We’ve featured a couple of families that have purchased a repossesed or foreclosed manufactured home and remodeled them into stunningly beautiful homes. Repossesd and foreclosed manufactured homes are availiable at very attractive prices because financing a pre-owned home is so difficult.

I wanted to learn more about buying a foreclosed mobile home after hearing these stories. This is what I’ve learned so far…

Before I begin, though, I want say a bit about the other side of manufactured home foreclosers: It depresses me to think about the family that lost their manufactured home to foreclosure and I certainly don’t want to ignore that in this article.

Lots of bad things happen to lots of good people.

I prefer to think that anyone that has lost a home to foreclosure ended up in a better situation in the end. Job loss, illness, divorce, or any number of things can put a family in a tough financial spot. Usually, the best move is to cut their losses and allow the manufactured home to be repossesed or foreclosed. No one should be judged for that decision. With that said, here’s what I learned about buying a foreclosed manufactured home:

The Difference Between Reposessed and Foreclosed Manufactured Homes

It’s important we discuss the difference between a repossed and a foreclosed manufactured homes.

To put it simply, a manufactured home financed with a chattel loan will face repossesion. A manufactured home that is financed with a ‘regular’ permantly installed on land (meaning the land is part of the packaged loan) will face foreclosure.

Manufac

What Does Foreclosure Mean?

HomeGuides explains a foreclosure as any house, condo or manufactured home whose original owner defaulted on their mortgage, resulting in the lender repossessing the home. The lender then reserves the right to sell the foreclosed home to another buyer.

Savvy home buyers can sometimes purchase foreclosed manufactured homes from the bank at a great price.

A foreclosed home cannot be listed for sale until the entire foreclosure process is complete. This process is very long and tedious in order to protect homeowners as much as possible.

TN Bank Owned Manufactured Home For Sale

3 Stages of Foreclosure: Pre-Foreclosure, Auction, and Post-Foreclusure

There are 3 stages involved in a foreclosure: pre-foreclosure, auction, and post-foreclosure.

Pre-Foreclosure

If the homeowner gets behind on their mortgage payments by 60-90 days or more the bank files a notice of default and the foreclosure process will have officially began. Basically, the bank is required to notify, or provide a public notice to the homeowner that they are in default of the loan. The bank must also file a notice through their local County Recorder’s Office.

Once the notice has been filed and delivered the home is officially in pre-foreclosure. At this stage the owner will still have up to 120 days to catch up on payments or refinance the home. There’s also a third option for homeowners in the pre-foreclosure period – they can try to sell the home and this is what is called a short sell.

Short Sell

Zillow.com describes a short sell as the sale of a property for an amount less than the unpaid mortgage. This happens when a borrower cannot afford to keep making mortgage payments and cannot pay the difference between the sale price and the unpaid mortgage. The borrower gets the bank to agree to sell the property for less than what is owed – and the bank is “shorted.”

Auction

The second stage in a home foreclosure is the auction. If the owner cannot make the payments, get the home refinanced, or sell it via a short sell the bank will schedule an auction.

Homes bought at auctions are sold as-is and goes to the highest bidder. However, the bids must be above a certain amount and the full amount is due immediately in cash. Not many people can pay cash for a home, even if it is at a reduced rate due to foreclosure. If no one buys the home at auction then the foreclosure goes into the third stage.

Post-Foreclosure

The last stage of a home foreclosure happens if the home does not sell at auction. The bank will have either received a payoff from the mortgage insurance or taken a loss on the home. By this time the owners will have left the property and the bank will be free to list it with a real estate agent or sell it at a liquidation auction. Homes owned by a bank and listed for sale are known as REOs, or real estate owned properties.

foreclosed manufactured home listed for 48900

LA Bank Owned Manufactured Home For Sale

How to Find Foreclosed Manufactured Homes for Sale

It’s fairly easy to find foreclosed manufactured homes. You can go through an agent, a real estate listing site, the newspaper, or your local area bank websites to find foreclosed homes. There’s also government agencies and private companies that can help you.

Foreclosure.com is a well-known resource for finding foreclosed homes. Zillow has a list of places to find foreclosed homes too.

Bigger Pockets published a list of National and regional REO Banks in both the private and government sectors. Below are the national sites:

HomePath.com – FannieMae’s REO Search
21st Mortgage Corporation – REO Search (mobile homes)
Bank of America – REO Search
Bank of the West – REO Search
BBVA Compass – REO Search
Branch Banking & Trust (BB&T) – REO Properties Search
Chase Bank – REO Search
CitiMortgage – REO Search
City National Bank – REO Search
Fifth Third Bank – REO Search
First Citizens Bank -REO Search
Flagstar Bank – REO Search
HSBC – REO Search
IndyMac Bank -REO Search
Key Bank – REO Search
M&T Bank – REO Search

Mercantil Commercebank (MCB) – REO Search
OCWEN – REO Search; See also Hubzu for REO Searches and Auctions
People’s United Bank – REO Search
PNC Financial Services – REO Search
Regions Financial Corporation – REO Search
Republic Bank – REO Search
Suntrust Mortgage – National REO Search
TCF Bank – REO Search
Trustmark Banking -REO Search
Union Bank – REO Search
United Community Bank – REO Search
U.S. Bank Home Mortgage – REO Search
Washington Federal – REO Search
Wells Fargo – REO Search
BayView REO – REO Search

Pros and Cons of Buying a Foreclosed Manufactured Home

There are more disadvantages of buying a foreclosed manufactured home than there are advantages but if you understand what you are getting into it can be worthwhile.

Price is the biggest advantage of buying a foreclosed home.

The median sales price of a non-foreclosed home was $195,100. The median sales price of a foreclosure home was $125,000, or 36% lower than non-distressed home sales (RealtyTrac).

Disadvantages can include high competition, property damages, complicated loan requirements, lien burdens attached to the home, and expensive repairs. There is typically no inspections involved when buying a foreclosed home either.

Simply put, you must do your homework and research the property and all its financial history before buying it.

Foreclosed Manufactured Home For Sale in Louisiana

Foreclosed Manufactured Homes vs Repossessed Manufactured Homes

Technically, you can only purchase a foreclosed manufactured home that is permanently installed, meaning the land is included in the sell.

If you just want to purchase a manufactured home with no land you will be buying a repossessed home. Foreclosed and repossessed both describe a property that the previous owners lost due to non-payment. Foreclosed homes include the land, repossessed homes do not.

Of course, each state is different and things can get really complicated depending on how the home is classified. Manufactured homes can be classified 2 ways, as real property or personal property. Real property will be foreclosed, personal property will be repossessed.

You will first need to decide whether you want just a home or both the home and land together. If you want a home with land you will be searching regular real estate listing sites, bank sites, etc. If you just want a manufactured home you will be going through dealers and finance companies.

Online Sources for Repossessed and Foreclosed Manufactured Homes

One of the largest nationwide manufactured home financing companies, 21st Mortgage Corporation, lists all of their available foreclosed and repossessed homes for sale on their website. All you have to do is click which state you’re in.

Another large manufactured home finance company, Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance, also has a website with listings of pre-owned homes (there’s no mention of foreclosure or repossession).

Finding a Loan for a foreclosed mobile home

Financing a Foreclosed Manufactured Home Purchase

You can finance a foreclosed home just like any other home. Factors that will play a role include your credit score, credit history, and the properties condition.

Manufactured homes are more difficult to find financing though it’s not impossible.

Local banks, private lending companies, and credit unions will be your best bet for finding financing especially if the home is classified as real property. The Veterans United Website had this to say about finding manufactured home financing:

“….it’s pretty tough right now to find a VA lender willing to loan on manufactured housing. There’s more risk with these properties, from the likelihood of long-term depreciation to issues with delinquency and foreclosure. After the housing market collapse and subsequent foreclosure crisis, lenders are still skittish and unwilling to take on what they may see as unnecessary risk.”

Government Programs That Can Help You Finance a Home

Government programs such as HUD, VA, and FHA can help you buy a manufactured home whether it’s new, used, repossessed, or foreclosed. These programs do not lend money themselves but they insure loans for qualified applicants which makes lenders more comfortable with lending because they have much less to lose.

1930s FHA poster - National Building Museum

FHA

The Federal Housing Administration has been helping Americans buy a home for over 75 years. They have a long list of loans available. They accept manufactured homes though there are a few requirements.

203K Loan is a popular loan program that can be used to buy a home that needs repairs. Here’s how they explain it on their website:

HUD has developed a new FHA insured mortgage program called the Streamline 203k Limited Repair Program that permits home buyers to finance up to an additional $35,000 for repairs into their mortgage to purchase and improve or upgrade the home before move-in or to refinance an existing mortgage and add up to $35,000 for repairs or improvements. With this new product, home buyers can quickly and easily tap into cash to pay for property repairs or improvements, such as those identified by a home inspector or FHA appraiser. Unlike the standard 203(k) program, any FHA approved lender may originate a Streamlined 203k mortgage. The following repairs can be financed with this program:

structural alterations and reconstruction

modernization and improvements to the home’s function

elimination of health and safety hazards

changes that improve appearance and eliminate obsolescence

reconditioning or replacing plumbing; installing a well and/or septic system

adding or replacing roofing, gutters, and downspouts

adding or replacing floors and/or floor treatments

major landscape work and site improvements

enhancing accessibility for a disabled person

making energy conservation improvements

This program can also be used with the purchase of a HUD home. Find out more about the Streamline 203k program by visiting HUD’s 203(k) Rehabilitation Mortgage Insurance web page here. To find a HUD approved lender in your area click here.

HUD

HUD has its own programs to help people buy homes, including foreclosed homes. They are also directly over the safety regulations of manufactured homes. (click on the header to be taken to the program’s main website}.

Title 1 Loan

Here’s how HUD explains the Title 1 loan in regards to manufactured homes:

A Title I loan may be used for the purchase or refinancing of a manufactured home, a developed lot on which to place a manufactured home, or a manufactured home and lot in combination. The home must be used as the principal residence of the borrower.

This should get you started! I spent quite a long time looking through foreclosed search sites and found many foreclosed manufactured homes for sale at awesome prices. I’m sure you can, too!

5 Tips for Buying a Foreclosed Home

Thank you for reading Mobile Home Living!

Guide to Buying Foreclosed Manufactured Homes