# What would be more important to you



## KanoasDestiny (Jan 28, 2010)

My husband and I found the home of our dreams and we've been trying to buy it for the past 7 1/2 months. It was a "short sale" home and we had no idea that buying it would be such a problem. Earlier this month, it went into Default and it looks like there is no way we'll get it before it becomes a foreclosure.






This house was a 2008 4 bed/2 bath mobile home on 2.08 acres, which is not fenced. It also had a beautiful 3 car garage but no fireplace, porches or trees. We could have decorated it exactly how we wanted, although it would have cost alot of money to fence in the acreage. We now have the option to wait for it, and to try to buy it after it becomes a foreclosure. It could be anywhere from 3-6? months of MORE waiting.

BUT...

On Saterday, we're going to look at an older 1983 mobile home (with a brand new roof). It has 3 bed/2 bath, and sits on 5 acres of fenced property. It has a fireplace, trees, several sheds and a huge porch. It's about 200 sqft smaller than the other one, and doesn't have a garage, but it has over double the acreage. It's also in the same area as the other one.

It will break my heart to not get the newer home, but it has become a stressful heartache over this past year. I'm scared to let it go and know that had we kept trying, we might have been able to get it afterall. But at the same time, we've lost out on three other homes waiting for this one to close. What happens if we let another one go by, and don't end up getting it?

What would you do??? Or would you keep looking for something else that may come up for sale? Acreage is hard to come by in my area, and even harder to find in a decent area. Would you overlook a not so fancy/new home for the land?


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## Miniv (Jan 28, 2010)

Every person has their priorities. What are your's?

When we moved we both agreed we wanted much more land with a barn. For us, the house wasn't as important....as long as it was livable. And that's what we got. 45 acres with irrigation rights, fenced and cross fenced, barn (not as big or as nice as our previous one), and an older one story farm house that has some very interesting issues.

BTW, I really do believe that if a person is meant to have the property they are interested in, things will fall into place without too many problems.


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## Marty (Jan 28, 2010)

I love mobile homes but its difficult to get any insurance on them here at all and banks do not want to lend on them without a bunch of problems.. Around here, mobile home depreciation is huge the minute they move off the lot. My realtor buddies tell me when they price a property, they are really giving next to nothing for the mobile home and its really the property they are pricing and just giving a little bit towards the home. I'm thinking, maybe a 1983 mobile home would not have a lot of value persay, but the property does. Just guessing of course. But before I would buy any mobile home I would check out where you could get homeowners insurance from and price that out first before I took another step towards either. You can't get it here without paying a huge premium and I mean huge premium. In hindsight, I'd keep shopping.


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 28, 2010)

Marty, you brought up a really good point about the trailers being worth less in the long run. We hope that where ever we buy, it will be a home for life. That's why I want to make sure that we weigh our options and go with the best home possible. You can do so much with 5 acres, versus 2. We could even build a stick home in the future if that's what we want. Or to add on.

I do know of places that insure mobile homes around here, we had a policy for the new home but it had to cancel out when the house didn't close when it was supposed to. They are a lot easier to insure around here then in a lot of other areas. I don't know if it will be more to insure though because it's an older home? Definately something to look into if we decide to go with this place.

We have looked into a couple of stick homes with property and any decent ones are way out of our price range.



I'm scared to buy a foreclosure because you never know what you're gonna get or the problems you may have trying to get it.


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## Katiean (Jan 29, 2010)

Is there anyone in the newer home at the moment? The problem can be what "they" will do to the home if it is a foreclosure. If there is no one in it, a foreclosure can be a nightmare to buy. We have a house next door that the original people (well the people I am starting with) paid $189,000 for it and when they realized it was not worth near what they paid for it they moved and let it go into foreclosure (it was a HUD home). That was 2 years ago. They started showing the home this past summer. Numerous people ALMOST bought the home. It finally sold just after Christmas for less than $55,000. Home and land. Also, when the people moved out and left the home they did take care of the home which some don't.


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## Marty (Jan 29, 2010)

A few years ago we attempted to purchase a forclosure, actually twice. We were allowed to go see them and look it over and inspect it just like any other buyer. The banks here sell them "as is". Its kind of like a secret bidding war. They do not tell you how much they want. But in our case, the relator sort of prompted us if we were bidding way too low. I don't think she was really suppose to clue us in either way of what the mortage company was really asking. Anyhow, we gave them a bid, and then they see who has submitted the highest bid as close to or over their asking price. We lost the first time by $2,000 and the second time by only $500. The banks want them gone as fast as possible so we didn't have to wait too long for an answer.

I think location is very important as to property values, not just the amount of land. Say for instance I might have a bunch of property like 50 acres here in the middle of no where. One acre in Vegas would still be worth a ton more. So take location into consideration as well. Personally, I would go for the one with the most land and heck with location but that's just me, the hermit.


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## Sonya (Jan 29, 2010)

Well...if it goes into forclosure, plan on waiting more than 3-6 months...more like a year and a half probably. I'd keep looking if I were you and not jump the gun on anything. It is definately a buyers market out there if you have the means and time to search. I just bought a weekend house in October a 1200 sq foot home (double wide on a permanent foundation, 2001)...2 car garage/pole barn, 3.56 acres, half of the property fenced in (privacy type fence)...got it for $25,000. It appraised in 2008 for $124,000. It is 3 miles from a huge lake. Check out forclosures, there are so many out there...just be prepared...the banks who own these houses are not very nice...they are in a hurry and do not compromise on much, they barely even give you time to have an inspection...in our case, there was no time...we took our chances. The place we bought didn't need anything but appliances and a thorough cleaning. I did put new carpet in but could of lived with the other if I had to. Also, the pipes had frozen so we had to put about $3000 into the plumbing. They hadn't destroyed the place at all but there was little things to do...replace door knobs, paint cieling, etc...but nothing major other than the plumbing. Good luck in your search.

As for your original question...what is more important...that is a personal question and totally up to you. For me, property and location is no 1...I can always fix the house up, but I can't change the property or location.


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## krissy3 (Jan 29, 2010)

If your husband is good with tools , go for the older one on the large piece of land. These homes are not made like a house , and are easy to work on, I use to live in one( and I loved it,) so I dont think a newer one will make that much of a difference as long as the inspection report on the old comes back clean. You will have to do small odds and ends type maintance on the older one , but the foundation is about the same...provided the previous owners took care of it . Will you be buying the land too? Do you need that land for anything ( animals?) Do you have guests over a lot? Is a newer house important to you ...or a bit more privacy? How is the weather there, will you be spending a lot of time outdoors (bar b que, eating on a patio, gardening? if those things are not important to you then maybe the newer house is better. You can give those homes a makeover very easily, so really look at the layout of the older one, the lighting, (from windows) floor plan. The cost to insure it every year will be less on the older one, does that make a difference? I hope you make the right decision for yourself, and have fun in your new home!


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## miniwhinny74 (Jan 29, 2010)

The '83 mobile home can be a temporary place to move while a stick-built home is being built or a a doublewide (on a foundation) is put in. Like someone else pointed out, you can do a lot more with 5 acres than with 2. Or, you can build on to the '83 mobile if you need more space, but I would definately look into insurnace (and zoning) issues first, to see if it would be worth your time.

Good luck--I was trying to buy a foreclosure last year and it was a horrible and draining experience. But, in all fairness, I had a LOUSY real estate agent that I was dealing with, and I think she made it harder than it had to be. And the bank with the foreclosure seemed to care less if they got rid of it or not! Long story short, the deal fell through, anyway!

Best of luck in whatever you decide!


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## WhiteTailsMinis (Jan 29, 2010)

miniwhinny74 said:


> The '83 mobile home can be a temporary place to move while a stick-built home is being built or a a doublewide (on a foundation) is put in. Like someone else pointed out, you can do a lot more with 5 acres than with 2. Or, you can build on to the '83 mobile if you need more space, but I would definately look into insurnace (and zoning) issues first, to see if it would be worth your time.


That was exactly my first initial thought - the land is worth more than the trailer so check with the county and confirm you are able to construct a new home there - I'd probably check with them on building permits, etc FIRST to make sure I'm not surprised later. Live in the trailer while house is being built - then pull away the trailer, or move it to another location to use it for storage, or farm office or whatever. If budget in mind, Modulars are very nice - quickly erected and much cheaper (at least around here they are). Just some thoughts to consider while looking around. Best of luck!


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 29, 2010)

In a weird way, I'm actually excited about going and viewing the home tomorrow. I'm scared to get my hopes up about anything anymore, but one of these days, we'll have to find "the one". I think the 5 acres is appealing to me. When we first went for the other one, it was supposed to be 2.5 acres, but a couple of months later, we found out that the county had come in and taken some of the land for public roads that probably won't ever be built. The fact that there were no boundary markers only added to the stress because we were pretty much guessing where the property lines were. Did you know that it's $4,000 and up for the assessor to come out and assess the property? Wow. This property already being fenced in sounds really nice. We were worried about only having 30 days for my husband to build a fence for the dogs/horses, and then helping to move our heavier belongings. With the days so short, that doesn't leave a lot of time to build, unless he took time off from work.

Like MiniV said, things should fall into place with the right place.


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## Miniv (Jan 29, 2010)

I'm CHOKING over the $4,000 assessor's fee...... Are you SURE?

If so, I am SO glad I don't live in CA.


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 29, 2010)

Miniv said:


> I'm CHOKING over the $4,000 assessor's fee...... Are you SURE?


Yep, I got proposals from two different places. One was $2,800 (not including any written documents that we would receive) and the other was $3,700 (including the documents).



We were just going to build a fence where we "believed" it was supposed to be, and then if the county ever came out to build the roads, they could assess the property lines for free and tell us where to move our fencing to.





My husband's friend had it done for $450ish, and that's around what I was expecting. When I heard the actual proposals from these places, I wrote and told them that I knew someone that had it done for $450, and asked why there's were so high. One lady wrote back saying that the person who performed that assessment obviously didn't file it with the county, or do other things that they could lose their license for not doing.


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 30, 2010)

Oh my gosh!!! We went to see the older place today and I LOVED IT!!! They have a horse pen in the back that has livestock wire on T posts. That is absolutely perfect! No wood to chew or paneling that the brats can fit through. Plus the wire is strong, not the cheap wiring we have now. They also have two big wooden sheds that need some work, but they would be perfect for storage. The house belonged to the listing agent's father-in-law, so she brought her husband with her, and they both answered every question we had. Did I mention that we stayed there for 3 hours looking the place over and talking with them? They were really NICE people and they asked us what kind of things we'd like them to keep on the property if we decided to go for it, and what we'd like them to remove. By the time we actually left, we felt like we were at home. The area is SO quiet, not many neighbors at all. But yet, it isn't in the boonies either.

I didn't think I could like another place as much as the newer one that we were trying to get, but I think I was wrong. I saw so much more potential in this one! We came home and called our current agent to ask her to cancel the deal with the short sale. We told her that we wanted the freedom to look around and put a bid somewhere else if we found a place. Of course we want to go with the listing agent on this one, but we didn't tell her that. My next step is to get back our earnest money, and then put a bid on this place. Woo hoo! It feels right, you know? Kinda like things will go smoothly.


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Jan 30, 2010)

That's wonderful!!!! I'm so happy for you



.


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## Sonya (Jan 31, 2010)

> We came home and called our current agent to ask her to cancel the deal with the short sale. We told her that we wanted the freedom to look around and put a bid somewhere else if we found a place. Of course we want to go with the listing agent on this one, but we didn't tell her that


don't know if you can do that if you've already signed a contract with your current agent, so check into it...you don't want to step on any toes.

Good luck.


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## Charlene (Jan 31, 2010)

sounds like you have found just what you want! woohoo!! my only suggestion would be to have an electrician come in and do a thorough check of all the wiring. in an older mobile home, you may have to do some upgrades. also, if this home isn't on a foundation, make sure you check that the tie-downs are sufficient.

hope everything goes well!


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 31, 2010)

Sonya said:


> don't know if you can do that if you've already signed a contract with your current agent, so check into it...you don't want to step on any toes.
> Good luck.


Hmmm...the only contract we ever signed was to the sellers, for the short sale home. It's not like we hired her to find us a home. I'm not sure if that's any different? We never spoke beyond if this house didn't work out. We originally wanted to go with her co-worker, but she was available to show the house, so we decided that she deserved the comission.


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## Sonya (Jan 31, 2010)

Check your papers...they will slide a contract in there sometimes hiring her as a buyers agent for any property...and it's usually valid for a six month period.

Good Luck..I hope you get it..I've been lucky that have gotten every house I fell in love with..it's stressful waiting for your offer to be accepted..sending good thoughts!


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 31, 2010)

Thank you so much Sonya. We never even thought about that! It's not that we don't like our agent, we just thought that she'd be tired of dealing with us after this past experience. Everytime we call her, she acts like we are bugging her. We just figured that it would be easier for everyone, if we went with the listing agent instead (dual agent).

Perhaps it would be "safer" if we didn't go with the listing agent though, as it's her inlaws that are selling the property. Maybe we'll call our agent tomorrow and see if she'd be willing to still be our agent.


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## wildoak (Jan 31, 2010)

> It's not that we don't like our agent, we just thought that she'd be tired of dealing with us after this past experience.


Actually if she has spent considerable time helping you she would probably appreciate a commission




. As long as you don't dislike her or have a problem with the way she conducts business, I'd stay with her. Having lived with a realtor most of my life (and having worked on commission myself) that's my take on it. And you are right, you might not want to be represented by family of the sellers, no matter how much you liked them LOL. If a conflict were to arise they would be in a hard place, and would probably side with family.

Good luck, hope this one works for you.

Jan


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## KanoasDestiny (Jan 31, 2010)

wildoak said:


> Actually if she has spent considerable time helping you she would probably appreciate a commission
> 
> 
> 
> .


Yes, my husband and I talked it over today, and we figured that she deserved it after all we've been through together. We called her and asked if she was still interested in being our agent, and we're going in to see her in the morning.





Please let this experience be better!


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## MountainMeadows (Feb 1, 2010)

Financing on a mobile home can be difficult - not all lenders will treat the home or you as they would if it was a stick built home - and a lot of manufactured homes will not assess for what the seller wants to sell for - then banks won't loan - vicious circle. Check with the seller to see if it is on a foundation and if the current loan is FHA or HUD. In order to get the new loan there will be stipulations on the tie downs and what it is mounted on. Wiring should be good, but it wouldn't hurt to have that looked at because a lot of the wiring in these homes is "light duty" - OK if you don't overload them, but most of the circuits are pretty low amp. Is this place on a private well, or is it city water - the plumbing on these homes is plastic, which is OK as long as you don't overpressurize them - make it important to make sure that your system is checked regularly to make sure that your safety relief valves are not stuck wide open.

We have a 1985 double wide on our place - it has definately seen better days, but then, we have done almost nothing to keep it from degrading. In looking at what it would take to make it nice again we decided that the $40-50K in a 1985 home was proabably throwing money down the sink - so we have investigated a new stick built house as well as a new modular/manufactured home. After all the looking around we decided on a triple wide - they are soooo nice these days and the same home, built to the same specifications as a stick built home would be at least 2.5X more expensive - and not any better in construction. It is important tho to see if your place is classified as a modular vs manufactured - the modular units have a better "loan to value ratio" and most banks are far more reasonable about them - and they don't devalue them like they do the manufactured homes.

Your agent should be able to help you with the financing issues, if not, call a local mobile home dealer and ask what lendors they use. Good luck - and keep us all posted

Stacy


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## TheCaseFamily00 (Feb 10, 2010)

Hoping things are going good for you



.


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## Taylor Jo (Feb 10, 2010)

I'm glad you didn't go with the other one. We were going to buy a property but our house didn't sell so the deal fell through. Then when our house did sell 2 years ago we inquired about the property again and the girl was having trouble making her payments, we were trying to buy the house but before we could get our house closed hers went into forclosure. It was a nightmare from there on. She moved out and STRIPPED the place. Took down some beautiful fencing she'd had by the pool, took out appliances, light fixtures, cabnients, it would have cost us a lot of money, in FACT MORE more money then what we originally were going to pay for the home. So we passed on it. It broke my husbands heart he LOVED that home, he talked about that place just every so often clear up till he passed away. I felt so sorry for him but it just wasn't meant to be.

The house we ended up with was double the square footage anyway's and had a better barn on it. Already had a cement pad in it and didn't have to have that put in and of course we didn't have to add any of those appliances or fixtures, etc. plus it was $20,000 cheaper. Now that he's passed I'm trying to sell cause it's to big for me alone.

Good luck to you and I hope everything works out for the best. TJ


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