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What Is the Cost of Moving a Mobile Home?

June 3, 2024


When it comes to moving a mobile home, there might be a lot of expenses. It’s not as simple as getting in the car and driving a mobile home long distances. Everything you need to know is right here.

The average cost of relocating a single-wide trailer within 50 miles with a full-service mobile home mover is between $3,000 and $9,000. Moving a double-wide mobile home or a triple-wide prefabricated or modular home, all other things being equal, can cost $15,000 or more. These are, of course, only estimations.

Also, Read: Everything You Need to Know About Buying a Mobile Home

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Depending on – your actual costs may be more or lower.

Permits required for relocation
Disconnection and reconnection of utilities
Services for set-up
Materials and labor
Your mobile home’s age, weight, and size
The distance between your previous and new addresses.

Let’s look at the ins and outs of relocating a mobile home in more detail now.

Also, Read: How Much Does It Cost to Move a Gazebo?

Before we begin, here are some quick links that may be useful:
Do you require assistance in packing your mobile home? Consider enlisting the help of experienced packers.
You may be able to engage a professional moving company to assist you with packing and loading your mobile home in preparation for transport. Consider hiring expert movers to assist you in packing and loading your mobile home.

Related
Mobile Home Living Advantages and Disadvantage

The benefits and drawbacks of hiring full-service mobile home moving services

Pros

Your mobile home will be prepared, moved, and put up by them.
Permits will be handled by them.
You won’t have to take any chances driving a large, enormous load.
It will save you time, effort, and aggravation.

Cons

It can be costly.
It’s possible that you’ll have to undertake some of the prep work yourself.
It’s not easy to find a reliable, experienced, and quality-focused organization.
Due to unforeseeable circumstances, your real cost may be higher than predicted.
During the relocation, your mobile home may be damaged.

Is it possible to move a mobile home by yourself?

Moving a manufactured home by yourself is not an option, unlike moving a small boat, piano, or hot tub.

Mobile home moving necessitates

– Specialized equipment is required.
– Crews with plenty of experience
– Understanding of relevant local, state, and federal laws
– A great deal of planning has gone into this.

Nonetheless, full-service firms move thousands of mobile homes each year without incident, both around the corner and across state lines.

Is it worthwhile to relocate to a mobile home?

When compared to the expense of purchasing a new or pre-owned mobile home in your new location, the cost of relocating a mobile home is usually well worth it.

It’s worth completing a cost-benefit analysis to evaluate which option makes more sense before deciding whether to move your present mobile home or buy a new one.

What factors influence the cost of relocating a mobile home?

The costs of relocating a mobile home vary significantly, however, they can generally be divided into the following categories:

The Distance

The shorter the distance between your old and new home, as with household goods transfers, the less you’ll normally pay.

Moving mobile homes necessitates the use of specialized equipment and large vehicles that consume a lot of gasoline. Permits, pilot vehicles, and police escorts may be required depending on where you’re traveling, and the rules vary from state to state and municipality to municipality.

You’ll also need to employ a company with interstate operating authority if you’re traveling across state lines.

If you’re conducting your own investigation, ensure sure they have a USDOT number.

The Size of the Home

Along with distance, the size of your mobile home plays a significant role in determining how much it will cost to relocate it.

Moving a single-wide mobile home unit may cost half as much as moving a double-wide or triple-wide unit.

If your unit won’t fit down a street with other vehicles, you’ll either need to organize a road closure or hire a police escort, both of which will raise your moving costs dramatically.

Similarly, if your unit is too tall or too heavy to fit under an overpass or a tiny local bridge, the firm moving it may have to take a long detour, which will increase the entire cost.

Weight

Mobile homes typically weigh between 35 and 50 pounds per square foot, depending on their age, size, and whether they are made of wood or metal.

To put it another way, a 900 square foot unit may weigh up to 45,000 pounds.

To put that in context, that’s about the maximum load capacity of the tractor-trailers (18-wheelers) you see on the highway.

Overall weight often dictates which routes to use, what licenses are required, and what additional services, such as police or private escorts, are required.

Age

If your mobile home is several decades old, it is likely that it has suffered structural damage from water or termites, which has weakened it greatly over time.

This damage can be so severe in certain older mobile homes that transferring the unit is no longer a possibility.

In some circumstances, though, the harm may be repairable. Even yet, the company may need to tailor its equipment to carry it securely, which may cost you extra time, materials, and money in the long run.

Permits and Inspection

It’s better to leave figuring out which permits you’ll need for each town, city, and state your mobile home will pass through to experienced professional mobile home movers.

If a prospective provider tells you during the pre-move screening process that they don’t handle permits, it’s a massive red flag, and you should remove them from your list right away.

Remember that, in addition to transportation permissions, you may require set-up permits, and mobile homes entering certain states may be subject to inspection and, in certain cases, quarantine at ports of entry.

This is particularly true in large agricultural states like California and Florida, where non-native insect species (such as gypsy moths and others) threaten local crops and industry.

Relocated mobile homes will be inspected in some towns, cities, and states to ensure they are safe, livable, and up to code.

Again, your organization should assist you in navigating these perplexing regulations (from HUD and other authorities) upfront.

Labor and Materials

From chains and lumber to fifth wheels, tow-hitches, and heavy-duty tarps, moving a mobile home is a material-intensive job.

Your group will also include a foreman (or lady), a driver, and several helpers.

Whereas most labor and materials will be included in the estimate, some may not, especially if your mobile home transfer is particularly laborious and time-consuming.

Set-up Services

Full-service mobile home movers are worth their weight in gold when it comes to safety, convenience, and peace of mind.

Keep in mind that there may be additional charges for preparation, minor disassembly and unloading, and set-up on the other end.

These services may include – depending on what you require.

– Utility disconnecting and rejoining (these may need to be done by plumbers and electricians)
– Outside features such as skirting, porches, chimneys, and awnings are removed and reinstalled.
– If your mobile home’s frame has weakened due to termites or water damage, you should reinforce it.

Age and condition

Due to structural integrity difficulties, some older and poorly constructed mobile homes may be immobile.

If it’s not in perfect condition but “workable,” the company may charge you more for the time, materials, and equipment required to get it into transportable condition.

If the piece of your mobile home that will hang over the back or sides cannot sustain itself, you may need to expand their trailer.

If this is the case, you should address it early in the pre-move process rather than waiting until the last minute.

Insurance

When determining which firm to utilize to move your mobile home, it’s critical to spend enough time discussing insurance.

Insurance is one of those grey areas that is sometimes overlooked, and if your home is damaged while in transit, you won’t know whether you’re insured until it’s too late.

Get a copy of their policy and numerous alternatives in writing, in addition to discussing insurance with each company’s representative.

It’s also worth phoning your current insurance company to see if they’ll give supplemental coverage to cover your home while you’re in the process of moving.

Even if they don’t, they’ll most likely be able to provide you some helpful advice and connect you to a mobile home transportation firm that offers one-time transportation coverage at a reasonable price.