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Mobile mansions

socsmm6

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May 31, 2012
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Son is looking at manufactured housing. Any tips on what to look for or stay away from? How much haggle room on dealer pricing?
 
Re:

You asked. Don't buy one. The interest is too high as well. They go down in value, just like a car. I have found habitable houses for 20-30k. They will always go up in the long run. The only way you should ever buy a mobile home is if it is around 2k and is put on land before you build your house. I have lived in a mobile home in College. I paid 1500 bucks, it was a **** hole and I had to pay to have it removed when it was all said and done. Don't walk, but run away from this insanity.

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lowbudgetjunk said:
You asked. Don't buy one. The interest is too high as well. They go down in value, just like a car. I have found habitable houses for 20-30k. They will always go up in the long run. The only way you should ever buy a mobile home is if it is around 2k and is put on land before you build your house. I have lived in a mobile home in College. I paid 1500 bucks, it was a **** hole and I had to pay to have it removed when it was all said and done. Don't walk, but run away from this insanity.

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Bank said rates should be 3.5 fixed for 5 years then possibly go up 2% a year but no higher than 8.5.
Only house we have seen in this area for 30k rough and the foundations usually move with the weather. Those kind don't go up in value. Unless you can shell out 80-100k you are not going to get anything decent.
35-40k sounds like a decent option. He's going to pay that or more in rent over the next 5-6 years. The meth village down the street is 175 a week for a 2 bedroom duplex.
 
How many years are you looking to finance $35k-$40k for a trailer?

When I bought my current house, it was 3.5 years old, small - just under 1000 sq ft, but been perfect for me the 8 years I have lived there, 7 of which was living alone. I wasn't topped out at work when I bought it, and felt moving out on my own to be a big undertaking, so I done a 30 year mortgage on 5% flat interest rate and WITH ESCROW my payment right now on it is $413.

I know everybody is in different boats, but I never would consider buying a trailer. I have a buddy that started out married young in a shitty single wide, then bought a $50k big double wide, then 6 years ago he built a nice house on that land....now we are buying that house from him, closing on it Tuesday....moral of the story, he lost a shitload of money fawking with them two trailers before he decided to build a house.

I guess if you can't find anything in the neighborhood of your budget a trailer will do, but payment wise, it looks like you shouldn't have a problem buying a $60-$70k house for maybe $100 more a month. If its in a rural area, which I assume it is if you are looking to put a trailer on some land, you might be qualified for a USDA loan like I got on my current house when I bought it. No down payment, only closing costs that most of the time can be diverted to the seller.

To me, either try to find a used remodeled decent trailer for $10k or less, or try to find a cheap house. That's just my opinion on how I would/did handle it, but as long as it is thought out and the good/bad of the investment is understood, I'm sure you'll be fine either way. Good luck.
 
Tell him not to do it. I grew up in one and all I remember is us having nothing but problems from it. Plumbing, electrical, leaks in the roof, you name it. They aren't worth the hassel. Tell him to save up and get a house. I got mine for 100k and my payment is $700 a month.
 
jeeptj99 said:
Tell him not to do it. I grew up in one and all I remember is us having nothing but problems from it. Plumbing, electrical, leaks in the roof, you name it. They aren't worth the hassel. Tell him to save up and get a house. I got mine for 100k and my payment is $700 a month.
I'm all for saving up to get a house but for now he has to have a place to live. His rent has been 225 a month for the past 3-4 years and has not saved up much. Going from that to a 700-900 a month payment won't be in his best interest right now.
Looking at it like buying a car, depreciation factor is understood.
Just looking for insight on getting the best price plus options that are needed like shingle roof, better insulation package, etc.
 
Re:

All if it is going to be wasted. Get the cheapest option available. Where do you guys live?

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socsmm6 said:
I'm all for saving up to get a house but for now he has to have a place to live. His rent has been 225 a month for the past 3-4 years and has not saved up much. Going from that to a 700-900 a month payment won't be in his best interest right now.
Looking at it like buying a car, depreciation factor is understood.
Just looking for insight on getting the best price plus options that are needed like shingle roof, better insulation package, etc.

$700-900 payment is for $100k-150k houses. That's a good bit above what has been suggested regarding buying a smaller/older house vs. buying a trailer.

To me, there are better options than buying a trailer. Buying a trailer still means utility payments, fixing stuff when it breaks (which can sometimes be expensive), land rental/purchase (if you don't already have land), cost to get utilities ran to said land, cost to move the trailer, etc.

BUT, if y'all are set on a trailer, sounds like there's nothing left to do but go pick one out. thumb.gif
 
You could buy a $70k house at 5% fixed for under $500 or less a month, including escrow for homeowners insurance and property taxes. And no downpayment if bought under a USDA loan.

I can't see a $35k-40k trailer with an interest rate that moves being much cheaper overall. I mean if the rate goes up to 8.5% (and it will if they tell you its a possibility), that's another $100 a month in just interest.

Are we talking about financing $35k-40k trailer loan on 30 years?
 
I lived in a trailer for 6 years while I was in college I am probably the only person who ever made good on a trailer. I bought it for 2 grand had it moved and setup and then remodeled it to make it a little nicer and after the initial cost it was pretty good just paid lot rent and I was coming out way cheaper than guys living in apartments. A year before I graduated a storm came and blew a tree on it ALFA totaled it and paid me a nice check then told me I could have it if I would move it. So I had already bought a chunk of land that I had planned to build a house on after I graduated so I just moved it there and flipped the property and got paid again for the trailer. These results are not typical hahaha and as far a trailer goes don't get fancey they all will be inefficient and at the end of the day it is a trailer if you can find one cheap it is better than paying rent but not much better, if anything it might motivate him bc he would have ownership.
 
TacomaJD said:
Are we talking about financing $35k-40k trailer loan on 30 years?

Is that even an option?



IMO if he can't save up paying $225/month for rent then he needs to reevaluate his spending habits before diving into ownership.

Otherwise his trailer will be getting repossessed the first time the HVAC breaks, or whatever and he can't make the payment


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Definitely needs to think over his spending habits, I have been telling him that. We are talking 7-10 years on the mobile home. Not doing 30 years on anything, not even a house.
 
70,000 for 15 years @5% is 553.00 plus insurance and property tax. 35000 for 7 years @5% is 494.00 plus insurance and no property tax as he has no land (family property). When he gets home paid for we will see about deeding an acre to him.
The question was not whether or not he should buy a house or mobile home. The question was is there anything we need to make sure the home has in it.
With a new mobile home he should not have to worry about any repairs for a while. Buy a 20-30 year old house and repair could pop up the next week. The short term loan will help him build his credit. If that goes well for him then take the plunge into home ownership.
 
TBItoy said:
Is that even an option?

I didn't think so, but I was wondering what would be comparable to the $225 he was paying for rent prior.

socsmm6 said:
Definitely needs to think over his spending habits, I have been telling him that. We are talking 7-10 years on the mobile home. Not doing 30 years on anything, not even a house.



This is what I see here.

Principal payment on $40k for 10 years at 3.5% is $395.

Principal payment on $80k for 30 years at 4% (which is the interest rate we are getting on our new house) is only $382.

Then there is homeowners and land tax of course.

So if he can afford a trailer on 10 years, he can 100% afford an $80k or less house. A lot of people frown on 30 year mortgages for good reason, but in my book a 30 year mortgage on an appreciable asset is a bit more wise than 10 year loan on a heavily depreciable asset that serves the same purpose. Like I said, my 11 year old 2 bed 2 full bath standard spec house on a half acre, hardwood/carpet, plain jane as it gets otherwise, but has been nice enough to suit me is only $413 a month.

I could sell it when we move in the new house and pocket a good chunk of money after satisfying the remainder of the loan, but I am going to rent it out and try to pay it off much sooner than the full term. If I had bought a trailer 8 years ago instead of a house, it probably would be worth less than half of what I'd have invested in it. Appreciable vs. Depreciable.

Just some food for thought.
 
socsmm6 said:
70,000 for 15 years @5% is 553.00 plus insurance and property tax. 35000 for 7 years @5% is 494.00 plus insurance and no property tax as he has no land (family property). When he gets home paid for we will see about deeding an acre to him.
The question was not whether or not he should buy a house or mobile home. The question was is there anything we need to make sure the home has in it.
With a new mobile home he should not have to worry about any repairs for a while. Buy a 20-30 year old house and repair could pop up the next week. The short term loan will help him build his credit. If that goes well for him then take the plunge into home ownership.

Definitely understand where you are coming from. No advice on trailers, never had any dealings with them. Good luck man. thumb.gif
 
TacomaJD said:
I didn't think so, but I was wondering what would be comparable to the $225 he was paying for rent prior.



This is what I see here.

Principal payment on $40k for 10 years at 3.5% is $395.

Principal payment on $80k for 30 years at 4% (which is the interest rate we are getting on our new house) is only $382.

Then there is homeowners and land tax of course.

So if he can afford a trailer on 10 years, he can 100% afford an $80k or less house. A lot of people frown on 30 year mortgages for good reason, but in my book a 30 year mortgage on an appreciable asset is a bit more wise than 10 year loan on a heavily depreciable asset that serves the same purpose. Like I said, my 11 year old 2 bed 2 full bath standard spec house on a half acre, hardwood/carpet, plain jane as it gets otherwise, but has been nice enough to suit me is only $413 a month.

I could sell it when we move in the new house and pocket a good chunk of money after satisfying the remainder of the loan, but I am going to rent it out and try to pay it off much sooner than the full term. If I had bought a trailer 8 years ago instead of a house, it probably would be worth less than half of what I'd have invested in it. Appreciable vs. Depreciable.

Just some food for thought.
I know what you are saying and if I knew for sure he could handle it I would tell him to go for it. In 3-4 years at his current job he will making pretty good money and might be able to handle more payment. For right now buy a mobile home and finance 7-10 years then build or buy a house when he is making more and finance for15 years and he just cut 5 years off your plan and also has a place to rent or sell.
This all pretty much boils down to his lack of credit and never having any large bills. Just don't think he needs all that pressure in one big jump.
Note I did finance my house for 30 years and I kick myself for it all the time. It would have been paid for last year.
 
Re:

lowbudgetjunk said:
All if it is going to be wasted. Get the cheapest option available. Where do you guys live?

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Just east of Tupelo
 
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While there still isn't a gaurenteed return, why not look into do a camper or park model? He could buy a used one for $10-20k, put a deck and cover over it. When hes done he could move it or sell for not much loss.
 

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