wondering about buying a home
Find a Conversation
| Sat, 05-13-2006 - 7:14am |
i haven't lived in the US for many years, never as an adult, altho i was born there and i am thinking of moving back within a few years. my questions are about buying a home becasue i don't know how the system works there. I have been looking up rentals and homes for sale (mainly in florida). i notice that there are homes that are REALLY cheap (inexpensive...), 25k up to 50 k. now i can see in the pics that these are mostly mobile homes but what does that mean? do you own the land or just the home? and is the concept i have in my mind of mobile parks being places that 'po white trash' live still valid, because some of these places look really really nice. and if i own the land, can i eventually build on it?
and what is a 'manufactured' home ? Is that another term for a mobile home?
and how can i find out if a neighborhood is a good neighborhood, even if the houses are less expensive? is it possible to find a 'nice' inexpensive place to live?
I don't have to worry about a good school district any more. but it would be nice to live near a college/university.
sorry for the dumb questions but i have to start gathering up information

Hi,
I live near Tampa Fl about 40 minutes from University of South Florida. If you want to look in this area (I actually live in Pasco county but have friends in Hillsborough and Pinellas) feel free to e me privately and I'll give you info. If you want to work with a realtor (which would probably be good since you don't have experience here) I can give you a great recommendation. kbach67@tampabay.rr.com
About trailers...this area is strange. There are some REALLY crappy trailer parks with all kinds of drug activity and such. On the other hand, there are some really nice ones that incluce swimming pools and golf courses. Usually you don't own the land unless the advertisement says you do and whether or not you can build something else depends on the particular zoning in the area. A realtor can help with that. Manufactured homes are similar to trailers but usually much nicer. Their parts are made and the assembled on the land. These are pretty popular here for the retired crowd.
Anyhow, I really like this area and depending on where you look, you can still find affordable housing so feel free to write to me. Also, I used to live in Pensacola Fl and they have a small university and a great junior college. Their housing is quite inexpensive so I can help you in that area as well.
Good luck!!
Kimberly
thank you so much! interestingly enuf, i was in tampa bay a few years ago with my then-husband and i really liked that area - a mixture of art/culture and hi-tech. also seemed to be a pretty substantial jewish/israeli population which is important to me as well. i did notice that housing is not so expensive there, compared to other areas. i would prefer to buy a 'real' house and not a trailer or a pre-fab. but of course i don't have any money. lol....
thanks, I am not ready to start working with a realtor just yet, it will take a while before i can actually move, but i wanted to start looking in the right direction.
FYI, the market here flattened out BIG time so you can get an older home at a fairly reasonable price. When you are ready, just e me and I can hook you up with a couple of realtors to choose from and some links to check out.
Good luck!