Caravan ownership

[sir baconface]

Do the sums, including depreciation and site fees, then compare the annual cost with what value you are getting out of it for your own holidays. You may or may not be quids in - probably not - but an investment it ain’t.

Bricks and mortar have to be the best investment. Depending on your mortgage costs, you might cover all your outgoings with, say, six months of rentals per year, i.e. interest, council tax, insurance, cleaning, laundry, repairs, etc. That leaves plenty of weeks/weekends for your family to enjoy it, effectively free of charge. And here’s the thing: the capital appreciation is all yours. Over a number of years it could be a brilliant investment.

 

[Machiavelli]

Buy an air tent for £500.

 

[Bigg Bigg Blue]

I looked at buying a canal boat as an alternative to a static, was discouraged by the general bad feeling towards Peel Holdings and the nearest mooring to south mancs was near Disley. Depreciation is not an issue, compared to vans and m'homes, marina fees are much less than site fees (or were in the northwest, ) and there are lots of firms who hire out to get a taste for life aboard. Since i was looking at costs/convenience etc the government decided that barges cannot used "red" diesel for propulsion so increasing running costs considerably, mooring fees ( charged by length ) have gone up more than inflation and sewage and water fees also. Worth a bit of research imo, the cruisers i spoke to seemed a genuinely decent crowd.

Why were you discouraged by bad feelings towards Peel Holdings ?

I only ask because Mrs Biggie works for them.

 

[TonyM]

Edison Caravani says "hi di hi"

too camp?

 

[Jung the foreman]

You get two good days when owning a boat, the day you buy it and the day you sell it. I’ve never owned one myself but a bookmaker I knew paid £25k for a small second hand yacht in Majorca, the trouble and expense was ridiculous, he finally got shut for roughly £10k about three years later. Unless you are completely minted a boat is not a good option.

Surely the secret here is to be the guy who buys the boat for 10k

 

[dickie davies]

You get two good days when owning a boat, the day you buy it and the day you sell it. I’ve never owned one myself but a bookmaker I knew paid £25k for a small second hand yacht in Majorca, the trouble and expense was ridiculous, he finally got shut for roughly £10k about three years later. Unless you are completely minted a boat is not a good option.

My sister and brother in law own a canal boat (their second one) and are currently on tour in Lincolnshire on another three month cruise
They have had their absolute money's worth from boating

 

[Tuearts right boot]

Do the sums, including depreciation and site fees, then compare the annual cost with what value you are getting out of it for your own holidays. You may or may not be quids in - probably not - but an investment it ain’t.

Bricks and mortar have to be the best investment. Depending on your mortgage costs, you might cover all your outgoings with, say, six months of rentals per year, i.e. interest, council tax, insurance, cleaning, laundry, repairs, etc. That leaves plenty of weeks/weekends for your family to enjoy it, effectively free of charge. And here’s the thing: the capital appreciation is all yours. Over a number of years it could be a brilliant investment.

That's what we did and that's exactly what happens. We are over £2k in front per annum, take off the tax and the fuel to get there, a few meals out and it covers itself nicely.
Sell in 10 years....

 

[yerwot?]

Why were you discouraged by bad feelings towards Peel Holdings ?

I only ask because Mrs Biggie works for them.

In the course of weighing up the pros and cons, I spoke to a least 20 owners who felt that PH were greedy, and at least one had had their boat impounded. In fairness not everyone thought of them as rogues, but enough to sound an alarm. Must say compared to caravan site owners they are practically angelic. I have mixed feelings about John Whittaker, the take over of Manchester Ship Canal Co was "hostile" to put it mildly, but the number of new jobs the Trafford Centre has created has been a boost to west Manchester that certainly would not have happened with MSC. The environment agency has been "in conflict" with PH and lost, from Salford to l'pool, over land classification, which has cost rate payers money, though this had f'all to do with my choice. In the end PH are landlords, with all that entails......

 

[TheBlueDune]

Spend all your life working to earn money and your life and health suffer.
Stop working to get a life and recover what health you can.

Money wise, doesn't make sense.
Life and health wise, great investment.

Don't bother with a site full of kid stuff unless you have kids/grandkids.

Don't go for 3 bedroom because you will get more space in a decent wardrobe. In fact, think about taking walls out to make one decent bedroom with en-suite and storage space.

To get the most out of it, think in terms of using it 4-6 months per year to get your life back. Rent out for a few weeks to get some or all site fees covered if money's tight.

 

[Gareth Barry Conlon]

The prices of these things beggars belief, and the fees.
20 years ago I bought a fully furnished house in France for £29K.
Go two or three times a year for between four and eight weeks at a time.

There are loads of bargains to be had in rural france but the question is how often can you get there. We have a place in wales - the big question will be when we retire as to if we go for france or stick with wales. I don't think i'd want to do more than 6 months away every year and paying for 2 places is just dead cost.