[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

I live in a manufactured home. They are not at all like living in a trailer. They are insulated and heat and cool the same as a site built home. The paneling on the walls of the older homes is the giveaway that you are in a manufactured home. Other than that most people couldn't tell.
There are several insurance companies here that insure them. Duh! Florida is the manufactured home capital of the world. You can rest assured that insurance companies are not going to let this huge market go untapped.
Obviously, they are not as safe as a concrete block site built home or even a wood framed home in the event of a major storm, but there are literally thousands of manufactured homes here on the historic side and some just across 27/441 in the older sections that have been her for 30 years. In fact a rec center was destroyed in a tornado that struck here about six years ago. If a concrete rec center can be destroyed, nothing it safe. But like I say most of these homes have been here for a long time so the odds of one getting hit are very low.
Another factor is that because of our location in Central Florida so far from the coasts most of the hurricanes have weakened considerably by the time they arrive here. Now, don't everyone jump all over me saying that hurricanes can come here and they can be strong because that is certainly true. But, hen was the last serious hurricane that hit the Villages area? We did have a tornado here about 6-7 years ago. The one before that was over 50 years ago. When was the last time substantial damage to a home, manufactured or otherwise occurred here due to a hurricane? Like I said, many of these manufactured homes have stood here untouched for over 30 years.
My point is, yes, it is something that you might want to consider if you're thinking of buying a manufactured home, but I don't get all paranoid about it. Strong hurricanes in this area are rare. Tornadoes are even rarer. If there is a direct hit by a tornado on your nice $300,000 wood framed designer home, it's probably not going to survive either. But what are the odds.
Then you can look at the benefits of buying a manufactured home. Now, I could afford to buy something a little more expensive like a villa, ranch home or cottage under $150,000 but I made a decision that I would rather leave that extra money in my retirement fund which is pretty small.
My home is very small so the electric bill which includes heat, AC and golf cart charging is a wee bit over $100 a month. My property tax with the homestead exemption is about $500. Insurance is very low as well.
Having such low expenses allows me to have few nicer things that I might not have if I bought something more expensive. That is the choice I made.
I live in a beautiful neighborhood where most of the people keep up their yards. My neighbors are great and it's very quiet and peaceful over here. And my house is very comfortable and plenty big for two people. It's a bit crowded if we have company stay over, but that is only a few weeks a year. I'm certainly not going to make a decision based on those few weeks.
I'm happy here, some people may not be. Do I wish I had a bit more money to be able to afford a nicer larger home? Sure, but doesn't almost everyone?