Mobile home

[1930]

Hello and thank you for your time.

I am considering placing a mobile home on my property. I have been given the authority by the county. I know nothing about mobile homes.

I have been told it needs to be 1976 or newer, has to have a title, minimum of 500 sq ft, has to be hud approved and wind loads of 2-3 whatever that means?

Can someone educate me on mobile homes? Anything you can tell me would be more than I currently know.

 

[Bayfisher]

single or double wide, there cheap built using mostly particle board, most are not setup properly, ac/heat trunks rot out and leak, known to have plumbing/water leaks
which lead to floor rotting, bath tubs and shower stalls are plastic made, not safe in wind loads above 70 mph, just cheap all around.

 

[Thall303]

Mobile “Mansions “ are money pits and you will regret every day that you own one.......I know from experience!

 

[cqaigy2]

Lived in one that was built in 1996. Still going strong, but also took about a year of looking to find one that i thought was a good deal. Some things are different from a stick built. Not had any of the problems that Mike apparently is having.

If i had more money at the time, i would put in a stick built house. It doesn't hurt to get to know some house building terms and how houses are built in general. So for instance, how much of an overhang the roof has, pitch, how the joist are made. Exterior and interior wall construction. What type of water pipe is used. Don't assume anything, spell it all out, for instance are all interior doors included at that price. They will try to snow you with BS and quick talk, nail it down. Good luck because there are a lot of good mobile homes and probably more like the one Mike is talking about.

 

[EddieWalker]

I've found that the Mobile Home industry has come up with some of the very best floorplans you can ever have in a rectangular shaped building. The newer models have also gone all out in making them extremely attractive with some very nice finishes.

Having worked on quite a few of them for clients, I've also learned that they have figured out every possible way to cut a corner that there is. From going with the cheapest electrical outlets ever invented, to the bare minimum in plumbing to the lightest framing allowed. They are a fast and cheap way to have a place to live, but the also lose value every year. If you pay $50,000 for it new, you will never sell it for that amount in the future unless you do something with the land to make the overall property worth more then the mobile home.

My ex was a title officer and she worked with several local mobile home companies. Their business plan relied on repossessing a brand new mobile home 3 times before selling it for the last time. They provide financing that they know the buyer cannot afford, so they plan on getting as much upfront cash as possible, then taking the mobile home back and selling it again when they fail to make their payments.

 

[deserteagle71]

As a counterpoint to some of the above posts....

I've been living in a doublewide for the past 30 years now. Never had one leak in all those years. Or other problems that I can think of. 6" exterior walls with what at the time was called the "Alaska" insulation package, and triple pane windows. Factory-installed wood-burning stove which last year I changed out to a pellet stove. A few years ago the original shingles on the roof were starting to curl so I had a full metal roof put on so I'd not have to worry about it again in my lifetime. And this year I changed out all the original faucets for fancy new ones - also the frost-free sillcocks in the outside walls.

And there is NO particle board in this house of mine. Inside walls are sheetrock. I think some folks are talking about old single wide mobile homes built in the 60s and 70s when they talk about the construction. Also - mine sits on a full basement. Concrete walls/floor with I-beams to support the house. Lots of storage - and if ever I do have to do something with the plumbing like changing out the sillcocks, I can do it on a stepladder instead of lying on my back in a crawl space.

 

[Jim Nelson]

In 2003 we bought a new double wide with 3 bedrooms & 2 baths. It has 6"walls fully insulated, dual pane glass and all the appliances were our choice. We lived in it for 6 years and it was the most comfortable and economic home we have ever owned.

We moved because the area grew from a small rural area to a city of 150,000 and we were annexed . I couldn't stand it any more so we moved but kept that place as a rental and have had no problems except those caused caused by one renter who was a nightmare. The current tenants have been there 8 years and would like to buy it.

You have to be very careful in shopping and look at every detail including the contractor that does the foundation, but they can be a very good buy. We had a neighbor who put in a larger place when we put ours in and they still live there with no complaints.

 

[fried1765]

In 2003 we bought a new double wide with 3 bedrooms & 2 baths. It has 6"walls fully insulated, dual pane glass and all the appliances were our choice. We lived in it for 6 years and it was the most comfortable and economic home we have ever owned.

We moved because the area grew from a small rural area to a city of 150,000 and we were annexed . I couldn't stand it any more so we moved but kept that place as a rental and have had no problems except those caused caused by one renter who was a nightmare. The current tenants have been there 8 years and would like to buy it.

You have to be very careful in shopping and look at every detail including the contractor that does the foundation, but they can be a very good buy. We had a neighbor who put in a larger place when we put ours in and they still live there with no complaints.

Are some here conflating "mobile homes" with "modular homes"?

 

[deserteagle71]

Are some here conflating "mobile homes" with "modular homes"?

It's all in how you spec them out. If you just go to a mobile home sales lot and choose the cheapest thing they've got...then that's what you'll have. If you go to that same lot and have them build the home the way YOU want it you can get something a lot better.

I don't know what the difference really is between a "modular" home and a "mobile" home other than how it was spec'd out. My mobile came to me on 8 axles (4 for each side). Four years later those same axles were put back under the house and it was moved to my present location. I still have the axles and tongues so I consider it a "mobile". Whatever, the quality has not disappointed me in the 30 years I've owned it.

 

[Snakebit]

Hmmmm "mobile" is a very different word than it once was. Everything is mobile, it seems these days.

I have lived in a tiny house on wheels for the last few years. But it certainly won't meet that 500sf minimum.

(yea, I'm that guy. My tractor cost more than my house)