Has anyone bought a mobile/manufactured home?

[GoldieLocks]

I am trying to sort out the steps to buying a mobile home. I don't know when to apply to the park if I am interested in buying a particular one. Or if insurance companies will only insure homes made after a certain year? Do parks require insurance?
...Sigh

 

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[DizzyDigger]

There's mobile homes, then there's manufactured homes. In both cases,
most major insurance companies do not insure them. Check with Foremost
and Allstate for insurance.

If in a park, you'll have a house pmt. as well as space rent. Many mobile
homes are on private lots, as are manufactured homes.

Age is a factor for most financing, and many banks will not lend
for them. FHA will finance a manufactured home, but it will have
to meet all FHA requirements (tied downs, foundation, etc.)

 

[NOLA_Ken]

I work at a place that builds manufactured homes and I have to say my best advice, if you want something that's going to last and not have problems in a few years, is don't buy one. There's a lot of corners cut in the building process, and everything is rushed and while some of the methods used are perfectly fine others cause issues and won't stand the test of time in my opinion. I've been a carpenter for 30 years doing new construction and renovation work and things like gluing on sheetrock and not also screwing it to the framing really seem like just asking for trouble to me.

Also our houses are just as expensive as buying one already built, and you could have a nicer house built to your specs for less.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I've lived in many mobile homes over the years. The major problems I have seen living in the older ones = PLUMBING!!!!!

 

[Escape]

Contact the park you might be interested in and ask them. They should be able to answer your questions.

 

[Old Bookaroo]

Many MHC communities are being bought up by large financial interests who immediately raise the rent, and often cut off tenant amenities such a swimming pool so they can reduce the cost of liability insurance.

The tenants are stuck - it can cost $10,000 to move one of those units.

So when you select a place for the home, do your due diligence on the park.

Because homes depreciate like automobiles, it might make sense to purchase a second hand unit in good condition. You can get a professional assessment of the remaining useful life of the home. And they can be refurbished.

Mortgages can be expensive, with interest rates north of 12%.

In the end, a manufactured home isn't an investment. It's a place to live, and the owner is basically paying rent - not building any equity. Most home appreciation is in the land - not the structure. With a manufactured home, you don't own the land and the "building" is declining in value.

Good luck to all,

The Old Bookaroo

 

[ticndig]

Old Bookaroo has pointed out some very important aspects of trailer living. They are NOT a real-estate investment . you'd be better off in an apartment if you can't afford to by something on it's own land.

 

[DizzyDigger]

Because homes depreciate like automobiles, it might make sense to purchase a second hand unit in good condition. You can get a professional assessment of the remaining useful life of the home. And they can be refurbished.Mortgages can be expensive, with interest rates north of 12%.
In the end, a manufactured home isn't an investment. It's a place to live, and the owner is basically paying rent - not building any equity. Most home appreciation is in the land - not the structure. With a manufactured home, you don't own the land and the "building" is declining in value.

30 years ago I would agree with you, but many of today's manufactured homes
are high quality homes, and they are located on private lots, not just in parks.
The vast majority of homes in my neighborhood area are manufactured homes
on private lots.

Agreed, mobile home parks are just a place to live, but most are the old mobile
homes of yesteryear that were made with cheap paneling and thin walls.

If you bought a mobile home on a private lot, you'd have one value for the
mobile home, and another for the land. A manufactured home on private land
can be "title eliminated", meaning the land and home are one tax number.

Our home is a manufactured home, including 2x6 outer walls, vaulted ceilings
and it sits on an 8" slab. We have .65 of an acre, and for assessment and
tax purposes the home and land are a single tax number..no separate title
for the home.

We are in a small, rural town of 800, and the value of our place has tripled
since we bought it in '03.

 

[Duckshot]

30 years ago I would agree with you, but many of today's manufactured homes
are high quality homes, and they are located on private lots, not just in parks.
The vast majority of homes in my neighborhood area are manufactured homes
on private lots.

Agreed, mobile home parks are just a place to live, but most are the old mobile
homes of yesteryear that were made with cheap paneling and thin walls.

If you bought a mobile home on a private lot, you'd have one value for the
mobile home, and another for the land. A manufactured home on private land
can be "title eliminated", meaning the land and home are one tax number.

Our home is a manufactured home, including 2x6 outer walls, vaulted ceilings
and it sits on an 8" slab. We have .65 of an acre, and for assessment and
tax purposes the home and land are a single tax number..no separate title
for the home.

We are in a small, rural town of 800, and the value of our place has tripled
since we bought it in '03.

For what an 8' two-by-six is going for these days you could probably tear the house down, sell the reclaimed lumber, rebuild with block and be money ahead.

Lumber is ridiculously expensive right now. If you really want a deal on a home maybe wait a few years till somebody defaults on the $500,000 loan they took out for their $160,000 house.

 

[Oregon Viking]

The new Manufactured homes are 2 x 6 walls, hardi plank siding, 30 year roofs..at least. insulated very well. Plumbing is exceptional heating as well. My wife's family (outlaws) last year installed two 1000 square foot manufactured homes on our property, replacing the old 2 x 4 wall, metal sided, paneling POS homes. 1200 bucks a month rent no problem around here! Being a contractor was able to buy them from the factory at damn near cost. I have "set" around 50 "mobile homes" in my career. I now build homes. I also when ever possible, buy land and log it as I have a portable saw mill. Lumber prices are absolutely insane! If I was a single individual I would buy ann RV/travel trailer as they have slide outs and you can move pretty much when ever you want/need to!!

 

[GoldieLocks]

I am on disability. I have few other options. My credit is ruined and I do not have housing references.

 

[DeepseekerADS]

I am on disability. I have few other options. My credit is ruined and I do not have housing references.

In my career I was a "temporary worker", or in my terms a "job shopper". 67 projects in 29 states & 8 other nations. Mostly I rented trailers, generally easy to find rentals, not always in great shape - but a roof over my head. The "neighborhood" usually ranked well below the best place to live. But "desperation" housing at its' best. I'm a guy and that's not the best option for a lady. I own an empty house right now, had a couple of renters along the way, but now I keep it empty (for about 6 years now). Empty is not the best for a house, a house needs to "breathe".

But rather than go through any more crap, it still sits empty. One of the issues of being a landlord, cheap renters ain't the best tenants. I remember one time, the rent was way late. Drove down and found the house empty - the tenant had moved on with no notice and it took me about $10k to clean it up, repair it, and to date I keep it empty - don't need no more stinking trouble.

I've considered going to the county to offer it up for someone in true need. But danged it = had enough of the "needy" tenants. They don't seem to be dependable - a point in their life is desperation. And desperation knows no friends or responsibility.

 

[fistfulladirt]

The new Manufactured homes are 2 x 6 walls, hardi plank siding, 30 year roofs..at least. insulated very well. Plumbing is exceptional heating as well. My wife's family (outlaws) last year installed two 1000 square foot manufactured homes on our property, replacing the old 2 x 4 wall, metal sided, paneling POS homes. 1200 bucks a month rent no problem around here! Being a contractor was able to buy them from the factory at damn near cost. I have "set" around 50 "mobile homes" in my career. I now build homes. I also when ever possible, buy land and log it as I have a portable saw mill. Lumber prices are absolutely insane! If I was a single individual I would buy ann RV/travel trailer as they have slide outs and you can move pretty much when ever you want/need to!!

Ugh, that hardi siding really sucks. I found out the hardi way.

 

[Duckshot]

Ugh, that hardi siding really sucks. I found out the hardi way.

What was the problem with it? I've never used it, but a couple of my neighbor's got it.

The only problem with plastic siding IMO is that it looks like plastic siding.

Goldielocks, I hope you find something nice. You probably don't want to move a new mobile home. So, you might look for a mobile home on a lot already. But I would guess that if you can buy a lot it would be the best deal in the long run. Up in northern Wisconsin and Michigan a lot of people's vacation cabins are just old mobile homes.

 

[releventchair]

Mobile homes are (in my opinion) a grade below modulars.
Neither benefit by being moved again.

As with any home , start with the foundation. And the mechanicals and plumbing under the floor. Exposure to climate , and flora and fauna.
Maybe not a big deal for some , water quality matters to me. I have hard water here. Drinkable no problem. But no sulfur stench , and no iron staining.
Well water, Not municipal. No water treatment system.

Next the roof. Never neglect it. Any hole through a roof needs sealed. And frequently checked for integrity. Same with seams and where changes in roof creates a splice of two areas combined.
Roof material are often fragile , meaning water damages them. once damaged dry rot or mold begin the work of finishing it off.

Trailer fires are less common today. Still fires. Heat tape under under the trailer on pipes is noted as the cause too often.
Electrical systems (again my opinion) are about a ten year lifespan unless inspection proves otherwise.
After electrical , the plumbing above the floor is next. (We already checked under the floor.

Paying lot rent sucks. Money gone , bye bye. In exchange for two or three pages of rules. Don't fart sideways. Mow the lawn at x amount of inches.
We're adding sprinklers you don't want and you'll pay x mount. To make your lawn grow faster. Oh , and your portion of our increased water bill will be passed onto you too.

Property caretaker positions turn up now and then.
A younger me would get excited about some , like this one...
https://www.ranchwork.com/job/ranch...cturesque-ranch-in-sequoia-national-monument/

But anyways , an old mobile and paying lot rent was not in the cards for me.
A friend bought one needing work cheap and fixed it up to resell while he lived in it.
So he was gaining equity. Not without investment ,time,labor,and risk though.

A short term rental? Maybe. If the landlord is responsible for repairs. Sometimes renting is the option. But it's not an investment.

I know a gal in a dilapidated trailer she owns through hard earned payments, on a rental lot. I do not envy her position.

 

[fistfulladirt]

What was the problem with it? I've never used it, but a couple of my neighbor's got it.

The only problem with plastic siding IMO is that it looks like plastic siding.

Concrete composition siding guaranteed not to shrink, rot or delaminate for 50 years. My siding did all that in ten. There was a class action lawsuit back around 2009, shot down by lawyers that said the siding was improperly installed. The other thing was the board ends must be painted before installation. I came home one day to find my siding guy using a nail gun to install, there was a pile of broken hardi that showed his progress. It has to be pre-drilled, with no nails visible. I’d say at least 25% of my siding boards are cracked in half. Once moisture gets in, delamination begins. Almost impossible to do any repairs, and there’s contraction and expansion in the winter/summer.

 

[xaos]

Reading through this, and having a bit of experience with the planks and such....

Looking at Goldies response, this poster needs some help...
Goldie it appears your location is Nevada...is this correct?
What are you other parameters, if you want to disclose...want it for 5 years, 10 years, size location, etc...

Lets try to help this person find something (like relevantchair)
Mobiles have far less building code requirements than modulars...
If the location is Nevada, depending, the moisture issues with the wiring may not be as relevant here as in Florida.

War stories are great, yes, hardi plank sux, (great for growing mushrroms1) and older metal units have aluminium wiring and asbestos caulk...still, its usable...a roof over your head is always far better than without one...

aside from that, lets provide some positive information.

 

[crashbandicoot]

Mobile homes/manufactured housing is prevalent here and seems to come in many levels of quality depending on the maker.My observation has been that much depends on the guy that sites it for you.If you provide a stable foundation and in the case of mobile homes adequate anchoring you have a very good chance of long and happy abiding.If you get some of the fly by night companies that set these up for the manufacturers,you probably will be in for much trouble.A concrete pad or at least concrete footing to take the load is needed,along with insulation for your various plumbing,especially if you receive sub freezing temps. If not sitting on the pad,skirting is a must if you don,t want critters taking up residence in your floor.All this supposes you intend to be in the same location for a long time.I think the best advice for you is to use the same tactics as in MDing.Research,research,and more research on the home manufacturer,and who installs it for them.Hope this helps.

 

[releventchair]

I am on disability. I have few other options. My credit is ruined and I do not have housing references.

Fix your credit.
Keep it good after.
Start today...

You're on disability. That is a steady income. You have the ability to do positive things with your income. That's up to you alone.

With that steady income , ten percent down might be doable.

When looking at buying a home there are inspectors you can hire and pay to evaluate them. Choose wisely. Almost anyone can claim to be able to inspect....
The last guy I hired found things I didn't. But also missed things I found.
He did agree with me that the structure and it's foundation was sound . That Radon was not an immediate concern , ect..
Took me months to square things up , but they were things I could do. And I had money on reserve for the repairs and changes.

Around here , far from Goldie , one bedroom one bath homes sell "cheap" . At least compared to other places. Obviously due to price per square foot and square footage of those small places , and for being what they are. Most families bypass them so they get on the market. VS the high demand for multiple bedrooms and toilets.
IF one only had cosmetic issues , and was in a location I could tolerate living in , and could be expanded (zoning and building codes ,land space ect.) then I'd rather go that route than be in a trailer park. A sound structure , dry roof , easy to heat or cool... You can scratch in the dirt or have a garden without violating a rule.

Mind you there are some great parks. (An Uncle built on long ago and I watched and sometimes helped. Probably still a great park.)
But I'm the type that wants to own the ground. And have less rules than a park when I'm paying for the home.
IF I'm buying , I want something tangible likely when I leave. Equity gain type tangible. To relay elsewhere after.

Being free and clear today , former payment amounts can go to improvements. With being on a lot if I rent , that money keeps going out from budget.
Yes I can claim a tiny portion of the land taxes on lot rent. But that's not the same as gaining , at all.