Is There Something Better Than A Rent-To-Own Mobile Home?

Want to know if there is something better than rent-to-own mobile homes? You’re in luck!

The short answer is YES! But if you have read any of my previous articles, you know it’s never that simple…

More times than not, I will provide our readers with a longer version of the answer, and maybe a little story for a relatable perspective too! It is a blog after all, and more information on any given topic never hurts anyone, right?

Well, here it goes…

Before buying my home in 2019, I heard a few terms tossed around by my realtor while going over my options. Understanding that I was a first-time home buyer, she wanted me to be fully aware of every opportunity available, such as building custom, buying new, buying used, or rent-to-own.

Everything seemed self-explanatory, except for the last term, “rent-to-own.” That one I had never heard before.

As a previous renter, this made me a little concerned.

In the past, I had rented a dorm for a year, an apartment for two years, a condo for six months, a house for a year, and a town home for four years. Did I want to continue renting at this point in my life, with the hope of owning that home one day? I also fumbled with a few other concerns:

• How long would I have to rent the home in order to own the home?
• Also, who would the rent payments benefit, me… or the owner?
• And finally, if this were to be the best option for my circumstances, is there something better than renting-to-own?

Fast forward a few years down the road, after working for Braustin Homes for some time now, I know that these types of questions arise often. In fact, most of us have come across this exact scenario ourselves. The mobile home industry is no different, and we want you to feel confident as the customer knowing exactly what your options are.

First, let’s start with what the term rent-to-own means.

What does it mean to Rent-to-Own?

To explain this process simply, renting-to-own is an arrangement in which you rent a property for a certain amount of time (typically around three years), with the option to buy it before the lease expires.

Yep, just as there would be in a traditional renting scenario, there is a formal lease agreement involved. However, the difference between a traditional lease and a rent-to-own agreement is that it consists of two parts:

• Standard lease agreement
• An option to buy

Normally, paying rent on a home doesn’t bring you any closer to purchasing that property. However, in some rent-to-own agreements, part of the renter’s payments to the landlord may be used toward a future purchase of the manufactured home and/or the land.

Pretty neat perks, right?

Does a Rent-to-Own agreement make sense for me?

This arrangement may not be for everyone, but it does accommodate well for those who want to buy a home but have circumstances preventing them from being able to get approved for a traditional home loan.

Circumstances vary but can range from the following:

• Low or no credit score
• Low or no down payment
• Self-employment or 1099 workers
• Difficulty in proving income

The unfortunate part of this is, not every rent-to-own program can help the folks with one or more of the circumstances above. So, that leads us to the following question:

Is there something better than a rent-to-own mobile home? A program that WILL work with folks who fall under one or more of the listed loan preventatives…

YES! Finally, the reason you clicked on this article – the answer is absolutely YES!

Introducing PorchPass™ a Build Today – Buy Tomorrow program!

What is PorchPass™?

PorchPass™ is a new path to home ownership with a two-step approach of building the home of your dreams on the land of your choosing first, all while building your credit, savings or anything that would hold you back from getting approved for a traditional home loan second, ultimately working towards the ownership of that property within an agreed upon time frame.

We partnered with PorchPass™ with the intention of getting even more deserving families into homes.

After talking to builders across the industry, we are seeing that 53% of mobile home applicants are getting denied due to various factors, and frankly that number is just too high! We know what it feels like to be told “NO” over and over again.

It can be defeating, but it can also be motivating – which is exactly why we have joined forces with PorchPass™!

Our goal with this partnership is to give more hopeful families the “YES” they have been working towards and waiting for. Some of the families that we have worked with in the past were just missing one thing to qualify for a traditional mortgage loan.

That’s right, just one, and they were turned away before coming to us.

Imagine yourself back in grade school, your teacher begins the semester announcing an awesome field trip to the local petting zoo, and in order to go there are just three stipulations:

• You must maintain a grade point average of a B- or above
• You must have less than 3 missed days on attendance record
• You must have a parent permission slip signed and returned

Think about how disappointed you would feel if you worked extra hard studying in order to maintain your grades, had nearly perfect attendance, and the day of your field trip you forgot where you placed your parent permission slip.

Just to give a little perspective in the simplest terms, feeling disappointed is an understatement, especially in the scenario of trying to purchase a home.

We are not willing to let those hard-working families fall through the cracks any longer. Let’s face it, denials result in back tracking into a cycle of lease agreements which ultimately will not move hopeful families forward.

This includes people who have nontraditional incomes, are self-employed or contract workers, or don’t have a U.S. credit history (e.g., foreign nationals)—and those who simply lack the huge 20% to 40% down payment banks require for nonconforming loans.

A 20 – 40% down payment is a pretty steep ask unless you are selling a home before buying.

How is PorchPass™ different from a traditional Rent-to-Own program?

PorchPass™ is here to end the cycle of aimless lease agreements.

Through the new platform and expert guidance, our customers will now have the opportunity to build the home of their dreams today and in the meantime rent the home while working with the PorchPass™ team to get in a better position to qualify for a traditional loan down the road.

An interested customer can apply for PorchPass™ qualification through a short questionnaire found at porchpass.com. This process is as smooth as it gets! We love how quickly the platform collects information with simple and short prompted questions. If the applicant is unsure of the answer at that moment, they are able to skip ahead and come back to that question later.

Very user-friendly technology!

Upon approval, a budget, deposit amount and rental rate are presented to the customer. If the customer agrees and decides to move forward, they will team up with a PorchPass™ housing consultant to design their home and develop the site plan perfect for their family.

Once the final numbers are determined and agreed upon, the customer closes on the lease agreement and sends their deposit to PorchPass™. The team will work with Braustin to build your home package to your specifications as well as complete all required inspections to get the home ready to qualify for a traditional mortgage.

After final inspections are complete, you can move into the home of your dreams!

How exciting is that?

A custom mobile home, built to your liking, and typically on the land you selected! But wait, it gets better!

PorchPass™ Incentives

Each quarter, a PorchPass™ service team member will visit the home to provide maintenance services that make it easier and more enjoyable to live in the home. This program includes the following preventative services that will ensure the home continues to be in good working condition and proactively prevents destructive problems such as water leaks:

• Lightbulb Replacements
• AC Filter Change
• Recalking of Windows, Tubs and Sinks (as necessary)
• Roof Check for Missing Shingles or Damage
• Smoke Detector Checks and Battery Replacements
• Home Leveling Inspections
• Waterline and Fastener Inspections
• Septic System Maintenance (when relevant)

While leasing the home, the customer can work with a designated PorchPass™ housing consultant to help them qualify for a traditional mortgage.

With the Build Today, Buy Tomorrow program, PorchPass™ truly works with the customer in order to establish a solid foundation, not only the physical foundation of the home, but also the foundation of the potential homeowner. Building today takes on a whole new meaning in this process because there are so many moving parts on the path to home ownership.

With a low to no credit score, PorchPass™ will help the customer BUILD that score by tracking consistent monthly payments.

With low to no savings, PorchPass™ will help the customer BUILD savings by choosing an affordable home within their budget, allowing any extra income to get tucked away for a possible down payment.

PorchPass™ will reward the customer’s consistency with BUILDer’s credits called, PorchPoints™ that will be applied to the purchase price of the home, should they choose to buy once the lease is up.

And lastly, with the help of the team at PorchPass™, together we will help BUILD the customer’s confidence, with guidance, resources, and helpful tips along the way.

The Takeaway

Teaming up with PorchPass™ will allow our customers to break out of the box of non-qualifiers. For the first time in a while, these families will be told YES with this new path to home ownership where they can build today and buy tomorrow.

Finally, there is an option within the mobile home industry that will help qualified applicants begin building equity in a home they like without having to take out a mortgage or come up with a large down payment.

Is this a free ride? No. That’s not how it works. In fact, like most things in life, it will take time, consistency, and diligent teamwork with a designated consultant to make sure all goals are met.

But at the end of the day, this program is the very start of something that may change the industry as a whole. Our hope is that more mobile home dealerships pledge to take part in this new wave of affordable housing opportunities and putting an end to aimless cycles of lease agreements.

So, what are you waiting for? If this article described your situation, give PorchPass™ a chance by visiting porchpass.com today!