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hi  there,

 we bought a tourer 5 berth park it on the farmers field 5 mins from campsite. we just phone the week before and he pulls it on to the camp site.    Its just me and my daughter and 2 grandchildren and im to frightewned to pull it      It cost 200 per year to park it there, we pay in 4 monthly instalments, so it does not cripple us.  Then we just pay for the nights we stay at the camp. it just what we want.   we dont feel we have to use all the time but if we were paying a lot we would have to .

Any way the best of luck to you and the family you will makr the right decision

ps I did have a dandy prior to this and there fabulous mines just  got so old and i could not afford a new one  or i would have

Quote: Originally posted by RWheldon on 02/5/2009

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 There are many pro's and cons to owning a static. Much of the above is correct regarding depreciation and site fees. The majority of coastal parks are now between £3,000 and £4,000 per year for site fees. Inland you can expect to pay £1,500 to £2,000. If you are going to use it nearly every weekend through the season then it isn't that expensive. For a few visits a year you may as well rent one. Many coastal sites willl let you sub let throughat the summer and during peak season you can recoup you site fees in six weeks (however you can't have your holiday then!) Most inland parks do not alllow sub letting.

If buying a static that hasn't yet been sited (from a dealer) you can expect to add £1,000 delivery plus anything up to £5,000 siting fees in addition to the window price.

I actually work for a company that sells static caravans and we also own three inland parks. We have used caravans already sited from £8,000 with 10 years left on site. (our sites are all 20 years). This is an affordable way to see if statics are your thing. We have over 500 residents that are very happy with the way of life.

That said, we have camped for years and have just got our first tourer, so I suppose there is an answer for you!

Rich.

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Hi Rich

We are contemplating buying a static but after reading some horror stories on here and other forums about getting ripped off, we would like to "dip a toe" into caravan ownership without spending a fortune.

You mention some sites, I presume in Worcester which is where we are looking where the sites are 20 year sites with reasonably priced vans.   Could you provide more details please of these sites.

Thanks.

Janet

We are seriously thinking about buying a caravan too for when we 'go home' for 3 months a year.

My inlaws own a caravan and my parents had 'vans for years so I know the problems that all to often crop up.

Personally, I wouldn't buy a 'van already sited as the prices appear very inflated. I found a lovely brand spanking new 'van for 24K, it's 1.5k transporting and siting and the park I'm wanting to site it on is only 1.5k a year. The same 'van already sited at a 'popular' holiday area and 2 years older is 28k before the 3k site fees for this year!

I've found some lovely 'vans for sale on the net - obvioulsy I'd check them out first - not sited that are sometimes 3 times cheaper than already sited ones. I think like anything, and in this financial climate, shop around, ask them for a 'deal'.

Oneof8

I agree, prices are extortionate of vans already sited.

I had already thought the same as you have but the problem is getting a site to take your own caravan.   Most refuse to allow you to take your own van on site or if you do they want to charge you a lump sum for siting it on one of their pitches and that's if you can get a pitch available.

From what I can see they have you over a barrel or seem to do as if you look at how many are actually sold by park site owners you realise that there is no shortage of buyers especially if you only want to go on certain sites.

Good luck anyway with finding somewhere but I would think if it was that easy to do everyone would do it to save the sorts of money you are talking about.

Jan.

Hi

We have seasonal pitch which is open 11 months of the year  The site also has statics and we have considered buying one.  My husband works away from home quite a lot and I visit on my own.  I don't mind this in the summer, but don't really fancy setting up in the winter fetching water, sorting electricity etc.  We just thought it would be so much easier for me to just turn up and not have to worry about pouring rain, high winds and all that British weather entails.  The ground fees are reasonable, in fact cheaper than what we pay for the tourer on a seasonal.  With me being retired the static would be used a great deal.  Does this seem reasonable or just a waste of time and money.  I must admit I will miss touring, but as I don't like towing myself it just seems an easy option.

Any comments appreciated.  Many thanks

Liz

Hi Liz

As I don't know what site fees you anticipate paying I don't know if it is a good deal but I have been warned about some sites which don't offer licence agreements for static vans and I am now very wary after talking to a couple of park owners who would not off the licences as the y have "verbal agreements" with their caravan owners.   As the sum involved in paying for the van was £25000 we did not think this a very sensible thing to do as you read of all sorts of horror stories of people being told to take their vans off the pitch whenever the park owner wants the pitch back for some reason, either change of use of the park from caravans to park homes, or change of owner, or they just think the van is too old and want you to purchase a new one.

As we are coming up to retirement changing the van after only 4 or 5 years would not be an option for us so obviously we would not take any chances.

You may be in a different financial position, but you can lose a lot of money on caravans so the old addage is still applicable "buyer beware".

Where is the site you are interested in?

Jan

Hi Jan

Thanks for the info. I will be visiting the site this week end so will have a talk to the owners. I  now realise there is a lot to take on board.

The site we are interested in is in Wales.

Regards

Liz

Nit Nat

A lot of comments posted there to think about! I think the bottom line is to take a long term view - if think you may want to sell in a year or two it doesn't make sense buying an expensive new model.

For a first caravan it always makes sense to buy used - less spent & just as much fun. Shop around and you could find something nice under £10,000 I'm sure.

Try a few holidays at parks in the area first so you can make sure you  really like it - and try to talk to existing caravan owners - are they happy etc.

If you take your time - you will make the right choice! It's a great lifestyle if its what you want - but as others have said it can be expensive if you buy an expensive one & a couple of years later you decide you don't want it - a bit like buying a new car I guess!

Good luck anyway!