Are Mobile Homes the answer?

Loughton_Monkey

A BBC piece asks "Why do so many Americans live in mobile homes?", and goes on to discuss 20 million American residents of such places.

We have them in UK, and these so-called 'Mobile Homes' can cost as little as £25K to £50K.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24135022

"And there are parts of the country, like Michigan, where living in a mobile home community doesn't have the stigma it does in the south. You also have retirement communities in Florida where people aren't poor at all."

Mobile homes are a significant part of the US housing sector - there are 8.5m of them, down slightly on 2011, according to the US Census. The number of occupants is not recorded but it's estimated to total about 20 million.

According to the Manufactured Housing Institute, about 57% of the heads of mobile home households are in full employment and another 23% are retired. But the household median income is only a little over half the national average.

Most of the UK sites (as I understand it) are privately owned, and the buyers don't get a particularly good deal. It ocurred to me that such sites set up by councils and could presumably be done cheaply, quickly, to solve any demand problems for 'social housing' very quickly.

Let's go!

Kennyboy66

So where we really need high density housing (London & the south east), we put low density trailer parks ?



My only knowledge of Michigan trailer parks comes from the Eminem film "8 Mile" set in Detroit - this doesn't on the surface seem like a model we should be embracing.

Loughton_Monkey

Kennyboy66 wrote: »

So where we really need high density housing (London & the south east), we put low density trailer parks ?...

???

There are loads in Essex. A lot on the coast. The last thing I'd call them is 'low density'. Packed together like sardines, more like.

What do you want? Nelson Mandella Towers again?

grizzly1911

Pre fab houses I have mentioned these before..

They were used after the war to meet demand. I know one that is still in near original condition and lived in. Probably a RTB as the the others have effectively been externally built up in brick with slate roofs and the insides rebuilt by the council.



.

Kennyboy66

Loughton_Monkey wrote: »

???

There are loads in Essex. A lot on the coast. The last thing I'd call them is 'low density'. Packed together like sardines, more like.

What do you want? Nelson Mandella Towers again?

What do you want, places like Jaywick in North Essex ?

Loughton_Monkey

Kennyboy66 wrote: »

What do you want, places like Jaywick in North Essex ?

I'm happy with anything that's (a) cheap, and (b) Not in my back yard.

You know it makes sense.

MacMickster

Surely they tried this at Dale Farm round your way. The residents of the site seemed pleased with the arrangement.

I would also think that there's a big difference living in a caravan in the southern US states over winter, compared to the temperatures around the Home Counties in January.

Percy1983

I could pack 5 or 6 statics in my back garden...

Maybe I could call myself a developer...

PasturesNew

In the states you buy the caravan - and the sites rent pitches. That doesn't happen here. Here you buy an expensive caravan on an expensive pitch and are tied into an expensive agreement with few rights. There they're more likely to move on if the rent's too much and they've choices.

Their land is cheap, their trailers are cheap. That doesn't happen here.

It's like apples and pears.

[Deleted User]

PasturesNew wrote: »

In the states you buy the caravan - and the sites rent pitches. That doesn't happen here. Here you buy an expensive caravan on an expensive pitch and are tied into an expensive agreement with few rights. There they're more likely to move on if the rent's too much and they've choices.

Their land is cheap, their trailers are cheap. That doesn't happen here.

It's like apples and pears.

they are mobile park homes here not caravans(they are for eholidays),they can range from 25k used to 250k+new and around 1200 sq.feet
site fees range from £15 to £30 a week,and they are all protected by the 1983 act updated in 2013 with many rights
we bought ours 2 years ago on a small private estate(32 homes) 100 yards to the side of us is a farm and beyond that miles of countryside,the nearest bricks and mortar home sold last year for £600,000
we paid 45k for a new 2 bed home,with the biggest garden we`ve had in any of our 6 other homes

BristolBob

Are Mobile Homes the answer?

Only if the question is: "What would be your idea of a nightmare way to live?"