Park home living

Hi @Broreb1981 - I've lived in a Park Home for nearly 9 years, & it's the best place I've ever lived. There's a real sense of community here & we all try & help each other.

Make sure the site is fully residential throughout the year, &, if you haven't already done so, see if you can chat to some of your potential new neighbours & the Park site owner. Our owners are very good & the site is kept immaculate.

Possible cons; not all sites have mains gas (ours doesn't) & LPG is quite expensive in comparison. We also pay our site owner for our electricity &, as he pays a business rate for this, that again can be more expensive. Factor in the ground rent (some sites seem exorbitant compared to ours, which is very reasonable).

Some sites are only for people over a certain age; ours is for all ages (my son & his wife have a Park Home just around the corner from me). Some allow pets (here all dogs must be kept on a lead on the site). Check if there are any other possible restrictions.

As with any future home, see if it will remain accessible to you; is there a local bus route if you don't drive/may not be able to drive in the future?

I think you'll find that the people attracted to Park Home life do tend to be older anyway (my son & his wife & their next door neighbour are the only young people on a site of 80 homes). It's certainly very quiet here, which I also like!

Ours isn't gated, but I feel very safe here, even going out without closing the patio doors or windows. You may expect visiting grandchildren however, but again I haven't found that a problem.

I hope you take the very gentle plunge to buy a Park Home; I certainly think it's been the best decision for myself & have no regrets whatsoever.

Sorry @Broreb1981 - I've just seen your last comment, & I certainly don't mind you asking any questions. I have a small garden, but in that I've got a raised bed containing flowers, & grow veg in containers on the other side. I recently replaced my decking (& fence) & also incorporated a seating area for about 10 people. The site owner did ask that when I replaced my fence on one side that he'd prefer it to be lower (no more than 1 metre high), which wasn't a problem for me.

Like myself, my son & wife & his wife have also been modernising their home, & the site owner was happy for them to also have work done externally, & tho they have fencing all the way around, said his preference would be to have no fencing at the front of their house adjoining the road, tho he's fine with them retaining this fence for now.

I think many Park Home sites do prefer the more open look of properties without fencing to the front, which some of the sites here already have, especially the newer ones, but everyone has fencing around the rest of their property. I suppose as well it also depends on the actual site of the property you're considering, but mine would have been open to all & sundry as it's open to a small grassy area on 2 sides (& as dogs are allowed here I wouldn't have been happy for them to just wander in!). I don't know what I'd think about only removable fences

Our site incorporates grassed areas which the site owner maintains, & many trees. A few minutes away are many wooded walks by the river. It's quite difficult to buy a property here as it's so popular & few sites become available; I bought mine from my son's future father-in-law otherwise I would probably have been unable to move here. My son already living here helped.

Because we have low fences then you can be aware of your neighbours, but I've found that advantageous in getting to know them. I don't feel we are living on top of each other. It's a very quiet community & we're asked to keep any noise down after 9pm; most seem to retire fairly early, so it's very quiet in the evening.

We do have one neighbour who has caused problems for myself & other neighbours (which is very, very unusual for here). The site owner has been very pro-active, & the police have been involved. She's quiet now after a court appearance, & the police now come around every day to make their presence felt after so many of us were affected by this person's anti-social behaviour; the police couldn't be more supportive, & the site owner won't take any further problems with her. Unfortunately I imagine these sort of problems can happen anywhere, but would likely normally be very unusual in Park Home sites.

Depending on the property you're looking at, Park Homes are made to a very high standard (either new, or those renovated). I'm not particularly aware of my neighbours once inside.

Energy costs may depend on whether you have mains gas; we don't, & LPG in comparison seems expensive. As mentioned above, we pay our site owner directly for our electricity which is metered. As he pays business rates, & depending on what contract he has, over which we have no control (tho he tries to find the best he can to keep us all happy), then I think our electricity costs are more than a bricks & mortar house. Depending on the size of the property you're considering, it may however be smaller than you're current home if you're down-sizing, so factor that in.

All this to me is off set by the lifestyle anyway, & sense of the sort of community that is not always now still available. When the weather is kind I feel like living here is like being on holiday, & I couldn't wish for much better; I know it's my 'forever' home.

We don't have a warden, but, as mentioned, we have a great site owner. When I was making the garden I wanted, he loaned his trailer on several occasions for my son to fill it with about 3 tonnes of soil from my old raised beds, then took this away for me. Previously he'd given me a small patch of land in front of my property to look after with the plants of my choice so long as I maintained it. He really is so helpful, so find out about a prospective site owner!

As with everything, it all depends. I hope you make the choice that's right for you.

Hi again @Broreb1981 - a well insulated Park Home whether new, or modified, is just as good as a bricks & mortar home. If the Park Home you're considering is new, then it will be well insulated, etc.

You're wise to visit the site at different times to see if it meets your expectations, & do speak to any potential neighbours. I can only say that my neighbours have become my friends, & I haven't found it a problem to ask the site owner if I can do anything, as he has always been helpful. He just doesn't want us to alter the footprint of the size of property we already have, e.g. my son has a porch, but I can't add one due to not already having one.

We both used a very reputable company when modernising our homes (which won't be an issue for you), & he welcomed us making our properties better, & also the site. He really couldn't have been more accomodating.

No, I don't feel different because altho I own my home, the site owner owns the land on which it's situated, as he maintains the whole site in immaculate condition. Our ground rent is so reasonable when I consider this. Any problems, & he's addressing these within a couple of hours. Do try to find out what your site owner is like. If we let our site owner know we're hoping to have a party (& we've had a few on the green in front of me) he's never raised an objection, & we all respect that any noise should be kept to a minimum after 9pm.

My next door neighbour a couple of evenings ago fell in her bedroom, & couldn't get up. She didn't have her phone with her, & had locked her doors. A neighbour raised an alert & called an ambulance when he realised something was wrong the following morning; the site owner's son got in through her fortunately open bedroom window. This is what happens in a community where we all feel looked after, & look out for each other, tho otherwise my neighbours are not in the least intrusive.

My neighbours I know are however there, when I hadn't even thought about this. For the last couple of years when I've gone on holiday for a week with my son & his wife, they've not only looked after my cat, but kept an eye on my property (the latter only due to the neighbour that had caused problems).

Good to hear from you @Broreb1981 - I do so hope a new Park Home there will be just the place for you both. Kindly let us all know how you get on.

Please keep the forum updated because I'm thinking about this sort of move myself. Meanwhile, the best of luck, Zips

Hi @Broreb1981 - My property is nearly 40 years old, & yes, when it rained, it could be noisy. However, about 18 months ago, I had a new roof installed by a very reputable company, & the tiles they used are a lightweight roofing system (Metrotile). They look like the tiles of an ordinary (bricks & mortar) house but also provide extra insulation.

With your potentially new build Park Home, something like this should be provided as standard. I can now honestly say, that, unless it's very heavy rainfall indeed, I'm unaware of any noise.

My roof also came with a 40 year guarantee, which I can't complain about! The company I used did however say that the roofs they replace are even better than those in their new builds, tho I'm sorry I didn't enquire in what way. It could be, as they themselves evolve, then there are extra features, e.g. I've got a tile on each side that is a ventilation tile, something my son hasn't got, as they replaced his roof about a year before mine (they did say they'd happily give him 2 too). There's already roof ventilation as standard with our soffits, this was just a little extra.