Living in a Static

Skiddaw1

user1977 said:

Nathan_Burns said:

Not only will this save vast swathes of money, but also be an interesting and hopefully exciting way to live.

Sounds more like a cold way to live, listening to the rain batter off your depreciating tin roof. What makes it seem interesting and exciting to you?

Actually....I know several people who have done it in various parts of the UK (for a few years at least) and thoroughly enjoyed being off grid. I also have several friends who live permanently on narrow boats and love it- the drawback being that permanent moorings are few & far between (and can be expensive) and the alternative- moving on every few days- can be logistically problematic. It's certainly doable but I think you need to be prepared to rough it.

user1977

Skiddaw1 said:

user1977 said:

Nathan_Burns said:

Not only will this save vast swathes of money, but also be an interesting and hopefully exciting way to live.

Sounds more like a cold way to live, listening to the rain batter off your depreciating tin roof. What makes it seem interesting and exciting to you?

Actually....I know several people who have done it in various parts of the UK (for a few years at least) and thoroughly enjoyed being off grid. I also have several friends who live permanently on narrow boats and love it- the drawback being that permanent moorings are few & far between (and can be expensive) and the alternative- moving on every few days- can be logistically problematic. It's certainly doable but I think you need to be prepared to rough it.

But I don't think the OP is proposing to be "off grid" or mobile (otherwise it wouldn't be a "static"!).

Skiddaw1

Good point!!

NameUnavailable

It's what Americans call trailer trash.

I can see the benefit for older people, retired, sell the house/flat and have a nice wedge of cash to enjoy themselves with on top of the pension. Plus living amongst a lot of similar aged people, probably a very nice community atmosphere.

Other than that I'd be very wary, and site fees aren't cheap.

deannagone

Wow! NameUnavailable, you managed to pigeon hole all the people who live in mobile homes so accurately and without any value judgements or assumptions at all.

NameUnavailable

deannagone said:

Wow! NameUnavailable, you managed to pigeon hole all the people who live in mobile homes so accurately and without any value judgements or assumptions at all.

I know, right?! Uncanny.

Humour doesn't travel too well over the internet. But the point about older people (and many sites are restricted to people over a certain age) is valid.

tommydog40

Davesnave said:

While buying a cheap pony paddock and sticking a caravan on it as a permanent home isn't going to be tolerated in most places, there are a few people roughing it in caravans where I live in a more  remote part of the West Country. One has occupied a council lay-by for well over 5 years now, but the other two groups seem to have bought woodland and gone quietly native without much interference from 'the powers that be.

If you don't mind the hassle, maybe it could work from a purely economic point of view.  Buy some cheap land, put the caravan on it illegally and prepare for a fight.  There was a guy who did that near me and it took years to get him to move.  He really knew how to play the system.  If you can string it out for years and then disappear you may be onto a winner. Even if they eventually repossess the land, you may find you have saved more than if you had paid rent.  But you will have to be prepared for the hassle.

From a purely economic point of view (if compared to paying market rent), it may just work.

Section62

tommydog40 said:

Even if they eventually repossess the land, you may find you have saved more than if you had paid rent.
 

There's a big difference between parking a caravan on land you own (the woodland example Davesnave mentions) and parking a caravan on someone else's land (where the owner might want to assert their rights).

In the former case the problem is with planning consent.  For the planning authority to do anything about it (a) someone needs to see what you are doing; (b) they need to inform/complain to the planning authority; (c) the planning authority needs to decide whether enforcement is a priority.  Which could all take years, especially in rural areas (of the type I believe Davesnave inhabits) where people tend to let other folks get on with their peaceful lives so long as they are respectful, and don't go around nicking stuff.

In the latter case the law is on the landowner's side.  If the landowner is on the ball then the amount 'saved' in rent might be less than the cost of fuel to tow the caravan to the next site.

Davesnave

I'm not sure what tommydog's concept of 'cheap land' is.

In the examples I mentioned, the woodlands were up for sale at £60k and £37k, the former being sold about 7 years before the latter. I don't know what the prices actually paid were.

In another case locally where the caravan dwellers owned the land, the council didn't evict for a long time, but when they did it was seized to help pay costs. These were considerable and included storage for all the stuff stored on the site....or rather they would have done, but two mysterious fires occurred on consecutive nights and most of that was sadly destroyed. Villagers saw nothing and it was all very odd!

GDB2222

Davesnave said:

I'm not sure what tommydog's concept of 'cheap land' is.

In the examples I mentioned, the woodlands were up for sale at £60k and £37k, the former being sold about 7 years before the latter. I don't know what the prices actually paid were.

In another case locally where the caravan dwellers owned the land, the council didn't evict for a long time, but when they did it was seized to help pay costs. These were considerable and included storage for all the stuff stored on the site....or rather they would have done, but two mysterious fires occurred on consecutive nights and most of that was sadly destroyed. Villagers saw nothing and it was all very odd!

Of course, woodland may be a decent investment. The trees grow, there are thinnings, etc. If, on top of that, you can get a second 'crop' by placing a caravan on the site and living there for a while, that's pure profit.  

As long as you don't run up huge enforcement costs at the council, you live in your forest for a while and then sell it for much the same price as you bought it for.