Skip to content
×
PRO
Pro Members Get Full Access!
Get off the sidelines and take action in real estate investing with BiggerPockets Pro. Our comprehensive suite of tools and resources minimize mistakes, support informed decisions, and propel you to success.
Advanced networking features
Market and Deal Finder tools
Property analysis calculators
Landlord Command Center
$0
TODAY
$69.00/month when billed monthly.
$32.50/month when billed annually.
7 day free trial. Cancel anytime
Already a Pro Member? Sign in here

Join Over 3 Million Real Estate Investors

Create a free BiggerPockets account to comment, participate, and connect with over 3 million real estate investors.
Use your real name
By signing up, you indicate that you agree to the BiggerPockets Terms & Conditions.
The community here is like my own little personal real estate army that I can depend upon to help me through ANY problems I come across.
General Real Estate Investing
All Forum Categories
Followed Discussions
Followed Categories
Followed People
Followed Locations
Market News & Data
General Info
Real Estate Strategies
Landlording & Rental Properties
Real Estate Professionals
Financial, Tax, & Legal
Real Estate Classifieds
Reviews & Feedback

Updated about 4 years ago, 09/23/2020

User Stats

636
Posts
650
Votes
Kyle McCorkel
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Hummelstown, PA
650
Votes |
636
Posts

Is this a mobile home or a single family house?

Kyle McCorkel
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Hummelstown, PA
Posted

I just bought a single family house in Central PA (Cumberland County, near Harrisburg).  The plan is to flip it.  Bought it for $95k off market, planning to put in about $43k and sell for $190k.

We walked through twice and the seller told us there was no basement and no crawl space.  Well, after we closed and brought our rehab team in, they discovered a small door in the back of the property (covered with siding, so it blends in).  The door opens up revealing a small crawl space.

Now here's where it gets weird.  In the crawl space, there's steel beams running across part of the structure, almost like it used to be a mobile home.  After seeing the structure under the property, it appears that a long time ago it was a mobile home, and since then there's been additions added on.  So PART of the house is on a block foundation.  The other part, with the steel beams, is resting on cinderblock piers, which are resting on poured concrete piers.  We couldn't see any of this initially because there's cinderblocks covered by siding around the perimeter of the house.

Note: the county classifies the house as "Single family detached".  I checked other properties that are definitely mobile/manufactured and they are classified as "Manufactured".

So, it's not a MOBILE home anymore... the house is quite stationary.  Our concern is the implications with selling.  Do we need to worry about an inspector flagging an issue, or worse, do we need to worry about the future buyer being able to finance a house that a lender might classify as still a mobile home? Would this/should this affect comps?

Loading replies...