How important is a warranty

[Lisa]

My husband & I are looking into buying a new manufactured home. My question is, how important is the warranty that comes with these homes? How much weight should it carry when the time comes to make a decision? I appreciate you taking the time to awnser my questions.

[Randy Eaton]

Hello Lisa,

Warranties vary among different manufacturers. All retailers are required to have copies of the manufacturer’s warranties that are offered on the homes they sell, and they will make them available to you if you ask. Be sure to read them carefully before you buy. A warranty is, basically not worth the paper it’s written on if the people responsible for servicing your home are not interested in helping you. So…pick your retailer carefully and you will avoid problems with service. In many cases, the retailer will perform service under the manufacturer’s warranty. However, it is the manufacturer who has the final say.

As you can tell I am not a big fan of warranties because I have seen how certain retailers and manufacturers have treated their customers. Suggestion, if a retailer has no service technicians on staff and all service work comes from the factory, I would be concerned. If a factory is providing all the service work this usually means there is only one service technician covering a large area; this will usually result in long delays. A retailer who is truly concerned about consumer satisfaction will not depend on a factory located two or three hundred miles away to service their customers. So...choose you’re retailer carefully and make sure your retailer has a service department, which can assist you when warranty work is needed.

Randy Eaton