[MichiganTrap]

Just wondering why Rockwood is adding so many mobile homes? Mobile homes at each entry when coming in from 75N onto Old Fort and on Old Fort and Gibraltar. I heard Gibraltar actually went to court over the one at Old Fort and Gibraltar because of the strain it would put on it's water/sewage systems, but they lost.

Even in the existing neighborhoods lots have been rezoned to allow mobile homes regardless of the residents protests. And these include mobile homes going the wrong direction, mobile homes next to existing homes...or I should say right on top of existing homes. This brings down the value of all the homes in the area. What is kind of hard to swallow too, is that the people putting up the mobile homes within the neighborhood are long time residents (who apparently have the power to pull strings with the city) looking to make a quick buck (not much hope for that now). I doubt highly that they would want a mobile home next to their beautiful brick, nicely landscaped home....

Old Rockwood isn't that great - obviously the people there weren't people who had much money, but it could be kind of a neat place if they would put their efforts into making the main area have an old fashioned. historical feel - maybe play up the train aspect. It would be a great spot for gift shops, a great place to stop on the way to or from having fun on the water.

Instead they keep building gas stations and now a Tim Hortons...and mobile homes.

[scottmi]

Mobile homes are a great buy in Michigan's current economy.

I think way too many people have too high of standards of living when it comes to "WHERE YOU SLEEP / EAT"...let's look at the numbers, alright (not even factoring in property/well/septic/etc.).

You COULD buy a single wide mobile home with 2-3 bedrooms that you could theoretically take with you wherever you lived in or out-of-state even (maybe, depending on state regulations) for $20-$35,000.

You COULD even buy a brand new Modular that is like a stick built house in almost every way for $40 to $75k. You can take that with you also.

Or you COULD buy a regular stick-built home for $150-$200k and once it's up, it's up.

Hmmm.....I'm no mathematician....but unless you have no problem dumping hundreds of thousands of dollars onto a home, I'd go with a mobile home.


And have you even BEEN in Mobile/Modular homes in the past decade or two? The mobile homes now have better fixtures, materials, roofs, etc. than those things you normally think of from the 60s, 70s and 80s.

I think if you are living in Michigan right now where who-knows-how the economy is gonna be in 5, 10 or 20 years....a mobile/modular home is a great buy for people who don't wanna get trapped under a huge mortgage.

[trinkit]

I just HAVE to get involved with this thread.

My husband and I were one of the victims of the foreclosure glut going on in Michigan. We "walked away" from the home in Taylor and paid CASH for a double wide mobile home in Novi. My house was built in 1926 and was in constant need of repair and the old adage applied to us: when you have the time you don't have the money and when you have the money you don't have the time. The mobile home that we bought was an older home (1973) but had ALL the amenities that we wanted: TWO bathrooms (house only had one), and HUGE living room (houses built in 1926 were not built to accommodate a 36" TV). The only things that I missed about the house was the basement (altho it was just a hole in the ground into which most people just shove junk that they never use or need) and the fireplace. The house had a garage, but it had burned down a year before we moved, so we couldn't miss something we no longer had anyway. I loved Novi, even the "mobile home community", because every time I went to Taylor the area just looked so depressed and "dark".

Now to my point: I am now in South Carolina -- no jobs in Michigan and in order to save for retirement in 5 years I needed to make enough to save, which I was NOT doing at my job in Michigan. Being that we OWN our mobile home in Novi, we wanted something similar down here. WELL, I was in for a surprise -- because MOST (98%) of all mobile homes are on PRIVATE property. Granted most of those properties are about 1-2 acres, but there are practically NO mobile home communities in this area. I believe that it is a wave of things to come: people can get more bang for their buck with a manufactured home.

And don't think about moving a mobile home -- it is nearly cost prohibitive. It would cost around $30,000-$40,000 to move our home down here, but it COULD be done, if we chose to do so. But we could put that money towards purchasing another home here.

So, MichiganTrap, perhaps you would be happier living in one of the Pointes, they have their noses in the air too.

[magellan]

Where the heck is Rockwood Michigan? I've never heard of it.

[scottmi]

Originally Posted by magellan

Where the heck is Rockwood Michigan? I've never heard of it.

ROCKWOOD is literally between a rock (ROCK) and a hard place (WOOD) Get it?




Awful attempt at humor. My apologies...

[jmlowman]

...that my geography sucks, so Google Maps to the rescue!

It's between Monroe and Southgate, on I-75.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by jmlowman

...that my geography sucks, so Google Maps to the rescue!

It's between Monroe and Southgate, on I-75.

Where is Monroe and Southgate? You guys are losing me. (and yes, I grew up in Michigan in the Lansing area)

In case you missed my sarcasm, who cares?

[jmlowman]

and I assumed that you wanted a serious answer. Sorry to see that I wasted my time.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by jmlowman

and I assumed that you wanted a serious answer. Sorry to see that I wasted my time.

Not directed at you jmlowman, at the OP.

[CB_AAUGH!]

This whole thing was a little hard to follow, but what I was picking up on is that perhaps there are some nice attributes to certain Michigan communities such as Rockwood. The choices, however, seem to be anywhere from a mobile home (modular home) dropped in an existing 70's era city block or some high end homes also totally out of character for nice older areas and financially out of reach for most of the people already living in the area. Perhaps mobile homes can be nice but cities and the developers disregard the current residents of these cities in both extremes. I think the point is that when all of this boom building was going and all of the interest only loans and stuff like that was happening where was anything sensible being built? The people in city government can not be expected to look out for long term residents any more than J.G looks out for the general welfare of our state's residents every time she says she is going to cut the police force and let the criminals out of jail if she can't get a tax increase. Not too long ago local cable TV had the Canton planning commission hearings for an Indian temple to be built in an area zoned residential. I watched as residents on each side of the spot voiced their concerns which included the expected impact on the values of their properties. One person pled that they were planning to sell this property with the proceeds to go to their retirement. They explained they had an offer which was pulled because of the proposed temple, citing reasons such as noise and traffic. Nothing that anyone said mattered. This temple was a second facility to be built directly across from a first one. The structure, which is currently under construction, is huge and sandwiched right between existing houses. Mobile homes, mansions and Indian temples what is the difference? The mobile homes dropped in residential blocks rank right in there with the same lack of regard for long term residents shown in other cities. None of this is meant to say anything negative about people who have found living in a mobile home a good thing. As far as changing zoning against the will of the residents of Gibraltar and Rockwood, the construction of the mobile home park downriver might have something to do with the way the state can tax the land and taxes on the sale of the home because I think that they are titled like a vehicle. As far as living in the Pointes I would not suggest that to MITrap and I think that this was an unmerited remark that did not reflect or constructively address what was being said. Taylor by the way is being fixed up quite a bit by a civil engineering and planning company called Wade Trim and also has some pretty dumb looking football bridge that wasted millions of dollars to update anyone who has been out of Michigan for a while.