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Financial Options Available When Buying a Mobile Home

Financial Options Available When Buying a Mobile Home

Getting approval to buy a home can be difficult to do, especially if you have limited funding available or if you have damaged your credit history in the past. Many people who are looking to start off their life on the right foot or who are looking to start over again, often find that mobile homes are a great option to consider. A mobile home provides you with a great place to live without the high price tag that comes with traditional stick-built houses.

Save Money Over Time

Since mobile homes aren’t overly expensive, many people choose to save up their money over time and pay for them outright. It often takes just a few years to be able to afford to buy a mobile home without any financing through a private lender at all. If you want to pay for a home outright, it’s a good idea to do some research before you even start saving. You need to know exactly how much the home will cost, including transportation costs and the cost to purchase or rent a piece of property to put the home on. This allows you to know how much you truly need to save in order to reach your goal.

Borrow Money from Friends and Family

If you have a poor credit rating or have no credit history at all, it can sometimes be difficult to get a loan to buy a house. This is where friends and family can sometimes come into play. Your friends and family may allow you to borrow money to buy a mobile home since they aren’t overly expensive to buy.

You need to be sure that you establish how much you are going to buy from them and how much your payments will be to them each month before agreeing to borrow the money. You need to be diligent in paying the money back as money can create chaos in a relationship if it is not paid back the way that it was promised to be. It’s a good idea to put everything in writing so that the person you are borrowing money from knows that you are serious about paying the money back to them.

Rent to Own the Mobile Home

Many people who own mobile homes don’t want to have to go through the hassle of selling the home and having someone move it. They will often choose to rent out their homes in the location where it stands instead of selling it. If you find a home that is available for rent that you really like, talk to the homeowner about possibly renting to own the home. You will pay a fee each month, and a portion of the fee that you pay will go toward the purchase of the home.

It’s important to make sure that a contract is created by a lawyer that ensures that it is clearly stated how much of the payment you make each month goes toward the cost of purchasing the house. The agreement also needs to state the final cost of purchasing the home and if the property that the home sits on is included in the purchase. If the home is located in a mobile home community, you can choose to continue living in the same place or have the home moved once you finish paying for it.

Owner-Finance the Home

If you want to purchase a home and don’t want to worry about the hassle of renting it, look for a mobile home that is available with an owner financing option. When someone owns a mobile home that they no longer want, they often allow people to pay for it over time.

The owner may allow you to move into the home before you finish paying for it, but many times they require a large sum of the home to be paid for before allowing you to move into it. This is because they are taking such a risk to offer to finance on their own. They will charge an interest rate for the financing and expect you to pay a minimum payment each month toward the home. It will work the same way that it would if you got a mortgage from a traditional lender, only your credit history more than likely won’t come into play.

Traditional Home Loan

Traditional lenders are banks or mortgage brokers who specialize in the financing of homes. They will offer you the ability to pay for the mobile home over time but may require you to put down a down payment for the home. Traditional lenders do take your credit history into account and will often need to know how much money you make each month, what your other outstanding debts are, and take a few weeks or even months to approve your loan. They will charge interest on the loan, but many lenders will allow you to pay off your debt quickly in order to avoid some of the interest charges that come with the loan. It is often much easier to get approval for a traditional loan when buying a mobile home because their asking price for the homes is a fraction of what a stick-built house will be.

You will need to prove to a traditional lender that the home is in good condition and is habitable. They may send an inspector to the home to look it over before approving your home loan. This is to ensure that they aren’t putting their money at risk by lending money towards a home that you won’t actually be able to live in once you get the loan.

Once you get financing for the home, you can go through with the purchase of the property. A mobile home can be a great starter home because it often doesn’t put people into as much of a financial bind as stick-built homes do. They are also very easy to upkeep, and because of the small size it often doesn’t take as much money to furnish them as traditional homes do.

New or Used? Which Type of Mobile Home is Right for You?

New or Used? Which Type of Mobile Home is Right for You?

If you want to own your home, but don’t need anything too large, a mobile home may be a great option to consider. Mobile homes are often far less expensive than traditional homes and can be transported if you decide to relocate in the future. It can be difficult to decide if you should purchase a used mobile home or a new one, though. The following guide walks you through a few of the benefits that come with buying each so that you can decide which option is right for you.

Rest Assured Everything is in Great Condition When Buying a New Mobile Home

When you buy a new home, you don’t have to worry about anything needing to be repaired in it. It will arrive in the best condition that it will ever be in. When you purchase a used mobile home, there may be issues that need to be addressed before you can live comfortably in the home.

Get a Warranty When Buying a New Home

A new mobile home will come with some sort of warranty that if certain things go wrong within the home within a specific amount of time, the company will have them repaired for you. This could save you a lot of money in the long run as home repairs can be quite costly. It’s important to make sure that you understand the stipulations of the warranty before buying the home so that you can know what you are responsible for and what the warranty actually covers.

New Homes Have Newer Technology

When you purchase a new home, you can rest assured that it has up-to-date appliances and equipment in it. Most mobile homes now come with energy-efficient appliances, water heaters and heating and cooling systems. Having energy-efficient options saves you money on your monthly energy costs. Having new appliances and equipment also makes it less likely that anything will go on the fritz in the near future which decreases your home upkeep costs.

Transportation Costs Are Often Included with the Purchase of a New Mobile Home

Mobile home dealers often work with transportation companies on a regular basis. They work out a deal with the company to minimize the overall cost that the dealers have to pay for the transportation of the homes that they sell. This allows them to include transportation costs in the asking price of the home, which can make the house more appealing to buyers. Not having to worry about how the home is going to be moved makes the whole process much easier. With the purchase of a used mobile home from a private seller, you have to figure out all of the transportation details on your own.

New Homes Can be Customized to Suit Your Needs

There are many times when you purchase a new mobile home before it is even built. You get to walk through a model of what the home will look like when it is finished but have the ability to customize it any way you see fit before it is finished being built. This allows you to create the home of your dreams from the start. If you purchase a used home, you may have to remodel it to make it feel like home to you. This could be quite costly and time-consuming in the end.

Used Mobile Homes Cost Far Less Than Newer Ones

If you are on a limited budget or simply want to minimize the amount of money you spend on your home, a used mobile home may be a great option for you. They are often in great condition and will last you for years without the hefty price tag that comes with newer models. In order to ensure that you are getting the most bang for your buck, price compare other similar mobile homes that are for sale and have the home inspected by a professional. This allows you to have peace of mind that there are no major repairs, you’ll have to pay to have done in the near future.

Buying a Used Mobile Home Can Sometimes Negate All Moving Costs

It’s very common for used mobile homes to be situated on a property where they can stay. You may have to pay a monthly fee to keep the home on location, but it will save you a lot of money because you won’t have to pay to move it. Take the time to find out if there are any rules or regulations for the property where the home is located. You want to be sure that you can abide by those guidelines before buying the home because if it doesn’t work out, you’ll have to pay to have it moved or sell it to someone else.

Used Mobile Homes Are Often Affordable to Repair

Since used mobile homes are often a year or more old, finding the necessary parts to make repairs is often easier than it is for newer models. Repairing a used mobile home is often far more affordable than a newer model because repair companies already have experience working on them and can gain access to the necessary parts with ease.

Financing for a Used Home Can Sometimes be Easier

When you need to finance the purchase of your mobile home, it can sometimes be easier to get financing for a used model. This is because the cost is often far less and because the home often doesn’t have to be moved. Since the home doesn’t cost as much, your monthly payments will be lower, too.

It’s important to keep an open mind when it comes to buying a mobile home. There are homes available in every price range imaginable, so it’s best to sit down and determine how much you can really afford to spend on your new home. Talk to a mobile home dealer in your area and find out what options are available to you. Mobile home dealers sell not only new mobile homes but often have quite a few used options available for purchase too.