Selling mobile homes (now known as “manufactured homes”) can be and often is quite a bit different from selling traditional homes. And that means you may have to make some significant changes in your selling approach and marketing tactics, especially if you want to sell a Tucson mobile home fast. Let’s take a closer look at the process of selling your Tucson, AZ, mobile home.
Overview of Selling Your Tucson Mobile Home
First, you should be aware that selling a mobile or manufactured home means you’ll be entering a highly competitive market. And this competitive market entails a couple of differences that really don’t come into play in the selling of traditional homes. The first of these is that mobile homes are often sold apart from the land they sit on, and, second, cash transactions are far more common.
(You can discover more about cash sales from a trusted Tucson mobile home buyer.)
Still, there is a basic process with some typical steps for selling your mobile home, for example:
Appraisal
Before listing your mobile home, you’ll have to know what it is worth on the market, so your first step will be to get it appraised. To arrive at a fair market value, agents use specialized valuation tools that take into account local market conditions such as supply and demand, location, square footage, number of beds and baths, condition, and more.
Inspection
Next in the process of selling your Tucson, AZ, mobile home typically comes the inspection. While this inspection isn’t strictly necessary (because buyers will almost always have their own inspection done), it’s still a good idea and a recommended step. You’re far better off discovering and fixing problems early on – before the buyer’s inspection turns up these problems.
Staging
Whether you’re using an agent or doing an FSBO deal, you will need, just as with a traditional home, to stage your manufactured home. Staging highlights and showcases your home’s best features and creates an appealing environment for buyers, one where they can envision themselves living. Because staging is so important, your best bet is to hire a professional staging service.
Listing Photos
And, then, before listing and marketing your manufactured home, you’ll need to take plenty of top-notch, professional-quality photos. Today, most people begin shopping for manufactured homes online, and, as a result, top-quality listing photos are absolutely essential. You can take the photos yourself, but a better bet is to hire a professional.
Marketing
Once the market research, appraisal, inspection, staging, and listing photos have all been taken care of, it’s time for you to dive into marketing your Tucson mobile home. And today that means, in large part, online marketing – in the best venues and deploying the most effective tactics.
Verifying Funds
After you receive an offer, you typically need to make sure the buyer actually has the money. Whether it’s a cash buyer or a buyer financing through a lending institution, you should make an effort to verify the buyer’s funds. To do this, you can consult with your bank or talk to your agent.
Preparing Closing Documents
Then the next step (after verifying funds) in the process of selling your Tucson mobile home usually involves preparing the closing documents. And there are a lot of them, including:
- Sellers Information Sheet
- Promissory note
- Bill of sale
- Title
- Agreements about special conditions/concessions
Of course, the number and kinds of documents required for closing will vary from state to state and in accordance with the specific sale conditions. But you do need to make sure everything is ready before making an appointment for a closing date.
Making Appointment and Closing
Finally, you’ll make an appointment to close, that is, set a closing date. At that time, all the pertinent documents are signed, money changes hands, and the title to your mobile home is signed over.
Differences in Selling Your Tucson Mobile Home
Now we come to the major differences between sales of manufactured homes and traditional home sales, such as:
Real Property vs. Chattel
If you own the land your mobile home sits on, then selling it will proceed much like a traditional home sale. In this case, it is considered real estate or real property, and there’s not much difference in how it goes down. If, however, you don’t own the land your manufactured home is on, there are some significant differences.
When you sell a mobile home separate from the land it sits on, it is considered personal property or chattel. In fact, only about half of the people living in manufactured homes actually own the land underneath. This is referred to as a “lot lease” situation, typically in a mobile home park, and the park administration will have some say in who you can sell your mobile home to and how you can sell it.
Financing
Another major difference can be seen in the financing for the purchase of lot lease mobile homes. While it is possible for buyers to get a traditional mortgage, such as an FHA loan, in this instance, the requirements are strict and few lenders are willing to extend a mortgage. So financing more commonly works out in one of these ways:
- Chattel loan – This is a loan very much like a car loan, but from a lender who specializes in this kind of loan. Although the requirements aren’t all that stringent, the rates are less favorable for borrowers.
- Owner financing – Another common financing option for mobile homes is owner financing. You, the owner, get a down payment and then receive monthly payments till the full amount has been paid. There is some risk involved here, so it’s a good idea to use a lawyer in drafting the documents.
- Cash purchase – More common for the sale of mobile homes than traditional home purchases, a cash purchase is the easiest and the best way to sell a Tucson mobile home fast. While this is often the best option, you do need to exercise some caution because cash buyers are usually looking to pay below market value. Be sure, then, to check out cash buyers and make sure the one you choose is a reputable Tucson mobile home buyer.
Pricing
And then there’s the pricing of mobile homes, which isn’t always as straightforward as pricing a traditional home. Unlike traditional homes, manufactured homes usually depreciate over time. So instead of appreciating and increasing in value, they decrease in value much like your car. But the land the mobile home sits on often does appreciate. And all this makes accurately pricing a mobile home a pretty tricky affair.
The Easy Solution – A Tucson Mobile Home Buyer
So if it seems like selling a mobile home is more involved and more difficult, that’s because it is – unless you go through an experienced, reputable Tucson mobile home buyer. A cash buyer like this can help you sell your Tucson mobile home fast and easily and at a fair price. Check out the trusted mobile home buyer in Tucson that guarantees a fair offer, allows you to choose the closing date, and pays the costs involved in selling.