Anyone ever lived in a Trailer?

[lukebuz]

So, I posted a thread a week or so ago about spending an extra $75,000 - $100,000 on purchasing a new house on some land.  Getting cold feet, when looking at asking prices of $325,000.  Makes my poor midwestern head spin.

So, just for fun, we looked at "Modular/Manufactured" houses this weekend.  I must say, I was impressed by the floorplans and value.  1800-2000 sq ft.  There were some amazing master bedrooms with "retreats" and a huge master bath with rainfall showers, gigantic closets, tons of windows, sliding doors, new kitchens, etc etc etc for prices that bowled you over.  Delivered, on "blocks" (no foundation) $90,000 to $110,000.  Yeah, some of the furnishings were cheap (thin doors, thin drywall, fake wood baseboards), but wow.

Check an example out:
https://www.championhomes.com/retailers/ky/owensboro/kentucky-dream-homes-llc/innovation-he-3019

So, I get to thinking.  We expect to stay here around 15 years.   Any counsel or direction on simply buying a plot of land (acreage) for $60,000 and towing a trailer and utilities for $110K+$10K = $180,000 for a brand new "house"?  Yeah, the house will likely depreciate.  But it would probably depreciate less than the cost of the mortgage interest expenses, insurance, taxes, repair, etc on a big fancy house.  Any issue having a house without a foundation?  Other gotchas? 

I do realize, there are more expenses out there...like, for example, no garage.  I guess I could have a TuffShed built for $5000 that would suit me.  Anyone have experience?

[Syonyk]

I prefer the term "Manufactured home," thank you very much! :p  Even though I have a title for my house, because legally it's two trailers.

So, just for fun, we looked at "Modular/Manufactured" houses this weekend.  I must say, I was impressed by the floorplans and value.  1800-2000 sq ft.  There were some amazing master bedrooms with "retreats" and a huge master bath with rainfall showers, gigantic closets, tons of windows, sliding doors, new kitchens, etc etc etc for prices that bowled you over.  Delivered, on "blocks" (no foundation) $90,000 to $110,000.  Yeah, some of the furnishings were cheap (thin doors, thin drywall, fake wood baseboards), but wow.

Well, we were impressed enough that we bought one. :)

I would highly suggest getting a proper foundation poured, though.  I think our foundation was $25k and that has a huge impact on the stability and longevity of the house.  You can upgrade quite a few things if you want - we've got quartz counters (didn't care for granite), made a few changes in the master bathroom that leads to a comically huge toilet alcove with shelving, have a nice shower instead of a soaking tub and a phone booth shower, 20A circuits around, gas piping to anything that might use gas (even though we don't have gas to the site, we might put propane in some day), etc.

Any counsel or direction on simply buying a plot of land (acreage) for $60,000 and towing a trailer and utilities for $110K+$10K = $180,000 for a brand new "house"?  Yeah, the house will likely depreciate.  But it would probably depreciate less than the cost of the mortgage interest expenses, insurance, taxes, repair, etc on a big fancy house.  Any issue having a house without a foundation?  Other gotchas?

What utilities are you planning to run for $10k?  Because unless you're in a subdivision, that's not going to cover power/water/sewer.  Consider that you may need a well and septic system, which is $20k or more depending on your area.  Plus power.  We were able to put our house where a previous house had been, so we had well and power already onsite.

Look into a foundation for a double wide.  I really, really think that you'll want that if you're going for 10+ years.  The house is more stable, and you're a lot less likely to freeze your water piping up (which is a common way of burning down houses).  It's been below zero, I don't have the insulation on the piping in our crawlspace, and things have been fine.

Another option to consider would be getting a little singlewide ($30k new, a lot less used), putting that on stands, and building your own house over time.  You can save a ton of money that way.

I do realize, there are more expenses out there...like, for example, no garage.  I guess I could have a TuffShed built for $5000 that would suit me.  Anyone have experience?

I like my Tuff-Shed office, and we're planning to put up a carport and shed this next summer.

The cost savings on a manufactured over a site-built are a bit less when you work in things like a foundation, but we're still very, very happy with ours, and the time to build was insanely short compared to a site-built.

Ask around, though, and find out who makes the best homes in your area.  The quality of different manufacturers varies, even if they all meet HUD standards, and it's worth paying a bit more for something nice.

For what it's worth, we plan to stay in ours the rest of our lives. :)

[Drifterrider]

So, just for fun, we looked at "Modular/Manufactured" houses this weekend. 

Yeah, the house will likely depreciate.  But it would probably depreciate less than the cost of the mortgage interest expenses, insurance, taxes, repair, etc on a big fancy house. 

Loss of value isn't "likely" it is certain.  A mobile home (manufactured) is a trailer with a title.  A modular (built in a factory and assembled on your lot) is a house.  You think there is no insurance, tax, repair, etc on a trailer but there is on a "big fancy house"?

If you are trying to get more space for less money, look into buying a used manufactured (trailer).  Also look closely at modular.

I lived in a trailer.....in a field.....next to chicken houses....in the south.  Don't recommend it.

Also, zoning laws might well determine that you may not have a trailer at a certain place.

You might want to find the book that values used mobile homes (I don't remember who publishes it but I've seen one before).

OBTW, houses don't generally lose value over long terms.  Trailers always do.

[Prairie Stash]

My parents did exactly this, I remember that place fondly. Its a cheap way to get a place to live in the rural country, lots of our neighbours did the same thing. It was a common trick for people to get a place to live while slowly building a house in their spare time. Some people take several years to build a house due to financial and time constraints, but you can save a lot doing it yourself. 

We had a foundation for the furnace (wood/oil), pipes and storage of misc. like canned goods. It also housed the water pump (well water) so that it was below frost line, in our area having pumps insulated by 8 feet of soil keeps them from freezing. Since there was a decent foundation the underbelly was easy access but also well protected/insulated. Other neighbours just put a skirt around theirs and that suited them fine.

It was a used (cheaper) trailer that has long since been moved off and sold (you lose a lot moving them, selling is more disposing of old trailers). The foundation still exists (cement) and could be resurrected for use or capped off as a cold cellar, underground storage, or some other weird use. Or it could be filled in/leveled off.

The other option is a RTM (Ready to Move House). This is the other great option for cheaper accommodation. Due to the time it takes to get to rural construction sites its generally cheaper/easier to move houses to a site rather than build them onsite. 

[Allison]

I grew up in a double wide on a 2.5 acre plot in the country.  Spent my childhood learn trades making it livable so slightly different than buying a new one.  It was the easiest (maybe) way for my parents to get on the property ladder.  I have found memories of my dad climbing under the trailer to thaw pipes before going to work at 6 in the morning.

[soccerluvof4]

Modular Manufactured homes if put on a foundation are a great way to go. Personally I would shop around. I lived in a trailer when I was young and it was fine but I was by myself trying to figure out what I wanted to do. When I had my vacation property I had a lot of land so I sold a piece to a friend who bought a manufactured 3 bedroom 2 bath home. He had a garage built to match and a porch with cedar siding. This was a Wausau home in Northern Wisconsin with the foundation and all it was under a 150k and appreciated. As they say which I believe "Home is where the heart is" so you can be happy in either or not. Thinking longer term I wouldn't go with a trailer.

[steviesterno]

i would bet that in the next 20 years, all houses are manufactured. it doesn't make sense to build on site when you have to deal with weather, different suppliers, people have to be good at a lot, etc. We watched some documentaries (who's names escape me) about building homes in parts in a factory, then slapping them together on site. you can do a whole house in a week, the work is good since your dry wall guy is always your drywall guy, etc. Also seems to make sense because you pick a plan and they make it out of existing parts. think ikea furniture for a whole house.

If I could start my own company doing this I would. Not in the field so not comfortable doing it.

trailers and cheaper/older modulars seem disposable, you almost never get a ton of equity, and I hear a lot of people paying to have them removed later. However, we have one that we got for a song that's a double wide, but beautifully fitted, finished, etc. it's a temporary home while my inlaws design and build their dream home. they are into it for 5k, it appraised at like 60k, and it's nice. I would live in there.

[Syonyk]

i would bet that in the next 20 years, all houses are manufactured. it doesn't make sense to build on site when you have to deal with weather, different suppliers, people have to be good at a lot, etc. We watched some documentaries (who's names escape me) about building homes in parts in a factory, then slapping them together on site. you can do a whole house in a week, the work is good since your dry wall guy is always your drywall guy, etc. Also seems to make sense because you pick a plan and they make it out of existing parts. think ikea furniture for a whole house.

Seriously.  If you can do a factory tour, do it.  It's fascinating - I signed up for one and my father-in-law and I got to spend about 3 hours with someone who'd been working at the factory for decades, just going through the process from start to finish.  The waste is almost zero (spare lumber?  Use it for the next house!), the efficiency is incredible (roofs are built at waist height then craned up and over after being painted on the inside), it's warm and dry in there start to finish, and everything is in one place.  The cabinets are built in a corner of the factory and are just set in place before the walls go in - so no need to assemble them from pieces onsite.

And, as far as I can tell, people are paid by the hour, not by the job.

trailers and cheaper/older modulars seem disposable, you almost never get a ton of equity, and I hear a lot of people paying to have them removed later. However, we have one that we got for a song that's a double wide, but beautifully fitted, finished, etc. it's a temporary home while my inlaws design and build their dream home. they are into it for 5k, it appraised at like 60k, and it's nice. I would live in there.

The difference between a trailer and a modular, at least with the company we bought from, is basically, "Do the i-beams stay under the house or not?"

[mm1970]

I lived in a 14-ft wide trailer for awhile, and yeah, they depreciate.

A couple of my relatives worked for a company that built mobile homes (one of the few industries in my home town).  I have several cousins and two siblings who live in them.  In my rural area, actual built homes are few and far between, it is much easier to get a manufactured home, or trailer, or double wide.

So, sister #1 whose husband worked for the company, lives in one.  It's a double wide 3BR.  Been living in it for...??? I dunno, my nephew is 24, and they were living there before he was born.  So, 25 - 26 years?  It is built on a basement and they've replaced (recently) the interior walls with drywall.  It's pretty much a regular house now.

Sister #2 lived in a trailer with her husband for a long long time.  When it wore out, they bought a mobile home (built by my other BIL!)  I'm not sure if it was a modular or one that was built in the factory and assembled on site.  Anyway, they are quite happy.

Coworker has a house that was assembled on site.  Got the land for a steal (for So Cal anyway) because a wildfire took out the house that was already there.

[Syonyk]

I lived in a 14-ft wide trailer for awhile, and yeah, they depreciate.

How old, out of curiosity?

The vision a lot of people have when they think of "trailer house" no longer applies to the newer manufactured homes.  You can tell ours is a manufactured if you look at the layout and where stuff is (a solid marriage line down the center, water is only on one half of the house), and the sticker in the window that says it is.  Otherwise?  It's better built than a bunch of the sitebuilt stuff!

It is built on a basement and they've replaced (recently) the interior walls with drywall.  It's pretty much a regular house now.

That's how the new ones are coming off the line, unless you go really, really cheap (like, $50k for 1200 sq ft cheap).  That still had wall panels.

[Joggernot]

My DW's cousin bought a manufactured home for CO with 2x6 fully insulated outside walls; double wide; looked just like a new stick-built house.  Set it on a foundation and lived in it for about 15 years.  Sold for a profit when they moved.  That was a very nice house.  Yes, I'd live in one like that.

[mm1970]

I lived in a 14-ft wide trailer for awhile, and yeah, they depreciate.

How old, out of curiosity?

The vision a lot of people have when they think of "trailer house" no longer applies to the newer manufactured homes.  You can tell ours is a manufactured if you look at the layout and where stuff is (a solid marriage line down the center, water is only on one half of the house), and the sticker in the window that says it is.  Otherwise?  It's better built than a bunch of the sitebuilt stuff!

It is built on a basement and they've replaced (recently) the interior walls with drywall.  It's pretty much a regular house now.

That's how the new ones are coming off the line, unless you go really, really cheap (like, $50k for 1200 sq ft cheap).  That still had wall panels.

Ooh, it was old when I lived in it, which was from 1986 until 1990.  Or thereabouts.

My sister's manufactured home (that didn't have drywall) was manufactured in the early 90s.
My OTHER sister's home, which is only a few years old, has drywall.

$50k for 1200 sf is pretty common in my neck of the woods.

[Syonyk]

Ooh, it was old when I lived in it, which was from 1986 until 1990.  Or thereabouts.

That's probably pre-HUD standards - so it was a 1970s style trailer, which, yes, are flimsy pieces of crap.

My sister's manufactured home (that didn't have drywall) was manufactured in the early 90s.
My OTHER sister's home, which is only a few years old, has drywall.

$50k for 1200 sf is pretty common in my neck of the woods.

*nods*  They've come a long ways.  The new stuff is mostly drywall, and really quite nice.

[Rural]

Ooh, it was old when I lived in it, which was from 1986 until 1990.  Or thereabouts.

That's probably pre-HUD standards - so it was a 1970s style trailer, which, yes, are flimsy pieces of crap.

Understatement. (Lived in a 1971 singlewide until 2014 when we finished building this house.)


But yeah, $50k for 1200sgft is way overpaying for stick built out here.

[Metric Mouse]

My parents did exactly this, I remember that place fondly. Its a cheap way to get a place to live in the rural country, lots of our neighbours did the same thing. It was a common trick for people to get a place to live while slowly building a house in their spare time. Some people take several years to build a house due to financial and time constraints, but you can save a lot doing it yourself. 

We had a foundation for the furnace (wood/oil), pipes and storage of misc. like canned goods. It also housed the water pump (well water) so that it was below frost line, in our area having pumps insulated by 8 feet of soil keeps them from freezing. Since there was a decent foundation the underbelly was easy access but also well protected/insulated. Other neighbours just put a skirt around theirs and that suited them fine.

It was a used (cheaper) trailer that has long since been moved off and sold (you lose a lot moving them, selling is more disposing of old trailers). The foundation still exists (cement) and could be resurrected for use or capped off as a cold cellar, underground storage, or some other weird use. Or it could be filled in/leveled off.

This is very similar to the beginning of my life story! Single wide mobile home on a nice rural plot. Very fond memories...

[kissthesky]

I don't have any experience living in a MFH in a rural area so I can't comment on that. But I do live in a MFH (in a trailer park) in a suburban area. And I love it. It's the perfect medium between a tiny house and a regular house. It has everything we need and nothing we don't. Plus less cost, upkeep, utilities, etc vs a larger house.

[Dicey]

Our parents owned a very old 50's-era single-wide-with-a-sunroom-attached weekend beach shack for decades, so we were fine with the idea of house trailers, as they were known then.

My sister bought a foreclosed house about seven years ago. The previous owner had put up an expensive double wide for their in-laws on a corner of the five-acre parcel. It, along with the swimming pool, overextended them and they ended up losing everything. They were bitter and they trashed the house and especially the double wide, which was only about five years old at the time. Bitter as in chainsaw, hatchet and acid. They trashed the modular in a rather spectacular way. My sister & her husband decided to let their aspiring contractor sons deconstruct the thing.

We all pitched in to help the boys, who were in demo heaven. What was eye-opening was how flimsy everything was. No 2"x4's (mostly 1"x2"s), very thin drywall, flimsy windows, thin pressboard cabinets, coils of cardboard inside the wall panels and doors to keep them rigid (it had panels and drywall), cheap door and cabinet hinges and hardware, low-grade plumbing and electrical, etc. Simply put, it was made with the cheapest materials and methods. Sure, you can say the walls are straighter than stick-built, buy they sure aren't stronger. Everything seemed to be built for show, not to last. I thought it was kind of sad. The only thing that was salvageable was the chassis.

That said, I'd still consider modular/manufactured housing if it was the best option available. But then I do not live in tornado country. That would scare the shit out of me.

[Syonyk]

And my manufactured is 2x6 exterior walls, 2x4 interior walls, drywall, Energy Star rated on insulation, etc.

They've come a long ways.

[robartsd]

A manufactured home on a foundation is very different from a mobile home (trailer). A manufactured home must meet all the building code requirements that a home built on site would be required to meet; a mobile home only has to meet HUD standards. If I were having a new home built for me, I'd look into manufactured homes. You still need a good contractor to build the foundation, put the modules together, and connect utilities (that's not in the manufactured home companies price). "This Old House" followed a build of a manufactured for one season.

I'd only live in a "trailer" if it was a temporary situation while building something permanent on the site.