Residental park homes

Obviously cheap, but your park home will go down in price, not up, if you are thinking of selling a house or flat to move in.

I've never fancied living in a caravan, no matter how spacious, as I like to go upstairs to bed, but I imagine they are very friendly places. Sorry, can't help our with experiences!

Following with interest

I think that there are always rules and regs which could be restricting.

I believe the overheads and services charges are high.

I don't think I'd feel as safe if it wasn't bricks and mortar somehow. They're fine for holidays but beyond that it wouldn't be my choice as a permanent home.

You have to make sure that your park home can be your permanent residence. Although a lot of sites are open all year many require you to produce a council tax bill plus 2 other documents that prove your park home isn't your permanent and only residence.

A lodge would be preferable to a static caravan as they have better insulation and you have to take into account as B9exchange has said that they depreciate in value and annual site fees can rise on a regular basis.

We upgraded from a static caravan to a brand new lodge last year and I often think we could live here (we're at our lodge at the moment) quite happily, if our site permitted it but that said, it would mean getting rid of practically everything we have at home due to the lack of space.

Most residential parks are a quiet community on their own, mostly retired couples and I can understand the appeal of a well run park after the hustle a bustle of a town.
Read the site rules and conditions carefully, you pay a site rent and a service charge and you may have to sell the unit to the site owner when you move. Probably after 25 yrs your mobile home will have a very low value, today they are warm and cozy a far cry from those 40yrs ago.

I have a friend who lives in a park home. He found the heating bills massive at first until he had more insulation added, but the bills are still higher than a house. The ground/site fees are much higher than he imagined. On the other hand he and his wife love their home and enjoy the site.

My parents have lived on a park home for around 20 years. It is a retirement park for over 50's. They have a lovely home, large with 2 bedrooms. It isn't a caravan, it is a mobile home and very warm and cosy.
There are annual site fees and some restrictions that you need to find out before moving onto one. You need to check out all terms and conditions as they vary on each park.
The park often have the final say as to who buys the mobile home, often they will only allow it to be sold to themselves for a vastly reduced price. But if you intend it to be your home for many years and aren't after making a profit as my they are well worth it.

My parents bought a park home 31 years ago, Mum lived there on her own for the last 18 years of her life after Dad died, they are warm, comfortable and had an amazing community spirit. We have recently sold it for about 8 times the original price to the second person to look at it, highly recommend

Modern park homes are amazingly different from caravans! My advice is to undertake lots of online research (very easily done) and also to go along to exhibitions (where possible/viable on these difficult Covid times) & you may be very pleasantly surprised. Also do not confuse residential park homes with holiday homes - they are notably different, as is the legislation covering each. It's illegal to live year-round in a holiday home, though some people do this. Worth perusing all these issues online.

I lived in a park home for 12 years and they were probably the happiest years of my life. There is a wonderful community spirit on a park home site that you don't get anywhere else. They can be cold in the winter and hot in the summer, but the pluses far outweigh the negatives to my mind. I'd have another one in a heartbeat.

Cassie, the law has changed on selling a residential park home: you can sell to whom you like (other than adhering to any rules on the park, such as only "over 55s" allowed.) Legislation in 2013 made big changes, giving notable increased security & rights to park home residents.

Be very careful. I know two people on two different sites that were evicted after the sites were sold. The new owners wanted to redevelop the sites so got rid of all the old residents. Make sure you know your rights and the conditions of the park.

BiL moved into one last year. It is much nicer than we expected. Watch out for ruinous charges, and make sure you own the property and can’t be kicked out

I know someone who lives in a park home which are actually tidy rows of neat caravans evenly spaced. The rules are strict, no pets, no resident children and visiting children cannot play out. It’s all very sterile and certainly wouldn’t suit me. Anywhere that shuns pets and children would not be where I would want to be. You have to get specialist people to work at your home too as the walls are thin and different materials are required. Cheaper to buy than bricks and mortar but depreciation is high and monthly maintainable is also high. Think hard, it’s a very big decision.

I think some have to close for 2 months each year so an alternative place to stay has to be found

We have lived in a park home for 9 years when we moved back to Uk from France and needed to buy quickly. We could not rent as we had three cats and finding a rental property would have been difficult.
We have no regrets and love our home. They are called mobile but don't really look it - look more like a bungalow, with a large garden plot. They are easy to have work done on - we have had ours modified from a three bed to two double beds and a large walk in wet room/bathroom. They are cosy - we have gas central heating - LPG. There is no mains gas in area where we live but many do have mains gas.
We are in a beautiful rural setting and have wonderful neighbours. We pay a monthly site charge which goes twoards maintaining the park which is kept lovely. Council tax is lowest band and as long as the site is fully residential you can register with GPs etc. Just be aware - some holiday sites allow round year use but are not resdiential. the rites for residents on residential sites are good. We can sell though any Estate Agent although there is a precentage goes to site owner.
If you are considering a park home. Check the rules and regulations, especially if you have pets (not all sites allow pets) and try to talk to some of the residents already living there. We love living here.

Caro, what you refer to are holiday homes, and, as I mentioned earlier, the rules are notably different for those! (There does appear to be quite a lot of confusion between the two: can I make this absolutely clear so that there is no misunderstanding - residential park homes are not the same as holiday homes.)

Not all sites ban pets, my parents had dogs for all but the last 3 years of mums life, resident children weren’t allowed but visiting ones most certainly did play out

We purchased a park home last November Best thing we ever did I dont think of it as a caravan its my home. Our utility bills have halved & so easy to maintain and clean . Love it ?

Years ago my dds delivered the weekly freebie paper to a residential park home site in our town. Any prejudices I had fell away. They were beautifully maintained inside and out in their own quite location. The residents were lovely people too.

I went back the other day and they are just as lovely in a peaceful location. Cheaper than a house to buy as well. If you don’t need big why not. Just check the location and make sure the residents are neighbourly.

I lived in a very beautiful park home chalet for several years.
The site was in a lovely area in North Yorkshire, friendly community etc.
The big downsides- park owners have first choice of buying the place (at a knock-down price of course) . You will almost certainly lose money, and beware of the annual costs which can be increased anytime.
I will NEVER go there again.

A lot of residential park homes cannot be lived in 52 weeks of the year. A very elderly friend moved into one 4 years ago and loves it. For the 3 week period she must vacate she goes to her son's for a bit of a holiday. Very well heated, lovely little easy to maintain garden great community and what I really like - quietness! I think they are becoming more popular as still have independence without being stuck in a flat or having to maintain a house. Conditions are of course to be well considered before making a decision.