Trade-in?

[Rita]

Has anyone had any experience with trade-ins? My neighbor here in the MH park suggested that I trade in my "78 14x70 and purchase a newer home, rather than trying to do the upgrades that I've been considering.

[rmurray]

Trades are common in the industry...They are not always the best financial route top go though....

If a dealer has to move you 1978 home....It will have little value to him..He will give you hardly anything....

By far the best financial way to upgrade is to sell your home yourself...But this can take months..maybe many months..the risk to you is that the interest rates rise in this time...then you could easily loose all you gained by selling your self..

As far as upgrading vs buying is concerned..This is up to you...You 25 year old home is built to basically the same code as is used now...Upgrading to current decor and new fixtures..cabinets..carpet..wall coverings can be expensive..but if you can pay for them as you go..It would be nice not to have a payment...When you buy..you are likely to have 20 years worth of monthly notes..

[Rita]

I will soon be a position to pay cash for many, if not all, of the improvements that I have in mind. I like the layout of the home, I like the park, and I like the location of my lot.

My neighbor stated that my heatling/cooling costs would probably decrease in a newer home. Also, he didn't want me to put in lots of improvements and then find that there is a problem that it wouldn't be very economically feasible to fix, I think.

[rmurray]

Sounds like you like your home...

A couple of things...most energy savings on new homes is because new air and heat units are more efficient..Of course..you can ad one of these for far less than a new home...Also..there might be a few inexpensive things you can do to add to the energy efficiency...For instance just changing an old water heater element can save a noticeable amount of money...


This project is all up to you...Good Luck

[Rita]

Thanks, Murray.

I had all new windows installed this fall. My other potential improvements (in no special order) include new furnace with c/a, siding, and a new back door with a storm door.

I have heard that shingled roofs can be put over these homes; in fact, there is one older home on my circle that supposedly has a shingled roof installed over the MH roof. Can you tell me how that's possible? It seems like that would be a lot of stress on the home. Or is it all in the "engineering"?