My better judgment tells me to not post to this one. But consider what you want to have and where you want to be after the 5 years is up. If the idea is to live for the next 5 at the upper limit of income and financial resources, then at the 5 year point, things will be no better than now. But it is one of the choices available. For better situation 5 years from now, buy the house which probably will appreciate in value. Good luck.

The disadvantage is that you will have no appreciation with the MH/park. Also, it sometimes happens that the park property can be sold - many of the older parks are located on land that is quite valuable nowadays, especially since it's already zoned for multiple units. Make sure you do some research first.

The question is what will you do in 5 years? Only you can answer that. If you think you MAY need an asset that MIGHT appreciate - depending on your local RE market, who knows if it will or not at the end of five years' time? - then the SFH could essentially be the bond portion of your investment portfolio - relatively illiquid, but secured by an actual asset.

However, 5 years is a very short time to profit off RE, especially when you add in the associated costs of a SFH. That's why I think the deciding factor is what you plan to do in 5 years. Do you want liquidity/flexibility, or are you willing to risk a higher percentage of your funds for a possibly greater gain?

We have friends who did the exact opposite of what we did. We bought the low-end SFH home. They stayed in a rent-controlled apartment. 25 years later, all four of us are in or close to retirement.

Our home is paid off, so it's worth about $500K as a net asset. However, we have the usual property taxes, homeowners and earthquake insurance (this is CA) costs, plus considerable maintenance - there's a number of big-ticket items coming up for replacement in the next 5-10 years. Our home has been considerably updated and modernized, so it's in our best financial interests to keep it that way. We plan to stay here for another 5-10 years, then sell and rent, probably from one of my family.

They bought a mid-level MH in a park located in the country, near their favorite fishing/hiking area. Gated park, very lovely - they did lots of research for a couple of years before picking this one. Because they have no children, they are not concerned about "leaving the kids the family home." This choice gives them the lifestyle they want to enjoy until they start needing assistance, at which time they'll shift into another lifestyle again.

We're both happy with our choices. Financially, we're both about even with one another. This is why when I post to the Household Finances forum, I try to point out that finances are highly individual, and there is no one right or wrong that applies to everyone.

Good luck in making the right decision for you.

You could also buy a piece of property, set the MH on it, and it WILL appreciate in value. This way you can have the amenities you want and also have the real estate needed to get higher returns.

>>You could also buy a piece of property, set the MH on it, and it WILL appreciate in value.Actually, this again depends on your local RE market. In ours, manufactured housing adds virtually no value to the land. Modular, yes; manufactured, no.