Exciting News! But... I need some help...

[Jengerbread88]

Okay, so. My fiance just got a GREAT offer, but we seeeeeriously need help on what to ask before we accept.

Here are the details:

He has been offered a trailer in the trailer community he is currently living in (he rents a room from a couple). The trailer would be HIS. The title would be in his name, and he would have ownership of it. He would be getting this trailer.... FREE. They simply don't have the time or energy to replace it on the lot, and have figured getting lot rent is better than trying to sell something they can't sell. So, the trailer park is giving it to him for free, with some provisions: He must pay lot rent for a year (Around $350/month), and if he ever decides to leave the lot, their preference is that he sell the trailer to someone else, rather than moving it to a new community. And, he would have to pay the property tax, if it hasn't been paid this year (we find out tomorrow if it has or has not).

Clearly, he would have utilities to pay, in addition to the lot rent, but... most 1 bedroom apartments in this area range from $485-$700, NOT including utilities, so... $350 plus utilities is a pretty good deal.

It's also a fixer upper. It's not in 100% condition, and it looks a little run-down (as in, 2 different sidings run-down... lol). It is something we would have to fix up a bit. That said, it's in livable condition-- the plumbing and heat/air work fine.

We are going to look at the interior tomorrow and figure out it's degree of livability- does it just need paint and small repairs, or does it need a massive overhaul is essentially what we're getting to tomorrow.



Here's where I need your help.
My mom, my fiance, and I have come up with a few things we need to ask/look for/do when we go check out the place tomorrow, but you girls (and guy!) have a WEALTH of wisdom and knowledge, and I'm hoping you'll add to it (or tell me what you'd do in the situation).

-We plan on turning on the furnace and feeling for heat, and turning on the AC and feeling for cool air, to make sure they DO work as we were told.

-We also plan on turning on the faucets, flushing the toilets, etc, to make sure THAT all works as we were told.

-Obviously we are going to make a list of needed repairs... if the thing is just "livable" but too far gone to fix to good condition, he may take it for the cheap rent with the consideration that the baby and I won't try to live there, and he'll find a new place after a year. If it's slightly better than livable, we'd like to invest in fixing it up, so we need to know what exactly is needed (carpet, siding, new fixtures, electric work, etc).

-Is it all electric or is it gas+electric?

-How much is the property tax per year (even if it's already paid, it's good to know for next time, so we know what to save for), and how often is property tax paid (here, it varies by county whether you pay every year or every 6 months, from what I've heard, and we don't want an unexpected large expense right when the baby comes, that we could have prevented by asking a simple question).



I know there is more I need to ask... but I'm seriously missing it right now. So... help!!! What should I ask/look for/do/etc?

And, do you think it's worth us jumping on? We have to have a decision by Saturday because another couple wants it... so we are on a limited time frame. We have first choice, but if we stall, they'll give it to others to fill the lot.

[kelseyll]

I don't have a lot of expertise in this area...but I do recommend taking pictures as you walk around so you can review them later. It is amazing what you forget when you are trying to take it all in at once! =)

[Leah]

Are there appliances?

In addition to checking the mechanical equipment, I would also see how old it is.

How much are the utility bills per month (hydro/gas, etc.)?

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by kelseyll

I don't have a lot of expertise in this area...but I do recommend taking pictures as you walk around so you can review them later. It is amazing what you forget when you are trying to take it all in at once! =)

Good point! Both of our cell phones have cameras, so I'll be sure to have mine charged and ready tomorrow. We're taking a notebook and pen so I can write down everything, too.

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by paperboutique

Are there appliances?

In addition to checking the mechanical equipment, I would also see how old it is.

How much are the utility bills per month (hydro/gas, etc.)?

I have to find out tomorrow about the appliances, so that's a good question to ask... that'll be an added expense for us to consider, of course! I have a mini fridge we could subsist on while we're fixing the place up a little, but once he and/or I are living there full-time, a full sized fridge is a must. So, definitely something we need to consider. Most places come with an oven, but I'll ask about that, too, and all the other pertinent ones.

I also hadn't thought to consider the age of it, so I need to make a note of that one!

And, for utilities, I plan on asking the people who rent the trailer lots out about utility estimates and what companies they go through, but the couple he lives with now also lives there, so we are going to find out prices from them, too. Then we have the "trimmed down, we want you to move in" rates they quote you when you look at a place, and also a more accurate idea of what a trailer occupying people will cost...

[Misty Cato]

Definitely check on the age of it and find out (or decide) what you want to do in terms of insurance before you buy. In our state trailers are insured under auto rather than homeowners. DH and I owned a trailer several years ago and after we bought it, we found out most insurers didn't insure trailers older than a certain year. I don't remember what year it was, but it had something to do with the types of wiring used in older ones.

[Julie Billingsley]

Maybe you could call a home inspector and have him do an inspection. It might cost a couple hundred (maybe less, I don't know) but it could save you a lot of hassle and money if it's found to have mold/carbon monoxide/faulty wiring/plumbing issues.

Good luck!

[nun69]

Originally Posted by Julie Billingsley

Maybe you could call a home inspector and have him do an inspection. It might cost a couple hundred (maybe less, I don't know) but it could save you a lot of hassle and money if it's found to have mold/carbon monoxide/faulty wiring/plumbing issues.

Good luck!

ditto...my exact concerns!

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by Misty Cato

Definitely check on the age of it and find out (or decide) what you want to do in terms of insurance before you buy. In our state trailers are insured under auto rather than homeowners. DH and I owned a trailer several years ago and after we bought it, we found out most insurers didn't insure trailers older than a certain year. I don't remember what year it was, but it had something to do with the types of wiring used in older ones.

I will definitely have to find out the age, because we were planning on using Friday to inquire about insurance, as well as utility deposits, etc, so that's something we'll need to know, then!

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by Julie Billingsley

Maybe you could call a home inspector and have him do an inspection. It might cost a couple hundred (maybe less, I don't know) but it could save you a lot of hassle and money if it's found to have mold/carbon monoxide/faulty wiring/plumbing issues.

Good luck!

We called a couple of home inspectors to see what we could find out-- everyone in the immediate area doesn't have time before Sat. (We HAVE to make the decision before then, no ifs ands or buts, or we lose it to the other couple), and the ones farther out who have time, won't drive up there. Soo..... poop.

I am hoping to have a friend who does electric work for a living take a peek, which would cover at least part of that whole thing.

We don't want this to turn into the movie Money Pit, but at the same time, our time (and financial!) restrictions are kind of killing us at the moment.

This is his last month to have the whole issue with his finances (he is finishing up several bills this month that he won't have to worry about again), so after this month, money will open up a little more- so we know affording the rent and everything won't be an issue. But if we are taking it, paying an inspector as well as the deposit and rent is a bit much for us.

I'm still hoping that between the two of us, we have enough friends with careers in the right fields to at least take a look and tell us if it's worth the money. :/

Thanks for the suggestion!

[Darcy Baldwin]

Truly - call around for an inspector. I know it seems a bit much at the moment, but you don't want to go into this and find out there was a huge issue you couldn't see, that will cost you tons down the road.

You need to check on sewage, too. Is it on septic. When was the last time it was serviced? If it's on a city sewer system, where's the line and are there trees growing along the line (trust me...we had an ongoing issue with a tree on a sewage line in our old house, and it was NOT pretty..and costly.)

How's the roof? Is there insulation? How is it mounted (this is a big safety issue - especially if you're in tornado alley at all). can you get up underneath, especially in the water zone to see if any leaks have ruined the flooring. Are there vermin issues? Do the windows work properly? There's so many things...

http://www.doityourself.com/stry/rainspec

[MamaBee]

I would also check on the water... when you are there, run the water for a while... is the water city provided or well? If well... have the water check, especially with a little one coming. You use to be able to get a kit at a place like a hardware store, but it has been over 15 years since I last lived in a house with well water.

Contact the county for information and to find out if there are any back taxes, leans, etc... don't just take the seller's word. Each area is different... for example, I've heard that in my area you can't live in a trailer after a certain year...

[MissKim]

Just know that with a mobile home, you'll have a difficult, almost impossible time selling it. So any money you invest in it, you'll need to know you probably aren't going to get that back. We've been living in ours for just about 12 years and seriously, the thing is falling apart at this point. We had a good 10 year run, but it seems like every day something new quits working. We've already replaced the dishwasher and oven that were installed when we bought it. We had mold issues and basically replaced my son's bedroom and the kids' bathroom. Pipe broke under the house this year. That was fun. Had to replace our shower head and faucet in the master bath, and the garbage disposal. The air conditioner went out right at 10 years. All of these things are more difficult because mobile homes do not use standard parts that you can find in your Home Depot, etc. You have to get faucets, pipes, etc. from a mobile home supply store. I think you're near or in KC, so you've probably got one available, but you need to know that you can't just walk into Home Depot and say... buy a new doorknob. Not going to work.

That said, we pay less than $300/year in property taxes (while my friends are paying thousands) and about $600/month for our 3 bedroom home with rent and mortgage combined. This allows us to vacation often, and live the life we want. It works for us, even with all the frustrations.

Just go into it with your eyes open, not thinking "free housing!"

[Darcy Baldwin]

and yes - you won't be able to sell it later if it's older. When we sold my grandmother's double-wide with all the improvements my grandfather did over the years (covered patio with flagstone flooring, garage + workroom, covered driveway, built-in front room (they built in the front porch to make another living area), wood stove, etc., we were barely able to sell it for more than the land value. The depressed housing market didn't help, the trailer was over 30 years old, though in wonderful shape because he took care of it so well. AND, we had a hard time with the title transfer because the trailer was so old there were no records for it any longer in any of the county offices, and we struggled to make it work.

[Megan Turnidge]

I know this is all so exciting and you're on a deadline, but I wouldn't take it if I didn't have the opportunity to get an inspector out there to check everything out. I think you cant afford NOT to have it thoroughly inspected - though it will cost you a bit (when we were looking at buying a house, it cost us about $250). We rented a trailer last year that was about 20 years old and that thing was such a dump. It looked okay, but stuff was falling apart, the insulation and the furnace were so bad that we were paying $300/month on propane to keep the trailer at 62 degrees (and I live in the desert, it's not that cold here in the winter), and it was completely infested with mice. I think it's great he's been offered this for free, but you don't want it to turn into a nightmare.

[deepounds]

Everyone else has given you all the advice I would have . . . the inspection thing is MEGA important, and I would do my utmost to make that happen. I don't really have anything else to offer, except "Good Luck"!!

[cbettua]

Doesn't Kansas get tornadoes? That would be my main concern. Sorry I really don't want to rain on your parade, but I am deathly afraid of living in a trailer, especially here in Miami because of Hurricanes.

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by cbettua

Doesn't Kansas get tornadoes? That would be my main concern. Sorry I really don't want to rain on your parade, but I am deathly afraid of living in a trailer, especially here in Miami because of Hurricanes.

We haven't had a tornado in our part of Kansas in 5 years. Tornado alley has actually shifted, so Kansas gets very few-- Minnesota gets more than us!

Thank you guys for the info... I will try to keep calling inspectors and find someone. We do plan to go into this without the rose-colored glasses and consider the REAL cost, not the cost because "omg it's free!"

Clearly it would be nice to have a place that is ours, that we've put elbow grease in together, and everything else, but it's still not something we want to get too caught up in that we're in over our heads.

Thanks!

[lovely1m]

I would check out how much similar trailer are selling for before you decide if you are going to get it with the intention of fixing it up. Most older trailers aren't worth enough to put any money into it. Good luck!

[Jengerbread88]

Okay, so I wanted to update you guys because we went and looked at it today.

We are still seriously considering the place... after looking through it VERY thoroughly, we found 2 problems needing immediate fixing, but otherwise, it looks much better than I expected.

-The back door doesn't shut well. They've put plastic sheeting and blankets over the existing door to help keep cold out, but it really needs shutting. We measured and went to Habitat for Humanity and found several doors that would fit there (and actually close!) for under $25... so that is a pretty easy fix.

-One of the faucets is drippy. Kyle looked at it, and it looks like it can be fixed for under a buck- it just needs a new washer on it.

There was also a hole in the floor of one room, but I felt it and there is no draft or anything around it (it doesn't go through, it just goes down about 6-7 inches to space below the floor).



The trailer was built in 1969, but the furnace is less than 5 years old, which is good to know. We tested the heater and the AC, as well as turning on/off faucets and everything. I've seen a lot of newer trailers in worse shape than this one, so it seems like it might work for our needs.

We are considering Kyle getting it, us fixing the three things that are wrong with it, and then him just living there for the year until we can find something we like better.

We still want to look at a few cheaper apartments in our area tomorrow and see how those work out, so we aren't 100% set on this yet, but it does look like a good bet.



The entire cost of it, per month, for lot rent and utilities is about the cost of a VERY cheap 1 bedroom apartment in the area (the decent apartment in a good area that I lived in was $850/month after utilities, this trailer would be $600/month after utilities).

We were able to talk to the current owner of the place, too, which helped give us a better estimate of what bills would cost in that exact trailer (she even showed us previous statemets on her bills-- she was clearly VERY transparent about things. Lol).

There was one spot on the ceiling that appeared could have had a leak. The current owner says she fixed the problem, that it doesn't leak, but they hadn't replaced the ceiling yet, but I told Kyle we really need to consider the possibility that it DOES leak, and she just wants to get rid of it.

Her reason for moving is that she met someone and they're moving to a trailer a block away because the one they're in doesn't have enough bedrooms for everyone. So, she isn't bailing on it because she hates it, but because she got something slightly better. She is taking the stove, washer, and dryer, but is leaving us the fridge if we take the place.

Kyle and I went down to habitat for humanity's resale shop... if you guys HAVEN'T been in one of these, you seriously should... They're like a Goodwill or Salvation Army for housing parts... they had about 200 doors (some interior, some exterior), not a single one costing over $45, even though some were brand new from construction sites. They had countertops for $2.50 a foot, tons and tons of large tiles, ceiling fans, everything... We looked around in there, and we priced things out, and we could make ALL of the repairs we want (not just the ones we NEED), for about $300... including new cabinets.

Kyle has a LOT of friends who know plumbing and everything, and Kyle knows electric work, actually, so that will help.

Oh, and one thing that was nice is that since the trailer was built, they have never had the pipes freeze or burst. The current pipes also have this heating blanket thing around them that you flip a switch on in the fall and off in the spring and it keeps them from bursting. We were also able to look under the trailer to see the underside guts and everything, and things look good down there. Like I said, the heater is only 5 years old, which considering the age of the trailer, is good.

Kyle and I still have a lot of talking to do before we give an answer Saturday, but it does look like there's a good chance we'll be taking it, unless we find an insanely cheap apartment in a good part of town before we say yes.

[Misty Cato]

Glad things seems to be working out for you.

If he will likely only be living in it for a year, what do you plan to do with it when he/you are done with it?

[Jengerbread88]

Originally Posted by Misty Cato

Glad things seems to be working out for you.

If he will likely only be living in it for a year, what do you plan to do with it when he/you are done with it?

If he chose to stay in it for only a year, we would probably just do the bare minimum repairs and give it away at the end of the year, the way the owner would be doing for us, and the way she got it in the first place.

However, at this point, we are now thinking if we were to take it, we would probably be hanging onto it at least until I finish school and get a job for us to get an extra income to afford someplace nicer. If we were to have it for 3 years (this scenario instead of the first), then we would probably make more repairs to the place (new countertops or whatever). If we were to do that, then chances are we would try seeing what we could get for it if we repaired it, and if it turned out to be nothing, at least we aren't putting a LOT of money into it... If we were to get it and do ALL the repairs we ideally want to do to it, we don't want to put any more than $1,000 into it. So... if that's all we would be out, then we would be okay if it didn't sell, but instead just got given away... if that makes sense.

A lot depends on how long we plan on being there....