Buying a manufactured home can be a great way to get real estate cheaper, but you need to be careful when making this kind of investment. A manufactured home, by definition, is a house that does not have a foundation and can be relocated to a new property. In short, it's not a "fixed" house like traditional homes, and therefore is often treated by real estate companies as personal property rather than "real" or firmly planted property. When buying a manufactured home, make sure it's worth the investment. Here are ways you can make that determination.

Property

A manufactured home that comes with property suddenly gets upgraded from a personal to real property as far as its value and real estate interest. Why? Because the land it sits on is fixed in place, and likely the part of the deal that makes the purchase valuable to you. Property in addition to the manufactured home is extremely important, especially if you are buying the house so you can get a return on it later. A real estate agent can explain to you the true value of the manufactured home apart from the property to further help you decide if the investment is worth it.

Moving

A manufactured home that is listed at an incredibly low price for its age and condition may have an underlying reason why that you will quickly find out is common with cheaper sales: it needs to be moved. This is where things can become tricky. Sure, you can buy the home at a cheaper rate, but moving a manufactured home to a rented lot space or its own property costs money, too. Simply relocating a manufactured home can cost upwards of $1,000. The best way to buy a manufactured home that must be moved is choosing one that is only a few years old or newer that has been on the market for a long time. Sellers are more likely to come down on their asking price since they know their manufactured home is a hassle to move and invest in. If you don't have a place to put a home once you buy it, you may want to skip over the purchase no matter how sweet the asking price is unless you can find affordable land through your real estate agent to place it on.

Buying a manufactured home is a great way to have your own living space without investing a lot of money. While you may have to dig a little deeper to find the perfect buy, once you do you can enjoy your new property and even better savings. Your real estate agent can help you determine whether buying this type of dwelling is best for your needs and budget.

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