look around the windows, the caulking/ siding where it meets. we were first time home owners and didnt catch a couple places where the siding DOES NOT MEET ! it was up high near the roof and it wasnt until the warranity was expired that we noticed it. also, we bought a "heat pump" for a little extra, instead of the furnace that came with it. it has made a huge difference in the cooling of the house. also make sure each window opens and closes and latches well. we never open our windows, but if we did, a couple would not stay open because they dont latch. look for under the sink drains/ dryer vent holes,,, they may be larger than the pipes and you will be setting up a new house for the area mice... (we had millions) until we made a plate that fit around the drain holes in every bathroom/hotwater heater and kitchen !!!!!!!!!!! dont forget dryer, ,,, we also got a couple of cats,,, that stopped all traffic of mice. also, our house didnt come with a single light bulb, i was so excited about getting in the house, we had moved in all day, i was going to cook our first meal,,, and then realized that we had no lights,,, we needed 44 light bulbs for the house... i never realized that one house had so many, (not joking or exagerating) lol,, well that was a decade ago, we have since papered, painted almost every room in the house,, but that is another posting,, zz

"cleaning up after a man..good grief..that is a tough call" lol! it sure is! haven't done it in over 25 yrs either - (when I got divorced). I won't count my young son back then...or my boy dog... I'll have help tho - my dbf will be helping me. and I'm gonna try to pay someone to help also. I can't do a lot of the bending and reaching (cleaning back of cabinets, tubs etc). dbf will sweep everything w/his shop vac, then I'll vaccum with my oreck... then we're gonna test clean a section of carpet. if it cleans up good, I'm gonna hire someone to clean them all. (too much for me to do even tho I have a carpet cleaner). At least this guy didn't have any pets. my dbf has some workmen to help with patching some walls, replacing doors, a few windows, painting. I might be able to help with some painting if I get one of those long handled roller sticks. A lot of the 'dirt' is from sitting empty in the desert (dirt blows everywhere) and a few broken windows (done by the guys who moved it a few yrs ago). it's been sitting on some land of dbf's for a few yrs. I've lived on my land in a beat up old '72 trailer (really - no heat, a/c in one room, windows don't even close so desert dirt blows in - ugh) for the past 11 yrs. most of the time I've been too sick to care. This past yr or so I'm staying awake more and doing a bit better. Now I can look around and CARE, just not strong enough to do much about it. I'm about 8 yrs behind in my cleaning here. Best thing to do in that case is - move. lol! anyway, this new one is at least 1400 sq ft for me and my 2 dogs so we'll have room to spread out and put in bookcases etc to put things into (I've been living out of boxes and bins mostly). It's at least twice the space I have now. I'll think I'm in a palace - lol! I'm planning to live in it about 6 months before I do anything major to the kitchen or master bath. the main bath looks (under lots of dirt) to be ok (maybe I'll change out the faucets - it is missing a shower head anyway. not that I'll be using that shower). I'm so glad I found this site! so much to read, learn etc. have gathered up tons of ideas - and many posts have caused me to rethink a previous plan... I've copied out a lot of pics and the site urls into folders on my computer - labeled 'bath', 'kitchen', 'sinks', 'appliances' etc. and will be making a list of things to do and possible ideas for each room. I've also learned a lot from my sister - her and her dh built down the road from me about 2 yrs ago. We have the same disability and she's learned from their mistakes and things that make it easier on us in our daily lives. So I've got a list of things to put in / not put in from her also. I need to make it as easy to clean and do things as possible. I have many bad stretches physically so I want to be prepared for them - as much as I can. "beware..they can be a little on the stuffy side sometimes when it comes to higher class type info" boy, I caught that! I about fell off the bed (where I work on computer) reading about how much some pay for a stove etc! whoa... eating just isn't THAT important to me (well, eating is more important to me than cooking). I seldom cook anymore. If I did, I STILL wouldn't pay that much! tho, it has been yrs and yrs since I've had reason to buy an appl - last I bought was my fridge in '98. only got a small one - at 800.00. i am adjusting to the sticker shock too. but if I can get a decent stove for 6-700.00 why would I pay 5,000 for one? not me...just ain't worth it to me. I do want things nice, clean and roomy but material things aren't that important to me. I have a lot of nice things now...don't need anymore. In this mfg home the main things will be kitchen cabs, new sink and a couple of appliances I'll need. and new counter top. Even tho I don't do much cooking I want it clean, fresh, good storage and easy for me to clean. In the mstr bath - new vanity and possibly shower (after the kitchen is done). dbf is talking about putting out a decent size porch / patio and ramp for me(easier for me and my older dog). I have several sets of steps now (6 I think! and only 2 doors now - 3 in the new one). and he'll fence an area for my dogs (I have 2 acres) so I can just open the door and let them in and out without me taking them down the steps to cable them outside (which I do now). ronbre - great seeing your LR. I have a lot of big, 'ol antiques myself. good to see how they look in a mfg home! I will need to have a few pieces re-upholstered down the road too. Will do that next yr - after colors are settled on etc - then I'll look for fabric for them. Does that RL paint have the normal paint smell to it? one thing I've found is I'm very sensitive to smells as the yrs go by. Things that never used to bother me now make me very sick. but I sure like the looks of that paint! this board has helped a lot on things - even down to knowing there's an option in toilet seat heights! I'm getting older so guess I need to check into that one! lol! and I had no idea that toto existed until this board! I'm so behind the times (being very sick for 8 yrs will do that to ya). They had a thread on handicapped bathroom access over on the bath board - that was very helpful. I'll be putting in at least 1 grab bar. end of chapter...

Local ordinances pertaining to mobile homes probably vary more from one location to another than one can even imagine. Some localities are trying hard to eliminate mobile homes. If you contemplate buying a new mobile home, the dealer might be the best source of information. I know you said you work for the government. The person who best knows the regulations for that area might be an inspector who is in the office only a little while in the early morning. Here locally, the person who answers the phone frankly knows only how to answer the phone. When I go in that office, I look deep in her eyes and there is no one at home! If you were considering moving to my area, I would advise getting the ordinances and reading them yourself. For a property here to remain grandfathered for mobile homes, the SELLER must submit within 24 hours of the deed transfer, in writing, a letter notifying the Planning Director of the sale and the BUYER must, within that same 24 hours, register that property for mobile home use with the Planning Director. Obviously that means personal hand delivery. This is in addition to the normal recording of the property deed. Even the best local real estate attorney did not know of this regulation until I told him. He told me this would be easy to defeat in court- but he did not say it would be low cost. And the local "Commissars" are counting on that to forestall any challenges. They also have some regulations on mobile homes that permit "unbridled/unfettered discretion" on the part of the enforcement officer. Many court precedents have ruled such to be unconstitutional, but it costs a lot to mount a challenge. Here, I do not trust the Planning Director to be forthright about these ordinances. I asked him if a public housing unit would be built to house the folks forced out of mobile homes (that they paid for)- he just had a blank stare. I am not an attorney, but I review the work of my attorney carefully.

I agree with the above poster, it needs to be inspected. If the owner wants you to go on his word then it should be reduced a lot due to unforseen possible future problems. If you do buy it, vents need to be installed first thing, and fans need to be put in the crawl space to dry it out. I would be more concern with mold. It is not just damp under there it is WET, dripping wet at that. That is VERY bad. Although it is not something that couldn't be easily fixed, it is still going to cost money either to you or to the homeowner. It doesn't matter now that HE doesn't want vents, HE is trying to get rid of it and this is something that has to be done if HE wants to sell it. Unless he is lucky enough to find a sucker who also thinks it isn't an issue. And I would have to wonder since he thinks it is a great problem free place, why's he wanting to let it go? Albeit a REALLY nice place, gosh I would love to have it too, and all the land with it. It does have some VERY nice upgrades to it. STILL there are issues there. I would get an inspector out there ASAP, if I were seriously considering buying this place because they can tell you what is REALLY going on. They can spot things that most of us would say ok, that's not really a big deal, when in fact it could be, or in the future might be. :) NCGG