All good things – including your mobile home – come to an end. You’re probably here because your mobile home is at a point where it is no longer worth remodeling. It’s time to let it go, but how?
While it’s lived a long life, serving you and your loved ones, you’re now wondering what to do with your mobile home. To begin with, you may consider looking into a mobile home junkyard.
Mobile home junkyard
Check your classified ads or yelp.com for a mobile home junkyard or salvage yard in your area. Perhaps nothing will turn up. However, you may call up an automobile junkyard. Some of these establishments will accept mobile homes.
Keep in mind, you’ll probably need to cover the cost of moving your mobile home, but at least you’ll finally have it out of your way.
And to be sure, different states may have varying requirements for mobile home disposal. As an example, here we have some guidelines from the state of Michigan. In Michigan, mobile home dumps (“locations that accumulate mobile homes for processing, salvage, or abandonment”) that do not have a special license are illegal.
Check with your state’s housing division for more information on proper disposal procedure.
Alternatives to a mobile home junkyard
If you can’t find a mobile home junkyard within a reasonable distance, you always have some other alternatives you may look into.
Classifieds
Pick up a copy of your local newspaper and flip through to the classifieds section. You’ll likely find advertisements for salvage yards or businesses that buy old homes, regardless of the condition.
Additionally, you may want to think about placing an ad for a free mobile home, “as is.” Someone may wish to take it and resell the parts.
Online yard sale
So maybe you didn’t find much within your newspaper’s classifieds section. Another option you may search through is on the internet – online yard sales, Craigslist, and Google searches might point you in the right direction. Your area’s Facebook yardsale group is another excellent place to continue your search.
You’ll either find leads for places that will take your mobile home, or these sites will provide you with an alternative venue to advertise a mobile home for scrap.
Scrapyard
Next, we recommend calling up scrapyards. They may be willing to pay you for your trailer’s metal value. It’s worth a try.
When it comes to scrapping your mobile home, you should be forewarned. Scrapping is not a very easy endeavor. You probably won’t find it pays well for the time you spend on it.
However, if it’s your only option and finances are tight, it may be just what you need to do.
Moving your mobile home could cost you $1000, so scrapping it yourself is a very appealing option as it will garner you a couple hundred dollars.
So with that said, even paying someone else to scrap it for you could be a better deal than having the mobile home towed.
Contact a mobile home park
And finally, you should call a mobile home park in your area. Mobile home park managers are likely well experienced in disposing of old mobile homes. Even if they don’t know of a mobile home junkyard in the area, they’re bound to give you a good lead for a place or company that will dispose of your mobile home.
Be at peace in letting go
Mobile homes can last thirty to fifty-five years with the right care. With that much time to grow attached to your home, letting go can be hard, but you can be at peace in knowing it served you well.
A mobile home is not just shelter, it’s an opportunity to have a home of your own without breaking your bank account. And thankfully, the affordability is not at the expense of quality.
Since the HUD code was set into effect, the energy efficiency and caliber of mobile home quality have increased by leaps and bounds, proving wrong the stigma that arose and stuck prior to the HUD code.
So be at peace – your mobile home was worth the love, care, and expense. It served you well and just like anything else, there comes a time to say goodbye.
You may continue your research for a mobile home junkyard, without reservations.
Saying goodbye and giving to a good cause
As we’ve discussed above, a mobile home junkyard may not be available in your area. However, there are alternatives and we hope this article proves helpful in providing clearer direction on what you could do about your old mobile home.
As one final option to consider, you could also donate your mobile home to a fire department. This is a great way to give to your community by providing a mobile home for your fire department to run practice drills with real fire.
About Dan Leighton
