How happy are you with your mobile homes?

[salsta]

We are thinking of buying a mobile home mostly due to the fact we cannot afford a tradditional home in the area. All I keep hearing about is how awful it is when it is time to sell and no buyers come forward. Please I would like to hear of some positive responses to living in a mobile home. Thanks

[Art Rigsby]

I would suggest that you not buy a mobile home. Most of those would be at least 25 years old and would be very near the end of their life.

[jgn]

What Art is refering to is the term mobile home is no longer the correct term for manufactured housing, they are now manufactured homes instead of mobile homes. The problem is the news media has yet to catch on and for the past week in Oklahoma all you have heard is "two people were injured when the mobile home they were in". bla, bla.
A lot depends on where you live and if you can find a lot you like in an area you like that will accept manufactured housing. You can find almost any size home with pricing from $26.00 per foot to $60.00++. You can get more home for the money but there are trade offs. Like anything else there are good and poor builders so do your homework. I have a 1978 MH as a lake home and have no problems. Stay on this site and ask a lot of questions.

John

[Jo]

Owning a mfr home sucks. There is no good point. I wish I had stayed in an apartment until I had saved the money for a real house. I am having nothing but trouble moving it, and if I sell it it will be on the market for a year or more. Meanwhile, I'm stuck. The only advice I've seen here for people trying to sell is to give it back to the bank and take a loss on your credit record. You know, I think the mfr home market is a scam designed for dealers to get rich by overcharging for substandard construction at high interest rates. And that's not even getting into the greedy park owners. At least in a rental house or apt you can move if things get unreasonable. At least in a stick build house you can sell it and it will usually appreciate. Not so in a mfr home.

[Gary]

My name is Gary, and I am a housing consultant with the largest manufactured housing developer in the Ohio/Indiana/Kentucky region. I am sorry to hear about such misfortune. I think a lot of it comes down to choosing a reputable, well made home and working with a reputable dealer. Unfortunately, each is the minority vs majority. We have been in business for 33 years, and I can tell you I hear the same horror stories from people coming in to us looking for a way out. We have long standing relationships with Redman, Schult and Patriot and can tell you that if we had any problems what so ever they wouldn't be with us. Fact is, they each build a tremendous home which neither we or our customers have problems with. This purchase can be a tremendously successful choice if you do it right. The dealer must be expert, especially if the home is going out on land in what we call a land home project. The home must meet or exceed stick built standards, which the aforementioned do. Check references and the better business buereau(?). E-mail with any other questions. Gary

[rmurray]

Sorry for your problems...You must have a manufactured home in a rental park...Unfortunately for you...resale is a function of the current market...and the current market is tough on homes that have to be moved or are in parks..There are a few park locations doing just fine...Mostly on the west coast...or in highl quality nearly full parks...

Manufactured Homes on proerty are selling fine is the location is desirable......Appreciation is similar as any home on the same property...

[Mac]

Quite happy, thanks. However, I have it on my own land, and therein lies the difference. A house on leased or rented land - in a manufactured home park, for example - will generally depreciate in value. That's because the home is separate from the land, and doesn't benefit from the land's appreciation. My land will appreciate, and it will appear that the land/home combination is appreciating. I would personally rent an apartment for low cost, while saving for a home/land combo, rather than buying in a park. I don't like being at the mercy of others. The tax angle is not a huge deal at the starter level, either. You would have to pay a lot of interest before it would exceed your standard deduction.

All that being said, our manufactured home was clearly the best deal in terms of quality and size for the money. We originally wanted to build a log home, then looked at customs, then looked at cookie-cutter builders. We got almost everything we wanted, for a good price. Best of luck whatever choice you make.

[Art Rigsby]

John,

I'm with you. I get so tired of hearing the term "mobilehome". Most of them are anything but that. I have a 3br, 2ba DW that sits on a concrete perimeter foundation. No wheels, no axles, no tow bar. It could get "mobile" but would take a few bucks.

I have been in my home almost a year now and am satisfied with my purchase. If I had to do it over again, might get one just a shade larger.

Art

[salsta]

Thanks for some of the positive feedback. Renting is probally out of the question due to the fact I need 3 bedrooms. The apartments around here are mostly 2 bedrooms and the rental houses are ridiculous most are over $1500, which would be just like a mortgage without owning. I was looking for something a little more in my budget that's what made me look into manufactured homes. I will keep an eye for one with the land that seems to be the best way to go but will sacrafice a move to a park just to get away from where I am out now. The neighborhood is going down hill. I have lived here all of my life and it breaks my heart to see the way it is going to the dogs.

[Lynne]

I never considered moving the MH I purchsed into a park, but after all this time reading the boards I can say, I think it would be a bif mistake to consider a park. THe one thing in common I hear from people unhappy and wanting out of their purchase is from park MH owners. FInd even the ittiest bittiest piece of land and put the house on it. In masny cases, the break in interest you get for a land home package keeps your monthly payments pretty darn close to the same and it leaves you with so many more options in the future. Read through the old messages about all the people ready to declare bankruptcy or let the bank reposess...most are park homes and no one will buy it from them and the one thing most homes are is not mobile.at least not easily or cheaply.
One of the regular posters amde this point and it is SO true...a stick built house sold without the land and with a *must move* clause attached is useless..a MH is darn close to the same thing!
I am sure thre are wonderdul parks and certain places in the country where this is not the case...but wow...think beyond today to a few years from now and see if there aren't other options!