An IPHAS Guide to Understanding Park Home Ownership
Whether you’re a seasoned park homeowner or a prospective buyer, navigating the complexities of park home ownership requires careful consideration and understanding. In collaboration with the Independent Park Home Advisory Service (IPHAS), we’ve compiled some useful information to help you make sense of the buying process.
1. The Written Statement
Park Home Written Statements, along with the site rules, form the basis of your relationship with the site owner. It’s crucial to keep these documents safe and readily accessible, as they are your reference point in case of any disputes or issues. Moreover, should the ownership of the park change hands, the new owner is bound to honour the agreement established by their predecessors. This includes adherence to pitch fee payment methods, be it be by cheque or bank transfer and payment dates as outlined in the individual agreements.
2. Understanding Park Boundaries
Park boundaries clarify the extent of your ownership and the responsibilities of the park owner. While homeowners are typically responsible for maintaining their mobile homes, the park owner assumes responsibility for the upkeep of communal areas such as accessways, site boundary fences, and trees. It’s essential to understand these boundaries to ensure clarity regarding maintenance obligations and to foster a harmonious living environment within the park.
It is also normal for any base under your park home to remain under the ownership of the park owner. For this reason, it is usual for the base to not be covered by the Insurer of your park home, as the site owner will be responsible for its maintenance and if any repairs are needed to the base. If this is not the case, your Park Home Agreement Documents will say so.
The extent of your pitch is outlined in your Written Statement [ Part 2, section 5]. This is important as it allows the resident to be aware of the extent of their liability as far as the maintenance of their pitch is concerned. If the boundaries have not been highlighted, then the owner should be requested to complete the section quoted above. He is entitled to charge you a fee for this which should not be more than £30.
3. Changes in Homeownership
This is quite a contentious issue as far as park home residents are concerned as many new site owners take the opportunity to increase the amount of the pitch fee whilst also changing the date on which it should be paid. This is illegal and can only be changed with the consent of residents.
It must also be remembered that any new owner must apply for a site licence and be approved as a fit and proper person to manage the site. This can be a contentious process as some site owners do everything within their power to circumvent the system and are very often assisted in the process by local authorities that are not on top of site licensing requirements. This was proved by a recent IPHAS survey of local authority site licensing procedures, which questioned their understanding of fit and proper requirements, together with site visits. The results were disturbing, to say the least.
Conclusion
Owning or purchasing a Park Home is a significant decision that requires careful consideration and understanding of park home legislation. For further information and support, visit IPHAS at https://www.iphas.live/. You can also call IPHAS on 0300 302 0129 for Advice and Membership queries.
