Assessing a Relocatable Home

Today I checked out a cheaper relocatable home. It's 120 square metres, has french doors leading in to the lounge room (nice T&G - tongue and groove - wooden floors polished). A wall has been cut out opening up the dining area to the lounge. Off that are a bedroom and the large kitchen. A sunroom off this constitutes the 3rd bedroom. A doorway on the other side of the kitchen leads to a hallway, off which is the large main bedroom with one wall of wardrobes, and the bathroom.

This is a cheapy. We could get this for $30,000 all inclusive (including delivery and siting on piles). That's $19,000 below relocatable house No.2 and $33,000 less than the cost of moving the beautiful house we were given. But...

Here's the work: there's signs of borer, so have to assume we'd have to get the house treated. The concrete tiles on the roof look in good nick, just there's some missing and there's a big sag; there's some woodrot in some weatherboards but not major, and some wood in the eaves is rotten. The bath looks like a keeper, but it's falling through the floor below which has suffered flooding and already been replaced with particle board sometime in the past, so new bathroom floor needed. The Serotone on the bathroom walls looks ok and the vanity basin could stay. A lot of wall lining and ceiling relining is needed throughout. Salvagable in the kitchen is an island bench top and maybe a dishwasher. The floors throughout need a polish. Kitchen and bathroom floors need new vinyl. Hot water cylinder is gone (but they usually always are). One window pane has been smashed. Interior paint throughout, and exterior - though exterior paint job is reasonable and will only need a light sand. New guttering, lining and insulation in roof, insulate under floor, curtains, steps and decking, fencing, concrete the driveway and carport or single garage pad, landscaping.... Are you feeling tired?

Everyone thinks we're mad. Remember we both work fulltime and have a 5 year old daughter, no family close by to help with childcare and we're trying to sell our house privately and Mum's.

As I said to the mortgage broker, we're bored. We've fixed up the house we're living in, we're ready for our next project. The challenge is tempting - having the chance to make something, to bring the project in under what it will finally value at; to create a decent home we can feel okay about renting out, a home that will stand up to years of tenants. And, in the end there's the actual aim which is to get started on getting ahead - to have an asset that brings in positive cashflow and appreciates over time.