Tell me about your manufactured/modular home. Pros and cons

[jnjross]

mom and dad got a 32x70 palm harbor in 2003 it took 3 months to get custom they let you pick everything, you have to check the exterior walls they give you a chose between 2x4 or 2x6 go with 2x6 the extra cost is well worth it and now days some model have the a/c duct in the celing a must!! they sold the home and land 3 years later for 50,000 over what they paid (yes fifty thou.) Mom cried and still does she misses it so much,,

we got a new 16x80 in 01 that was a nightmare the moment the water was turned on the home flooded front to back turned out None of the water lines had been connected to faucets, tubs, toliets left undone inside the walls, we had to wait 2 months for new sheetrock, the front door wouldn't latch for 3 months, and the DEAL breaker 20 months in the front wall started to seperate from the side walls, you could see the siding now was 3" from the corner piece, i could see outside and could fit my fingers through to the outside, after trying to get it fix and being blown off by the manufacture i filed a complaint with the ag's office and was told they were not responsible for the repairs we only had 30 days from purchase!! it got repo'd. we now have a 81' that's built like a tank!

 

[Hobbley_Farm]

I think from the previous poster, the most important thing to look at is the BBB and the ratings of the sales people and what grade the structure is that they are selling. I rented out my aunts doublewide which was beautiful, but I was always cold in the winter. And the heat and air didn't circulate evenly throughout the house. One room would be COOOLD and another would be HOT. Everyone kept saying there were "some" adjustments that could be done underneath, but they never were. And I could feel the cold or the heat coming from the windows which always made me feel like I was Temp Controling the neighborhood moreso than the house. But again, if My hubby and I move in 5 years, we will definately be getting one just like this (just with fewer bedrooms as the older kids will be adults) I LOVE MY HOUSE

 

[silkiechicken]

Quote:
From what I've read, this sounds like the key to it all too. See what is out there locally and how well the places locally do it, since there is such a variation and difference in semantics dependent on location.

Thanks!

 

[cparian]

I am a certified real estate appraiser in Ohio. I think some ppl have the manufactured/mobile home & modular homes confused. Sales people will tell you anything they think you want to hear so.... here is the offical differences between Modular & Manufactured/Mobile Homes that I as a appraiser look for.... (Notice Manufactured & Mobile Homes are considered the same animal.)

Manufactured & Mobile Homes have a tell tale tag at the opposite front & back corners & inside the sink kitchen cabinet with the ID#, they are brought to the site with their own wheels & axels which are removed. The Manufactured/Mobile Home is built on a steel frame base which you can see when looking into the access door to the crawl space.

Modular homes are built in the factory in pieces which are trucked in, lifted off the truck by crane & then interlocked & finished. Modular homes are built on a wood frame base. Since they are assembled in the factory & out of the elements they are sometimes considered better than site built homes.

When appraising, Modular Homes & Site built homes are considered equal & are completed using the same form with the same loan qualification requirements. Manufactured/Mobile Homes have their own form & loan requirements.

If I appraise a standard site built home & there is also a mobile home the owner has on the same site I cannot give it any value in the appraisal as it is considered personal property.

(Appraisers definition of personal property is tangible items that are not permanently attached to or part of the real estate.) For the mobile home this means that you could potentually reinstall the axels & wheels & remove the mobile home & any value it contributed from the site...therefore it is Personal Property.


Just something to think about for your final decision.

 

[magikchick]

I absolutely love mine. I went to a dealer that has been in bussiness for over 20 years. Built mine from the floor up. Went to the design center and saw all the options you can get. We went with tape and textured dry wall, ceramic tile floors, marble window sills, upgraded insulation and appliance package. I even got a garden tub with jets. My master bath is bigger then any I have seen in a site built home. I have 1400sq feet big enought for me and my DH. I got to pick all the colors and counter tops, great fun. All in all we spent $74,000 our payments with our land is under $750 a month.

It pays to seek our a dealer that knows what they are doing. We talked to about 20 different sales people and compared what they said. I was very satisfied with the people we worked with.

 

[birdnutz]

Our modular home was built a year ago in December. It is a Magnolia out of Nebraska. It has 2x6 wall and wooden I beam floor joists. The walls are R20 and the roof is R40. It has no metal under it at all. All tape and texture walls,hard wood laminate floors. No drafts in this baby. It's set on an unfinished basement. Our old house (before fire) we bought for $35,000. Last time it was appraised it was $135,000. No basement but attached garage on both. This is the way ours was set.

 

[lockedhearts]

When we bought our property (6 acres) it had a 16 x 80 mobile on it, just me & hubby and not enough room. We wanted to build a house, but te reality is we will likely build on to this and re-side everything to make it look like a house. The permit is easier to get, less expensive and inspections are pretty much easy to get.
We have put laminate flooring in the living room and both bathrooms, we plan to replace the linolieum in the dining/kitchen with vinyl tile. When we add on we will add a new Master Bedroom/Bathroom, a spare bedroom, family room and dining room. Our now existing diningroom & kitchen will become a large eat-in kitchen, the now spare bedroom will become my sewing room. We will also add a garage on the front far end, and a screened porch , the back will get a laundry room with a doggy door out to a deck.
This will end up giving us 3 bedrooms a nice large kitchen and nice living room.

 

[Picky Chicky]

Quote:
Whoa!! Thats a neat picture! The dog looks mystified!

 

[Teach97]

cparian has it down...the steal underneath is the big difference! It is funny they way they call it personal property because it can be moved...just about any house can be moved! Insurance and loans are the only thing that have irritated me. We have a '96 Solitare...around 2000 sq ft...love it...sheetrock walls...wish we had been the ones to have ordered it...would have done more upgrades but we have been doing them since we bought it on our own.

 

[mychickensrock]

Quote:
Ours was built in Dec 1998. Its a Fleetwood double wide on brick.

Live in a neighborhood (all double wides or modulars on brick foundation) Raleigh, NC... crazy weather up and down temps

1680 sq ft

We got this because we were young and stupid. Nothing is normal sized if you ever have to replace something. You either have to do major remodeling or put more mobile home stuff in (doors, windows, sinks, etc). Really wish we had gotten the fireplace option. One end of the house is always the opposite temp of the other. It's scary when there's a bad storm!

Good things: we can afford it!!!!! 1 1/3 acre lot. we can afford it! good size for the money. Quiet neighborhood.

If we could do it over, we'd have had a small house built. And there are things we'd have changed about the details. We would NOT have chosen shiny black counter tops or white linoleum. We would have gotten the fireplace. We would have chosen a floor plan with a living room and great room so that we had more rooms to get away from one another. We've lived here since February 1999. Moved in brand new. We like where we live, just wish we had a higher quality home.