Why a Mobile Home in the Garden May Make More Sense than Renting
There are various benefits to purchasing “mobile homes” over renting a property. Before you can make up your mind on whether to purchase a mobile home and move away from the rental market, it is important to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages so that you make an established decision – one that is in line with your housing and financial objectives.
Characteristics of The Modern Mobile Home
Mobile homes such as those offered by Quick-garden are often referred to as “manufactured homes.” These are homes constructed in a factory and placed on a trailer chassis for movement to the desired location. Mobile homes are also often placed on leased land or in mobile home parks. In such cases, the owner of the modern home leases the land or rents space but remains the owner of the modern home.
In most cases, modern homeowners place these homes on the land they own or one that they’re purchasing under an agreement.
Pros of Purchasing a Mobile Home
A significant advantage of buying mobile homes is that they often provide a cheaper option compared to a traditional home. That way, mobile homes offer aspiring homeowners an easier way of achieving their goals. Additionally, mobile homes cost less per foot compared to stick-built homes, and you, therefore, get more space and value for your money.
Some of the stick-built homes available have typical floor plans and options that make it possible to construct homes for prices comparable to mobile homes. Homeowners who prefer stick-built homes might as well look for a constructor in their area to compare the quality of such a home with a mobile home.
Another benefit associated with mobile homes is their flexibility. Mobile homes are often more affordable than stick-built homes and semi-permanent. As such, individuals with land can place them there and remove them whenever they wish. This especially comes in handy for individuals who aren’t sure whether they want to own a piece of land permanently. It is also beneficial to those who don’t fancy building a stick home at the moment, or even those who can’t afford to build a stick home at the moment.
While mobile homes may not be easy to move after setting up, they are easier to relocate than stick-built homes. Upon building a stick home, it becomes more or less permanent.
An additional benefit of mobile homes is that they are usually constructed in controlled environments. As such, these homes are constructed to high standards. Since they are built in controlled environments, delays during construction due to unfavorable weather or issues in scheduling subcontractors are reduced significantly.
Cons of Purchasing Mobile Homes
A downside to purchasing a mobile home is that its value goes down quickly. As a new automobile, once a mobile home is taken away from the factory, its value depreciated quickly. On the other hand, stick-built homes appreciate with time since the homeowner also owns the land upon which the house is built.
Homeowners who own both the land and mobile home may witness the appreciation in the value of both properties over time. However, such appreciation is most likely the result of the value of land going up and not that of the mobile home.
A reason behind the depreciation of the value of mobile homes is the fact that they are not real property but rather personal property. “Real property” refers to land and any structure attached to it permanently. Any property that can be removed or transferred without “injury” to the land is, therefore, not real property. On the other hand, personal property is any possession that is movable and, therefore, not termed as real property. Although mobile homes are not easy to move around once placed on land, they are still classified as personal property (though in various locations, someone who owns both the underlying land and mobile home can change the mobile home to real property by following some affirmative steps). Stick-built homes, on the other hand, are seen as part of the real property.
A related downside to mobile homes is that because they are personal property, they are often more expensive to finance. Personal property loans often called “chattel loans” usually attract higher interest rates and shorter durations than mortgage loans.
Other disadvantages of mobile homes arise from the fact that they can be located in a mobile home park. Despite owning your actual home, you will still be answerable to a landlord, to whom you will pay rent, and consult for your compliance with the rules of the park. The landlord may decide to evict at any moment, in which case you will only have the option of moving or selling your mobile home.
It is not easy to resell mobile homes, especially when they are located in a mobile home park. Since they are relatively immobile once they are set up, unless the buyer fancies the current location of the mobile home, finding a willing buyer may prove to be a challenge. It may cost several thousand dollars to relocate a mobile home.
However, this may not be a disadvantage whenever the mobile home and land are sold jointly, just as it would be the case with a stick-built house. Despite substantial improvements in the construction of mobile homes, there is still an element of mobile homes that make them unpopular among buyers.
A final disadvantage is that unlike a stick-built home, which is built upon permanent foundations, a mobile home is placed on a temporary foundation. In the event of a natural disaster like a storm or earthquake, mobile homes are bound to suffer more damage.
