we are defecting

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pamella

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after a year of motorhoming we have decided we are off to statics im afraid.
we have outgrown our lovely hymer and feel a statics the way forward so going to give it a try.
we have advertised it on classified her and ebay for ten days.we got a bid so we'll see.
 
Enjoy whatever makes you happy but please, please, please check out the pros and cons of static ownership before taking the plunge, especially the costs/commission which you have to pay when you sell it in the future ... I know of a few people who have come a cropper as they didn't know about this and some of the fees can be expensive - as much as 15% of the sale price I believe!
 
I too know of quite a few people who after a few years have been "kicked out" of their static because they havent been able to afford to upgrade to newer models, one friend's site changed hands and the new owners evicted everyone and a few where the site fees and charges started low but then became ridiculously high.

We wish you all the best with your static and hope you are very happy and that you dont experience the bad things that others have.
 
pamella said:
after a year of motorhoming we have decided we are off to statics im afraid.
we have outgrown our lovely hymer and feel a statics the way forward so going to give it a try.
we have advertised it on classified her and ebay for ten days.we got a bid so we'll see.
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As the others have said, please look in to it in very great detail, I have been there and nothing in this world would get me to do it again, apart from the cost which is collosol think about not only rent but the other things they hit you with rates ,water, insurance. Got to move after so long at their terms, and do you really want to go to the same old place every time, looking at the same old vans with the same old people, believe me we have done it , it can take over your life, repairs , new curtains and all the other old stuff and if you are thinking of renting it out think again, they only want to rent when you want it and then don't want to pay you, ours ended up costing about £50 every week of the year, not just the weeks we were there.
Sell your mh by all means but have a b.....!good think before you get into a static
 
You may as well donate the Hymer for free to a Funster of your choosing.
That's how much cash you will be ripped off for during the course of normal static caravan ownership.

Plus just giving your money away will save the raised blood pressure and frustration caused by every demand for commission/ site fees/ compulsory upgrade, etc.that the site operator enforces on you!

Good luck, but I think you will regret it!

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jonandshell said:
You may as well donate the Hymer for free to a Funster of your choosing.
That's how much cash you will be ripped off for during the course of normal static caravan ownership.

Plus just giving your money away will save the raised blood pressure and frustration caused by every demand for commission/ site fees/ compulsory upgrade, etc.that the site operator enforces on you!

Good luck, but I think you will regret it!
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Absolutely it's a minefield, we bought ours the first year ok then it started costing as much as buying it again every year, terrible experience ended up near enough giveing it them back just to get out of it, couldn't sell it on or keep it because they said it was old and it was immaculate don't don't don't do it
 
We are extremely curious about this; my brother has a static but doesn't say much about costs......

So, compulsory upgrades - does every site do this or just some? What happens to all the slightly older units?

Are site fees linked to say inflation or can the owners simply dictate terms?

Does every site owner routinely charge commission on you selling your own unit, no matter how this is done? Or is this just a bit of occasional sharp practise?

Thanks - interesting subject...... Every reply above is extremely negative but there are static parks all over the place, so there must be some upsides somewhere
 
Without the cost of buying, it is going to cost at least 3 grand a year, you can have some good holidays on that
 
Good luck in your new venture, No shame in coming back home.(y) If you do not try you will not know.
 
I miss read your thread title and thought it was going to be another cassette emptying story, but then realised there was no "a" in defecting.:doh:

Anyway I do wonder if after only one year you are being a little hasty but wish you all the happiness with your static if you go ahead.

If you are serious about selling the Hymer it may be worth putting a link to the ebay page on here.

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A friend of ours rented his out for most of the year just to make ownership affordable. There was no profit once cleaning and gas bills were levied.
The site owner decreed the caravan was now officially too old to rent out just 18 months after our friend bought it.
Ownership became unaffordable and the the site operator bought it back at huge loss to our friend.
Guess what? They sold the caravan to some other mug!!!

The cycle continues.......,
 
Best of luck, Motorhoming is not for everyone. However, be aware that you have no control over 'site fees' for static homes and expect to pay several thousand pounds a year depending on location.
 
DuxDeluxe said:
We are extremely curious about this; my brother has a static but doesn't say much about costs......

So, compulsory upgrades - does every site do this or just some? What happens to all the slightly older units?

Are site fees linked to say inflation or can the owners simply dictate terms?

Does every site owner routinely charge commission on you selling your own unit, no matter how this is done? Or is this just a bit of occasional sharp practise?

Thanks - interesting subject...... Every reply above is extremely negative but there are static parks all over the place, so there must be some upsides somewhere
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Compulsory upgrades , no probably not all sites, older units are exported or sold to farms and things to house workers or more grotty campsites.
Site fees are what they can screw out of you and related to nothing
As far as I know they all make you deal through them and you can't really do anything about it because other sites won't let you put them on their site if the van is so old so you are just between a rock and a hard place.
They just rely on turnover of vans when we had ours we saw loads of vans that had different owners every year, just try it once and then off.
 
please look into it carefully, we have come from a static to a motorhome, in 8 years our site fees went from £2500 to £6000 and when it came to selling we coudnt sell to any body but the site a complete rip off and that was park resorts one of the biggest, with a motorhome if you don't like the site just move on
 
Thanks for the response. I just wonder why so many people do it, as all of the above appears to be standard practise within the industry.

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oldmanriver said:
please look into it carefully, we have come from a static to a motorhome, in 8 years our site fees went from £2500 to £6000 and when it came to selling we coudnt sell to any body but the site a complete rip off and that was park resorts one of the biggest, with a motorhome if you don't like the site just move on
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Glad we got out when we did then ours was £3000 when we finished and the van only cost us £4000 when we had it and ended up selling/ giving it to them for a grand after four years
 
if you sell to a third party they put the new owners site fees up so all new owners only buy from the site, we got £16000 back for our static and they then sold it for £40000 we have a lot of friends who have had to just walk away and get nothing
 
DuxDeluxe said:
Thanks for the response. I just wonder why so many people do it, as all of the above appears to be standard practise within the industry.
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You just get carried away by a nice holiday with the kids at haven or somewhere and get took in by the leaflets and spiel, then don't realise the kids get older and you don't want to be in the same place every year but you are stuck with it and can't say so if you are trying to get rid
 
I purchased a Static many years ago and then craned it off site onto a low loader and put it on a building plot to live in whilst I built our second house. It turned out that it was up for sale because the site owner could get many times more for the pitch if it had a new home on it so I nicked it for £1800.

Sold it two years later for £2450 to someone who wanted to self build as I had done. They don't seem to have much value if they're not on a pitch and then I bet it varies dependent on where the pitch is!

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Popeye said:
I purchased a Static many years ago and then craned it off site onto a low loader and put it on a building plot to live in whilst I built our second house. It turned out that it was up for sale because the site owner could get many times more for the pitch if it had a new home on it so I nicked it for £1800.

Sold it two years later for £2450 to someone who wanted to self build as I had done. They don't seem to have much value if they're not on a pitch and then I bet it varies dependent on where the pitch is!
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And the thing is, there is nothing wrong with the old vans , just as good as new inside, we had painted ours underneath every year, and it was good for another twenty years but it's just another earner to the campsite to say it's got to go
 
Great to see so much encouragement. Nothing wrong with a word of warning but this thread has turned into doom and gloom, i doubt the OP really needs to here this.
There are plenty of folk out there. Who enjoy static caravans and find them affordable. A friend of mine has just bought one £3600 a year site fees and a age limit on the van.
On the other hand i also know someone who pays £1600 a year with no age limit. They only paid £8000 almost 7 years ago.
 
We lived in one (two) for twelve years full time. OK, lucky in some ways, as we bought second hand vans. However, if we had bought new, we would have lost a serious amount of cash.
The crux is this. If you buy a residential park home, you have 32 pages of legally enforceable rules in your favour. If you buy a non-residential static caravan, (on a site you must vacate for a set number of weeks per year), you have NO LEGAL PROTECTION WHATSOEVER!!! It's classed as a 'Holiday Home' in the eyes of the law. The site owner can do with you as he or she pleases.
Like your location?? Forget it, they can 'shift' you any time they wish. Fees?? They can be increased as the owner wishes, to whatever amount they like, and you cant protest. Pay up, or get off.
Insurance for a static is so very expensive as well. Gas at around £75.00 for a 47 kg bottle, water rates, electricity 'connection' charges, (payable per year), plus of coarse the electricity used bill.
Other clauses exist. On most sites, you can only re-sell to the site owner, or pay a heavy fee to be 'removed from site'. You want decking? Very nice, except you must buy it from site, you cant get your own guy in. Want a shed?? Fine, you once again buy it from the site, at three times the amount you would pay for the same one through Argos. Site security whilst you are away?? Think again if you consider your van is 'secure', even using the so called 'alarm' system your having to buy from the site.
All in all, a series of pit-falls that you the owner has no say in whatsoever. Within twelve months a 50 k van can be worth 20 k, if you decide you don't like it. My advice?? Buy a residential park home instead, much more buyer security, and being residential, they don't lose their price. (y)(y)

i doubt the OP really needs to here this.
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I disagree strongly. That's why the OP posted, for advice. If the advice had been positive, then it would have been posted as such!
 
Ah....... Thanks Tootles, that clarifies enormously. So there are two types of static living. Residential where people have reasonable rights and the holiday ones where it is a lot less clear.

That has probably enormously helped the OP and certainly clarified for me. cheers!
 
DuxDeluxe said:
Ah....... Thanks Tootles, that clarifies enormously. So there are two types of static living. Residential where people have reasonable rights and the holiday ones where it is a lot less clear.

That has probably enormously helped the OP and certainly clarified for me. cheers!
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I have PMd the OP David, offering my experience on this issue, if indeed it is required.
This whole thing is a huge minefield, and I (we) spent twelve years getting inside it. (y)

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Forewarned is forearmed, isn't that the saying..
Yes there are some good sensible sites. We had a static based at Butlins in the day, terms were fair.. Still lost a load of cash but thats the way it goes, however family and me have some great memories.
I looked at buying caravan sites some time ago, one place at. burnham seemed to delight at how he had everyone stitched up with all the clauses...

Just make a list or do some research before the buy...
 
I know of some holiday chalets in Pembrokeshire which are right on the beach.

Not particularly well built but ok and around £50k.

999 year lease with about 950 years to run.

Site fees about £500 per annum.

Obviously electric and council tax on top but better long term value than a static in my opinion.

Planning restricted to 11 months occupation in any 12 month period which is not enforced ( and never has been ) by the Local Authority.

The leases are also defective so that £500 a year is pretty much fixed ( it's index linked) but no nasty surprises in years to come.
 
Chris said:
I know of some holiday chalets in Pembrokeshire which are right on the beach.

Not particularly well built but ok and around £50k.

999 year lease with about 950 years to run.

Site fees about £500 per annum.

Obviously electric and council tax on top but better long term value than a static in my opinion.

Planning restricted to 11 months occupation in any 12 month period which is not enforced ( and never has been ) by the Local Authority.

The leases are also defective so that £500 a year is pretty much fixed ( it's index linked) but no nasty surprises in years to come.
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Buy the place quick, Chris, you could make a fortune there!!(y)(y)
As you say, a lot of it is also about location. People with families don't want to be stuck in 'scenic bay' twenty miles from the nearest town.
If you wished to buy in say Colwyn Bay for instance, the 'rent' rockets!
 
Tootles said:
Buy the place quick, Chris, you could make a fortune there!!(y)(y)
As you say, a lot of it is also about location. People with families don't want to be stuck in 'scenic bay' twenty miles from the nearest town.
If you wished to buy in say Colwyn Bay for instance, the 'rent' rockets!
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There are loads of them on the market Tootles.

We owned one when the kids were very young but didn't get down there enough to make proper use of it.

I doubt you would get a mortgage on them because of the build quality but for a retired couple who want to keep their living costs down and right next to a lovely beach I can't think of a downside.
 
As with all things Chris, (as you and your chosen profession knows only too well), it's 'buyer beware'. On saying that, you buy a pair of shoes from a shop, you have full protection on that sale. They go defective, you have legal rights. There are very few legal rights appertaining to holiday homes.
You can buy a second, (or third) hand residential park home, at a great desirable location, from between 15 k and 150 k, depending on type, and what requires 'doing'. With that, you have the same, if not more, personal protection on your property as if you purchased the shoes. (y)

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