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Living in a mobile home has long been the butt of jokes, but a new study reveals mobile homeownership actually comes with some serious wealth-building perks.
Realtor.com’s Tuesday-released “Perks of the Park” report — published as Americans continue to struggle with daily living amid an ongoing affordability crisis — shows mobile homes can indeed generate equity for their owners. However, it depends on where they stand.
Mobile homes that sold along with land appreciated a staggering 70.1% between 2019 and 2026, according to the report, adding that figure outpaced the 58.6% gain for the typical US single-family home in that period of time. Mobile homes that sold on their own, without land beneath, appreciated by 51.6%.
“The true long-term investment value of a mobile home is in the land it sits on, but during periods of rapid price growth in the housing market at large, even the mobile home itself can appreciate significantly,” the report says.
The Realtor.com study comes as policymakers are eyeing mobile homes — or manufactured homes, as they’re classified after a June 15, 1976 built date — as one of the few responses to the affordability crisis. Not only do they provide a much lower barrier to entry over typical homes, but they can also help build generational wealth thanks to how they appreciate.
That said, the median list price for a mobile home in February was $141,450 — marking a 5.7% year-over-year decline. The median single-family home, meanwhile, was $410,000 in February — while the median townhouse or condo was $365,000.
Monthly costs for mobile homes also comes at much more affordable rates. Assuming 6% interest on a 30-year loan with a 20% down payment, according to the study, payments would hit $678 per month. For the median single-family residence, it’s $1,918 per month based on those same metrics.
“If you feel locked out of the traditional housing market but are concerned about passing along generational wealth, buying a mobile home, especially one on a piece of land that you own, is a good alternative to renting,” said Joel Berner of Realtor.com, who authored the report. “Each month, your payment builds your equity stake in your home, which can be passed along to your beneficiaries, instead of going entirely to your landlord, where it cannot.”
Still, the market for mobile homes is far more volatile than that of single-family dwellings. In the post-COVID years of 2021 and 2022, mobile home prices outgrew the rest of the housing market — eclipsing 30% year-over-year growth, according to Realtor.com. At the peak in September 2022, mobile home prices had grown by more than 95% compared to the summer of 2016, when they grew by 60%.
But the last two years have shown big falls. Now, the cumulative price growth for a mobile home is 63%.
The report also highlights the areas where Americans tend to live most frequently in mobile homes. The Sun Belt, an area that heated up during the pandemic years, is where they’re concentrated most. The Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metro in Florida has a 5.9% share of mobile home listings. Another is Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California — located outside the city of Los Angeles — where there’s a 3.5% share.
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