New houses and caravans

[PTA]

During lockdown we have been considering moving to a brand new house as our 1970s detached lacks some of the amenities that new builds now have ( en-suites and utility rooms etc ) and we have saved a bit of money over the years. We also thought it might save us the need to update our kitchen and bathroom.
We knew that, inevitably, that would mean a smaller garden and a much tighter floorpan and were prepared to compromise on that.

However, somewhere to keep the caravan was also an important criterion as we currently have to keep it in storage....and there's the rub! All the new builds we have seen (unless people have £600,000 + spare..and many of those have covenants forbidding caravan storage anyway) have very short driveways and ,often, NO driveway at the side of the house. Some developments don't even have pavements merely a grass verge and tarmac drive!

Has anyone managed to find a new build that actually caters for caravaners? Do they exist or are we going to have to buy an older house?

I think I know the answer but am interested in the experiences of others on here.

 

[JezzerB]

You could find storage close to home-tbh we don't ever store ours at home even though we could-just signals to a burglar that you are away!

 

[Hutch]

I know exactly how you feel, we have been looking to down size from large 4 double bedroom house. But cannot find anything smaller with the same criteriam as yourself. I found one at 635 k the house is smaller but the gardens are huge. , , but it does have room for a couple of caravans at the front behind nice hedges. But its further away from the pub.

 

[PTA]

I know exactly how you feel, we have been looking to down size from large 4 double bedroom house. But cannot find anything smaller with the same criteriam as yourself. I found one at 635 k the house is smaller but the gardens are huge. , , but it does have room for a couple of caravans at the front behind nice hedges. But its further away from the pub.

That's a definite "no, no" then!

 

[Beachball]

You could find storage close to home-tbh we don't ever store ours at home even though we could-just signals to a burglar that you are away!

Hi JezzerB i am in agreement with you when they see the van gone that means you are away .

 

[Beachball]

We have downsize from a 4 bedroom detached (en- suite and utility) to a Bungalow ours is a corner plot and there is room to have the van at home but we prefer to store it in a caravan storage .

 

[Hutch]

Beachball, but is that a new build, or at least within say 5 to 10 years old.
Quite a few older builds but not new builds.

 

[audiorob]

You would certainly need to check for covenants as you describe but then look carefully at site plans and layouts as the same house type seems to vary in plot size depending on where it is placed in the development. Maybe a corner plot would allow you access to the side of the house or the rear garden for caravan storage. Maybe a 'nearly new' would give you more choice as well as providing the extra comforts you are seeking. This also has the advantage of knowing what the estate feels like when it has settled down and become more established.

 

[otherclive]

I think you probably answered your own question. We downsized two years ago and one of the criteria was the space to park the caravan even though it’s kept in store. No new build we looked at had space. Some would not have had a drive long enough for our Skoda Superb at 5 m long.

In the end we bought a mid 80s 4 bed with adequate living and parking space. The garden is a lot smaller than our last house but in other respects it ticked most boxes. One advantage is that the previous owners had fitted an en-suite, converted the garage to an integrated dining room and then placed the garage forwards. They had modernised the bathroom and cloaks, and had the roof and walls properly insulated unlike that installed by the builders.

We had some expenditure in upgrading the roof with breathable membrane and ridge locked tiles. But we budgeted for this as we saw other houses in the had had roof repairs. The kitchen wasn’t bad but needs updating and we have had a quote for £30 k. Which seemed a mite expensive so we’ve now decided to let our daughter have a new kitchen instead.

So a mid 80s house might get you what you are seeking and at that age the previous owners would most likely have paid for some features that you want.

PS our last house and this one had covenants in the deeds about caravans, trailers and works vans. Once a developer has completed the estates and moved on the enforcement of a covenant becomes more difficult to enforce. We just looked around when we were viewing to see if any neighbouring properties had fences up? vans etc. In 30 odd years at our last house no one complained in relation to covenants. And the next door neighbour but one was the town mayor.

 

[Beachball]

Beachball, but is that a new build, or at least within say 5 to 10 years old.
Quite a few older builds but not new builds.

How Hutch our detached home & garage was brand new when we brought it came with own drive and a enough room for two cars ,
Outside our home there a parking space we could park there if we needed it
it came with some rules
We could use the parking space / given permission to park the caravan only for one night (Clean it out and get it ready for a early start
No Conservatory to be built until the 4th Anniversary .

 

[Beachball]

You would certainly need to check for covenants as you describe but then look carefully at site plans and layouts as the same house type seems to vary in plot size depending on where it is placed in the development. Maybe a corner plot would allow you access to the side of the house or the rear garden for caravan storage. Maybe a 'nearly new' would give you more choice as well as providing the extra comforts you are seeking. This also has the advantage of knowing what the estate feels like when it has settled down and become more established.

Hi audiorob our bungalow and garage was built in 1965 we have garden at the back, side and the front and it facing south at present we have two parking spots and there is room to park the caravan but my wife loves a garden so our van is in caravan storage it only about 5 miles from us . we bring it home and clean it out before going away .

 

[Hutch]

Bb, your saying new in 1965, what we are trying to find are New builds Now, that have room for caravans, etc.
We are having over 5000 new houses being buit south east of Milton Keynes, and as PTA is asking very few have room for a caravan.

 

[Beachball]

There is some new houses in North Lincolnshire that have room for a Caravan depends on his budget

 

[otherclive]

We looked extensively at new builds up to £450k and none had space for a caravan. Even two modest cars were a push on some developments and road side parking was scant. Then there would be the covenants on new builds. As properties get older the covenants remain unless time limited but they slide into oblivion as people get on with their lives. They are difficult and costly to pursue against anyone who contravenes and all they have to do if it gets serious is to them align with the covenant which costs the contravening party nothing. But I’ve never heard of any action being taken against any contravention where we have lived, and the houses had covenants associated with their deeds.

 

[woodsieboy]

Our house was built in 1990, 4 bed detached with ensuite and utility, double garage on corner plot,after 5 years we extended the boundary wall, and installed dropped kerb, double gates and now caravan sits behind them at side of house, on hook up and ready to go. Also have driveway parking for 7 cars, so there are existing houses with what you are looking for, new builds near us are smaller and the roads are narrower, so I would say look for up to 30 years old and you may find one like ours with everything you are looking for. Also have alarm and cameras for when we are away.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello PTA

Again OC has largely beaten me to at least part of my comment. I strongly suspect that if you look at virtually any large scale new build housing, you won't find what your looking for, as the name of the game is how many dwellings can the builder fit in the space available. Actually they would be even tighter packed if it weren't for certain minimum standards that were revised a few decades ago.

However I do know of a few estates that were built in the 1980's and it does seem corner properties can present better space and greater scope for access. But the present values of these properties (in the northern West Midlands) do seem to start form about 280K.

Unfortunately house prices can vary significantly with location, so sometimes you can find better value by looking beyond your initial chosen area.

I have also occasionally seen a relatively new fill in build in an more established area. The value of the property is capped by the older properties around it.

Good luck looking.

 

[otherclive]

The rot really set in after 1997 when “Two Jags” decreed there should be more many more dwellings per acre in order to address our endemic poor record for home building. The result we see all around us in cloned pseudo cottagey developments with little or no supporting infrastructure. UK has been building dwellings that are the smallest in Europe when compared on a like for like basis. Where our son lived in South Wales theirs was a nice house with space for two cars one behind the other. But the estate roads were so narrow the council sanctioned pavement parking otherwise large trucks , and emergency vehicles found access very difficult. Who approved the development plans must have had scant knowledge of the real world, or was .........I say no more.

 

[littlebasher]

I've got a letter somewhere that the developer of my new build estate sent me, when I unintentionally left my caravan parked on the drive for a 2 weeks.

It was not cordial !

The covenants exist only to preserve the appearance of the estate while they are building / selling on it. In my experience, they couldn't care less after that!

That being said......Due to the circumstances that led to me leaving the caravan on the drive, they did actually grant me a licence that allowed me to leave my caravan parked on the drive overnight, 12 times a year (for the purposes of loading / unloading when we went away)

 

[otherclive]

I've got a letter somewhere that the developer of my new build estate sent me, when I unintentionally left my caravan parked on the drive for a 2 weeks.

It was not cordial !

The covenants exist only to preserve the appearance of the estate while they are building / selling on it. In my experience, they couldn't care less after that!

That being said......Due to the circumstances that led to me leaving the caravan on the drive, they did actually grant me a licence that allowed me to leave my caravan parked on the drive overnight, 12 times a year (for the purposes of loading / unloading when we went away)

The people we bought our present house from moved to a new build in Sidmouth. They had some very restrictive covenants which even required them to obtain permission if they should want to erect a shed or greenhouse in the rear garden. And there were costs associated with submitting such a request. There were costs for development land management as the council declined to accept that responsibility. Whereas our mid 80’s house the parish steward regularly attends to ensure the woodland hedges are tidy and to clear the drains and stream of potential blockages too. All within the council tax.

 

[Beachball]

That was similar to our previous detached home what was a new build
We had to obtain permission to put a Sky dish & Aerial on the outside wall of the home and for the garage a security light .
Each to their own .

 

[Raywood]

My daughter has a house built about three years ago on a Taylor Wimpey site where there is room on many of the drives for a caravan, and there is at least one now kept there. The problem may be down to your local planning authority and what they require and possibly land prices if yours are high. We are in Scotland where land is cheaper than many other places though.
Restrictive covenants are usually placed on the property by the builder to prevent anyone causing them problems while they are trying to sell the remaining houses and once the site is completed they have no interest in the site and have no interest in chasing anyone breaking them later. Sometimes though the local authority have the right to enforce these, but generally these would be less restrictive, and may only mean you cannot park in front of the building line. If there is one it is best to get your solicitor to check it. In general your neighbours will have no enforcement rights.

 

[otherclive]

My daughter has a house built about three years ago on a Taylor Wimpey site where there is room on many of the drives for a caravan, and there is at least one now kept there. The problem may be down to your local planning authority and what they require and possibly land prices if yours are high. We are in Scotland where land is cheaper than many other places though.
Restrictive covenants are usually placed on the property by the builder to prevent anyone causing them problems while they are trying to sell the remaining houses and once the site is completed they have no interest in the site and have no interest in chasing anyone breaking them later. Sometimes though the local authority have the right to enforce these, but generally these would be less restrictive, and may only mean you cannot park in front of the building line. If there is one it is best to get your solicitor to check it. In general your neighbours will have no enforcement rights.

Covenants are transferred as the land is transferred and with a Restrictive Covenant any party who benefits by that covenant could take the matter to a tribunal if they feel their benefit has been adversely affected. The local authority has no more rights in enforcement than does a neighbour. It all comes down to who benefits by a covenant and have they been affected. But in reality with people running businesses from home, self employed requiring vans etc covenants are being breached day in day out and no one takes legal action. It’s too expensive and achieves little.

 

[Raywood]

I understand what you are saying, but a covenant on a new house in favour of anyone other than the developer or the local authority would be very rare. If a covenant is not in your favour then you cannot use it to take action. Once a developer has left a site they generally no longer care and the cost of trying to enforce a covenant which is of no benefit to them is not something hey would want to incur.. A covenant in favour of the council might be enforced if they feel it is warranted, which is why I suggested that anyone with a covenant should speak to their solicitor as they need to know the implications.
I appreciate that covenants can be transferred down the line when properties are sold, but that is generally a problem on older properties rather than new ones, and even then the complainer has to show that the covenant is reasonable and should be enforced. The OP is looking at new properties which is why I have simply covered new houses.
I have experience of the subject having dealt with restrictive covenant policies claims and problems arising under professional indemnity policies.

 

[Robert_374373903]

Lets face it guys , its location location, four years ago we moved from our Bungalow where the drive to the garage you could get three motorhomes and the drive to front door four cars. That bungalow where we are living now would be in region of double what we got for it. Our caravan sits in the front garden side of the drive ,the drive itself is so narrow that reversing back is a nightmare as my mirrors are 4cm from walls/ fence.

 

[PTA]

Yes, location is an important criterion for us. Currently we live in a pleasant Cheshire town outside the Knutsford, Wilmslow, Alderley Edge "Golden Triangle." We would be quite happy to move within the town, or to a nearby town or village.
We are relatively happy with our current house which we have lived in for nearly 45 years but were wondering whether to downsize whilst moving upmarket a bit. En suite utility room and room to securely store the caravan (cctv etc) would be gains as we don't have them currently.

A new build seemed the best option as most builders offer to sell your home while you purchase one of their properties. We dread being in the position of having sold our home and then having to scramble around to purchase another house with a chain of buyers (been there, done that nightmare!).

Local new builds don't seem to offer us what we want. Time for a rethink!