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Mobile Home


Trevor

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We been thinking of buying a mobile home that you can use all year round, we know we got 10 more years to work before we retire, but we use to live in a mobile home before we got married and we love it, but the problem is are they better build to day than they were years ago, my health is't very good, [breathing problem] as I been told by my doctor to move where the air is cleaner, like near the coast or derbyshire? as we been thinking of taking the money out of our property, but don't like the sound of that, think it a rip off!! So this way we can take the money out of our property when we sold it then buy the mobile home and the cash in the bank, and buy a second hand motor home to carry on touring wish we love, Are they warm in the winter now and do thay still get hot in summer, any info would be helpfull, Thanks you for your time, Trevor
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Hi Trevor. Assume we are talking of static/mobile caravans here and my main concern would be length of ground lease and renewal of van when this expires. You have ten years to retirement, so you might find yourself buying a van now and by the time you retire be in the position of having to renew the van, often on the site owners terms, or even having to find a new site. Given your circumstances I would go for a permanant 'park home', where at least you should be guaranteed a 'lifetime' lease, giving you peace of mind if you do sell your house and a secure future with regards to always having somewhere you can call home.

Often use my brother in laws static down in West Wales as a base when touring. Only three old and would be happy to live in it full time. Comfort wise its far removed from older vans and central heating that copes with the worst of winter weather with enough insulation to keep you reasonably cool in the summer too.

Sorry if i,ve sounded a bit negative on some of the points i,ve made, and there are pitfalls, but as long as you think it through (long term) and get the setup that suits you best then I would go for it.

 

 

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Hi Howie, Thanks for your reply, yes we are aware of one/two thing living in a mobile home, on the other hand we may still go for a 2 bed room bungalow, wish we live in one now, may be better to buy one near the sea, so we can carry on caravaning, Don't worry about being negative we like people who speak their mind, Thanks Trevor
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Have you considered a flat or apartment Trevor. Far cheaper than a house or bungalow and if you can handle the confines of a static then space should,nt be a issue, and something to show in years to come.

This has always been the sticking point whenever we have considered a static, 'dead money', and let me quote you some figures with my brother in laws van taken over a ten year period.

 

Cost of van plus interest £32,000

Annual ground rent at current

rate of £2,200 p.a. x 10 = £22.000

------------

 

Total £54,000

 

This is just the basic outlay and who knows what the ground rent will be in the years to come, and has as happened before to my b in law, in ten years time the site owner tells you your time is up and gives you the choice of accepting a few hundred pounds or tells to get your van of site.

What you left after ten years (apart from the use of course) is practically nothing, and much as we are taken by the idea, this 'dead money' is the part we have never come to terms with.

Never mind being being 'negative' Trev, by the time i,m through with this subject you,ll be on the Samaritan hotline, but thats just the way I see it.

 

 

 

 

 

;-)

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Hi Howie, We are going to dismiss the mobile home, But having Asthmas for 25 years, I was in hospital in February for a week and had to wait two months for appointment, rang them and they over look it, now got a apponitment next thurday, So we see what happen then, do see what you are getting at, Happy Caravaning, Trevor
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Trevor

We downsized to a residential home, here in Grantham a year ago.

We wanted to get rid of the mortgage, get some cash in the bank and semi retire and do our own thing.

we are now well on our way to living our 'plan'.

We have our motorhome and in a few hours time we are off to work on a campsite in France for 5 months. We have both packed up full time work - but when we come back in Sept and we find we need to replentish the coffers we will get casual jobs - stacking shelves, house sitting - anything to earn more pocket money so we can go and do our own thing for longer.

I like our little home, it takes half an hour to clean from top to bottom, we have a nice little garden, charles has a small shed and there is a green house too.

the only problem we had/have is getting rid of all the stuff one accumulates over the years, but we are getting there!

the build quality is very good, we own our park home, but pay rent on the ground - we are not allowed to sublet, in all it suits us.

Hope the above is some use to you.

regards

Carol

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  • 2 weeks later...
To answer your question "are they better now", I would say yes and no, firstly make sure you are looking at a fully winterised version, many are made for holiday season use, those that are made for all year round use 'should' be better insulated now than the one you may have used in past, but in my opinion the internal walls and doors seem flimsier now than say 40 years ago.
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Hi Trevor'

I think you have to decide whether you want a Static (mobile home) or a Park Home. We also did what you're (were?) thinking of 5 years ago and have never looked back. More money, less garden,less expenses more holidays in the motor home & in the sun, plus the 3 bed home has some rooms larger than our previous bungalow.

Have another think...... you won't regret it!

 

 

Wildge

 

PS The few weeks we are here in the winter the house is very warm.

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Thank you for all your reply, we will have to see what happen in the future as time will tell, in the mean time going backward and forward to the hospital and enjoying our caravaning when we can, once again Thanks Trevor
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  • 4 months later...
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But check with planning before you buy the land as some counties are very anti mobile homes.

Although a well presented case should win on appeal, it may not be worth the hassle, stress and worry.

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Rainbow-Chasers' - 2008-09-04 8:04 PM

 

Buy a plot of land for a few grand, get planning (its a temporary structure as its a park home) A new park home will cost you 60k built, wired up and ready to move into for a four bed, twin level with apex roof, balconies etc.

 

If only it was that simple, if it's outside the development zone you won't get permission unless you have good reason to be there, if it's inside zone the cost of land is so high might as well build a small house, at least thats the situation around here.

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The reply above has been 'niggling' at me since posting and I offer the following as an insight to anyone thinking of buying a plot and siting a mobile home.

I have 'a bit of previous' on this subject and the following is either personnel experiance or that of family or friends, not 'what I heard down the pub'. This obviously applies to my home county, but I would imagine it is similair across the country, unless anyone can give personnel experiance of differances.

I will try to get across the 'spirit' of what has happened, whilst trying to protect some peoples anomitity

 

It seems that people see established indivial mobile homes sited, or new one's appearing and thinking 'well they got it sited easy enough', well it's a bit like the preverbial duck in a stream 'looks calm on the surface, paddling like hell under water', you might never know what hoops have had to be jumped throu or anguish has been gone throu, couple of years back some friends came to ask 'the family' advice about how to go about siteing mobile home, they where most suprized to learn the ocupants(close on 80 years old) of the one they where sitting outside enjoying a

cup of tea had recently been threatened by council with being evicted from their plot after some 40 years.

My post does not apply to siting of 'gypsyies' homes, which is a whole different can of worms.

 

The most common sight of an individual mobile home in our area would be in a rural area outside of developement area,these are normaly linked to a business of some kind, say a plant nursery , or stables, the owner will have convinced the council that they need to be on site to run their business and will be on a yearly renewing planning permission, proboly hoping that if the business can continue to thrith then they will get permission to build house, the council will want proof the business is viable and there needs to be someone on site, and of cause whatever permissions the business needs.

Quite a few of these 'work' but not always, a 'friend' started a rural business and could not convince the council that he needed to be on site and that it was viable, he lived in a barn for some time before the council found out and served papers on him.

 

Individul mobile homes in developement areas! apart from tempory mobiles homes where a house is being rebuilt I can't think of one I've seen recently, the planning department and the planning commitee are very anti, so not a lot of hope without an appeal but also the economics don't normaly work, land with a chance of getting planning permission is very expensive such that people will buy a building and knock it down to build their 'dream house'(known as bungalowing) so there is not much hope of freeing up capital there.

 

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