there full time. I thought it was for partial year ?
No you have to leave for a while every 60 days but can then return
Thank you
Good video. But you’re still dropping words in sentences. Don’t know why doesn’t sound right . But like the videos. Garden ones too
Thank you Bobby i think it is my accent
What about the council tax ?
Updated on the next video Thank you Andrew
We use to have 8 a yr now we have one a yr 😂
Thank you
Do they allow Animals. IE small dog.
Hi Kim yes they do
Thank you
We’re u based
In a caravan
Why tie yourself down to one place and pay £400+ a month for the privilege.
We had no choice due to the eviction and it is £250 a month Thank you
mugs game
Thank you for the feedback
Tranfer fees are an absolute rip off. !!!. Just exploiting people
I agree
@@CaravanLifeUK I've stayed in loads over the years and loved them. The above and site fees have always put me off buying one
thanks for the info maybe you should redirect the main channel audience. I'm sure more poeple will like to see the costs :)
Thanks for the tip!
10% of 80,000 pound is 8,000 pound not 800 pound.
What about council tax?
no council tax its a holiday park, you really need another permanent home address.
You would be reliant on family or friends to register you at thier address otherwise it's a non starter. If you are living a long distance from where you are registered then how do you get on going to a Surgery? Would it involve long distance travel just for somthing minor. I think short term this life is OK. But I think friends and relatives might get fed up providing accommodation every year.
Updated on the next video Thank you
Updated on the next video Thank you
Anyone who buys a static caravan is a mug
Thank you
£8,000 😂I’ve got a necklace worth more.
£3,000 for site fees. That’s cheap as chips 😮
Thank you for the feedback
Stay away from Park Holidays site fees £8150 for season !
We were on a site for two years and paid a fortune in bills. tried selling it and lost a fortune.
Shed life
Flushing money down the toilet buying a static caravan, to rent a week in north wales is £700 t0 £1000 daylight robbery tbh its cheaper to go abroad ground rents £3k to £5k 5 weeks rent cover geound rent plus on fb its all cat and mouse to rent no prices advertised its put of going now ,we actually got cheaper accommodation in heaven parks, i think owners have become greedy
A muggy way of living