The location of any property is important, but for a holiday home it should be your prime consideration. With so many holiday parks in so many beautiful parts of England, it’s hard to go very wrong, but watch the drive time: if it’s more than two or three hours from home, you may not go often enough to make the buy worthwhile.

Once you’ve chosen your preferred area, visit www.parkholidayengland.org.uk to see what’s available.

You may want to be near the sea, for instance, or to take the dog along. You may hanker after a private golf club, a launching area for dinghies or a spa and fitness complex. Listings on the website show the size of each park, its star rating, David Bellamy Conservation Awards and all facilities.

Once you’ve got a shortlist, ask the parks to send you their literature. Check the opening times – many close for two or three months in winter – and then visit them. You may be able to hire a holiday home for a short break to get the feel of the place.

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BACKGROUND

• All your tent gear

• Girls go mad on a motorhome in Yorkshire

• A novice and his caravan in Dorset

• Why not buy a static caravan or holiday lodge?

After the “where” comes the “how much”, and this can be complicated because buying a holiday home or lodge is not the same as buying a house or flat. It’s more like buying a car with the right to park it in a certain place for a certain length of time. Where you “park” it, and for how long, will affect the price you pay.

Ask to see a copy of the written licence agreement, or contract, that you will be asked to sign when you buy. Pay attention to the length of the contract, as this determines how many years you can keep your holiday home on the site. Ten years should be the minimum for a caravan but the term may be longer, especially if you are buying a timber-clad lodge.

Check for park rules. Will you be allowed to sublet and, if so, will the park advertise for you and on what terms? Are pets allowed and will you have free use of facilities such as a pool? If you decide to sell the home or to move it off the park, how much will you be charged? Look at the annual pitch fee, management fees – which can be considerable – and charges for utilities, rates and insurance.

The price of a home may not be straightforward. If you’re buying a new unit – as opposed to one already in the park – ask if there will be extra to pay for having it transported from the factory, sited on the pitch and commissioned (connected to utilities). It can be cheaper to buy extras such as double glazing and upgraded heating at the outset. Carpets, furnishings and kitchen appliances are usually included in the price.

Be aware that holiday homes and lodges can be used for short breaks and longer holidays, but they cannot be used as your main residence. They depreciate in value and are not an investment for the future.

Last year Martin Hibbert, 40, a financial controller, and his wife, Karen, 41, a chartered accountant, paid £43,000 for a top-end two-bed holiday home at Skelwith Fold (www.skelwithfold.co.uk) in Ambleside, Cumbria. “We work hard and needed a place to get away at weekends as a family,” says Martin. “When we saw this pitch, in the woods and overlooking the mountains, it took about two hours to decide to buy.”

The Hibberts, who live in Wynyard, near Sedgefield, and have two children, Matthew, 10, and Jessica, 8, pay an annual ground fee of about £2,200 for their pitch, which is theirs for 14 years. “It is a significant outlay,” says Martin, but less costly than spending £200,000 for a small one-up, one-down in the area. “For those who can afford it, there are key advantages over bricks and mortar, aside from being cheaper. There is almost no maintenance and it’s like a huge adventure park for the kids.”

On the market

- Timber lodge with sea views at a five-star holiday park in Paignton, Devon. It has three bedrooms, full-size bathroom and kitchen. Cost: £149,950 with 25-year tenure (plus annual pitch fee of £4,950). Beverley Park, 01803 843 887, www.beverley-holidays.co.uk.

- Fully kitted-out caravan overlooking Poole harbour, with boat storage facility. Cost: £33,500, including first year’s site fee. It is 12ft wide, 40ft in length and has two bedrooms. Annual pitch fee is £4,610 (unlimited tenure). Rockley Park, 0871 230 1299, www.havenholidayhomes.co.uk.

- Two-bedroom caravan in Thirsk, North Yorkshire, 12ft wide, 35ft long, with 15-year tenure. Cost: £28,950, plus £1,494 annual pitch fee. The park has a David Bellamy Conservation Award. York House Holiday Park, 01423 323 190, www.yhlparks.co.uk.

- aggerston Castle Holiday Park at Berwick-upon-Tweed has homes in a gated development near its golf course. Two-bedroom timber lodges start at £95,000, including the first year’s £4,000 site fee (unlimited tenure). Haggerston Castle, 0800 316 3116, www.havenholidayhomes.co.uk.

Forest lodge

LAST May, Dr Christopher Young, 61, a retired GP, and his wife, Christine, 46, a retired independent financial adviser, paid £140,000 for a timber lodge at Kelling Heath holiday park in Weybourne, Norfolk (www.kellingheath.co.uk). They had visited the 250-acre woodland and heathland park many times in their touring caravan and when they retired, they decided to buy something more permanent.

Their two-bedroom, two-bathroom lodge is on the edge of the park, surrounded by forest and with a balcony that catches the sun. They have a tenancy agreement for 25 years and pay an annual ground rent of £2,500. During the first 20 years, they have the right to resell the property and the park takes 15% commission.

“We could have bought a tiny two-bed terraced cottage for about the same price, but we wanted a nice location for family holidays,” says Christine.

The Youngs, who are from Leicestershire, like to visit the forest lodge with their grandchildren. They all enjoy walking and riding their bikes to the beaches and bird sanctuaries, and canoeing on the Broads.

“It was a big commitment but it’s proved to be good value for money,” says Christine. “We could let it out for up to £1,400 a week in peak season, but we just let family and friends use it when we aren’t there.”

Prices vary up and down the country, from about £20,000 for a single-unit holiday home to about £200,000 for a double-unit luxury lodge with sea views. The location and facilities of the park, and even the position of the pitch within the park, all play their part.

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