Caravan to live whilst working away.

DugIntoBeetroot

Hi Everyone,


I am due to move to a remote part of the country for a 3 year work contract. The location is 1h45m drive from my house, so it is not really commutable as it can be trecherous in the winter. I have looked at properties in the area to rent but they are pretty expensive, due to the area being popular with tourists over the summer. I have also looked at renting a room in a B&B an someones house, but this is coming in at £350/450pm for a Mon-Fri depending on the quality of the property. Some are pretty rough and I am 32 and can't face the thought of going back into a houseshare (fun when I was younger). I can't sell our house as my wife is keen to stay in her job, as there isn't much else going on where I'm going.


I have looked at all the options and buying a caravan seems to be the cheapest. There is a site 10 min drive from my new place of work, which is open all year round. The caravan we have seen is second hand at £15k, with yur site fees waved for the first year. The caravan is plumbed for gas and water with electricity being charged at wholesale. Free wifi is also available but I imagine that will be a bit pants. The fees after the first year are £2010, with no council tax payable. I have worked it out that I will be paying around £450 a month for the caravan, which is the same for a room in a house.



My question is, if anyone has done this before? I understand that the caravan will depriciate like a car, with the guy selling it itestimating that I could sell it after 3 years for between 7k-10k depending how many plots on the site are fore sale at the time. Does this seem reasonable?



have never owned a caravan before, so I don't really know what I am doing. I have looked online for the questions to ask, but would like to hear others folks experinces if they have been in this situation.


Thanks in advance for any answers.

agrinnall

My experience of a static caravan on a site that was only open from April to October was that it was pretty chilly at the start and end of the season, so in the depths of winter I can only imagine how cold it would get.

davidmcn

If you search here you'll find some previous threads about caravans and problems - depreciation tends to be more than people expect, and the leases are heavily biased in favour of the site.

And if the roads are treacherous in the winter - well, have you ever stayed in a caravan in the winter?

FTBAngst

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/education/2019/apr/16/teacher-live-back-van-personal-story-anonymous

[Deleted User]

Personally I wouldn't buy a caravan on a site , variable fees that can rise always worry me. I'd have no problem living in a caravan
( I assume you mean mobile home as opposed to one you pull behind a car ) but I'd be wary of buying on a site.


As you are on a fixed term contract timescale I'd rent a room somewhere as a lodger with an older person and this gives you more flexibility when its time to leave. If the contract is extended I'd buy a property.


The only other option I'd consider is finding a piece of land to rent and site my own mobile on it thereby not being tied into annual site fees and when its time to leave I could sell the MH.

middleclassbutpoor

No advice about ownership/depreciation or ease of selling on a caravan.

Maths would be my starting point.

£15k purchase price less £7k resale price = £8k loss.

4k of site fees (potentially £6k as you are likely to go into year 4 when selling) gives you a total cost of £12k-14k over a 3 year period.

This will give you a monthly cost of £333.33 - 388.88 per month over a 3 year period.

The only thing I have noted when my Mum once considered moving to a caravan park is that you may not be allowed to stay for 12 months of the year as they could have only got permission on the basis of occupancy being maxed to a 11month season for example. You need to check that you could live there or time your holidays to allow.

I would look at a motor home personally and find a campsite you can use during the week. May cost you a bit more but I think the resale costs are likely to be better and you can use for holidaying too if you wanted.

Winters will be rough regardless.

HalfPint

Is the van you’re considering ‘wintered’? i.e double glazed, insulated, centrally heated? ‘Treacherous’ means cold, snowy, wet, windy and icy which could make for a very cold uncomfortable stay if the van is not suitably kitted out for winter. Even in a top notch van, clothing/bedding etc can feel damp through a winter. What laundry facilities are on site? Is the site open 12 months or seasonal?

Have you considered contacting holiday cottages about a ‘long term’ let? Many will consider (especially in more remote areas) renting their property out of season for a longer period at a cheaper rate.

HP

HalfPint

Had another thought...you will have to kit the van out with crockery, cutlery, bedding, tv etc so don’t forget to factor those costs in.

Frozen pipes can be a real problem too for static vans during winter.

Personally with the right van I would do it, but I’m a country girl, have lived in a van before and still take regular out of season breaks in remote areas, in a static caravan!

HP.

Flugelhorn

I would go for lodger with an older person, more civilised than house shares (usually) -

kazwookie

remote part of the country for a 3 year work contract

Where do your new co workers live?
Have you asked HR, if they have a list of accommodation?
Have you asked your new co workers if they have a room for you to share Mon to Fri?
Ask your new boss for his/ her ideas.
Go to the local shop and ask in there, put a card in the window asking for a room. (generally the local shop staff in remote areas will know what is going on / who has rooms etc)
Join the local FB selling / information pages and ask on there for a room share.

need_an_answer

Aside from the depreciation of the caravan,and I wouldn't take the word of a salesman as being gospel,you must also read the lease terms on this site particularly around 12 month occupancy.

Very few sites will allow a 12 month occupancy and will insist on every"home"being empty for one month of the year,its called shutdown and its usually either january or Feb....not going to be much help to you with work and a commute unless you can take annual holiday at this time in one block!

Back to the caravan and reselling...how many older homes are sold on the 2nd hand market and what is the maximum age a caravan can be on that site...its a little different to your scenario of car depreciation as once a caravan becomes a certain age it must be replaced and there is no allowance given.
You may even find that whilst there are no pitch fees in the first year you end up paying them for several years longer than you intend to work away simply because you cant sell the caravan on...lots of people in this situation just up and leave.

At that point you may have been better off ploughing £15k into a rental.
Does the job really give you that much benefit if the downside is moving away from your wife for 3 years and living in a caravan.....
Your call but I would need a pretty hefty incentive to make that type of sacrafice