The buyers guide
Buying a park home, step by honest step
Park homes are one of the Valley's smartest paths to ownership, and they come with their own financing, approval and age rules. Here is the whole picture, in plain order, with our team on call for the specifics.
1 · Financing
The loan follows the land
Whether you can get a conventional mortgage or need a chattel loan is decided by the ground, not the home. On leased park land there is no owned land to mortgage, so buyers typically use chattel financing or targeted programs such as FHA Title I.
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Chattel loan: the home is personal property, secured by the home itself, built for homes on leased park pads.
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Real property loan: requires owned land and a permanent foundation, the familiar mortgage route for deeded homes.
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The real monthly number: home payment plus space rent, compared honestly, before you make an offer.
2 · Park approval
You cannot move in until the park says yes
Every park screens its own buyers. We ask the park the hard questions before you fall in love with a home, so your application is never a surprise.
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Confirm the park type
All ages or 55+? Every designation changes who can buy and how financing works.
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Check home age minimums
Many parks set a minimum model year. The HUD data plate decides if the home qualifies.
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Submit the application
Credit, income and residency checks, with the park's own forms and fees.
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Get approval in writing
A verbal yes is not a lease. We close the loop with the park before any offer.
3 · Age and the HUD label
The home's year is its first credential
Homes built on or after June 15, 1976 were built to the federal HUD Code, and each section carries a HUD label and an interior data plate with the year of manufacture. The year decides financing eligibility and, in many parks, whether the home can sit there at all.
Our prepurchase checklist
- Read the year from the data plate, not the listing
- Confirm the HUD label is present and matches
- Get the park's minimum year rule in writing
- Match the age against the loan programs that qualify
Space rent is part of the math
Buying a park home means planning for two monthly bills: the home payment and the space rent. Ask the seller and the park for the current space rent in writing, and check the lease for how often it can change.
And everywhere else on this site, the same rule: prices are never guessed. Ask for current pricing and we will build the real monthly picture with you.
Buyer FAQ4 · Paperwork & closing
What happens at the closing table
A park-home closing joins real-estate discipline with vehicle-style title paperwork. We coordinate the title, the lender and the park so everyone signs the same day.
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Title review
A clean, lien-free title on the home, tracked through state records.
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Lease assignment
The park's written approval, with the buyer stepping into the space lease.
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Inspection and date
Condition checks and the installed-home review before funds move.
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Funding
Lender funds against the approved loan product, chattel or otherwise.
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Walk-in
The keys, the park welcome packet and our honest next-step recap.
Start the search the smart way
Tell us the town, the park style and your budget, and we will send back the real current picture: available homes, financing paths and the exact approval steps, with pricing by inquiry. That is the whole idea of this marketplace.