Hello and welcome.
First, this may sound a bit blunt, but have you holidayed in statics? and have you carried out any other research about statics in general? You know that they are a (rapidly) depreciating asset and purchased for the enjoyment people have in using them, not as an investment.
You have two targets - one is to find a static that you and your family will enjoy, and is close enough so that getting there is not such a drag that you end up hardly using it. Normal rule of thumb is no more than 2,max 3, hours driving.
The other is to find a static that people will want to pay you to stay in.
So the first thing is to consider your site - what sort of area, what facilities you want on the park itself
The nicer the area, the more facilities on the park and the more expensive both the initial purchase and the pitch fees (site fees).
If you want to rent it, even if only to friends and family, then you need to make sure that the park you buy on will allow renting out - which means that you will be competing with other van owners, and probably the park itself.
If you already know that you will need to rent it out to cover ongoing costs, I would say that you really do need to consider whether a static is the right choice.
The big advantage of having your own van is having a home-from-home, where you can leave your stuff and visit when the mood strikes you.
If you rent it out, much of this is lost - and very few people (even friends and family) treat your property with the care that you will treat it, so can sometimes be a rapid way to fall out with people.
Plus you have to be properly insured, have regular gas and electric safety checks, may need to declare the income to the tax man, and may still find that the income does not come anywhere near the running costs.
The biggest cost is going to be the pitch fee, and that depends on the park, the static, and whereabouts on the park it is. Remember it will almost certainly increase each year.
The area you want to buy is a high demand area, and whether you can find a 3 bedroom (8 berth) sited static on a family park for your budget is debatable at the minute - the only way to find out is to start trawling through the adverts and then contacting the parks to find out what is for sale.
If you find one for sale privately, still contact the park to make sure that you will be able to keep it on the park - not unheard of for someone to buy a private static and then be told by the park operator that they cannot keep it there.
Visit parks you are interested in, talk to other owners and find out what it is like.
Better still book holidays at the parks you are interested in and find out for yourself - regard this year as the research, test and investigation year, and next year as the purchase year.
Do NOT rush into anything, do NOT buy a static that does not have a pitch, and do NOT commit to anything without fully reading and understanding the contract.
The majority of static owners are very happy with their purchase - the ones who are unhappy are the ones that rushed into buying without carrying out enough research first.
Come back again and again to ask questions, but research, research, research.
Linkback: https://staticforum.co.uk/index.php/topic,742.msg1943.html#msg1943
