When you’re viewing a home, the time you spend inside and around the property should be used actively. Every room, surface, and system in the home tells you something about how it has been maintained throughout the years.
Most buyers spend too much time thinking about furniture placement. They generally don’t look at the things that actually determine whether a home is worth about. You must know what to look for to close that gap.
Start With the Roof and the Exterior
The roof is undoubtedly the most important thing to assess on any listing of manufactured homes for sale you visit. Look for sagging sections or signs of patching that suggest prior problems. Also, check the condition of roof vents, skylights, and the areas where the roof meets add-on structures. These points are common sources of water ingress.
You can walk around the full perimeter of the home and look at the skirting around the base. It should be intact and properly secured. Gaps or damage in the skirting means the pests can access the underside of the home.
Pay Close Attention to Water Damage
Water damage is a major red flag in a manufactured home. It causes more expensive problems than almost anything else.
Look carefully at the ceiling for staining, discoloration, or soft areas. Check around the windows to see whether the moisture is getting in around the frames. In the bathroom and kitchen areas, look under sinks and around toilets for signs of leaks.
Spongy flooring is also a major warning sign, as it indicates water damage to the subfloor beneath the surface material. You can walk through every room and pay attention to how the floor feels underfoot. Any bounce in the areas means something is not right.
Check the Systems throughout the Home
Turn on every tap and check the water pressure. You can run the shower and flush every toilet to check the drainage as well. These basic checks don’t take much time and reveal problems that a visual inspection alone can’t catch.
You can talk to the property owner and ask about the age and condition of the HVAC system. It’s an expensive system to replace, so you have to be careful.
In addition, you can inspect the electrical panel. Look for signs of amateur writing or modifications that don’t look professionally done. If anything about the electrical setup looks improvised, factor that into your assessment of the home.
Look at the Underside If You Can
If you can access the crawl space beneath a home, you’ll get information that nothing visible from inside can provide. Look for signs of moisture or pest deterioration to the structural components. Fallen insulation, rotten wood, or poorly repaired plumbing all affect a home’s value.
If access is not available when you’re viewing, make it a condition that an inspection of the underside must be completed before you commit.
What to Do With What You Find
Finding red flags is important, but they don’t mean you just walk away.
It just means you can adjust your offer to reflect the home’s actual condition. You can also negotiate for repairs to be completed before settlement. The primary benefit of inspection is that nothing you find will come as a surprise after the purchase is complete. You’ll make a decision you will always feel comfortable with.