Future Standards of Housing.....

baileysbattlebus

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Interesting.

But I query your prices...... Does that include the land?

Heres a UK dealer....... http://www.joalleisure.com/mobile-home-details.html?id=2056

And heres something for sale from them that looks perfectly livable for £24,000.

How much would site fees be to put it in a mobile home park?

http://www.warfieldparkhomes.co.uk/Pages/sales.html

This is a park a few miles from us - the prices are as dear as houses in parts of the country.

You don't normally own the land - it is not registered with the Land Registry

This is another company and on this particular park the monthly fee £156 + band A council tax

http://www.hillsparkhomes.co.uk/more_info.asp?current_id=89

Some on the south coast are really expensive - and here in the south east it isn't just retired people who live in them - families do too.

bouche

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Sorting through some old contract work files just now from when I lived overseas, and it got me thinking about some of the more "interesting" accomodation I've stayed in over the years when I've been away for work, etc.

At various times, ranging from a few weeks to a few months, I have lived in.....

A static caravan, an American "doublewide trailer", a tent in the desert, hotels/motels, serviced apartments, a winnebago motor home, numerous company provided shared villa's/houses, a few nights in a converted shipping container, and even a friends small yacht for 4 weeks whilst on summer holidays from Uni.

At the time, I did not find any of these things to be particularly unenjoyable, although there were a few I'd rather not repeat. (the yacht and the tent especially, neither very comfortable once the novelty wore off)

But it got me thinking, living in alternative accomodation is quite common overseas.

So why not here?

America is full of "trailer parks", where people live in what are essentially portacabins, but with perfectly nice normal house interiors. Even in the colder climate states. Some, the "double wides", are as big as a small house here, with up to 3 bedrooms. But they are cheap. Far cheaper than houses.

Likewise, in America it is quite common for retirees to sell up the house, buy a Winnebago motor home, and travel the country for years, even decades, moving from the North to the South with the seasons. Such people are known as "snowbirds", and live a modern day Nomadic lifestyle.

In the Middle East, I have seen old hotels converted to "long stay suites", (a bedsit type of setup) where a bedroom/livingroom, ensuite bathroom, and small kitchenette, are rented out very cheaply on a weekly/monthly/quarterly basis. The same thing as renting a room, but without the hassles of a flatmate.

In Japan, they have taken things to extremes, with pod hotels now being used for long term accomodation. An 8' by 4' by 4' sized sleeping pod, very cheap, very centrally located, and with shared bathrooms/shower rooms/lounge/kitchen areas, etc. As even after their 20 year crash, prices in many areas are still outrageous compared to most of the UK.

And in Korea, they are now building small villages from converted shipping containers. Properly done, they are quite nice, sturdy, long lasting, and certainly cheap.

As we face a long term shortage of housing, and little prospect of building enough, why not investigate these types of things as cost effective solutions for some of our needs in the future?

Particularly for benefits claimants, transient workers, students, etc.... People on restricted budgets that often don't need a whole house to themselves......

I know we have experimented with some things, the "flat pack house" for example, but it never seemed to get anywhere.

Are we just too set in our ways that a "home" means a traditional house, of traditional construction, in a traditional area? And is this part of the problem regarding prices being too high for some, in some areas?

I'd have thought you'd have sussed it all out by now Hamish;)

silvercar

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

The cheapest places, in the worst locations, would cost around £3000 to £5000 to buy the trailer, and the monthly land rent would be around £75.

They look like this......

So is the barbed wire to keep others out or the "trailer trash" in? Or is it the latest "feature?"

PasturesNew

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Interesting.

But I query your prices...... Does that include the land?

Heres a UK dealer with something for sale from them that looks perfectly livable for £24,000........ http://www.joalleisure.com/mobile-home-details.html?id=2056

How much would site fees be to put it in a mobile home park?

No land. You have a simple license to occupy a plot. Your next door neighbour's home is usually about 12-20' from your own, if you're lucky you have a parking spot, tiny side garden and room for a shed only.

You pay weekly rent on the plot. When the site owner wants you off, you're given notice and you have to remove the van, which is then worthless (only suitable for a self-build person for £2-3k).

Land to site a mobile home needs full planning permission. You can't just buy a mobile home and plonk it on a bit of land and live in it.

That dealer is selling them to self-build people (who will have applied for planning permission for the duration of their self-build project) - and other uses such as a site office etc.... again, limited planning requirements/short life span.

From their own FAQ page: "Once you have found your park it is then a question of asking the management whether or not they will allow you to bring a caravan on to their site. In most circumstances the answer will be no as most companies wish to maximise their profit by selling you one of their own caravans. In some instances parks will allow you to bring on your own caravan, a charge will normally apply in the region of £1000 - £4000 + a year's site fee." which is at: http://www.joalleisure.com/joal-leisure-frequently-asked-questions.html

Here is one on the site where I used to live, listing now removed but you can still see it: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-20918281.html £189k

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

PasturesNew wrote: »

You pay weekly rent on the plot. When the site owner wants you off, you're given notice and you have to remove the van, which is then worthless (only suitable for a self-build person for £2-3k).

That dealer is selling them to self-build people (who will have applied for planning permission for the duration of their self-build project) - and other uses such as a site office etc.... again, limited planning requirements/short life span.

Well, clearly not "worthless", as they are selling them for between 3K and 40K...... The one featured was 24K.

From their own FAQ page: "Once you have found your park it is then a question of asking the management whether or not they will allow you to bring a caravan on to their site. In most circumstances the answer will be no as most companies wish to maximise their profit by selling you one of their own caravans. In some instances parks will allow you to bring on your own caravan, a charge will normally apply in the region of £1000 - £4000 + a year's site fee." which is at: http://www.joalleisure.com/joal-leisure-frequently-asked-questions.html

Fair enough. So it seems land with approval to park one on is at a premium in the UK. Much like all other types of land with planning, and housing for that matter.

In the States you can easily find a trailer park with a concrete pad and utilities connections, then move your mobile home there.

SteveV2

Running_Horse wrote: »

Tha land question seems to be a lottery for a few lucky farmers. Maybe when land is identified for housing it should be bought at agricultural prices, and sold off in plots to private buyers where anything within a certain size can be built, avoiding identikit estates. The big housebuilders have had their chance to solve the housing crisis, and failed completely.

Failed? How's that so.

I build houses for Taylor Wimpey. There is no demand whatsoever for these houses, even now. They are purely building on a sale basis only (on the site I work on). We was set to build a block of 4 houses only to find out 1 sale fell through so the whole block has been put on hold

These companies can't have 'stock houses' now. It got to the stage where there was 5-10 stock houses on each site and across the country, that's millions and millons of pounds.

They are however building just over 50 HA houses in the next 12 months, thank god for those, without them TW would have really struggled more than they have. Over the last 2 years they have built about 10 private houses! Things must be on the up :j

nearlynew

Trailer parks the way forward........... ?

And what happens when they become unaffordable?

Redevelop railway arches maybe.

This is a silly thread, started by a silly boy.

sjaypink

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Fair enough. So it seems land with approval to park one on is at a premium in the UK. Much like all other types of land with planning, and housing for that matter.

In the States you can easily find a trailer park with a concrete pad and utilities connections, then move your mobile home there.

So, to conclude, your idea- this thread- can be officially catagorised as a bit pointless?

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

sjaypink wrote: »

So, to conclude, your idea- this thread- can be officially catagorised as a bit pointless?

Probably so.

Although a 24K trailer, on a plot at £150 a month, even with a 4K premium to site it there, is still far cheaper than most houses.

You'd have to assume that future governments, faced with a housing shortage crisis, will be looking at such ideas, that would be 75% cheaper than building proper houses.

sjaypink

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

Probably so.

Although a 24K trailer, on a plot at £150 a month, even with a 4K premium to site it there, is still far cheaper than most houses.

You'd have to assume that future governments, faced with a housing shortage crisis, will be looking at such ideas, that would be 75% cheaper than building proper houses.

But most £24k trailers- used as a permanent home- last maybe 10-15 years? And houses last... well... a lot longer