(CHEROKEE LAKE REALTY WRITES A WEEKLY COLUMN FOR THE GRAINGER COUNTY JOURNAL NEWSPAPER. THIS WAS A RECENT QUESTION ASKED BY A READER.)
Well that really depends on your needs and your budget.
Placing a single wide (SW) home on a piece of land will typically take up less space. So, how big is your lot? SWs are narrower in width compared to a double wide (DW) home. Square footage wise a SW will typically top out in the 1,200 square foot range, whereas a DW will generally double that. Hence the name. When you take into consideration that your land may need a well and a septic tank, and they can’t be close to each other, the area that you will place your home on will need to be adequate for its size. Keep in mind that typically the front door of a SW will be at the length side of the home. A 16’ by 80’ SW for example will have the entrance somewhere on the 80’ side. Generally, the front door, front side of the home, will face the road or your preferred view. But not always. I’ve seen SWs where the driveway snakes around to the front part of the home, with the width of the home facing the road. So, we get back to the dimensions and size of your lot, and which model would be a better fit.
Pricing may also affect your choice. DWs are more expensive than SWs. More square footage, more costly. Just like a site-built home. The bigger the home the more it will cost to build it. Transportation costs will also impact the price. The home, regardless of what it is, will have to be transported and set up on your lot. Transporting and setting up a DW is a more extensive process, therefore much more expensive. Whereas a SW will be transported on one truck, in one piece, a DW will have to be transported in two sections, requiring two trucks. Then, the two sections must be put together. Not an easy process when you take into consideration the two sections must be aligned, sealing the seams, and connecting all the plumbing and electrical systems to function as one.
Lastly, and just as importantly, how much room do you need for your family? A DW, as previously mentioned, will have more square footage, more size, than a SW. More space for bedrooms, closets, kitchen area, laundry room, and so forth. I’ve read reports that because the layout of a DW is closer to traditional homes than a SW, resale will be 20-50% higher for a DW. This may be true, but I don’t know if I totally agree with this, because each type of manufactured home will be attractive to different buyers. It gets back to what I said at the beginning of my answer, it all comes down to not only your budget and needs, but a future buyers’ budget and needs as well.
