[alliebee]

Thinking about buying a trailer but I would like to buy the lot too... instrad of renting the lot.. In the auburn hills MI area.. is that possible? If so, where?
In the trailer park.. I know I can buy a piece of land but I want a trailer in a park

[MikeBear]

You need to find what is known as a "condominium" trailer park. Then you can buy a lot.

[jackmichigan]

Most mobile home parks in Michigan charge lot rent--because that's where the park developers make their money. I'm not aware of any trailer parks in the area which are set up as condominiums. If MikeBear knows of some trailer parks which are set up that way in Michigan, I'd be interested to read about them.

I would caution the OP that mobile homes are generally terrible investments. They depreciate rapidly and oftentimes put owners underwater on any loans. I consider living in a traditional mobile home park to be the worst of both worlds--you're stuck owning a highly depreciating asset, and you're stuck perpetually paying rent for the lot. Instead of being "affordable" housing, mobile homes are more likely to assure that the occupants stay relatively poor. Mobile home parks in Michigan, with their preferential property tax treatments, largely benefit the mobile home park developers as opposed to the occupants. The rich get richer and the poor stay poor.

Obviously, mobile home park developers have better lobbyists in Lansing.

[zthatzmanz28]

Depending on where you buy and how much you pay, mobile homes do have benefits.

We paid cash for ours in 2012. At the time we had free lot rent for a year.

We not pay $375 month, have trash collection and water and road maintenance. Of course we do not have pool, gym, or other amenities. Our unit is worth as much, or a few thousand more than we paid for it.

Buying a newer unit probably not very cost effective. Most parks have higher rent, the homes start around $30K for a used, $60K and higher for new.

Before we were to spend this on a newer modular, we would definitely go with a brick and mortar structure on a private lot.

[313 TUxedo]

In general, at least in areas that are anything less than extremely rural, local governments make sure that mobile homes are sited only on rented lots. They want to be sure that any new residents that prove to be "troublemakers" can be promptly evicted. Lot rent also is very lucrative for the park owner, since the lot itself needs no upkeep.

That being said, there are a few cases where a mobile home may make more sense than an apartment. In some cases, it's more sq. feet for less money, particularly if the unit is older. If you have kids, you may want four walls instead of two so as to not wake up the neighbors.

If I were in a mobile home, I might worry about leaving a burner on. In an apartment, I would worry if I or any of the 31 other families left a burner on!

Some older MHPs are now renting entire mobile homes with the lot, so one not need worry about unloading the home when it is time to move on.

One other thing- mobile homes seem to be vanishing as fast as typewriters. The whole working-class demographic that mobile homes had appealed is disappearing. If you're not making enough money for a McMansion, you are living in a relative's basement or in your car.

[jackmichigan]

Originally Posted by 313 TUxedo

In general, at least in areas that are anything less than extremely rural, local governments make sure that mobile homes are sited only on rented lots. They want to be sure that any new residents that prove to be "troublemakers" can be promptly evicted.

I doubt that is the reason. I think the real reason that mobile homes are on rented lots is because Michigan's Mobile Home Commission Act was enacted with rental communities in mind. In order to be a licensed mobile home park, it has to be a tract of land under the control of one person (which can be a corporation). So, historically, virtually all mobile home parks have been rental communities.

Most local municipalities don't even want mobile home parks because they pay very little in property taxes relative to the amount of services they require. An occupied mobile home in a licensed mobile home park only pays $3/month as a fee in lieu of property taxes. Fifty cents of that goes to the local municipality (a whopping $6/year if it's occupied all year; $0/month when it's not occupied). Fifty cents goes to the County; and $2/month goes to the State Education Fund. Nothing--zero--nada--goes to the local school district!

The underlying land is subject to property taxes--but the mobile home units basically pay no tax at all: a maximum of $36/year! That's the main reason why local municipalities do not particularly want them in their communities. It requires that other residents pay higher property taxes in order to cover the shortfall caused by mobile home parks.

[313 TUxedo]

Originally Posted by jackmichigan

I doubt that is the reason. I think the real reason that mobile homes are on rented lots is because Michigan's Mobile Home Commission Act was enacted with rental communities in mind. In order to be a licensed mobile home park, it has to be a tract of land under the control of one person (which can be a corporation). So, historically, virtually all mobile home parks have been rental communities.

Most local municipalities don't even want mobile home parks because they pay very little in property taxes relative to the amount of services they require. An occupied mobile home in a licensed mobile home park only pays $3/month as a fee in lieu of property taxes. Fifty cents of that goes to the local municipality (a whopping $6/year if it's occupied all year; $0/month when it's not occupied). Fifty cents goes to the County; and $2/month goes to the State Education Fund. Nothing--zero--nada--goes to the local school district!

The underlying land is subject to property taxes--but the mobile home units basically pay no tax at all: a maximum of $36/year! That's the main reason why local municipalities do not particularly want them in their communities. It requires that other residents pay higher property taxes in order to cover the shortfall caused by mobile home parks.

All true, and the reason there are MHPs on the Michigan side of the state line and apartments on the Ohio side, but a lot of communities also want to make sure that they only draw residents that will be able to afford postgraduate education, which means both a larger tax base and fewer services needed by residents.

In other words, we're both correct :-)

[jackmichigan]

Originally Posted by 313 TUxedo

One other thing- mobile homes seem to be vanishing as fast as typewriters.

I wish.

I guess you haven't seen the mobile home parks which have sprung up across Michigan in the last few years. Many mobile home parks continue to experience high vacancy rates, but that hasn't stopped the developers from building new ones.

[freemkt]

Originally Posted by jackmichigan

I doubt that is the reason. I think the real reason that mobile homes are on rented lots is because Michigan's Mobile Home Commission Act was enacted with rental communities in mind. In order to be a licensed mobile home park, it has to be a tract of land under the control of one person (which can be a corporation). So, historically, virtually all mobile home parks have been rental communities.

Most local municipalities don't even want mobile home parks because they pay very little in property taxes relative to the amount of services they require. An occupied mobile home in a licensed mobile home park only pays $3/month as a fee in lieu of property taxes. Fifty cents of that goes to the local municipality (a whopping $6/year if it's occupied all year; $0/month when it's not occupied). Fifty cents goes to the County; and $2/month goes to the State Education Fund. Nothing--zero--nada--goes to the local school district!

The underlying land is subject to property taxes--but the mobile home units basically pay no tax at all: a maximum of $36/year! That's the main reason why local municipalities do not particularly want them in their communities. It requires that other residents pay higher property taxes in order to cover the shortfall caused by mobile home parks.

Instead of owning mobile homes, the working class is relegated to living in rented dwellings which are exorbitantly taxed in order to subsidize the school district's homeowners. That's class warfare, Michigan style.

[dragon_fly_12]

The only way to come out on top with a MH is to purchase low with cash, pay the "cheap" lot rent for however long you stay there, then sell the unit for at least breaking even on your purchase.

No matter what, you're going to pay for living expenses whether it be a mortgage, rental apartment, or otherwise. The lot rent in a community tends to be lower than most rental apartments.

For example, the "upscale" MHC in Mason, MI charges $430. The lot doesn't really care if you have 1 bedroom or 4 bedrooms, it is $430/mth.

Meanwhile, a decent 1 bedroom apartment in the area starts at $600/mth and can exceed $1000/mth for a 4 bedroom.

The 'gotcha' is the purchasing of a brand new unit and immediately being underwater with the loan.