Carefully Consider Who You Allow To Move-in, Your Heart May be in The Right Place but It Could Cost You Your Home.

It is a growing trend for seniors living in 55 and over parks to allow their troubled children or grandchildren to move into their mobile home, which is allowable under civil code Section 798.3(c)(d). They want to help set them on the right path, or give them a place to start over. All too often this kind-hearted gesture ends up getting them evicted from their home.

On occasion it is not the family member that causes the issues but the friends of the family member. Get to know everyone who comes into and out of your home, and if you suspect anything tell them they are not allowed to return. It is your home; you are allowed to regulate the situation. If they return you may consider calling the police and having them removed if they are unwilling to leave. If you do not take control of the situation your neighbors might. Once enough complaints are submitted to the park manager/owners you may start receiving notices. Since your family member is residing in your home you are responsible for their actions and the actions of those they are inviting into the park.

Tips for Conserving Electricity and Cutting your Energy Costs

    1. Unplug

  • Chargers: For your cell phone, tablet or other devices when you are not using them. They still pull energy even though they are not in use.
  • Use a Power Strip for all televisions, dvd players and home theater equipment. Turn off the strip “unplug” when they are not in use. When these items are in “Standby” mode their consumption can be equivalent to that of a 100-watt light bulb running continuously.

2. Set Computers to Sleep and Hibernate and shut them down completely when you are finished using them for the day.

3. Take Control of Temperature

  • During the summer set thermostats to 78 degrees during the day. During the winter set them to 68.
  • Close shades during the summer to keep heat out and leave them open during the winter to allow the sun to warm up your home.
  • Set the thermostat on your water heater between 120-130 degrees. Lower temperatures can save more energy.

4. Use Appliances Efficiently

  • Set your refrigerator at 38-42 degrees and your freezer between 0-5 degrees.
  • Wash only full loads of dishes AND clothes this saves on water and electricity costs.
  • Wash most of your cloths with cold water and ALWAYS set your rinse cycle to cold.

5. Turn out the Lights

  • When you leave a room turn the lights off. If you have a dimmer keep the lights on a lower setting.

Norovirus: What it is and how to keep yourself from getting infected.

Norovirus is extremely contagious and affects 21 million Americans a year. Often referred to at the “stomach flu” it is responsible for 70,000 hospitalizations and 800 deaths a year according to the San Bernardino County Health Department. It causes stomach pain, nausea, diarrhea and vomiting. Due to the many strains of the virus you can become infected multiple times in your life. There is no vaccine or specific treatment for Norovirus, so prevention is crucial.

You can become infected with the virus if you have contact with someone who has the virus. This can happen in various ways including sharing food or drinks with someone who has the virus (they could have it and not be showing any symptoms yet and still pass along the virus), public areas can harbor the virus if not disinfected and cleaned properly.

In order to prevent yourself from picking up this terrible virus make sure to wash your hands before touching your mouth for any reason including, eating or putting on lipstick. Wash your food, as you do not know who was handling it before you bought it at the store. Most importantly if someone in your home gets the virus make sure to wash all laundry thoroughly and wash your hands each time you come into contact with the infected person.

Click here for more information on prevention and treatment of Norovirus.

 

Mobile Home Values and Sales Prices

At least two firms publish information on mobile home values – Kelly Blue Book and the NADA Guide. Like other personal property (cars, airplanes, boats, etc.) the value of a mobile home depreciates as it ages. Values are provided in these evaluation guides for mobile homes/manufactured homes located on a sales lot as well as those located in a rental mobile home community. Obviously, the value of a manufactured home located on free land is driven by the value of the land rather than the structure sitting on the land.

Regarding mobile homes in rental communities, there is an added “value” attributed to a manufactured home being sold “in place” in a mobile home community. Although the value of the land is not part of the value or sales price of a mobile home, there is a value attributed to the fact the home is located in a park and the assumption that a buyer will pay a premium for the ability to purchase the home and have it remain in the park. In other words, there is value attributed to the “leasehold” interest assumed by the buyer of a mobile home in a rental community. It is not uncommon for purchasers of mobile homes to pay many thousands of dollars for an old mobile home that literally has no value simply because of the location of the home in a desirable community.

The factors considered in valuing a mobile home located in a community include the location of the park, the amenities and general appearance/condition of the community. The values assigned by the appraisal guides to mobile homes located in mobile home parks do not take into consideration the market conditions of a region or the costs associated with living in a particular location or park.

All of these factors and others come into consideration when a mobile home is sold “in place” in a mobile home park. As an example, the same make and model 40 year doublewide mobile home located in a mobile home park on the ocean will sell for more than the same home located in a park located inland. In the case of the ocean front mobile home, the purchaser is not paying for the “value” of the mobile home, but rather is paying a premium to the seller because of the location of the mobile home.

In addition to the location of the community park, the cost to live in a park or region is also a factor in the sales prices of mobile homes. The amount a willing buyer and willing seller agree upon depends on the purchasing power of the prospective homebuyer. In other words, the monthly housing budget they have to spend. By of an example – a typical mobile home buyer may have a monthly housing budget of $1,200. This housing budget must cover the rent, mortgage, and utilities. They are looking at the same make and model of mobile home in two different parks in central Orange County with similar amenities. One community charges $500 a month rent and the other charges $1,000. There is more than likely a difference in the sales price of the home as well as the rent. The home in the park with the lower rent is selling for thousands of dollars more than the one in the park with the higher rent. The buyer has a choice to pay more of their budget for rent or more for the mortgage.

Some mobile home owners who chose to pay less for the home and more for the rent are upset years later when they say they can’t sell their home for as much as the owner of the same home in another park with lower rent. Nothing has changed, the payment is made up-front in higher cost of purchasing the home, or paid incrementally over a long period of time in rent.
Additionally, it is not uncommon for the buyers of older mobile homes to pay cash for the home, making the lower priced home more attractive knowing that the only housing payment will be the monthly site rent.