MH manufacturers

[maj]

We are trying to buy an Manufactured home for our lot but got a little nervous when we read some reviews with very unhappy home owners. We'd love to hear what "brand" you all have bought and what you think about the quality as well as the customer satisfaction with the company in following through on promises and problems.
We live in Arizona and plan to put it up in the mountains at about 7000 feet (cold country with snow).

[rmurray]

Search these forums for info on nearly every brand avaiable....Visit the bookstore and invest in the buying guides available there...The cost is pennies when compared to the tens of thousands a home costs...One of the books rates EVERY possible brand you could buy...Your area has many GREAT builders of homes....Most consumer problems mentioned in these forums are dealer caused...The buying guides instruct you on how to avoid the worst and pick a good one..

[David Oxhandler]

The BUYERS GUIDE To MANUFACTURED HOMES and LAND
The Grissim Ratings Guide to Manufactured Homes
The majority of MH Owner problems come from poor installation.SITE PREP & INSTALLATION VIDEOS

[gigi63]

Please pay attention to what "rmurry" says. He is right. Spend a few pennies and do your homework. You can save a lot of heartache and prevent a nightmare. We just bought a Karsten home in New Mexico and while I believe the house is well built and worth the money, it's the dealership that has caused all the headaches and stress. They are only interested in the money. It works like a car dealership (I'm sure you have bought a car and know how the salesman is: he is only insterested in his commission). I spent over a year doing my homework and research, but it was not enough, I knew up front that we would have to spend a minimum of $20K for site prep (grading, foundation, water, septic, electricity). This does not include the well as we had done that a couple of years ago. It was interesting to go in to the dealership and go through the motions and to note that they never once mentioned "the site" and all prep for the house that would come out of our pockets. They tell you "set-up" is included with the price of the house. Set-up is only the "glueing together" and exterior/interior finishing of the house. So if your house arrives at the site and you do not have your foundation, septic, electricity, water lines in place, you have a house you can't live in. I'm not sure when the nightmare will end, but I hope I can help others avoid the problems we have had. I hope I have helped.

[rmurray]

Unfortunately I now am selling cars..There ARE some good folks selling cars.

[gigi63]

rmurray: I am so sorry and apologize to you. I had no way of knowing. I hope I do not offend anyone else. How about if I describe MH Dealerships as "insurance salesmen who prey on the elderly"? There are exceptions and a few honest folks out there. If these people I've been dealing with were honest and did their job they would come out way ahead in the long run. Just as info, I am retired and a senior citizen.
I wanted to share my experience and hopefully help others avoid the problems I have had. I wish I had known about this forum before I ever started looking at houses. Bottom line is: Buyer Beware and be sure you get what you are paying for.

[rmurray]

It has always bothered me that some folks think all salespersons lie and cheat. Unfortunately there has been too much of that in manufactured homes, automobiles and even insurance. The best way to combat the lousy ones is for folks to take the time to be educated buyers. These forums are here to help in this project.I am sorry you had a bad experience . I hope you are persistent and get things worked out..Please stop in here often and help others with their quest..Thanks for your input and apologies accepted..Good Luck

[andy]

I have had a Skyline for two years now and I love it! We did ALOT of looking before we purchased (our first MH) and the warranties and overall quality are superb. Having a good dealer is key to your buying experience, check out the manufacturing plant (if possible) as well. We chose a dealer that was about two hours away from where we live. There are closer ones, but they all had that swarmy car dealer thing going - we loved our dealer.