Top 5 Ways a New Manufactured Home Has Become the “Makes Sense” Choice for Aspiring Home Buyers
The high cost and dearth of affordable homes have forced many middle and lower-income families to forego the uniquely American dream of homeownership….at least in the traditional (site-built) sense.
However, it doesn’t necessarily have to be that way. There is another way to realize that dream of possessing a home that meets or exceeds the expectations of the traditional site-built home…..A home built in a factory.
In fact, manufactured housing is quickly becoming the choice of many Americans at all income levels, who have discovered that today’s high-quality manufactured home is “is everything a home should be. … 87% of those polled by the National Association of Realtors cited homeownership as being the number one criteria for defining “the good life.” A manufactured home checks all the boxes for the quality of life homeownership.
Following are the top 5 reasons why owning a manufactured home “makes sense” for families and individuals seeking all the advantages and comforts of homeownership
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- AFFORDABLE QUALITY HOMEOWNERSHIP
Modern manufactured homes are available in multiple square footage floor plans utilizing the same materials as a site-built home with the quality of construction, safety, amenities, energy efficiency, and appearance equal or superior to a comparably sized site-built home, with an acquisition cost of 45% – 55% less. (not including land).
The average sales price of an 1800 sq. ft. four bedroom, two bath multi-section manufactured home will be under $135,000…. Turn key, whereas an average site-built home will typically be from $300.000 to $450,000 (depending on location). A 1,000-square-foot single-section manufactured home will be under $73,000.
- A MANUFACTURED HOME IS A SOUND INVESTMENT
For most Americans, a home is their most valuable asset. Contrary to the popular notion, a manufactured home will actually appreciate or depreciate at or near the same rate as a site-built home. Consider the following validation.
Data from a report by the Urban Institute released by the Federal Housing Agency indicates that the home price index featured an annual growth rate for manufactured homes of 3.4% versus 3.8% for traditional site-built homes.
In recent years, home valuation prices have actually risen at a faster clip for manufactured homes than have site-built homes.
- CUSTOMIZED TO MEET BUYERS’ NEEDS AND WANTS
“Having it your way.” According to many manufactured home purchasers, the ability to have their new home built and equipped exactly to their specific wants and requirements is one of the big advantages of purchasing their new manufactured home.
Manufactured homes are built to order. Purchasers are offered a large selection of floor plans, a plethora of standard features, amenities, upgrades, decors, and exteriors. Customization options to match a homebuyer’s vision are quite common with most manufactured home builders.
- OCCUPANCY WITHIN WEEKS AS OPPOSED TO MONTHS
Because of the efficiencies of the factory building process, similar to the automotive and aeronautical industry, manufactured home builders typically produce completed homes at the rate of three or more per day. Adverse weather conditions do not delay the indoor construction of manufactured housing.
Average construction time from manufacturing delivery to site, installation, and occupancy will average between 6 to 8 weeks. Estimated occupancy for a comparable site-built home is estimated between 6 to 8 months or longer, depending on the weather.
- MULTIPLE FINANCING OPTIONS
Because of significantly lower sales prices of manufactured homes, the required initial investment (down payment) and monthly payments will be considerably less for a manufactured home than a site-built home.
Financing programs are available for manufactured homes either attached to private property utilizing a foundation system which would qualify for conventional and government programs such as FHA, VA, and USDA. etc. ,,,, or a simple home-only (chattel) financing program if a home is not permanently attached to real property.
Home-only financing programs require a higher interest rate than conventional mortgages. However, the site costs, taxes, and fees are significantly higher with real estate financing. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 65% of manufactured home borrowers who took out a manufactured home loan between 2001 and 2010 financed the purchase with a chattel (home-only) loan.
