Securing financing for your mobile home repair project can be tricky. It may not be something that you should even attempt, particularly if the other mobile homes in your park are not kept up to code. Fixing up a mobile home to where it becomes an over-improvement in your park is never a good idea as it will make selling the home later on almost impossible.
Mobile homes are an inexpensive alternative to mortar and brick housing. Mobile homes are being manufactured and sold in most states and are considered an option when thinking about your housing needs. Make sure the park you are living in is one that is kept up to standards with proper maintenance and good management.
Remodeling and renovation loans may seem difficult to come by if you own a mobile home. But if you approach the right source, the request may not be as daunting as you might think.
Credit Unions, for instance, often offer competitive financing for mobile home improvements in the form of equity loans or personal loans. Credit Unions may wish to add a vehicle you own outright as a lien to secure the loan on the mobile home, but often they do not. Other sources of financing are your own personal bank, personal loans from friends or family or other equity sources. Shopping around for the best interest rate is always in your best interest, of course. Also, you should not settle for an extremely high, long-term interest rate loan. Mobile homes do not retain their value as much as a stick built or brick and mortar home so it is not worth paying out any loan for more than five years or so.
Remodeling and renovation of a mobile home can include adding patios/porches, updating the kitchen or the bathroom(s), adding extra space for a computer room or spare bedroom, replacing carpet or other flooring, replacing paneling or other wall covering, and upgrading the roof or other structural fixtures.
Often the homeowner can make the required improvements or repair the necessary items on his own. There are many books available to help the homeowner manage the repairs and select the right materials. Since mobile homes are quite different from other homes, the key is to not over-improve; over-improvement of mobile homes will actually cost you in the end if you decide to sell as most likely, you will not gain equity from those improvements.
It is important to know that if you plan to continue living in your home for a long time without consideration of selling, you might want to make the improvements simply for your own comfort and satisfaction. In that case, it is less important to concentrate on amenities that will help the home sell and concentrate on those that make you happy and comfortable.
Adding a nice patio or porch is probably the number one improvement requested for mobile homes. A building permit will most likely be required to do this kind of work and it would be worth your while to check with various contractors.