Mobile Homes

[Shaun]

Lookin at a few mobile homes and im just curious if anybodies livin in or ever had any dis issues in one..

[fuentejps]

horrible investment

[SCI-Nurse]

horrible investment

I agree. The depreciation is really steep, and you will not be able to get any money out of it if you ever want to try to sell. In addition, they are difficult to make accessible, and require ramping as well as rental of space to keep them (unless you own land where you are allowed to keep them). They are magnet for natural disasters like tornados and other wind/weather systems too.

(KLD)

[medic1]

What kind of mobile home are you talking about? are talking the trailers? doublewides? or are you talking like the prefab homes that they deliver and put on a real foundation?

I had a prefab home, came in two sections. It is an open floor plan which works well, but there is going to be some issues if I wanted to make it truley accessible. Because they are built off site, and brought to your site, there are certain things like metal beams and such that are difficult to work with. I would need doorways widened for sure on the bathrooms and bedrooms

My chair fits fine through front door and has plenty of space through the living room, kitchen and family room.

[LindaT]

We lived in a mobile home for a couple years about 15 yrs ago. (before SCI)
The advantage over an apartment was that we had our own small yard, could have a dog (we also had a small fenced in area for her going out a back door) and no one making noise on the other side of the wall. It was a nice mobile home park. It was a good option when we could not afford to buy a house.
The downside was that the lot rent always went up and of course depreciation. (renting is not building an asset either)
We were flooded out and our insurance paid the loan off and totaled it out. We then were able to buy a house we lived in until Dave's SCI.
Our neighbors at the lake bought a prefab that came in 2 parts. They were able to chose their floorplan as was built for them. Not sure if this helps answer your question.

[CapnGimp]

I grew up in one. Mom bought it and the land in 68. Both are still there and being lived in to this day. She and I did some additions, remodeling and I kept it up over the years til she sold it on the mid 80s.
They are easy to remodel/modify if you know what you are doing, like everything. If you know the mfg, go to the plant where they are made and have them customize it as it is being built. We did that years ago at Norris here in Bean Station. It's one of those 'wha ya know' things. Hope you can find a place to help you. If not, once again they are easily modded.
Doublewides, as a rule, have less confined space hallways and rooms. Also it would be easy to get to the sub/flooring to shore up any heavy machinery(weights) or lifts you would install. As one who has built from the ground up, remodeled, purchased and owned mobile homes, I say they are a low cost way of owning a home, and NOT swearing away ur next 30 years of income. Go used and never go in debt. That is what I did. Remodel and still have a boatload of saved money.
Almost everyone has a ramp if they have a wc, and to suggest that they maJIkally call storms upon themselves is ludicrous, and a backwards OPINION. Hardly something I would expect from someone who insists on 'science' when speaking medically, lol. Shame on eWe.

Number one is setting them up PERMANENT to insure long life. THIS is where most fail. A permanent foundation is where it's at.

[bon08]

Hello,

I have lived in (2) mobile homes. 1 single wide and 1 double wide. I like them. They have a lot more storage than a house and you won't pay the bank as much interest.

I'd recommend buying one that someone else has already paid to set up on a foundation and all (plumbing, septic, electric etc). Hopefully, find one where the seller has put on front & back porches and good double pane windows - then it will feel like a house.

You won't make a lot on resale, but who cares at least the bank didn't make a ton of money off of you on interest.

I live in a house now - $600 interest a month to gain a $100 a month tax savings.

The worst thing I did was do a roof over (the interlocking panels) on my double wide. I wanted the insulation. As time passes, the ground under the home shifted. I wish I had left the shingles.

Also ,you don't want the old gray colored water lines. They leak - you fix one leak and create/discover a leak in another place.

The heat and a/c in my mobile homes were a LOT more efficient and cheaper in a mobile home.

I hope this helps. Good luck in making your decision.

[canuck]

If you have your own land to put it I would say go for it, but a lot of people in BC have been hit hard when the pad rent goes way up or the land owner decides his land would be more valuable if it wasn't a trailer park anymore, or you're on first nations land......

[Shaun]

Not looking at making an investment! My house is bought and paid for..im looking at maybe buying another little place on the coast (Vancouver Island)to set up shop for a couple 2 or 3 years and there are no apartments in the area im looking. Just curious if anyone had any issues with wheelin space in a mobile be it single wide or double

[Shaun]

Thanks for the info guys! Trailers im looking are in parks and already established

[AlexAgain]

I lived in one - a single
pros - I removed the wall between kitchen/living room and between the 2 bedrooms and between the laundry/bathroom. Because they are not support walls there is no problem to do that and then there is lots of space.
cons - the hallway was really narrow. my 14 inch seat chair fit no problem but I did have a couple friends with wider chairs who's wheels rubbed going down the hall. And if I forgot something halfway down the hall I either had to continue to the end and turn around or back up (which I couldnt seem to do).

Funny thing about my trailer - I replaced all the carpet with laminate and in the long narrow hallway they laid the flooring so that the lines were vertical and it looked like a bowling lane. My trailer seems to slope a bit toward the back so if I came in late (and drunk) I could aim my chair down the hall and it would roll until it crashed in to the bed and I could just tumble in. :)

It was pretty easy to ramp. I actually sold mine for about $15000 more than I paid for it but I had done about $5000 in renovations.

[Shaun]

Great! Thanks Alex,it was the hall and making the turns into the rooms off of it i was wondering about. How wide would a chair have to be to rub!? Im in a 15'' so im not to worried about it,just curious...didnt tink they were that narrow

[AlexAgain]

Not sure but the chair was quite a bit wider than mine that wouldn't fit - maybe 17 or 18. I would say the hall was not much wider than a normal doorway. I didnt have trouble turning in to rooms but the way I remodelled gave me a bit more room. They may not all be that narrow - the mobile home I bought was quite old and tiny.

[NorthQuad]

We owned a 16X82' back in the day. It had vaulted ceiling, huge master bedroom, two other good sized bedrooms, full master bath and another full bath. The hallway (which was short because the home was open concept) was wide and the doorways were wide. The master bathroom was large and would work better for me than the bathroom I have now, as far as room and design go.

If I were to buy a second home for a vacation type home, I would have no problem buying a mobile home. As long as it was a newer version.

[CapnGimp]

When you go to buy, have someone knowledgeable look it over good, especially underneath, the flooring if water damaged will begin to sag, it's fixable, but you want to know if it has been... one of those hidden items unscrupulous sellers will try to slide by you.

[GL]

Hi I like mobile homes
There is handicap desighned styles now more available

I've modded older ones with larger doors and just being creative for my liking lmao
because having a roof over ones head is better than not

Maybe someday i'll opt for another they are just fine by me .
Sincerely;
Gypsylady

[krew99]

I have a double wide 1 for a summer home and have no problem moving around or getting in, door is standard width. Mine has 3 bed rooms 2 bathrooms. big living room moderate size dinning room, small laundry room and kitchen but i can get around in them 2. Only thing i had 2 do was widen bedroom doors, and make bathroom accessible, i had 2 redo my deck so i just had a ramp built to it. It also has a 2 car garage.

[GL]

Hi krew99 Yeppers I did the same things to mine and I get around fine

Thanks
Sincerely;
Gypsylady

[-scott-]

Not looking at making an investment! My house is bought and paid for..im looking at maybe buying another little place on the coast (Vancouver Island)to set up shop for a couple 2 or 3 years and there are no apartments in the area im looking. Just curious if anyone had any issues with wheelin space in a mobile be it single wide or double
Get a Yurt.

Google it. :)

http://coloradoyurt.com/new2007/img/large/yurt_photo_gallery_22.jpg

[GL]

Hi Scott

Tonight I was thinking about house ideas and kool concepts and Upon looking at your picture above it is a really interesting . I like the roof
How efficent is it ?

Although I couldnt live in a house with stairs only
Does yours have a ramp or what is the options ?

The round Floor concept is so kool

Thank you
Have a nice day

[GL]

Hi Shaun
I have some very kool concepts about mobile homes
Every one I've live in I had friends make my doorways wider because of turning radius of so many wheelchairs both elec or manual
I like my halls to be around 38 inches Wide and I love open room living room I have no barriers and I get through mine easily
It is fun
Good luck

[serro]

i wanna take trip to where i want with like as a caravan =))

[Uncle Peter]

I would get a sprinkler system if I lived in a mobile home. I heard they can burn really fast.

[novanoin]

I have a 1965 single 10x50. My only problem is having to go all the way down the hall before turning around to go back and I can't use my hand rims in the hallway as they are 28" wide. so I push on the tires instead.

Funny Story (We Laugh Now) - I also had a brush with tree damage. A huge maple tree landed on the house. My boyfriend who is a cop had gotten called out quickly in the middle of the night had pushed my chair out of his way thinking he would be back before I had to get up. Yeah. Tree totally smashed his decommissioned police car (outfitted with my hand controls) and my ramp. The tree freaked me and I was stuck with no chair. I ended up with half the police and fire department at our trailer trying to get me out. The only damage was cosmetic when the tree knocked down part of the ceiling tiles down from the whiplash.

[ancientgimp]

Check out the Shamrock Home website they have a pretty good selection of accessibility options. They tend to be quite well made, my wife and I have toured four or five of them - 2 owned by chair users.

[christopher]

I don't know nuthin about mobile homes in a chair... I grew up in a double-wide, raised with a level built underneath it thereby immobilizing the home. Karl mentioned something earlier about renting on reservation land that and it brought me back... about 30 years ago my grandparents were renting on res land in BC. There were kid's summer camps next door, a field across the street, and the beach was 200 yards away, occasionally blocked by a train passing through customs at the border. I remember I got my butt whupped for sneaking under one to get under the beach once. It was a great place to spend weekends when my single working mom needed a break.

One day, they were kicked out. Just like that :/

I drove by there a few years ago for some memories and the place was an absolute DUMP! One of the most depressing things I ever saw. :(

Click here for the dumpiness (http://maps.google.ca/maps?ll=49.0127,-122.772364&spn=0.000673,0.001096&t=h&z=20), zoom out for the grandeur. :p

[christopher]

BTW, Shaun, did you end up selling in Sask.?