Manufactured Home Loan Glossary

A factory-built home constructed on or after June 15, 1976 to the federal HUD Code, transported to its site on a permanent chassis. Every manufactured home carries a HUD label certifying that standard. This is the legal term for most of the homes we finance.

Technically, a factory-built home constructed before June 15, 1976 — before the HUD Code existed. In everyday speech people use "mobile home" for factory-built homes of any age, and that is fine; just know that a lender treats pre-1976 homes differently because they predate the federal standard.

A factory-built home constructed to the same state and local building codes as a site-built house, not the HUD Code. Once assembled on its foundation, a modular home is generally treated like any site-built home — including for financing. Modular and manufactured are not the same thing, even though both come from a factory.

How many factory-built sections make up the home — often called single-wide, double-wide, and triple-wide. Each section is transported separately and has its own serial number, and in Arizona each section can carry its own title. Lenders always ask how many sections a home has.

A small recreational unit (typically 400 square feet or less, built to the ANSI A119.5 standard rather than the HUD Code). Park models are a different product class from manufactured homes, and financing for them follows different rules. If you are looking at one, say so early.

A small metal certification plate riveted to the exterior end wall of each section of a manufactured home, stamped with a label number. It certifies the section was built to the HUD Code. Lenders, appraisers, and title agencies use it to confirm what the home is.

A paper information sheet mounted inside the home — commonly in a kitchen cabinet, the electrical panel door, or a bedroom closet. It lists the manufacturer, model, serial number, date of manufacture, and the wind, snow, and roof-load zones the home was built for.

The identifier the factory assigned to the home, stamped into the steel frame near the hitch end and printed on the data plate. Multi-section homes have one serial number per section, usually differing only by a suffix. Title records, registrations, and loans are tied to this number.

The ownership document for a manufactured home held as personal property — similar in concept to a vehicle title. California titles are handled by HCD; Arizona titles by the MVD, generally one per section. A clean, current title in the seller’s name is one of the first things reviewed in any purchase or refinance.

An arrangement where you own the home but rent the land it sits on from a community (often called a park). Financing covers the home; the land stays with the community. Most manufactured homes in California and Arizona communities sit on leased land.

The monthly rent paid to a community for the homesite under your home. It is separate from — and on top of — your loan payment, and it is the single biggest reason two similarly priced homes can have very different total monthly costs. Always get the current amount and recent increase history in writing.

The legal classification of a manufactured home that is titled on its own, separate from any land — the way a vehicle is. Homes on leased land are personal property. The classification determines which financing structures can apply.

The legal classification of a home that has been permanently affixed to land and recorded as part of the real estate. Once a manufactured home becomes real property, it is generally taxed and financed more like a site-built house.

The process of converting a manufactured home from personal property to real property. In California this involves recording HCD Form 433A after installation on an approved foundation system; in Arizona, an Affidavit of Affixture is recorded with the county and the MVD title is surrendered. People also call this "title elimination."

A foundation system built to an engineering standard that permanently attaches the home to the land — a prerequisite for recording the home as real property and for some loan programs. Not every home on owned land is on a permanent foundation, and that difference matters to financing.

A loan that finances the home itself as personal property, without any land. This is the standard structure for homes in land-lease communities. Compared with real-property financing, chattel loans generally run shorter and are priced to reflect the different collateral.

A loan that finances the manufactured home and the real property together in one transaction — an existing home already on land, or a project that combines buying land, preparing the site, and installing a new home.

Short for "land in lieu of a cash down payment." If you already own your parcel, the equity in that land may be able to count toward the down payment on a land-and-home transaction, reducing the cash you bring to closing. Availability depends on the land’s value, liens, the program, and your qualifications.

The loan amount divided by the home’s value (or the home-and-land value on a real-property loan), expressed as a percentage. A larger down payment means a lower LTV. Lenders use LTV as one measure of how much cushion a loan has.

Your total monthly debt payments divided by your gross monthly income. For a community home, space rent counts toward your housing cost, which is why a home in a lower-rent community can be easier to qualify for than the same home in a higher-rent one.

A neutral third party that holds funds and documents while a purchase or refinance is completed, releasing them when every condition is met. Manufactured home escrows also coordinate title transfer and, in a community purchase, timing with the park’s approval.

A licensed business that sells manufactured homes, new or used. Buying from a dealer usually means more standardized paperwork than a private-party sale; the lender will want the dealer’s name and the purchase agreement.

Buying a home directly from its current owner rather than through a dealer. These sales are common and financeable — they just need a clear purchase agreement, a clean title, seller payoff details if a loan exists on the home, and value support.

A land-lease community’s own review of a prospective resident, separate from loan approval. Both must be completed before move-in. Passing one does not guarantee the other, which is why starting both early keeps a purchase on schedule.

An early, informal read on what financing range may be realistic, based on information you provide. It is not a loan approval and not a commitment — final approval requires verification, an acceptable home, value and title work, and satisfaction of all conditions.

An independent opinion of what the home (or home and land) is worth, which the loan amount is measured against. Community homes are often valued against comparable sales of similar homes; real-property homes get an appraisal of the home and land together.

The part of the purchase price you pay rather than finance. There is no single figure for manufactured homes — it depends on the program, your credit, the home, and whether the land is leased or owned. On land-and-home deals, land equity can sometimes serve in place of cash (see land-in-lieu).