Caitilin

HI,

Does anyone here live in a mobile home? Can anyone tell me what teh pro's and cons are of mobile homes as opposed to brick and mortar homes?

cheers
Deb

Tracie107

I know in Kelowna they are closing down a lot of the mobile home parks. The land has been sold onto developers to make way for high end apartments or single/multi family homes.

Caitilin

That would be a big con, wouldn't it!

Silverdragon102

My neighbour lives in a mobile home although wouldn't say so to look at it from the outside. One thing he does tell us he is glad he has it fixed down as the winds we have had lately he would have easily lost it

nooka

I've no idea what mobiles are like to live in, but around here they are definitely regarded as being where poorer people live. They certainly are much cheaper to buy. We rent, so no judgement from me, but that's how they are perceived.

triumphguy

My perception is that once you get into a mobile home it's going to be harder to get into a "proper" house.

You may or may not own the land it sits on. There may be depreciation on the mobile to contend with (which you don't get with a house, flat etc). You may end up with no equity to take into a reality property purchase.

You don't have a cmhc approved mortgage and so may not build up a credit history that gets you into a house later.

If you have children the neighbours may be fairly transient which lowers your feelings of coinfidence in the area.

However, if you are moving to a place like Fort Macmurray it might not be a big deal to get into a trailer home.

However: these might be your neighbours!

Caitilin

i'm just going over with the minimum and not sure i'll be making enough ot buy even the smallest place around otherwise, so wondering if its a viable option compared to long term renting (plan on renting short term)

triumphguy

Having seen your post Caitlin:

They can be very nice inside: not like the old mobiles at Prestatyn or Rhyl! LOL

They are well built, and often built better than many homes since they are contructed indoors, out of the elements.

They're a lot cheaper, and it's your space, unlike a rental.

If you're young and are coming here long term to make a difference to your way of life it may be a good way to get into housng.

BTW the piccy above is of the Trailer Park Boys - a Canadian comendy series!

Caitilin

Well i'm turning 30 a month or so after landing (and so avoiding any embaressing parties!) so i guess you could call it nesting, but i figure if a trailer costs...what, 50.000? then that means I can pay that off and then live mortgage free while I save money for a while until I build up enough deposit to be able to 'afford' a house..as with the current calculations (earning say 3500 a month, which is ...ambitious especially initially) would bring me around the 200.000 mark (wiht my deposit, assuming I still had it entirely 100% intact)...and that seems to pretty much only come up with trailers...hmmm.

startwin

Many mobile homes are better than lots of houses. Much would depend on where it is, as there are some nasty MH parks, and some really top notch ones. Then of course you could buy a piece of land and put a MH on it, if zoning allows. Lots of those in the farming areas. You wouldn't get a normal mortgage for a mobile home, it would be a chattel mortgage, but would still build up your credit rating. I know of several MH Parks in my area that are nice places to live, know people who have lived there for years. But you really need to research.

Tracie107

You can also look for Adult Only MHP, these are really lovely. Where everyone takes a lot of pride in their homes and gardens.

Auld Yin

Sorry, I can be thick but I don't understand. You stated earlier that you were coming with the minimum. I understand that to be $10,000. If you use some/all of that as a down payment to buy a $50,000 trailer, you would be financing up to $40k at an interest rate considerably higher than the mortgage rate. Mobile homes are financed as consumer goods and not houses as you generally do not own the land. If/when you go to sell the trailer there is a high likelihood its value would have decreased. With an income of $3,500 mthly before taxes, land rental, loan payment and general living expenses, I reckon it would take you quite some time to resave your $10,000. If, on the other hand, you are bringing $50,000, then using that to buy the trailer outright casts a different light on your situation. You could use such an amount as a good down payment on a nice townhouse and qualify for a mortgage in the 4-6% range.

Caitilin

well bother on the chattel mortgage. I figure buying a piece of land is outside the budget for now, i'm guessing i'd need to pay for hydro hookup and all that jazz at that point too. So thats not an option really. and yeah I know I need to research ;-) Thanks though!

Caitilin

Ooh! now thats an idea!

Caitilin

11000, but who's counting. And yes it would, however, at a certain point that debt would clear at which point it would be down to land rental alone, and i figured that loan repayment and land rental will be slightly higher than renting, but not when the loan repayment is cancelled out. If I could bring 50000 that would be an entirely different game, but I figure if I've got to pay to live somewhere I might as well pay towards somehting that is going to be mine for keeps - appreciating or depreciating as it may be.

Unless you suspect I could get a townhouse for 11000 plus whatever income i get? If so, any suggestions on how?