Single Wide Mobile Home Pricing: Cost of Delivery, Factory, and Upgrades
Today we are talking price on single wide mobile homes! Single wides have come a long way in the last decade in terms of flow and design, making them look better and feel larger than they ever did before.
As we look at costs, remember there are some costs that can only be determined by your unique situation; the upgrades you want, the cost to deliver and install on the property you chose, and how far away you are from the factory. That means we will talk in ranges or in general terms. To get specific numbers, be sure to connect with a sales representative, especially since prices are subject to change.
Some Background info on Single Wide Mobile Home Costs
That’s a great question. So you don’t run away with bad numbers, let’s cover a bit of “ground rules” first. We will break down all the costs further below.
If you were hoping to understand the cost of a single wide including land, utilities, and extra buildings, you may want to read our post “How Much is a Mobile Home?” when you are done with this post. That other post covers a lot of the costs beyond the home itself. The information found there is more important for folks who own their own land than for folks putting their new house in a mobile home park.
On this page we are only going to cover the cost of an average brand new single wide home delivered and set up with normal options. There is no limit to how much you can spend on a home if you want to go nuts and spend all your money, so we are going to stick with “normal.”
If you were hoping to learn about double wide mobile home pricing, we put together a blog about all the aspects of buying a double wide mobile home here. Finally, what we all call a “new single wide mobile home” is technically a “new single wide manufactured home.” Since most of y’all still call them mobile homes or simply “single wides,” we are going to go with the flow and join you, but when you see “manufactured home,” know they are the same thing.
So how much does a single wide costs?
Expect a large, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, single wide mobile home with air conditioning, the most popular options, setup, and delivery in the San Antonio area to cost you in the range of $42,000 – $86,000.
Yes, that is a huge range. Why the difference? Well, we are glad you asked. It’s the same reason you find big differences in vehicle prices. Bigger vehicles cost more than similar quality smaller vehicles. Luxury vehicles cost WAY more than regular vehicles.
By the way, that does not mean “regular vehicles” or “regular houses” are “poor quality.” Some of the least expensive vehicles on the road are the highest quality vehicles that will last years and years, they just lack the size and features of the more expensive cars.
The same is true of our homes. More square feet means more cost. Nicer features mean more cost. And be careful when you compare homes, because what comes as an upgrade on one home may come standard in another home (just like with a car).
The nice thing about single wide mobile homes is you will find they are more affordable per square foot of living space than a double wide or a site-built home of similar quality. In this blog, we’ll look at the cost of the home itself as well as popular upgrade options.
Choosing Your Factory
The single wide mobile homes we have for sale range in size from the smallest and least expensive unit—The Tru Bliss with a total of 765 square feet, to the largest and most expensive unit—the Clayton Bobby Jo with a total of 1,260 square feet.
Now, there is a pretty big price gap between those homes, so let’s talk about the factories.
Tru Homes was the very first home manufacturer we chose when we launched Braustin. Tru Homes single wide mobile homes offer the “most home for the money.”
All Tru Homes are built to the same federal HUD code as other mobile homes, but they’ve done a few things to lower overhead and build time in order to offer the most affordable prices in the industry.
Each Tru mobile home is built using “factory select” options. While they do offer certain upgrades (which we’ll discuss below) these homes are not meant for a ton of individual customization at the factory.
Limiting the number of options available means this factory can buy in extremely large quantities of wholesale materials as well as build homes quickly without a long and modified spec sheet. A speedy factory line means a lot of savings in any manufacturing industry, and Tru understands this.
On the flipside, at the start of 2018 we began offering the Fleetwood Homes line of single wide mobile homes, which still have a ton of value for their price, but also offers more options for buyers to customize—cabinet colors, tile, countertops, and more.
Like Tru, Fleetwood is able to buy in large quantities of wholesale materials, but their manufacturing lines take more time as each home is different.
If you are fine with making some of the customizations to your home after delivery, you may want to choose something from our Clayton Athens line of single wides. Often people find when they are done choosing options, the Fleetwood and the Athens homes cost about the same, but you will find the Athens has perks like tape and textured walls throughout. The reason Clayton Athens can pull this off is they offer less options, so the factory can build homes more efficiently.
If you just want a luxury single wide mobile home, go right for the Clayton Bobby Jo, because it is the nicest single wide that money can buy that Braustin offers.
When choosing a new mobile home, most people start by choosing the factory in their price range, then they look at layout and upgrades available for a home. It is the factory you buy from that creates the biggest difference in price. The cost of upgrade options are usually pretty close to one another, and often the cost of delivery and air conditioning is exactly the same for the same size house.
Factory Options for Your Single Wide Home
While some upgrades are common across the board for all our factories, such as air conditioning, others vary widely. What you find as an upgrade in the more economical homes are standard features as you move up the price ladder. Many options available in a Clayton farmhouse style home are often not offered in more affordable Tru Homes.
Upgrade options we encourage all our customers to choose would include air conditioning (after all, we sell a lot of homes in Texas), insulation upgrades, and upgraded siding. Most people will not need a Wind Zone upgrade, so unless you live on the coast, don’t worry about that one.
Let’s look at TRU Homes as an example of a home for a smaller budget. The siding, linoleum flooring throughout, and air conditioning upgrade options are common in most mobile homes. On the other hand, the dishwasher and Energy Star package found as an upgrade in Tru are generally standard with our other manufacturers.
It is pretty common to see people add about $6,200 onto a Tru Homes single wide for upgrades including the air conditioning, Energy Star, and linoleum throughout (to get an exact figure, remember to use our instant estimate tool or give us a call).
Clayton Athens upgrades aren’t going to be much more than the Tru Homes upgrades. Looking at the Clayton Annie mobile home, seeing $5,700 – 6,700 in upgrades is relatively common. The catch? Unlike the Tru, the upgrades in the Athens will give you a washer, dryer, and ceiling fans plus you will find the Energy Star rating and dishwasher as standard in the home.
Energy Efficient Upgrades
We can seem to say enough about taking the most energy efficient home upgrades you can choose because the yearly savings in utility bills often pays for the upgrade in a few short years.
Many of our homes have what is called “thermal zone” upgrades ranging from Zone I to Zone III. With Tru, upgrading your thermal zone means an increase in insulation as well as upgraded windows. Fleetwood offers an increase in insulation.
Many of our Clayton homes come with energy saving packages standard, but you can choose to upgrade to thicker insulation than what your climate zone calls for.
The price will vary depending on the size of your single wide, but often it is inexpensive enough that you will save on utility bills the cost of the upgrade within a few short years. Not bad considering the savings in energy bills and increased comfort during extreme weather months.
Many of the Clayton and Tru Homes come standard or can be upgraded to include LED lights. With the advances in LED lighting, we expect all homes will soon come standard with LED lighting, but if your home doesn’t see if you can upgrade to LED lighting.
Exterior Siding Upgrade
Siding is another big area where we encourage upgrades. The standard siding on a single wide mobile home is vinyl. On a Tru single wide, there is the option of upgrading to a Smart Panel siding, an OSB wood-look composite.
The durability of upgraded siding on most mobile homes is lightyears ahead of the basic vinyl siding. The Smart Panel siding and the Cemplank siding are highly durable rot and pest resistant material. They will do a better job protecting your home in the long run.
Wind Zone Upgrades
Most people will only care about wind zone upgrades if they are in an area at high risk for windy weather, like along the coast where Hurricanes can hit with full force. For customers living in hurricane and high-wind prone areas, your home is required by HUD to get an upgrade to Wind Zone II or Wind Zone III. This will provide additional support and stability to your home in the event of high winds, protecting the roof and siding from damage.
To build your home according to Wind Zone II specifications, the cost based on length as well as an additional charge for home set-up, which requires more steps than a typical home set.
You can buy a Wind Zone II home if you live in an area listed by HUD as Wind Zone I, but testing by the government has not shown necessary and may be a waste of your money.
Other Optional Upgrades
There are tons of other options. You can opt for a fireplace, an entertainment wall, thicker walls, and more, but it all depends on the home you order and the factory it comes from.
You can see the options available on the homes we sell by checking out our pricing calculator which lets you get an estimate of the home including options and delivery.
Delivery & Installation
Single wides are homes built to contain all the necessary living spaces in the single width of 14-16 feet (with a few models going as wide as 18 feet), meaning they can be transported using less resources—one truck and one driver.
What this also means is the set-up (the process of leveling and blocking the home on a base pad or foundation) of a single wide mobile home requires less materials and man hours than that of a double wide home. And lastly, single wide homes do not require trim-outs—the process of seaming the two sections of a double wide together into a solid unit.
Maybe you can now see why a single wide home is often the best value per square foot. There are costs you get to completely avoid on a single wide home.
Do you want to know the cost of delivery for your home? We thought you might, that is why we built in a delivery calculator onto our website. We are the only mobile home dealer we know that will give you the cost of any home with upgrades and delivery up front.
Some Final Thoughts about Single Wide Pricing
Another helpful thing to keep in mind is that in some states mobile homes do not have sales tax calculated on their total price, however, the upgrades may be taxed and the price should be clearly reflected on your purchase agreement.
What is the price of YOUR new single wide going to be? Feel free to use our estimating tool on any page showcasing a home, and you will know the cost of the home plus upgrades, air conditioning, delivery, and setup. If you have any questions, feel free to give us a call!
