Comparably priced stick built homes in the same area appreciated an average of 5% per year over that 5 year period. That is what my comparison was made with.
Modular Homes
- Thread starter sd900climber
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Comparably priced stick built homes in the same area appreciated an average of 5% per year over that 5 year period. That is what my comparison was made with.
I agree. My brother is in the concrete business in the Edmonton area, and it's been bizarre for quite a while. To make a long story short, when his house was built, it took an extra 6 months and when it was done, the homebuilder offered him a cheque for 100K to NOT move in. He got sick of renting and moved in anyway. He paid 230K for his and has been in it for 2 years now. The house next door which is nearly identical has sold 3 times in that period and the last time it went for 413K. The boom has spilled eastward into Saskatchewan now. Even where I live, based on what houses have sold for in the past year, the value of my house has over doubled in less than a year. There's 3 contractors in the immediate area, and if you want them to build you one from the ground up, you're waiting a minimum of 18 months before they can even think about starting.
To get back to the RTM thing, my g/f's dad works for a builder in Saskatchewan (does the front end paper-pushing). I've had a real good look at the ones they build and anyone who tells me they aren't any better than a site built home is off their rocker. Sure, in some areas of the US, people can be super choosey because the market is in the toilet. At the same time, a lot of those same houses were stuck up as cheap as possible at the time.
It is funny how people define depreciate. If your place say doubles in price in 10 years how much did you pay out of pocket now subtract that value? Houses are not a good investment if you are looking for a return on your dollar. I decided i wanted acreage and i wasnt going to live in another split entry. I have had a moduler for 7 years on a basement and love it. Not the top notch quality everywhere, but i dont work for my house payment either. I like to have all other toys a want (and a healthy retirement account).
To each his own.
my .02
Beels
couldnt agree more. When they were slapping up the 1000sq split entries around the midwest, i swear they went start to finish in 30 days.
To each his own.
my .02
Beels
couldnt agree more. When they were slapping up the 1000sq split entries around the midwest, i swear they went start to finish in 30 days.
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Sounds like you DO know the diff between a modular and a trailer/mobile home ( or manufactured home).
COMMON misuse of terms would be to call anything that isn't site built a "modular".
MODULAR homes are NOT very common. Mobiles (manufactured homes or trailer houses) are WAY more common.
MODULAR homes are built in sections and hauled in on a trailer or truck. The home is assembled and finished and the transport frame is removed. They are NO LONGER portable after this has been done. They look like a site built home after it's done.
MANUFACTURED homes are built and almost completely finished at a factory, have HUD inspectors and secifications to meet before departure. After set-up, they are still portable as long as you have the axles and tires. The frame has not been removed and are still able to be towed down the highway. BIG difference between that and modular homes.
A lack of appreciation is all a matter of location and timing...and market.
Hmmmm houseing markets are that predictable?
Can I look into your crystal ball for a sec?
I could take you into homes that you would NEVER know it wasn't stick built. QUALITY. You wouldn't believe it until I proved to you it was a "trailer" house.
COMMON misuse of terms would be to call anything that isn't site built a "modular".
MODULAR homes are NOT very common. Mobiles (manufactured homes or trailer houses) are WAY more common.
MODULAR homes are built in sections and hauled in on a trailer or truck. The home is assembled and finished and the transport frame is removed. They are NO LONGER portable after this has been done. They look like a site built home after it's done.
MANUFACTURED homes are built and almost completely finished at a factory, have HUD inspectors and secifications to meet before departure. After set-up, they are still portable as long as you have the axles and tires. The frame has not been removed and are still able to be towed down the highway. BIG difference between that and modular homes.
A lack of appreciation is all a matter of location and timing...and market.
Hmmmm houseing markets are that predictable?
Can I look into your crystal ball for a sec?
I could take you into homes that you would NEVER know it wasn't stick built. QUALITY. You wouldn't believe it until I proved to you it was a "trailer" house.
as a real estate appraiser stick homes will always out perform and are more durable, in my opinion. There are big differnces modular Vs moble.
Will there be an FHA plate on the back? Most companies will not loan money to modular style homes.
Will there be an FHA plate on the back? Most companies will not loan money to modular style homes.
See, that is what I don't get. Lenders will loan you money for crappy spec homes that were thrown up in a month by questionable builders hoping to make a quick dollar on the "housing boom". Everything done on the cheap, corners cut, crappy materials, etc.
But, a house that is built stronger, heavier, in a controlled environment by experienced craftsmen, gets a raw deal b/c the public can't wrap their mind around the difference between a modular home and a manufactured home.
Perception is a B*tch sometimes.
Our housing market sucks b/c these ppl who retire in CA, NY, FL, and are coming to the Black Hills to get out of the concrete jungle, sell their old average homes for $750k-1M in those states, can come here and build practically anything they want. As a result, all houses go up in price, whether they deserve it or not. And, we first time home buyers take it in the shorts.
you have to understand banks are very conserative and they do not want to loan against homes that even remotely look like (trailers) moble homes. In my opinion I like you have been misled on modular home quality. See that comment that fosgate, a insurance rep, saw. I think they are NOT as durable.
I don't understand how they can't be as durable. I will agree, modulars were not built as well more than 10 years ago, but I believe they've come a long way the past 5-10 yeares quality wise strictly b/c of competition.
Also, they weigh typically 20% more than stickbuilt houses because they use more materials in order to be able to be transported from the factory and withstand being moved on a crane. I believe they use twice the floor joices as necessary. Also, as I mentioned in my first post, they are built to the UBC codes of your state, and often times exceed the minimums.
Also, the ones I have been looking at don't look anything like a trailer. I wouldn't even consider them if the did. Most of them offer "pods" that jutt out in every direction.
For example
or
Neither of those houses look anything like trailers. You can even get log homes that are modular.
ice, as an appraiser myself, it is comments like yours that frustrate me. Mckissock.com has a class you need to take on the difference between factory built homes, manufactured homes and mobile homes as well as how to appraise them, also you need to get a copy of the Fannie Mae selling guide that lenders use to reference when doing loans and see how the lending world look at the different types of construction methods.
now before all of you set me on fire, Ice knows that these comments are not meant to be mean but Ice will understand where i am coming from if he has been trained properly.
Factory built homes are considered to be any structure not built on site, so that could be a panelized home, HUD code structure (manufactured home) sectional home, a box house or pod construction, geo dome shipped to the site and even some log houses may have factory built qualities.
"One of every 10 homes built in the Northeast is a modular. the Northeast accounted for 29% of the total national modular construction; followed closely by the South Atlantic region, with 26% of the total. In 2001, the most popular states for modular construction were North Carolina, Michigan, and New York.
Because factory built dwelings have to travel down the road, they are built stronger. There is typically 20% to 30% more lumber used in the framing and most factories glue, as well as nail and screw, the various components together" Referenced from Mckissock realestate and appraisal school, Class name, Made in America, Appraising Factory built housing
to the original poster, no one on this board will be able to tell you what your house will do in the next ten years i.e. appreciate or depreciate, real estate markets are tricky and very dynamic. Only a properly trained professional certified appraiser or knowledgable REALTOR can help you with market trands in your area.
modular homes are better than they used to be and I will not comment on how your investment will perform in your market as I don't know what type of home you are looking at, whether it be a typical 2 section home, muti sectional, two story or custom factory built house.
I will say that in my area, laramie county, market participants here treat modulars similar to stickbuilt homes with no appreciable amount of discount for the construction methods. Homes in laramie county were appreciating equally in 2002-2006 regardless of construction with our local market stabilizing from latter 2006 to present. My opinion is that modular homes of good quality (be sure to read good quality) perform similar to stickbuilt homes in our market. Your market may be different.
factory built homes are built to UBC code, manufactured homes are built to hud code. There is no fha sticker on homes as stated by another poster. Manufactured homes have hud tags on them which indicate the home conforms to HUD standards. factory built homes do not have an exterior tag on them but some will have a manufacturer tag on the interior to give you information on model, builder, state of origin and so on.
for the purpose of this thread I have left out on frame modulars and off frame manufactured homes and they are not common to the west.
Now that being said i await the flaming I am sure to take. Disco will be in on this one i am sure.
there are many other factors on this issue and I am sure that none of us have 8 hours to spend (which is how long it would take to hammer all this out)
for this question
thanks
Jay Byers
The Appraisal Co
Cert WY Residential #729
my credentials if any one cares
no such thing as a fha plate ice.
fannie mae and freddy mac loan millions every year on manufactured homes as well as other factory built homes.
Modulars are just like cars, some are Cadilacs and some are Yugos. You just need to shop. Most of the best built modulars are not much cheaper in price than the same floor plan stick built. You can't get all the same floor plans & designs with a modular, that you can stick building. Remember, a modular needs to go down the road some how. There are some very good modular home companies out there. Some trailer and / or mobile home manufacturers try to pass their products off as modulars. Most modulars are built better than the same floor plan in a stick built because it needs to go on one road trip, and it is built in an controled enviroment. Been there and done both. You need to shop, do your homework, and ask for references. Just my .02 Good Luck
P.S. even a good appraiser has a hard time telling a home is a good modular from a stick built
P.S. even a good appraiser has a hard time telling a home is a good modular from a stick built
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i will move the camero on blocks and old washing machine to see if i can find the tag.hhahaha just having fun
I have a manfacture tag but no FHA. i dont make a million $$ a year and had no problem getting a loan. They referred to mine a manufacutured. I will take mine over a thrown together stick built house by some fly by night place builders that was in MN 5 years ago. Unless you have looked at them...
D
Disco Dan Richter
Well-known member
Ok, here is what you need to do. Do not buy the trailer(modular), unless it is a last resort. A mod is a mod is a mod, none are better than the other, they are all built cheap as possible, but you dont know the half of it. If you could see behind the walls, you would chit yerself. (every mod, I mean every mod, in windy conditions, will leak at the windows and outlets)They are all built to save money, and most of that comes from labor costs and materials. I have worked on hundreds of Mods over the years, and have NEVER seen one yet that is close to 100 percent fully satisfactory in quality.
Oh yea, I know, a lot of people say they are happy, but look at the details and compare. If you are having trouble finding a builder that will be affordable, look around. There are a lot of builders that will bargain right now because of the recession, so dont be afraid to state your budget. I am a custom builder, and I have on numerous occasions, come down in price just to help out people(good karma) and I warranty wy work! All states and provinces have to implement a warranty to protect the homeowner. I have a 10 year warranty on structural(of course, it will never be needed) and a 1 year on workmanship. In effect, if something fails because of how I installed it, I fix it free.(in 12 years, not once has it happened) I have had customers that have broke things, crashed cars into garages walls, all kinds of crap, but I fixed it anyway, for free.(once again, good karma). There are a lot of good builders out there, just ry looking first. There are some mods that are decent, but in the end, you have to disclose it as a manufactured house if you try to sell, you cant call it a custom built home. Real estate laws apply here, and.............you have to have different insurance, different financing.................there is a reason for this.
But, if you need to save the money, you gotta do what you gotta do. Good luck either way.
Oh yea, I know, a lot of people say they are happy, but look at the details and compare. If you are having trouble finding a builder that will be affordable, look around. There are a lot of builders that will bargain right now because of the recession, so dont be afraid to state your budget. I am a custom builder, and I have on numerous occasions, come down in price just to help out people(good karma) and I warranty wy work! All states and provinces have to implement a warranty to protect the homeowner. I have a 10 year warranty on structural(of course, it will never be needed) and a 1 year on workmanship. In effect, if something fails because of how I installed it, I fix it free.(in 12 years, not once has it happened) I have had customers that have broke things, crashed cars into garages walls, all kinds of crap, but I fixed it anyway, for free.(once again, good karma). There are a lot of good builders out there, just ry looking first. There are some mods that are decent, but in the end, you have to disclose it as a manufactured house if you try to sell, you cant call it a custom built home. Real estate laws apply here, and.............you have to have different insurance, different financing.................there is a reason for this.
But, if you need to save the money, you gotta do what you gotta do. Good luck either way.
900 you have already made up your mind.....buy the home of your dreams.
disco good post! 900 I would reread that post.....I see lots of fit and finish issues on mods.
My parents bought a modular home. The thing made noises when you walked around the house. There were 1" spaces in between the edge of the wall and the ceiling, which was covered up by molding. When I was in my room, and there was a light on in another room, I could see light coming through the ceiling.
My friend that builds houses put it to me this way.....take a board, nail another board to it at a 90 degree angle, then pull it back and forth. This is what happens when you pull this house down the interstate for 900 miles.
My friend that builds houses put it to me this way.....take a board, nail another board to it at a 90 degree angle, then pull it back and forth. This is what happens when you pull this house down the interstate for 900 miles.
A modular is NOT a trailer.
A window vender is only as good as that vendor. Around here, I've seen the SAME Low-E, Argon filled vinyl windows in "trailers" as I do in stick built houses. SAME windows. BTW, with the leaks, are you talking about the weep holes, or something else?
What outlest leak? You mean the power boxes and recepts?
"P.S. even a good appraiser has a hard time telling a home is a good modular from a stick built"
uuuuhhhhh what,
for those of us who have been trained and taught properly and take the time to look at the property, along with numerous classes from professional educators they are not difficult to spot.
if your appraiser cannot spot the difference between the two types of construction then you need to fire them immediately and call the lender to send out another professional appraiser that has competency.
uuuuhhhhh what,
for those of us who have been trained and taught properly and take the time to look at the property, along with numerous classes from professional educators they are not difficult to spot.
if your appraiser cannot spot the difference between the two types of construction then you need to fire them immediately and call the lender to send out another professional appraiser that has competency.
" Do not buy the trailer(modular), "
Disco.
Figured you would be along
How are ya doin, I haven't even posted since last time we had this discussion. I see you haven't taken the time to look into the differences in factory built housing construction methods since last time either.
Disco.
Figured you would be along
How are ya doin, I haven't even posted since last time we had this discussion. I see you haven't taken the time to look into the differences in factory built housing construction methods since last time either.
It all comes down to, you get what you pay for, but you need to do your homework. I've seen the best modular company put the quality of a shoddy custom stick builder to shame. Most trailers are not in the same league as any stick or modular home. They are one step up from a camper.
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