In my opinion if it's in a park then it's not worth spending a fortuun on it unless all the other homes are very expensive models....it will depreciate and have a book price. If it's going to be on land owned by you, then it normally won't hurt to spend a litle on it because it will probably appreciate. And I guess the question is, do you hope someday to recover what you've put into it?

Honestly, it cannot hurt to update ANY home, whether it be stick built, modular or a mobile home! I think the whole idea that because it's not a "real" house, you don't have to do work to it is just ludacris. That is why you see so many mobile homes that are falling apart! They are just like ANY home, they need updating and maintanence!

I'm not sure where you live but for us, doing things that weatherproofed the home better really helped. We replaced the exterior doors and most of the windows in our almost 20 year old mobile home. Caulking around doors and windows and checking for holes and patching will also help. Siding will make it look nicer and so will updating the roof. We also replaced all of our flooring and painted over the paneling and wallboard for a cleaner, lighter look and updated some of the fixtures.

You may not need to replace your cabinets unless they are in bad shape. Just painting ours gave them a whole new look!

Remember one thing about remodeling a mobile home, things are often not the usual size you find at the store. You will either have to special order or brainstorm up another way to make things work. It IS possible but you have to realize it's not all going to be a simple job!

Good luck!

Thanks for your input coolvt and sweets98. We live in NH and the park where our new to us home is located has many, 90% very nice and new mobile homes..both single and double wides. The lots are very spacious and private. We are both about to retire in a few months and we don't plan to sell this home any time soon. This not our first home..we sold our "stick" home 2 years ago and this is our down size and live simpler step in life. The home inspector said this mobile has "good bones", but should have upgrades at this point in it's life. On the agenda is: a new roof, vinyl siding, replacement windows, an addition (sun room). The inside is pristine and only needs the paneling painted. The paneling its self is in excellent condition, if we liked paneling. I really like the bay windows at each end, 3 bedrooms and a bath and 1/2. It is a mini home compared to our Gambrel of many years. Can we have the vinyl siding installed over the aluminum siding? Are replacement windows as hard to find as it appears to be? Thanks in advance for your input.

This may not be your personal style, but it is definitely inspirational to see what one woman has done with her old mobile home.....make sure to look at all of the rooms.

Here is a link that might be useful: mobile home redo

Thanks frenchkitty, for providing the link to this page. I love what this lady has done with her home. Our style is different, but the final results would be as pleasing to the eye and comfortable. We look forward to creating a special and unique home, for ourselves and family/friends to enjoy.

Birdwoman,
I didn't mean to say that you shouldn't fix up an older home if it's in a park. I was trying to say that it's much easier to to recover your investment if the home is on owned land. If you can stay in that place for a while after you've fixed it up, you'll get your money's worth.
If the park is full of nice and newer homes, they should help to pull up the value of yours. So, this probably isn't such a bad situation.
The thing that will hurt you the most when and if you sell is the cost of the lot rent in the park. If the rent increases much faster than the cost of living, the value of all the homes will decrease.

Just found this site and yours is the first to see. I'm currently in mid restoration of my single wide. The walls have been textured. The gas furnace/air conditioner has been revamped to a heat pump. The roof is 1/4 done with steel over 1" 48 sheets of foam. Delayed due to weather/holiday travel. The steel roofing is the same used to roof a new 40x60 steel building on the same property. The kitchen/living is void of cabinets. The floor is prepped with 5/16 OBS with a wood looking floor sections yet to be laid. The Washer/dryer 'room' is now the pantry with an opening to recess the refridgerator. Many more changes are in the works. Both interior and exterior. Daughter says food is ready. Thanks for the ear.

Hello blugold...I am very interested in the renovations/restorations you have done and are planning. The interior of our singlewide is in mint condition. However, the exterior needs work. We will replace the roof in the spring and that is a major project. I am very interested in the roof you are using. Our Fairmont has a slightly rounded roof (rubber material). I like the peaked metal roof because the shape will prevent snow build up. Here in NH snow on the roof has been an issue. However, a peaked roof will alter the look and feel of the original design of this vintage MF home. We are adding a 3 season rome onto an already existing living room extension. After we solve the "marriage" of these rooms and the roof, we move on to restoring/painting the aluminum siding and replacing the shutters. This will be a busy year. But the end result will be well worth the effort and expense. I love your pantry area re-design. Where are you relocating the washer/dryer? Please keep me posted as to your progress and any advice you can offer will be much appreciated. Also, would you care to share the origin of your user name?

I just found this thread. We have a 1997 Clayton 16x80 that we are updating. We've finished the 2 bathrooms, kitchen and back hallway. Monday we are having vinyl siding installed over the metal and a couple of years ago, we had a new metal roof installed. I know these posts are over a year old, but was wondering if you are still out there and can post pictures of your updates? I love looking at mobile re-do's for ideas. Thanks! Lynn

Currently I'm in the process of rebuilding a 1996 Fairmont Single wide my son and his bride purchased at auction after it was repo'd. It has 2 bathrooms and 2 bedrooms; master bedroom with bath at the left end and guest bedroom, (next to master), beside smaller full bathroom about center. Can anyone tell me how the plumbing is laid-out under the trailer? I need to find out which pipe is primary and how they branch out from there. Where to get this info would be OK too!