With prices lower than ever and a raft of ways to buy, your seaside holiday home can finally be a dream come true
Ever fancied the idea of a second home on the coast? Somewhere to escape for both short breaks and longer stays? Perhaps a bolt-hole which could bring you closer to other family members, and which you could also invite them to use occasionally?
You might imagine that the cost of even a modest holiday cottage would rule this out for anyone but the well-to-do. But one of Britain’s largest holiday park groups begs to differ. In fact, says Park Holidays UK, the door to affordable holiday home ownership is now open wider than ever before.
First, a few reassuring facts. It’s now possible to buy a brand new modern three-bedroom caravan holiday home at Park Holidays UK for under £35,000. It will come fully equipped and furnished, and with a guaranteed right for the owner to keep it on the park for at least 20 years.
Already feeling a bit closer to second-home? Of course, while that price is attainable on many of the group’s 24 parks in Devon and Southern England, many other options are available. Right at the top end, for example, a super-luxury timber-built holiday lodge edges closer to £200,000.
Park perks
But no matter what you pay, the benefits of a park-based holiday home remain the same for all. It will be there for you to enjoy virtually all year round, and there’s no need to book in advance. If the forecast is looking good, just pack your bags and go.
Or you could plan to spend weeks on end there in summer or any time… without a single worry about grass to cut or the type of expensive maintenance headaches which cottages bring.
Just as appealing, your chosen park will have a wonderfully relaxed holiday atmosphere whenever you visit, and a raft of attractions which won’t cost a penny extra. These include swimming pools, leisure centres, and a full line-up of entertainment including nightly-changing cabarets.
Little wonder that growing numbers of mature folk are discovering that second home ownership is no longer the preserve of the privileged few. But it’s not just the more affordable prices which are tempting those in or near retirement to make their holiday home dream a reality.
For example, many are now taking advantage of the new government rules which allow those aged 55-plus to withdraw a tax-free lump sum from their pension pots, and using this to fund their caravan holiday home or lodge purchase.
One into two?
Others are seeing this as an ideal time to sell up a larger property, and to move to somewhere more manageable with enough left over to buy a second home at Park Holidays UK. But what, if like many people, your downsizing plans are currently being grounded by the stagnant property market?
Park Holidays UK can help here with a scheme which enables couples to part exchange their home for a holiday lodge or caravan holiday home, plus a guaranteed sum to fund a new smaller home, and even the possibility of cash left over to invest.
The purchaser will be one of the UK’s largest house buying companies which will use valuations from local estate agents to establish the price which they will pay. The scheme entirely removes estate agents from the frame, and does away with the need to show people around your home.
Instead, a price is agreed and the completion date set for whatever suits the sellers best.
But even though holiday home prices are now lower, in real terms, than they have been for years, Park Holidays UK says there are still other ways to cut the cost of ownership even further.
One increasingly popular route to follow is that of shared ownership. The arrangement typically involves friends or families “going halves” to enjoy an equal stake in a lifestyle they might otherwise have thought beyond their reach.
Share option
Many joint buyers find their pooled purchasing power allows them to take ownership of a larger and more prestigious model than they could have afforded separately.
Another budget-conscious move can be to cover most or all of the annual running costs by sub-letting. With holiday prices at well over a thousand pounds a week for top lettings in high season, there is obviously the potential to create a very useful second income.
Using Park Holiday UK’s management letting scheme, all arrangements are taken care of by the group from advertising and booking to cleaning and change-overs.
Although the main holiday season has now come to an end, Park Holidays UK says it is experiencing no let-up in the number of enquiries about holiday home ownership, and that this time of year traditionally sees many special offers available on current stock.
More information about second home ownership, along with holiday home models currently for sale, is available on the company’s website at www.ParkHolidays.com – or for an informal chat about ownership, call 0843 178 7065
