Lyn Collier asked:




There was a time when experts said that a mobile home was a bad investment. In years past, a home built on a foundation was considered to be the best place to put your money. Foundation homes, for many years, grew in value (appreciated) over time. Mobile homes go down in value (depreciate) over time. That was then. This is now. Things have changed.

Our economy is in a downward turn and is not expected to recover for awhile. Anyone who bought a house three to five years ago and tries to sell that house now will probably have to take less than they paid for it. In the past, those people could have expected to make a healthy profit. Now, they do well just to break even on the sale.

Mobile homes are gaining in popularity because for some people, it is the better alternative to renting. There are two ways to own a mobile home.

#1 Buy land and put a mobile home on it. As my dad used to say about land, “It’s a great investment. After all, they aren’t making any more of it.” That is true. Land is a non-renewable resource. That simply means, that there is a fixed amount of land, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. There is only so much land to go around, right? Because of the fact that land is a non-renewable resource, it will most likely appreciate in value over time. The house that is built on that land may not appreciate. So, the safest way to invest in real estate and do it with the least amount of investment is to buy land and then put a mobile home on it. Lenders will loan money to purchase the land and the mobile home just like they lend to people who are buying a home on a foundation. You can get one loan to pay for both land and mobile home, or you can get two separate loans. One to pay for the land and another to pay for the mobile home.

#2 Buy just the mobile home . If you can’t afford land, you can still do better than renting by purchasing a mobile home and putting it in a mobile home community or park. If you buy the mobile home, you have to have a place to put it, right? When you live in a mobile home community, you pay rent on the lot. Lot rental is usually pretty cheap. Even added to the payment on the mobile home, it is still usually way cheaper than renting a house or apartment. And, if you live there long enough, the mobile home will eventually be all yours.

You may be wondering, “What if I don’t live in it long enough to pay it off?” You can sell the mobile home even if you haven’t paid it off yet, and can sometimes make money on the sale depending on how long you have owned it. I would suggest trying to rent it out, though. That way, someone else is paying your mobile home payment for you, and you are reaping the benefits of paying down the loan.

Judy

Lara Sawyer asked:


Mobile home loans are becoming increasingly popular as the mobile homes technology advances thus increasing the comfort of these homes on wheels. The mobile homes need to be sitting in land that can be provided by the different governments or can be purchased by the mobile home owner. However, it is not the same to get a mobile home loan covering only the vehicle than to obtain a mobile home loan to finance the purchase of the vehicle plus the land where it will be placed.

These two different loan types have particularities that define very different loan terms. It is therefore important to outline in advance what kind of loan product you are looking for. The main topics that you have to address are: the differences between mobile home loans that exclude or include the land where the mobile home sits in, the different regulations of mobile home loans depending on this fact and the ways of obtaining better terms on mobile home loans.

Differences Between Mobile Home Loans With or Without The Land

As explained above, there are two kinds of mobile home loans: Those that include the land where the mobile home will be deposited and those that do not. The first type can sometimes be considered home mortgage loans and other times they are simply mobile home loans. Those loans that do not include the money needed to purchase the property where the mobile home sits in are called chattel loans.

Since mobile homes can be stationed on parks or communities, the land is not a necessary factor and thus, when the applicant can not afford to purchase the land too, simple mobile home loans or chattel loans can provide you with all the finance needed to purchase your mobile home and have your own place to live. Eventually, when your mobile home is paid off, you can try and get approved for a mortgage home loan in order to obtain the land too.

Different Regulations May Alter Your Decision

In some states, just like with manufactured homes, when the loan amount is used not only to purchase the mobile home or manufactured home but also the land where it will stand, these loans can be considered mortgages and thus, you can seize all the benefits in terms of taxes and subsidizes that such category implies. Therefore, you need to check local regulations in order to see whether you can benefit more of a particular loan type or the other.

That is the reason why we say that the different regulations may alter your decision. Because you may have thought that you would rather avoid purchasing land and that you would stick to a regular mobile home loan instead but it is possible that if you chose to get the land too, in some states it may end up being cheaper.

How To Get a Good Deal?

If you want to get a good deal on your mobile home loan whether it includes the land or not, my suggestion is that you search online for mobile home loan lenders and request loan quotes from them to see what they are offering. Try to contact them informally to know their requirements for approval and once you are confident with a particular offer and lender apply for your mobile home loan. That way you will make sure to get if not the best offer, at least a great one.



MYLES