It sounds like your area is similar to mine. Mobile homes are valuable if they are in a park (even old models) but are worth nothing if they are not. This is due to the scarcity of park spaces and the anti mobile home zoning.
Check out prices, what other mh’s are selling for and are offfered for. Find out what you can reasonably get.
In a nice park, I wouldn’t hesitate to buy it if I thought I could sell it again at a profit.
One of the difficulties in selling is that MH’s are harder to finance than houses. But if you get it for little or nothing you can afford to sell it on time payments, in other words you act as the bank/finance company and collect payments at 12 3/4 %.
MOBILE HOME NUMBERS LOOK IMPOSSIBLE - Posted by jerry-IL
Posted by jerry-IL on January 15, 2003 at 19:53:36:
A seller offered his mobile home for sale in June for 26k. It was supposedly worth 52k new and is 25 years old. It’s a 14X70 with 2 BR, 2Ba, central air, pretty deluxe, lots of extras and is in a quiet well-kept park. I never investigated because he told me two things that made me move on: 1. No renters allowed and 2. Monthly park fee of $600. That includes a pool on the premises, tennis courts, clubhouse, snow removal, taxes, etc.
Now he called me back 7 months later saying he’s desperate. He’s paying the $600/month + utilities, etc. and his wife has moved with his kids out of state waiting for him to sell it. He can’t move until he sells it and she’s bugging him daily. Motivated, right?
Someone wanting to rent an apartment in the area can pay as little as $800 for a 2BR, so that’s a factor. Since I have no idea whether or not this is worth messing with, I’m trying to imagine this scenario: He GIVES the thing to me just to get rid of the monthly bleeding of probably $8-900/month. So now I am the one with the bleeding. If HE couldn’t sell it in the seven months since I found out about it (and probably longer) will I just be taking over his problems? Or is the advantage of getting it free enough to force this into a “should-do” situation? I can stomach the $800/ month for a long time, but I am so lacking in knowledge of the possible dangers that I’m concerned about getting involved. Is a 25-year-old unit undesirable just because of it’s age, etc.
Posted by Craig-SoMD on January 16, 2003 at 11:45:20:
Hey, if you have a way that you can become the bank, creating an opportunity for a buyer(and maintaining the right to repossess), there is money even on this deal, particularly if you can get in for nothing. Lot rent sucks, but find a way to create a deal for a buyer.
Jerry,
The answers are in your post. It’s a 25 year old mobile home that he can’t sell, in a park with lot rent of 600 a month. You buy it and the lot rent becomes your problem in an area where you can rent for 800 a month.
No deal here. If you want to look into mobile homes, hop over to the mobile home board. Lots of ideas there on how to make tons of money with older homes in parks.
All the best, Lyal
Re: MOBILE HOME NUMBERS LOOK IMPOSSIBLE - Posted by Mark-WV
Posted by Mark-WV on January 15, 2003 at 20:48:15:
Jerry ,
I would post this on the mobile forum, but off the top of my head and I’m not a tin can guy those numbers seem way out of line 26 k for a mobile thats that old ,come on I can buy one now for less than that !! NEW 14x70 in todays paper 3 /2 for 21k