I had a long conversation with John Robinson about the business in general and his business in particular. Carefree Lifestyle’s emphasis, he told me is, a “no-pressure” and “no-hassle” approach. “Providing one-to-one care with each client and a personalised step-by-step guide means our clients remain in full control from start to finish.

“This process may be slow, but knowing our clients are happy and confident in their choices means their dream life in the sun is safe in our hands. We realise there is a lot of competition in the mobile home market.”

All-inclusive

The company offers leasehold plots on two parks in Portugal, six parks in Spain and four in France, the latter in collaboration with another company called Résidence France (see page 47).
It also works with a long list of UK manufacturers including Willerby, Cambrian, BK Bluebird, ABI, Victory Leisure Homes, Cosalt, Pemberton, Swift, Atlas Leisure Homes, Lindera Lodges, Carnaby, Delta, Normandy Holiday Homes and Stellar Statics, as well as most of the European manufacturers, such as Spanish manufacturers Alucasa, Ibiza Homes and Sun Roller, Italian manufacturer Shelbox, and French company IRM. Prices range from £25,000 to £125,000.

“The price that we quote is an all-inclusive price that includes accompanied transport, park entrance fees and connection to all main services,” said John. “These include water, electricity, sewage drainage and gas connections. The home is ready to move into. Satellite TV connection and WiFi internet is also arranged on behalf of the customer at an extra charge if required.”

Improvement

John believes there is good interest in buying abroad, but admits the exchange rate makes it less desirable. Those that want to move to Spain or Portugal permanently have been hindered by the poor state of the property market in some areas of the UK, but he sees improvement now.

He reckons he has good local knowledge of the areas and parks he works with and has local teams in place to offer on-going assistance to owners. He’s realistic and admits that, inevitably, post-sale problems do occur, but believes his staff deals with them quickly. “We like to be prepared for all eventualities, not just say – ‘We don’t have problems’.”

John has recently worked very closely with Cambrian Leisure Homes and has drawn up designs for Carefree Lifestyle’s own version of the Millbrook Single Leisure Lodge. He has produced a floor plan for a 46ft x 14ft luxury lodge for a couple who have reserved their plot on Park La Posada in Spain.

The first Millbrook to be installed on the park was the talk of the park when it arrived and he does think that there is considerable interest in bespoke lodges as people have more flexibility in the layout of their accommodation.

CONTACT

Carefree Lifestyle, Y2K House, Millennium Court, Ellerbeck Way, Stokesley TS9 5JZ. Tel: 01642 712711. Web: www.carefreelifestyle.co.uk


This review was published in the  May 2010 issue of Park & Holiday Homes. To order your copy please click here

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