A mobile home is a great place to call home! Mobile home communities go by many names, including mobile home park, manufactured home community, or the most commonly known name, trailer park. There is a great amount of variety available to homebuyers or renters who are looking for just the right kind of community for their individual needs. There are a few different types of homes in a mobile home community. The first is a tenant owned home, or TOH, which means the resident owns the home and usually only pays lot rent. The other is a park owned home, or POH, in which the resident will pay rent for the home as well as lot rent. There are many advantages and a few disadvantages of living in a mobile home community.
The greatest advantage of living in a mobile home community is the affordability. You get to enjoy the perks of home ownership without the burden of paying property taxes or having to maintain the land and utilities. An additional advantage that mobile homes offer is that they are usually built in controlled environments. This means that they can be consistently built to a higher standard and construction delays due to weather or difficulty scheduling subcontractors is less likely. Mobile home park living is quickly becoming a top choice for our aging population and for good reason. Most of our communities are family oriented and are great for families with small children; a best friend is bound to be found just a few houses down. Childhood memories made in the communities are often cherished.
One of the greatest disadvantages of living in a mobile home community is the stereotype attached to it. The negative stereotype of a mobile home community could not be further from the truth. Another disadvantage of living in a mobile home community is privacy. In most mobile home communities you are relatively close to the people around you, but unlike an apartment, you have more than just a wall between you and your neighbor, so one could view this as an advantage as well. Mobile homes tend to depreciate quickly, this isn’t much of a disadvantage if you’re renting a park owned home, but may burden for a resident who owns their home and might be trying to sell it. If homes around it are in poor condition, it may sell for considerably less. Also, even if you own your mobile home and you are in a mobile home park, you are still obligated to follow the rules and regulations of the park. This may not apply to what you do to the inside of your home, but the rules will apply to anything outside your home.
As a last thought, mobile home communities can be excellent places to live. If you enjoy having a place to live where you don’t share a wall with your neighbor, or enjoy a sense of community and the opportunity of making new friends, a mobile home community may be for you!