| Why Mobile Homes Can Be an Economical Choice

Mobile homes affect people in only two ways: you’re for them or dead set against them. Most peoples’ opinions about mobile home living come from seeing some of the run down trailer parks that straddle the highways wherever you travel in this country. One gets the image of a small, cramped living space with cheap plywood wall paneling set in a row of nearly identical mobile homes, cheap housing that loses its value in a short time. True trailer parks of that description do exist, but they are anachronisms. The new mobile homes of today and the new mobile home parks are designed for twenty-first century living of the first rank.

New mobile homes are an excellent choice for young newly married couples who can’t come up with a large enough down payment. It is possible to buy a new single wide mobile home for under $50,000, which is a far cry from the cost of an equivalently sized stick-built home. For that price you’ll expect to get three bedrooms, one full bath and one half bath, a nice kitchen, living room, and even a laundry room. These new models come nicely decorated and include curtains, a stove, and a refrigerator.

There is also the ongoing argument about depreciation and how much money you will lose when you decide to sell the mobile home. There is no question that mobile home values depreciate over time, but consider the level of investment made. A new mobile home can be financed for ten years and leave you with a monthly payment that will be less than what it would cost you to rent equivalent accommodations. In addition when you do decide to sell, you will get some of your investment returned. No matter how much you get, it will be significantly larger that the nothing you will receive when leaving a rental property. If you compare your mobile home investment with a 30-year mortgage on a stick-built home you’ll find that in ten years the mobile home will be paid for, but the principal on the stick built will have been reduced by less than one third.

Maintenance is another area where the mobile home owner can save money. Maintaining the siding and the roof are much easier and less expensive to than maintaining the equivalent components of a stick-built house. The roof is a perfect example. It can be re-tarred by the owner at much less cost than that incurred for replacing a shingled room on a stick built home, and he can access the roof from a small ladder.

That dreaded curse of devaluation can be a blessing at tax time. Property taxes are based on assessed value. As your mobile home depreciates, you taxes will decrease. Homeowner’s insurance may also be a place where you can save money.

One final consideration that can increase your return on investment is where your mobile home is situated: in a trailer park or one your own property. Many mobile home owners with their homes located on their own land see the appreciation in the land value exceeding the amount of depreciation on the mobile home, leaving them with a net gain in equity.

Whether you’re a newly married couple looking for a first home, or a retired couple looking for a vacation home or a new home in a warmer climate, seriously consider the economic benefits of selecting a mobile home.