Buying your manufactured home through a street dealer/sales center is very similar to buying a new car. You can and should negotiate the price. You may have less negotiating power when you purchase your home through a community sales office.
When you view your home at a dealership or through the community sales office, most likely it is already equipped with many options that affect the price. Once you have selected the manufacturer and model you want, always request the base price of the home with no options or extras. Then you are in a position to shop around with different dealers. If you are buying through a dealer, you may want to consider going outside the immediate area to see if the price is better. Savings in the base price may more than offset the cost of transportation from a dealer outside the immediate area.
Dealers typically work on profit margins that range from 20 percent to 35 percent. Today, the timing of a new manufactured home purchase gives buyers an advantage. Industry sales of new manufactured homes have dropped from 350,000 annually a few years ago to an estimated 130,000 this year. Dealers may be overstocked on inventory; manufacturers want to sell as many homes as possible, which may help you negotiate a lower base price.
If you have selected a community in which you want to live and are purchasing your home through its sales office, keep in mind that sales are probably not as easy as they were a few years ago, making the office may be more willing to deal.
The community's sales center or sales office is entitled to make a reasonable profit. Remember this when you are negotiating. It has had to maintain its sales models and pay sales staff and overhead. If you can negotiate a reduction of 5 to 10 percent on the base price, you are doing well. It will pay you to shop around, even if you are moving into a community. Ask the community management if you can purchase your home from an outside dealer if you can't negotiate the price you want. While it may place certain restrictions on the manufacturer or home you buy, most communities know that they will make their money on the long-term land rental or maintenance fees.
Once you have determined the base price, request the construction modifications you want and select all your options. Price the changes and options so you know the total cost of your home. To obtain the total price, you must know the cost of transporting the house to your lot, the cost of installation and anchoring, the cost of concrete work (driveway and screen room), and the cost of installing the carport, shed and screen room.
When you have determined the total cost of your new home, you can look for financing. Do not commit to purchasing the home until you have obtained the financing you need. The wise buyer has done research and talked with potential lenders before getting this far in the process. In fact, many dealers or communities want to know if you can qualify for financing before they negotiate the final price.
Be sure to shop around for the best terms. Ask the dealer, then check with area banks and mortgage brokerages that lend to the manufactured housing industry. Florida is a good market for financing manufactured homes, with reasonable interest rates.
If you have read all four parts in this series (and clipped them for future reference), I am confident you will save money and purchase a high-quality manufactured home.
- Send comments or questions to Len Bonifield at elb@gate.net or fax to 863 853-8023, or phone (863) 858-1557. Please include your e-mail and mailing address. Bonifield is a manufactured-home resident and a past HOA president and former officer of the FMO District 1 board of directors.
