Manufactured Housing News

Buying a traditional home in today’s market is becoming more and more difficult. Many potential homeowners have turned to the manufactured and mobile home industry to fill this gap, with more affordability and flexibility available to them. This has also been boosted by the tiny house boom, with more and more homeowners turning to smaller-scale living to save money and embrace a new kind of lifestyle. If you’re curious about how to finance a mobile home in the near future, Triad has the resources for you.

Options for Financing Your Mobile Home

Until fairly recently, there have been solely two types of financing available for mobile and manufactured homes: conventional and chattel mortgages. However, more options have popped up over time as the industry evolves, and traditional mortgages can now have more protections around foreclosures as well as better interest rates.

If you don’t own the land that your manufactured home is on, or if the home isn’t permanently affixed to it, you may not qualify for a traditional mortgage. In this case, if you can’t obtain a traditional mortgage, you can look for financing through the manufacturer, or you can apply for a chattel loan.

Conventional Mortgages

If you’re purchasing a manufactured home that is permanently affixed to the land it’s on, you may qualify for a conventional mortgage, since the property is considered real estate. This means you’ll have the same protections and legal coverages as someone with a traditional home regarding foreclosures, repossession, and etc. These conventional mortgages also often come with lower interest rates than chattel loans, so if you’re able to qualify for a traditional mortgage, you may be in luck.

Related: Guide to Choosing the Right Manufactured & Mobile Home Loan Lender

Chattel Mortgages

Chattel loans are used for any property that is considered movable, where the property isn’t permanently attached to the land it sits on. Your mobile home may be considered personal property because of this, but chattel mortgages can still help to guarantee the loan. They’re typically for shorter periods of time, since chattel loans can be used for property like houseboats, yachts, and more, but as mobile homes become more popular, certain lending institutions have been able to offer longer loans.

In order to figure out which type of mortgage you may qualify for, you’ll have to decide what type of mobile home you’re purchasing, whether you’re buying the land it sits on, and any other features or specifics that may affect your borrowing power. If you’re looking for a starter home and have one in mind, look into what kind of financing you can obtain for it, and whether the interest rate and consumer protections are worth it in the long run.

You’ll also want to be familiar with your credit score and how it may affect what institutions are willing to loan you. Some mobile homeowners don’t look into these things ahead of time and end up in mortgages with very high interest rates or with little protections. Triad can help when it comes to mobile home financing, and can assist you in becoming a first-time manufactured homeowner.