I'll second the last statement. Before a home gets vintage and becomes a character home it's just an old home and often goes through numerous resales, or even put up as rental property. If it's in need of repair, the owners often do it as cheaply as possible just to get it sold. I much prefer as near as possible to the original everything and renovating myself to undoing shoddy work before I get it back to the original bare bones. Routine home inspections are a fairly recent phenomenon, at least in the heartland. So, if it looked good, it eventually got sold. Many of what could be beautiful Victorians in my area had their ceilings lowered with that grid and cardboard system. In fact one I recently bought had this done to hide a damaged ceiling from a leaky roof. Then there was the paneling craze. I can live with real tongue and groove, but I'm talking the fake wood pattern on particle board. It's everywhere here to hide plaster cracks. Ditto the interior stucco walls. Carpet to hide bad hardwood floors. And of course the asbestos and lead paint issue. If you are looking at an older home, always wait for a bad rain and then insist on looking at it again the next day. If you see a sump pump remember they don't work when the electric goes out. Check all windows that they open and shut and look for condensation in the new tilt out windows. It's permanent and won't go away if it's in between the panes. Smell around. It can tell you a lot about moisture, plumbing issues, pet damage, fuel leaks. And don't be afraid to turn on the faucets to check for water pressure and take a paper cup with you and actually taste the tap water if you know it's safe to drink. Look for calcium deposits and check the plumbing for shut off valves where they need to be. Septics can be inspected, and it's a major issue if your prospective home has problems. If you are looking in areas where the house is not on a pubic water system, then ask to see the test results. Sometimes wells cannot be made safe, ever, no matter how many times you have shocked them. You're up a creek if they don't test safe and will have to install a system to chlorinate them or a reverse osmosis system. Both are expensive. These are also issues you may find in newer homes. You may also want to check with insurance agencies and go over what you have found with them. Our house is nearly two hundred years old. We have met all the criteria to get insurance and it's what we consider reasonably priced and we're happy. But........ our agent even jokes with us that what we have is a white elephant. No way on earth would we ever be able to replace the construction on this house, beamed everything, tongue and groove connections, three course brick exterior and even interior walls. And every window is a different dimension since they were all custom made. If you do desire to keep the history intact and remodel with any integrity down the road, to match materials is...

"Here's the "code book" for HUD." LOL. Although labeled differently, I see we posted the identical link. I, too, live in an area (rural Maine) that effectively requires no permit and no inspection for electrical work. When I asked my local "Code Inspection Officer" (a gravel and concrete guy), he said, "Oh, I verify set-backs and once or twice I've failed buildings for using 16' 2 x 4 rafters, but I don't do electrical." So I pushed him a bit and he agreed to inspect my new garage/workshop building. He had no clue what to look for so I even walked him around, pointing out the various things an inspector might look for (passing each one, naturally) and got him to sign off. That way, I can honestly tell my insurance company that the electrical work was inspected. We both thought the exercise was pretty funny. Anyway, back on topic. Perhaps I shouldn't doubt you, but are you sure you need a service upgrade? A 100-amp service is typically plenty for a mobile home unless there is a lot of electrical heat (e.g., baseboard heaters or heat pump). Have you done a load demand calculation that includes the proposed wall oven? The reason I ask is that I think if you can forego a service upgrade (to 200A?) and replace the panel with physical dimensions not too much larger than the original, you'd be in a pretty good position to argue that, although you've replaced a part (the panel) and added a circuit or two, you haven't voided the "HUD sticker." I think that position is much less defensible if you've upgraded the entire service. But do I know this for certainty? Nope, sure don't.

Last week, the electrician who works for the general contractor came out and said we can move the panel to the location that is 10 feet away. We'll need junction boxes in the attic and in the basement crawl space. We have not signed a contract yet with the general contractor, and we also have a handy man who is a licensed electrician, does HVAC and plumbing etc. He is wonderful. He knows the code because he works for a large institution. He says there is nothing we would be doing in our kitchen that even needs a permit UNLESS we decide to move the electric panel. The ONLY reason we would move the electric panel would be to meet code and get the inspector's approval. Handyman says all the structural work is done, that installing cabinets, countertops, under cabinet lighting, there is nothing to inspect. That we would be throwing money away to pull permits to do this work. We are not going to even move any vents or anything. The electric in the kitchen is already up to code. Handyman has offered to do the installations for us. It would be so much more reasonably priced - OTOH, we'd be without a kitchen a lot longer because he works on the weekends. Has a regular job during the week. So I guess the general contractor wants to pull permits to cover himself? He is also going to ask us to sign a contract with allowances, which I think would be foolish on our part. Does anyone have advice about the advisability of pulling or not pulling permits, or should I post this on a different forum?

Interesting and, again, helpful. Thanks to you both! Brilliant to incorporate the Pet Center into the kitchen. As it is, I've got at least half of one big drawer devoted to those things, and I don't much like mixing some of that stuff with food-related items (leaky Frontline packages, I'm looking at you!) They belong in a separate drawer as you have them, or in a mud room near the dog wash, which of course can double as a utility sink. It's not too hard to rig up a proper dog wash, inside or out--depending on the size of the dog and level of recalcitrance when it comes to baths ;) The more I think about it, the more a mud room makes sense for a small house. The only real addition that has been made post-1920s is a large-ish bathroom, with heated floors, a big closet, and a walk-in shower (separate from tub,) that has a nice high window. You can see the high window on the right in my other photos. Anyway, I do think that adding a good-size bathroom onto a tiny house is a huge improvement, especially when you think about sharing the space. A well-designed mud-room/ laundry will have a similar effect, unburdening the kitchen and other spaces from storage of linens, light bulbs, gift wrap, you name it! It's possible I can achieve what I want without adding extra "living" space (a bedroom or studio,) but I wonder if that becomes risky. It'd still be a 2 BR 1Ba house, albeit with ample storage and a comfortable connection to utility space outside. I think I'd like to proceed by designing the mud room and kitchen as if there would be a two story space where the garage is. I'd always imagined that space being linked to the old space through the kitchen, and that "mud" would be housed in the lower portion of the addition (where the garage is presently.) It's so helpful to have feedback like this to keep me from doing something impulsive that might make things better only in the short run. What a great resource you all are! Thanks again.