Once more I must agree with Christopher. Land prices, construction prices, laws, regulations, permits, etc. vary widely state to state, and sometimes even county to county, or city to city. Similarly, stick built, modular, and manufactured homes all vary considerably in price, quality, and finance-ableness. Does anyone remember the movie "The Money Pit"? If I remember correctly, it starred Tom Hanks and Shelly Long. The comedy revolved around the trope of a naive couple who think they're getting a killer deal on a beautiful home--a stick built home. But once they move in, the house starts falling apart and they have to sink more and more money into it. It's funny because it's true--most of us, if we haven't experienced it ourselves, know someone who has. In the last stick built home I bought, in 1995, I think it was, we had multiple problems after moving in. I was cleaning a bathroom one day and my son started pounding on the door yelling, "Mom, it's raining in my bedroom!" Turned out there was a length of pipe completely missing! None of the roller drawers worked correctly. The sprinklers in the front yard watered the sidewalk rather than the grass (the contractor put in the front yard as part of the purchase price). And about ten more things. We had to sue the contractor to make him fix it all. That, along with holding back $2,000 in escrow, was the only way to get him to make things right, and that's the only reason we didn't end up with a "money pit." My point is, no one can state categorically that one type of home is always better than another. There are examples of very shoddy homes in all three types of houses, and there are examples of beautifully built houses in each. People buy manufactured homes for many reasons. I see in this thread that some people only see it as a stepping stone to a "real house" as one poster called it. Many people who are retiring sell their stick builts and buy a manufactured home for several reasons: they can pay cash for the MH and have money left over to travel or to live on. A smaller home needs less maintenance. If they put it in a 55+ park, the park may take care of the lawn. And some seniors enjoy the social activities of such a park. Where I live, in eastern Washington state, MHs indeed have been going UP in value. This is because wages are low, and unemployment is high. Many people can't afford a stick built, thus demand has risen dramatically for MHs, even used ones in a park. And when demand rises, prices do too. I bought my MH because of my somewhat unique situation. I bought a junker, an old 1979 SW for $2,000 cash. Over the next three years or so I'm going to sink around $30,000 into it and refurbish it from top to bottom. I have an academic grant whereby I get several thousand dollars three times a year. So I'll do a major project three times a year and pay for it with cash. I'll continue to live within my means on my fairly meagar income. My house will be beautiful and strong and will last at least fifty more years. I don't care about getting my money out of it, because I'm going to live in it for the rest of my life and then leave it to my daughter. I liked the advice from bus_driver. The OP actually DID ask for his advice, not in the original post, but in a follow-up. He laid out his monthly budget, then asked, "How am I supposed to save money on this budget?" Therefore, it was entirely appropriate for him to respond to the question that was directed to him. He, and a couple of other respondents were correct in stating that he (along with a substantial number of Americans) need to increase income and decrease expenses. I've never had a car loan. I drive a 1999 Ford Windstar minivan. I will drive it until it drops. Then I'll buy another car for cash. And drive it until it drops. I currently live in a house on my university's campus with eight other women. My rent is $365 per month. And I don't buy stuff. I buy food, gas, toiletries, and medication, and things necessary for my work. I rarely buy clothes--I haven't bought new clothes in the last 15 months. And when I do buy clothes, 90% of it is from thrift shops. I have to buy special shoes due to my disability, but I wear them for a very long time. I go out to eat maybe three or four times a year, and I never, ever buy fast food. I don't have cable TV (or a TV). My daughter and I go to a movie on Christmas. But if you think my life is squalid and empty, you're wrong. My university has tons of lectures, concerts, dance performances, athletic events, etc., that I can get free tickets to. In the last couple of years, I've seen Bishop Desmond Tutu, the Dahli Lama, Jane Goodall, President of Liberia, Mrs. Greenleaf Sirloff, and David Brooks, among others. I've been to champion basketball games, and musical performances, plays, etc., that would knock your socks off. And I recently returned from a year in Zambia, where the experience of another culture was life-changing. Universities all over charge the public nominal fees for outstanding events and performances. And many cities have science centres, museums of history, and other events that are free or low cost. When Neil DeGrasse Tyson had his mini-series a couple of years ago, our local science centre hosted a viewing each week, followed by a short lecture and Q&A session with scientists who are experts in whatever the theme of the show was--and it was free. Check out your local high schools for plays and musicals; okay, they may not be up to Broadway standards, but they are still a lot of fun for a fraction of the cost. And don't overlook your public library! Besides being able to check out everything from the latest bestsellers to very technical stuff, you can check out movies, use the Internet for free, and print stuff out for free (at my library I can print out 75 pages a week free!). They also often have free events of all kinds. My point is, you can save a lot of money but still have a lot of fun and interesting things to do. I recently read that 75% of American families eat out at least three times a week. That's fine if you have no debt and the income to do that and still save money. But that is not the case for most people. And the worst part of it is that most of them put it on a credit card! I don't believe in credit cards. If you only make the minimum payment every month, you could end up paying $500 for that $70 dinner! i have tons of great friends and we get together all the time. We just don't do it at restaurants. I can cook at least 25 meals for my friends for the cost of taking them out once. And we go out, but to the types of events listed above. And back to the OP's original question. Mobile/manufactured homes are a little tougher to finance, especially older ones, for all the reasons other posters have delineated. But the OP's problem isn't that MHs are somewhat difficult to finance. His problem is no one will finance him for anything other than a vehicle because of his current (or current at the time of his OP) financial situation. A poor credit rating and his debt to income ratio, and not having anything to put down on it, are the triple whammy. I would advise him, and anyone in his situation, to take a second job if possible, trade in the truck and buy something for cash, and get his credit rating up over time. I don't live in SoCal, so I don't know if his rent is reasonable, but if he could find something even $100 a month cheaper, that's still safe, I'd advise him to do that too. Anyway, these are things that have worked for me. Each person's situation is unique, and I recognise that some things that work for me may not work for you. And you may have some money saving ideas I haven't thought of. I would not presume to tell anyone how they should spend their money. I have no moral judgement on that--spend it however you want, as long as you adequately provide for your children. I'm only saying, in response to the OP, if your goal is to buy your own house, then this is the advice I would give you, or anyone else who asked. You are perfectly free to take it or leave it with no offence whatsoever taken on my part. And, of course, many buyers of MHs are far more well off financially than I am, although everyone has to live within her or his means. And everyone should have a savings account, in my personal opinion. But not all MH owners or want to be owners have the limited resources I have, and more power to them! I'm definitely not trying to perpetuate the myth, and it is a myth, that all MH owners live in poverty. That is certainly not the case! In fact, I would dare say the majority of MH owners are in the middle to upper middle class, and some are in the upper class.

Roberta said: "If this forum is to go anywhere, the difference has to be made clear in what in a Modular Home and what is a Trailer/manufactured home. One depreciates like a car and one increases in value like a stick built home. Huge difference.". First let me say I really like some of the specs on your new house, it looks great. Now here's the new's flash, there is NOT a huge difference in the construction of your house and some of the quality manufactured homes out there. While you may want to sell that idea it just ain't so. The photos of your factory are the most telling aspect. The way they are constructed is the SAME as what I saw in the Nashua & Guerdon factories I visited. re: depreciation, once set on a foundation and converted to real property, Manuf/Homes will appreciate EXACTLY like your modular, and qualify for 30 yr mortgages, etc. In fact here the title disappears and they simply assess based on the same formulas they use for other types of construction (stick/modular, etc), and why would they not? The quality manufactured homes of today are tight, well built homes that are hard to match for value. The so called "trailers" of days gone by are nothing like todays homes which are anything but mobile. Someone else mentioned that they use non-standard items and this is NO LONGER true. The lumber and materials we saw at the factory , were great. I will grant that while we were able to customize our home (add 4ft of length and move walls/doors etc), modulars tend to be more customizable, with more options. We are thrilled with our home and hope you can enjoy your home without the need to put down those who choose the quality and economy of a manufactured home. Please don't paint the manufactured homes of today with a 30 yr old brush, it's unfair and untrue.

quote" But what are you looking for? "quote I wish I knew, LOL!!!!! Actually, after starting this thread I surfed a lot of modular home Mfg's from links provided in threads by members. I've determined that it won't be my avenue because I can construct for much less than their pricing. My reasoning behind considering a mobile was because of the permanent living quarters aspect of it. At the moment we simply take our travel trailer there and set up with a generator. There's no permanence to it and no interior room within it if it's raining. I think the avenue I'm going to pursue is an interlocking log home placed on a monolithic concrete foundation. I believe that with a few laborers I can use one of my excavators as a crane to erect the shell, place trusses, dry it in, and secure the improvement in a quick timeline. The money I would have spent on a mobile can be spent towards the foundation and myself and my hands can stay in the trailer while we get the shell dried in. During build out if the weather goes sour we can enjoy space inside it I've found some direct sales available from mills that can provide the logs very affordably. taking this route I'm looking to not have a mortgaged home. Rather I'm looking for buck-a-board construction. You get a buck, you buy a board, and pay as you go!!! With the improvement in place, dried in, finished exterior, and secured with windows and doors I can meet the minimum requirements for homeowners insurance. The more I surf log homes the more I like the look of them!!! Thanks for your replies. Happy Holidays, Kelly

Don't confuse manufactured homes with modular homes. There absolutely are differences. Randall Eaton's consumer review book was the smartest money I ever spent when we were ready to retire to another state. I knew zip about the difference between the two types of homes and even less about the building contractors in the area we were moving to. We have been in our R-anell modular since 2003 and we have no complaints. We purchased it, based on reviews in Eaton's book. I custom designed the home and most people don't know it came in on wheels. Now that we have lived here 12 years, we know there are only one or two contractors capable of giving us equal or better value received in a comparable stick built house; we would have paid thru the nose for it, too. http://www.mobilehome.net/reaton/index1.htm