Static Caravan in Bournemouth
Discussion
Oakdene at St Leonards is quite nice.... not sure what the situation with ownership of statics is though.
http://www.shorefield.co.uk/oakdene/
http://www.shorefield.co.uk/oakdene/
There are some for sale at Oakdene - they sell them. You may get a better deal by contacting some from the owners themselves. Look at my website for my caravan and then find the ones for sale on the website. If you contact Oakdene ask for Richard in the sales department.
When I looked around for one we went to most of the parks around here but there isnt any in Bournemouth itself.
A lot depends on what you want to do with the caravan. Some parks are purely owner and family use only, others allow you to let them out, some open for only 8 months of the year others can be 11 months. There are also some residential parks.
The main holiday parks are:
Shorefield (Oakdene as stated - mine is there, Shorefield, Swanage, Forest Edge)
Hoburne (Park, Bashley, Naish)
Haven - Rockley Park.
Parkdean - Sandford
These all have club houses/swimming pools etc or access to them (in the case of Swanage and Forest Edge).
Other smaller parks are around but facilities would be limited.
When I looked around for one we went to most of the parks around here but there isnt any in Bournemouth itself.
A lot depends on what you want to do with the caravan. Some parks are purely owner and family use only, others allow you to let them out, some open for only 8 months of the year others can be 11 months. There are also some residential parks.
The main holiday parks are:
Shorefield (Oakdene as stated - mine is there, Shorefield, Swanage, Forest Edge)
Hoburne (Park, Bashley, Naish)
Haven - Rockley Park.
Parkdean - Sandford
These all have club houses/swimming pools etc or access to them (in the case of Swanage and Forest Edge).
Other smaller parks are around but facilities would be limited.
Pabl0 said:
There are some for sale at Oakdene - they sell them. You may get a better deal by contacting some from the owners themselves. Look at my website for my caravan and then find the ones for sale on the website. If you contact Oakdene ask for Richard in the sales department.
When I looked around for one we went to most of the parks around here but there isnt any in Bournemouth itself.
A lot depends on what you want to do with the caravan. Some parks are purely owner and family use only, others allow you to let them out, some open for only 8 months of the year others can be 11 months. There are also some residential parks.
The main holiday parks are:
Shorefield (Oakdene as stated - mine is there, Shorefield, Swanage, Forest Edge)
Hoburne (Park, Bashley, Naish)
Haven - Rockley Park.
Parkdean - Sandford
These all have club houses/swimming pools etc or access to them (in the case of Swanage and Forest Edge).
Other smaller parks are around but facilities would be limited.
That great info. Do you know what the starting lease is at Oakdene? Also is the season 8 or 11 months? We have been looking at Bashley however the charges are around £2800 plus vat which I think are steep with 15 yr terms!When I looked around for one we went to most of the parks around here but there isnt any in Bournemouth itself.
A lot depends on what you want to do with the caravan. Some parks are purely owner and family use only, others allow you to let them out, some open for only 8 months of the year others can be 11 months. There are also some residential parks.
The main holiday parks are:
Shorefield (Oakdene as stated - mine is there, Shorefield, Swanage, Forest Edge)
Hoburne (Park, Bashley, Naish)
Haven - Rockley Park.
Parkdean - Sandford
These all have club houses/swimming pools etc or access to them (in the case of Swanage and Forest Edge).
Other smaller parks are around but facilities would be limited.
Firstly you need to purchase the caravan. Prices vary from a second-hand one at around £10k to £25k to new ones from £25k to £80k at Oakdene. The standard and quality of caravans vary considerably and so does the price.
On top of that you have, on a yearly basis:
site fees (this year £3900 to £4200 for Shorefields sites but depends on caravan width and site)
Water and rates (sort of council tax) - around £330 last year
Rubbish and other charges (Oakdene - not sure about the others) - around £80 last year
Insurance - around £450 for mine (including veranda, and new for old as replacement valued at £45k).
Electric - £80 to £100
Gas - £600 to £700 dependent upon usage (Hoburn dont have gas they are all electric. I do not know what their heating costs on the electric would be - I tried to find out an average but it depends on use - figure I was give was an average of somewhere between £400 and £450). It can get very expensive in winter to heat - I did hear of people paying considerably more last year (around £1k) but some paid around £300.
All the above prices include VAT.
If you plan to let the caravan you will need Landlord safety certificate (gas) and possibly have other charges. If the site let your caravan they charge you (usually by taking a percentage of the weekly rent); if you get them to do the cleaning you pay (I have a contact for a local cleaner instead of Oakdene - much cheaper), if you have the site give your customer keys you pay. Please note these apply at most sites not just the Shorefield ones.
Most caravans are given 12 year licenses when new - Shorefield automatically extend this to 15 years when purchased new. If they are second-hand it normally reverts back to the 12 years - you may get second-hand with the 15 year license if the caravan is in very good condition. Once the caravan is 15 years (or 12 years) old the license can be extended on a yearly basis dependent upon the condition of the caravan. If the license is not extended the caravan has to be removed from the site. You can sell it, move it somewhere or have it scrapped
The 12 or 15 year license rule is from the holiday and static caravan site 'governing' body (not sure whether it can be called a governing body). Most caravan sites follow the rule but some do not.
My understanding, from my last trip to Rockley Park, is that Rockley do not have a time rule on the age of the caravan so once purchased it can remain on site indefinitely. I suspect if it becomes 'tatty' they will request it is removed from site - condition seems paramount at most sites. Rockley's site fees vary dependent upon where on the site your pitch will be. The cheapest there, last year, was around £5k, and I did hear they went to over £10k. Rockley is Haven's flaghsip site and as such gets an awful lot of investment - which means you pay someway towards that investment.
From my visits to the Hoburne parks there wasnt much difference between their site fees. They are probably the cheapest parks around here for site fees - not sure about the Parkdean site fees but suspect they will be higher.
Oakdene is probably the quieter park compared to the Hoburne parks and Shorefield itself.
Location very much depends on whether you want to be near the coast or nearer the New Forest.
On top of that you have, on a yearly basis:
site fees (this year £3900 to £4200 for Shorefields sites but depends on caravan width and site)
Water and rates (sort of council tax) - around £330 last year
Rubbish and other charges (Oakdene - not sure about the others) - around £80 last year
Insurance - around £450 for mine (including veranda, and new for old as replacement valued at £45k).
Electric - £80 to £100
Gas - £600 to £700 dependent upon usage (Hoburn dont have gas they are all electric. I do not know what their heating costs on the electric would be - I tried to find out an average but it depends on use - figure I was give was an average of somewhere between £400 and £450). It can get very expensive in winter to heat - I did hear of people paying considerably more last year (around £1k) but some paid around £300.
All the above prices include VAT.
If you plan to let the caravan you will need Landlord safety certificate (gas) and possibly have other charges. If the site let your caravan they charge you (usually by taking a percentage of the weekly rent); if you get them to do the cleaning you pay (I have a contact for a local cleaner instead of Oakdene - much cheaper), if you have the site give your customer keys you pay. Please note these apply at most sites not just the Shorefield ones.
Most caravans are given 12 year licenses when new - Shorefield automatically extend this to 15 years when purchased new. If they are second-hand it normally reverts back to the 12 years - you may get second-hand with the 15 year license if the caravan is in very good condition. Once the caravan is 15 years (or 12 years) old the license can be extended on a yearly basis dependent upon the condition of the caravan. If the license is not extended the caravan has to be removed from the site. You can sell it, move it somewhere or have it scrapped
The 12 or 15 year license rule is from the holiday and static caravan site 'governing' body (not sure whether it can be called a governing body). Most caravan sites follow the rule but some do not.
My understanding, from my last trip to Rockley Park, is that Rockley do not have a time rule on the age of the caravan so once purchased it can remain on site indefinitely. I suspect if it becomes 'tatty' they will request it is removed from site - condition seems paramount at most sites. Rockley's site fees vary dependent upon where on the site your pitch will be. The cheapest there, last year, was around £5k, and I did hear they went to over £10k. Rockley is Haven's flaghsip site and as such gets an awful lot of investment - which means you pay someway towards that investment.
From my visits to the Hoburne parks there wasnt much difference between their site fees. They are probably the cheapest parks around here for site fees - not sure about the Parkdean site fees but suspect they will be higher.
Oakdene is probably the quieter park compared to the Hoburne parks and Shorefield itself.
Location very much depends on whether you want to be near the coast or nearer the New Forest.
Edited by Pabl0 on Friday 4th March 16:35
The Oakdene site has an 11 month season. This year it closed on the 3rd January and re-opened again on the 3rd February. I think the other Shorefield sites are similar.
My understanding of the Hoburne sites are they have a 10 month season plus every weekend and Christmas. I think they close at the end of November through December, open for Christmas to New year, then close until February. But even when closed you can still use them at weekends - you just cannot stay there during weekdays. You will need to check their rules - each site may be slightly different.
Rockley Park is open from 18th March to 31st October this year.
If you do decide to go for one of the Shorefield parks we can both benefit slightly from an 'introduction' from myself. Last year if we filled out a particular form we both received a small amount towards our bills. This only applied if the purchaser bought a caravan from the site - either a site caravan or an owner caravan they were selling.
Please dont let this influence your decision on where to go. Come down and take a look at all the sites and caravans for sale. See what is available and what the sites are like. Get a feel for the sites and the location.
Also, if you find a site you want but not the caravan give it time and other caravans will become available.
My understanding of the Hoburne sites are they have a 10 month season plus every weekend and Christmas. I think they close at the end of November through December, open for Christmas to New year, then close until February. But even when closed you can still use them at weekends - you just cannot stay there during weekdays. You will need to check their rules - each site may be slightly different.
Rockley Park is open from 18th March to 31st October this year.
If you do decide to go for one of the Shorefield parks we can both benefit slightly from an 'introduction' from myself. Last year if we filled out a particular form we both received a small amount towards our bills. This only applied if the purchaser bought a caravan from the site - either a site caravan or an owner caravan they were selling.
Please dont let this influence your decision on where to go. Come down and take a look at all the sites and caravans for sale. See what is available and what the sites are like. Get a feel for the sites and the location.
Also, if you find a site you want but not the caravan give it time and other caravans will become available.
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