How good is the deal?
Are you thinking about purchasing a mobile home in Oklahoma? If so, you’re making a great decision. Mobile homes offer the most value per square foot of any home on the market. They’re energy efficient, well built, and available across the state. Whether you’re in Oklahoma City or Kingston, there is a mobile home dealer in Oklahoma that can help you find your dream home.
Not convinced yet? Let’s dive a little deeper into just great of a deal you’ll get when you purchase a mobile home.
At the time of publishing this article, the average cost per square foot for a new site-built home in Oklahoma is right around $170 per square foot. Some places, like rural Alabama, are lower, while other places, like San Francisco, are much, much higher. Using that $150 per square foot price, a new site built home with 2000 square feet is going to cost about $300,000. That probably seems high, but let’s quantify how high with the financing costs. Assuming an average interest rate of 4%, 20% down, and 30-year term, the monthly payment would be $ 1,145, or roughly $1500 after taxes and insurance are added. To afford this, the homeowner would need to make $6000 per month, or $72,000 per year.
Now let’s look at a similar manufactured home. The median price per square for a mobile home is $100, so a $2000 sq. ft. home would cost approximately $200,000. Using the same financing terms as above, the monthly payment would be $750, or $1100 after taxes and insurance are escrowed. To afford this payment, the homeowner would need to make $4,400 per month, or $52,800 per year.
Look at the two income differences – that’s over $20,000 per year! For the same size, same build home. Mobile homes are simply more affordable than their site-built equivalents. And don’t mistake affordability for poor quality. Mobile homes are a better value in Oklahoma because of where they’re built and home they’re built, not the build quality. Read on to learn why these homes are such a better price than their competitors.
Factory Construction
Mobile homes are built in factories, hence the name ‘manufactured’. This may seem strange if you’re thinking of home other homes are built, but not if you look at other expensive items you purchase. Cars, boats, RVs, tractors, planes, HVACs, cranes, and other expensive, complex items are all built in factories. In fact, homes are very likely the ONLY expensive item someone purchase that is NOT built in a factory.
Could you imagine if you bought a car, and the dealer then showed up at your house with all the parts, laid them in the yard, and drove off? Only to have someone else come in the next week or so and assemble the car in your driveway? That wouldn’t make any sense at all. Why would you want all those expensive parts and complex engine components sitting out in the weather? The same applies to housing. When you build a site built home, all the components sit out in the weather until the builder finishes the home, which can damage the materials. Building the home in the factory allows the manufacturer to keep all the components inside, which means no damage. This keeps costs down. The factory environment also means no weather delays, which also keeps costs down. Items built in a factory are always a better price and higher value, and mobile homes are no different.
Economy of Scale
Builders also use the principals of economy of scale to keep the price of mobile homes at a more affordable level. According to Investopedia, “Economies of scale are cost advantages reaped by companies when production becomes efficient. Companies can achieve economies of scale by increasing production and lowering costs. This happens because costs are spread over a larger number of goods. Costs can be both fixed and variable.”
What does this mean for homebuyers? It means that because manufactured home factories purchase supplies in bulk, they get lower prices. And because they get lower pricing, they’re able to pass those saving on the to the consumer, the homebuyer. A manufactured home with the same materials will be a lower price
Make no mistake, manufactured home factories can build A LOT of homes. During the busy seasons, a factory will build several homes per day. That means they’re turning out over one thousand homes per year! This high volume of production allows them to get great pricing on items such as windows, doors, appliances, lumber, carpet, drywall, etc. The savings are then passed on to the homeowner. Same product, but a better price because the manufactured home builder is buying so many at once.
Wind Zones
If you live in the coastal United States, you’re probably familiar with hurricanes and tropical storms. These storms form in the tropics and make their way across the Atlantic towards North America. When they reach land, they will slam into the coast with rain and wind, damaging homes, business, and roads. They can sometimes have wind speeds up to 150 miles per hour! Homes in coastal areas need to be able to withstand significant wind. To help classify the ability of homes to withstand strong wind, HUD created the Wind Zone rating. HUD code stipulates, §3280.305(c)(1) and §3280.305(c)(2), that the home shall be designed and constructed to conform to one of three wind load zones.
According to MHI (Manufactured Housing Institute), “The home must be capable of transferring these imposed lateral loads to the home’s stabilizing devices without exceeding the allowable stresses and other deflection requirements. Wind Zone I, Wind Zone II and Wind Zone III are identified on the basic wind zone map above. The manufactured home producer designs the home to resist the wind load, which is measured in pounds per square foot. Wind Zone I equates to a 70-mph fastest-mile wind speed. Wind Zone II equates to a 100-mph fastest-mile wind speed. Wind Zone III equates to a 110-mph fastest-mile wind speed.”
We mention these codes because site-built homes do not have these standards, and many older site-built homes cannot withstand the storms that may impact the region they’re in. This adds to a mobile home’s value because even at a lower price, the mobile home will be more resilient against damage from storms. Getting a more durable product at a lower price is always a better deal.
Mobile Home Regulations and Codes
To finish, we need to talk about the HUD code in more specifics because it is the standard by which all mobile home builders must build. Because it is a federal code, overrides all local building codes. Therefore, all states and counties have to accept HUD standards, even if HUD’s codes conflict with local building codes. One of the key differences is that HUS requires that all mobile homes have a steel chassis. It also regulates wind zone rating (see above), roof load rating (for snow), and thermal zone ratings (for HVAC efficiency).
Knowing that there is a nationwide standard allows mobile home buyers in Oklahoma to feel more confident that their home is built for the region in which they live. If the homeowner gets a lot of snow in their area, the home’s roof can handle it. If there’s a lot of wind, the home can withstand it. And if it’s particularly hot or cold, the home will be well insulated to keep the homeowners comfortable, and the energy bills low.
Mobile homes are factory built to a very strict code, so homeowners know they’re getting a quality product at a great price. That is why mobile homes are a great value for all homeowners in Oklahoma, Texas, and beyond.