Traditional to Manufactured

[Jonathan Patrick]

I'm seeking objective view points. I currently own a traditional stick-built home. My question is if there are any who have gone from a traditional to a manufactured home. If so, what do you consider the pros and cons. Are you happy with your MH and would you do it again. What manufacturer did you purchase from and what was the deciding factor to choose one over the other. Have any of you done any remodeling such as floor, cabinet, and/or electrical upgrades such as lighting and ceiling fans and the like. What about plumbing? In years past I know that MH's Didn't use standard size faucets and the like. Is this still common practice? A lot of questions I know, but I'm curious to know. I, we feel we could get as much or more room and functionality for the money.

Thanks
Jonathan

[Lou]

I sold a log home a bought a MH from Pine Grove Mfg Homes in PA. I didn't brand shop. The house was built as an investment by the builder. The house is beautiful inside and out. 6" walls, vinyl siding, 1600 SF - Very comfortable. The plumbing is unique to MH's. They went cheap on the plumbing. Shame on them. That was the only fault I found. I had a leak in one wall I had to tear apart to get to. Very cheap materials and special clamps which you need a special tool.

I like the house but I think it will depreciate over time. Stick with sticks unless you want to go cheap.

[David Oxhandler]

Its almost always true that If you buy cheep you get cheep. If your trying to buy only price your never going to get quality.

Pay attention when your buying. If plumbing is the problem Look for the manufacturers that are using better plumbing. Todays modern manufactrured home comes in all price ranges and all qualities.

[Art Rigsby]

I moved from a stick built to a Silvercrest manufactured home. I have lived in it almost two years and am quite happy with my purchase. I just wish I had gotten more square footage as additions to MHs are not too good.

We decided on a Silvercrest because of the quality and what we learned to look for in a MH from the book by Randy Eaton available on this site.

Our home came with Moen facuets but we did not like the style and upgraded all faucets using standard facuets from Home Depot. We have also installed our own dishwasher, fans and upgraded the light fixtures and well as the kitchen sink. All of the items came from either Home Depot or Lowes. Sometimes it is cheaper to upgrade yourself instead of paying the MH manufacture.

As far as I can tell, there is nothing in our home that you can't get from Home Depot or Lowes. I think most MH manufactures are getting away from the "special" items used in the past.

I live in Northern California and almost anything around here appreciates in value. I was think about buying the lot next door, putting a large cardboard box on it and selling it for $100,000. My understanding is that most MHs will apprecaite in value as long as they are on a lot no matter where you live. Those in parks are a different story.

[jgn]

Depending on the area MH will appreciate but your buying market is less. It is just like having a pool, some people will not even look at a home with one or a MH so you cut down the selling market and it will take longer to sell. If you are looking for a nice home at a reasonable price it is hard to beat a MH because the prices run $30-50 per sf where a site built is $65-100 in most cases and that does not include all the items in a MH like drapes. For an appreciation standpoint you are better off with a site built but in Calif anything will appreciate even a cardboard box.

[ScottMan]

This is advice from a new mh owner. I love the cost, and the upgrades like fireplace and skylights, and the quality of the home as a whole. I love my home but wish people had told me some things before I bought mine ...

We used to live in a stick-built home in a fairly nice city. We decided to move to the country when some farm land that grandparents owned became available, and family's health became a concern.

Outside of Chicago is union-built country. There's a LOT of resistence to mh's! We only got on the land because a 200 yr old house was demolished and we replaced it.

As far as the contractors. Check, double check, triple check references. Babysit EVERYONE that does work for you. Get it ALL in writing. People will try to screw you over. Esp. if you act as GC. It seemed like everyone who did work on my prep and set needed hand-holding and didn't have a brain. After the house is in place, the people who service mh in my area generally do it on the side in addition to their main jobs. It is real hard to find anybody who has good service in my area.

Inside the home, there are several points that make a mh short of "code" compared to stick built, in my area. For example, 1) Electric is romex, not in conduit, 2) Water pipes are 1 inch plastic tubing, not copper, 3) Drains are ABS (illegal in stick builts) not PVC, 4) Floors are 2x6, not 2x12 in stick built, outer walls are 2x6, inner walls are 2x2, 5) door trim is laminated not oak and will peel, 6) Underside is steel which will overtime rust, 7) Home owners manual says to go under the home every month to look for leaks (if it leaks enough thru the belly wrap, if not you may get a bad floor) and getting under the home is a pain.

I am reading on this forum that interest rates are much higher for mh than for stick, if you can find a bank to loan for you mh. I am not sure about how home equity loans work. Like a previous post, resale takes much longer and you will not get appreciation on your home, at least in my area.

Instead of moving to a different home, the mh is designed that you can put the wheels on and move it to another piece of land.

Talk to your friends and ask them what they think of you buying a manufactured home.

[Jon]

From an appraisal point of view, if the manufactured home is of reasonable quality, well maintained, mostly compatible with nearby homes and in an attractive neighborhood, it should show a rising value in a manner generally consistent with other homes in the area---provided, of course, the price you paid was not too much higher than market value at the time you bought it.
Assuming a manufactured home will automatically depreciate is doing yourself a disservice. While different housing markets will exhibit varying local levels of appreciation/depreciation, a general growth in the value of all housing types, including manufactured homes, appears to be the current northeast market experience.

[mac]

A couple of notes...

Site-built houses where I live are built with the same materials - ABS drains, Romex wiring, just starting to use PEX piping. My neighbor had to replace his copper pipes twice (third time with plastic) due to the iron in our water.

Our house sits on a 40' x52' slab with block foundation. I get around underneath with a mechanic's creeper. I've been under a couple of times, but wouldn't go under every month.
My mortgage rate is the same as site-built.

The only downside I see is the flooring - I'd have insisted on plywood if I had small children. And I would like floors twice as thick.

Hey all you experts: Why would I want 2x12 floor joists vs. 2x6, given both are on 16"centers? The reason seems to escape me; since they're on their side, I wouldn't expect much if any flex. Is that the reason? Thanks, Mac

[ScottMan]

The mh repairman told me a story of floor joists breaking when a few "large framed" homeowners happened to be standing over a joist in their home and it snapped the joist in two and they fell thru. Also, having a stone fireplace or heavy furniture makes the larger joists a necessity as well. I guess that's where the special "supports" come in to play.

[rmurray]

Talk about urban legends....I seriously doubt that this has happened anywhere..

Most manufactured homes are built with 2x6 or 2x8 floor joists....Stick builts..depending on the location will use 2x8..2x10..or maybe 2x12 joists...BUT..They do NOT have the 10, 12 or 14 inch STEEL I-beam to add to their strength.. ..

Off frame modulars..which do not have the added benefit of the STEEL I-beam are built with 2x10 floor joists...