As a Doral rental property investor, you are probably always on the lookout for a good deal on a property. You might be wondering if manufactured homes are a wise investment. It might initially appear to be the best choice for your next rental property. In numerous regions of the country, manufactured homes are prevalent. Before deciding if a manufactured home is the best option for your next investment property, you must weigh several pros and cons.
One of the greatest benefits of purchasing a manufactured home is that they are frequently less expensive than other types of single-family homes. Due to how prefabricated houses are constructed and installed, their cost per square foot can be much less than that of other properties, even ones of comparable age and size. And where new construction may be out of reach for you as an investor, a new manufactured home will likely be considerably more affordable. Additionally, they are typically constructed in half the time required for traditional homes. That implies that for roughly the same price as a fixer-upper that would take months to prepare for your first renter, you could buy and instantly rent a brand-new property.
Investing in manufactured homes also provides quality and an eco-friendly design. Today’s manufactured homes are often on par with or superior to traditionally-built homes in terms of quality. The stringent factory standards for prefabricated houses increase the likelihood that the home you purchase will be structurally solid, tastefully built, and energy efficient. The majority already have upgraded insulation in the walls and beneath the foundation. They also provide on-demand water heaters, energy-efficient windows, and energy-saving fixtures and appliances. All of these environmentally friendly elements can lower utility and maintenance costs.
However, investing in manufactured homes has a few disadvantages. Finding a suitable location to build a manufactured home is one of the biggest obstacles to buying one to use as a rental. Although the price of the home may be relatively low, the price of the land must also be considered. Particularly in urban or suburban areas, the costs, zoning, and land availability may prove to be insurmountable obstacles.
Finding and purchasing a pre-existing manufactured home may help overcome this obstacle, but it brings up a second common disadvantage of manufactured homes: their depreciating value over time. It is debatable whether manufactured homes appreciate sufficiently to make them worthwhile investments as rental properties. In some areas, the value of manufactured homes is severely hampered by an enduring stigma.
And finally, compared to other kinds of property, a manufactured home could be more difficult to finance. Manufactured homes are not commonly regarded as “real property” by mortgage lenders. Some lenders might decline to give you a loan large enough to pay for the land and the home itself because they feel that a manufactured home is temporary. Even though this objection might eventually be overcome, it adds to the challenges facing investors in rental properties. So, are mobile homes a wise investment? The best response is that they might be, based on factors like quality, location, and financing availability.
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