Looking for a Mobile home around Tampa,FL

[fjrob1300]

Ok so I'm thinking who can I talk to about living in Forida.... what about people already in Florida! My wife and I are mid 40's and looking to have a little place called home in a mobile park in or around Tampa. We won't be living there year round . Maybe visit 3 to 4 times a year.We almost bought one in Brandon FL this morning until we were told we were too young. As I poke around the for sale sites I can't help but notice there are tons of trailers in the $10,000 dollar range. What gives? Does anyone have first hand knowledge about buying one of the trailers. Can you rent them out to family? Can you be under 55 and still retire? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Rob

 

[wfooshee]

"Trailers" are low-income housing in usually rough neighborhoods. "Manufactured housing" is what most of those retirement places consist of. And in your 40s, you do NOT want to live in one of those parks. You'd be bored to tears, and you'd have to put up with far too many restrictions on your lifestyle, probably including no motorcycles.

Nothing wrong with retiring to Florida in your 40s, but you don't want to go to one of those facilities. Find a house in a regular neighborhood. Problem is, you're not gonna find transient renters to occupy it while you're not in it. Or if you do, it's not gonna be anybody you want in your place.

Our neck of the woods get numerous Canuckian bastages for the winter. They arrive in the fall, stay until the Spring Break noise drives them out. We are the buffet capital of the universe in the winter time. "Can I get a to-go plate?" "No, sir, it's a buffet, not a take-out." "Can we share a plate?" "Not if you're both eating. 2 plates!" And they can't drive for shit. I think they have a driving test up there, and those who fail are sent to Panama City for Winter.

OK, that last bit was a bit of a dig and a generalization. All in fun.

 

[wheatonFJR]

"Trailers" are low-income housing in usually rough neighborhoods. "Manufactured housing" is what most of those retirement places consist of. And in your 40s, you do NOT want to live in one of those parks. You'd be bored to tears, and you'd have to put up with far too many restrictions on your lifestyle, probably including no motorcycles.

So...any suggestions for our guy Rob?

 

[wfooshee]

The best I can come up with is a condominium, but that's probably more expensive. Turn it over to the management company, though, and they can keep it occupied by vacationers when not otherwise in use.

Either way, a village or a condo, you'll be up against association fees and rules, which I'd just as soon not deal with. Thus the "try to find a plain ol' house." There, though, you're up against keeping it useful while you're not around.

 

[Bustanut joker]

Me Auntie has a park just south of Tampa.. Me an Howie both lived there for a while back in the early 80's.. No ya sick fuks we didn't co-habitate!

Gladly I din' know the manatee fuker then

PM for more info

:jester:

 

[fjrob1300]

Walter thanks for your input. As much as I'd just like to sell all my Canadian holdings and move to where it's warm I can't. My wife seems to be attatched to the kids and says it's to far to live away from them. I told her we'd send them a forwarding address. She's not buying it though. So , that's where she came up with the trailer idea. If we stay in the Tampa area we will be near all the major amusement parks. We'd check out the local scene before we bought though. So we're looking for a get away type of place.

Bust... PM sent...I like your Auntie already

Rob

 

[user 6393]

time share?

 

[Aasland]

I have some family living in Venice and they are trying to sell us a condo on the beach, as the prices have dropped significantly in the past two years. I seem the recall the asking price was about $180k, but the problem is that too many condo's in the buildings are in foreclosure so it's hard to get a mortgage there.

Why FL? It's hot and muggy and flat and buggy. If it were my choice, I'd move to northern California, like Redding. No wait .. with the effed up gun laws and politics Cali is out ... North Carolina! Not as hot and muggy as FL but still has lots of great roads!

 

[MEM]

Why FL? It's hot and muggy and flat and buggy. If it were my choice, I'd move to northern California, like Redding. No wait .. with the effed up gun laws and politics Cali is out ... North Carolina! Not as hot and muggy as FL but still has lots of great roads!

Yes! go for it, Rob. I'll visit

 

[fjrob1300]

time share?

I don't quite understand the time share thing and I still want total control.

I have some family living in Venice and they are trying to sell us a condo on the beach, as the prices have dropped significantly in the past two years. I seem the recall the asking price was about $180k, but the problem is that too many condo's in the buildings are in foreclosure so it's hard to get a mortgage there. Why FL? It's hot and muggy and flat and buggy. If it were my choice, I'd move to northern California, like Redding. No wait .. with the effed up gun laws and politics Cali is out ... North Carolina! Not as hot and muggy as FL but still has lots of great roads!

Being a Canadian of Scottish desent I can make copper wire out of a penny. ( Cheapskate) Also Florida is a one day trip on a bike if I push it. The Carolinas are also on my radar.

Yes! go for it, Rob. I'll visit

There ya go MaryEllen is already on the guest list.

 

[Checkswrecks]

Why buy a trailer when foreclosed homes aren't that much more? (IF IF IF you can get a mortgage and insurance.)

We had dinner last night with a couple who have a trailer in that area and it is in one of the 50+ communities. They inherited the thing, decided to keep it, and go down for weeks here & there. As Foosh wrote, the neighbors are VERY into watching what goes on, but have been super friendly. There are retirees there with GoldWings and such, so as long as the bike's quiet, things seem fine. They've said a number of times that having the watchful neighbors actually is something they like, because unoccupied snowbird homes are pretty easy to spot and break into without being found out for the weeks until the snowbirds return.

I also learned that their space rental has been going up fast and they are now paying $400/month just for the spot it sits on, expecting worse to come with the declining dollar.

 

[Bounce]

We won't be living there year round . Maybe visit 3 to 4 times a year.

just enough trips to doze the rubble left from the last hurricane, shop for a new trailer, be there to take delivery and then be there to have utilities hooked up so you can have them turned off and the trailer "winterized" to put it away for the next year!

That's brilliant planning!

Being a Canadian of Scottish desent I can make copper wire out of a penny.

No. You can't. A penny is mostly zink.

Bottom line: A trailer is a depreciating asset. Houses (typically) are an investment. Weather this deep recession and your house and land will appreciate again while a trailer will simply rot away on a rental slot that keeps going up in monthly fees. $400 is nothing. I saw it get up in the $700 month range (for just a place to park that "manufactured home") back before the recession of the mid-80's; money down the drain that went to the land owner's asset and not mine.