Several installers and retailers in Nebraska have said I need to have foundation done below frost line with pillars. They also said I need a HUD approved inspector to approve home before anyone can move in. These are new requirements as of 2015 and are minimum HUD requirements. States can can have more strict rules. This all is going to cost around $5000 per lot. Have others that have moved new homes in with the CASH program heard of these new requirements? Thanks fro your input!
Yes. They are a pain.
I would check with your local governing body and see what they require.
$5,000 seems a little high. It usually costs me $110 a hole and you need around 18 for a 14 by 70 home.
You also need a vapor barrier which is pretty inexpensive and tie downs/anchors.
Sounds right to me…
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Thanks for your reply. What state are you in and are you close to a big city? I should be able to negotiate a lower price based on what you are saying.
steelcitydave Was that for digging the holes and the concrete for $100 a pillar? Did you have to put concrete under the doors? Thanks!
Is there a standard spacing for the piers? That is, how far distance apart the home frame members are from each other laterally? Otherwise, how can you know that the piers end up under the runners if you don’t know 14-wide or 16-wide?
I am in Pittsburgh.
I would check with your mobile home mover.
I can’t negotiate too much here as the prices are all usually pretty close. I wouldn’t want an unlicensed mover doing the job for me.
Here is a good link:
https://www.riverviewhomesinc.com/piers/
It’s the manufacturers guidelines
Yes, but for instance what do you do when a home moves out and the piers are spaced for that home versus another (used?) home for which the mfr’s specs might not be available?
I’ll ask my mobile home mover. Give me a day or so.
Brandon (and others) Right now used homes are not being regulated by HUD for set ups. I would strongly suggest that anyone who can attend the Louisville Show (January 17-19th) might want to consider, in addition for all the other reasons to attend is there will be a free two hour educational workshop on all the latest information on HUD’s intrusion into setup standards and inspections on January 19th starting at 8 AM.
The information will be the latest out there with new information on what is happening with the replacement of Pam Danner as the head of HUD’s manufactured housing programs and what that is going to mean to the installation program. Frank Bowman, the paid executive for the Illinois Manufactured Housing Association is the most educated industry person on this subject will be moderating a panel discussion which may include someone from HUD on the panel
HUD may not but if you’re filling a lot most local munis and their 3rd party inspectors use hud guidelines.
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Tony,
I highly recommend contacting 1) the manufacturer and get their setup guide 2) state manufactured housing association and asking for the installation requirements.
Things will vary by state. Though I’m a park owner, I have also taken tests to be an approved installer and dealer in in state. I can tell you there are differences. So its best to seek the advice from those 2 resources. For example, in WI, there are only about 4 installation approved methods (new homes) at the state level, aside from an engineered solution.
As for cost estimates, this varies greatly by location and requirements. In my area of WI we have a 4’ frost line. Yours may be less. I can tell you that $110/pier is unheard of in my area – closer to $175-200/pier. But labor costs also may be higher here. And in TX, we are not concerned about frost line, but definitely wind and water.
Another example is that in OH, the licensed MH installer can hook up the water & sewer. In WI, you need to be a certified plumber.
So while all the info provided here seem good and true, you should start with getting local information first. That is most relevant to you.
In WI, we need 20 footings for our 16x80, plus doors. That would cost me $4k just for piers. And good luck trying to do that in the winter time.
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Brandon, This can be an issue. With one of our parks, we have been prepping lots for new homes and realized that there used to be homes there as we are finding old concrete piers. The issue is that these were base on old 12’ wides and our new frames wont fit.
What this means is a whole lot of painful work to pull out these piers. Unless your replacement homes fit those piers perfectly you will have a problem. That is one reason many people prefer slabs- but that is expensive. We will start using helical piers as one of our new ‘goto’ methods and hopefully this will alleviate a lot of these issues.
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