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I've been kicking around where to relocate in the next few years, without going into great detail. There are many options and places and I am intrigued by the cost of mobile homes/park models as opposed to a condo.
The condo's are more expensive than the mobile homes but the HOAs are lower - the higher MH fees reflect space rent in addition to paying for amenities. Neither includes property tax.
When I am in my mid-60s and have to make a decision, should I care about the condo being a better long-term investment? The MH's I am looking at are in lovely parks and right near the beach. Condo's are also lovely but further away from beach. The HOA's for a condo may be around $400 a month; $1,000 for the MH.
Location: Was Midvalley Oregon; Now Eastside Seattle area
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Condo because it's further from the beach and hopefully a little higher in the event of a storm surge. Check the FEMA floor zone maps and the property insurance.
Condo because it's further from the beach and hopefully a little higher in the event of a storm surge. Check the FEMA floor zone maps and the property insurance.
OP is in OR; I don't know for sure but am going to presume west coast. With a few exceptions, you get well above sea level very quickly out there.
How often there are severe storms would be a big factor for me.
Not to mention the fact that they are probably going to be worth a lot less if you have to sell unexpectedly and may not sell any quicker than a condo in the wrong location. An unexpected need to sell can and does happen. What I also wonder is how to compare a MH's rate of depreciation as compared to a local real estate market value.
IMHO if I was seriously searching for property neither would be my choice.
Couldn't pay me to purchase a mobile home. Husband's brother bought a used one in a park without an inspection, it was a cash deal, lots of rotten flooring, lot rent is up to $600....they hate it!
Problem with Condos is you share walls and stinky loud neighbors create problems. I have 2 Condos in 2 Complexes I can't sell because the HOA is suing the builder over faulty construction and Lenders will not make a loan until the lawsuit is settled. They are starting to all be leased out which almost turns them into apartments which then creates new types of problems.
A good MH in a good community ain't that bad but I'd check it all out and do my homework. Condos will retain value better normally.
Almost everyone will say condo but I would say MH. It's because when my parents retired, they sold their home and bought a small house in Florida. To maintain ties with New England, they purchased a little mobile home in an age restricted park up here.
I loved that mobile home. They had their own yard with a garden and a shed. A huge screened in porch to sit and read on. Peace and quiet. Privacy.
To me a condo is like an apartment because of the feeling of living in a box. No offense to condo dwellers--and I live in an apartment now.
When I first came on CD, I was interested in mobile home parks and was warned that the problem is that the lot rents can go way up or the park owners can sell out and what do you do then?
My parents' place had switched to a co-op system in which they all owned the land together. That made it expensive to move in but it gave everyone peace of mind. (I never did find a mobile home park by the ocean but it could have been great.)
I hate HOAs, but if my only option was a condo vs a mobile home in a park, I'd choose condo hands-down.
A condo, in theory, would increase in value. A mobile home has a lot of problems regarding potential long-term problems.
For one, the mobile home park may decide to shut down or sell the park to someone else who no longer wants to use the property as a mobile home park. Now, you start looking for another park to move your MH to, and discover that no other MH parks will accept MHs as old as yours.
And then, you probably have a contract that says you need to remove the MH if they ever sell the park. And now, you're trying to find a mover to move the MH and find somewhere to basically throw it away, which you may not be able to even find, and if you could, will also cost an arm and a leg.
And if you try to buy land to put it on, you'll learn the building codes don't allow you to put a MH on your land that is as old as yours.
Plus, a MH park is owned by a private individual who can raise your rents at any time. At least with a condo HOA, there is a board that decides on raising HOA dues, and owners can voice their opinions at the meetings and vote on things that require owner votes.
A MH also depreciates with age, like a car does. If you're selling it, and it was built 30 years ago, it won't have increased in value most likely. It will be a 30 year old trailer. Of course, you can "sell" it by spending money on upgrades, etc., but a 30 year old trailer is still a 30 year old trailer.
Condos are also difficult to sell, because they are harder for buyers to finance, and they may have rules about your ability to rent them out.
So, neither option is perfect, but condos are a much better investment than MHs by a mile.
I do understand the attractiveness of having some yard space and not sharing walls. But, you need to weigh everything and make an informed decision. The risk, in my opinion, of ending up with an old trailer I can't move anywhere if/when the owners decide to sell the property - wouldn't be worth it to me.
What you might want to look into, though, is getting financing to put a new mobile home on a piece of land that you would own. That, I think, would be a great investment.
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