For many people, owning a home may seem out of reach, leading them to consider more affordable housing options like renting an apartment or even renting a trailer. Trailers can provide a surprisingly affordable way to have your own space, but is owning a trailer more economical than renting one? There are pros and cons to both options.
Upfront Costs
The most obvious difference between owning and renting a trailer is the upfront cost. Buying a trailer requires a significant amount of cash upfront while renting simply requires paying the first month’s rent and a security deposit.
The purchase price of a trailer—like a Horse Trailer with living quarters—can vary dramatically based on size, amenities, age, and condition, but expect to pay at minimum around USD$5,000 for an older used trailer, ranging up to USD$50,000 or more for a large, luxurious new trailer
Renting gives you mobility and flexibility without that large upfront investment. However, all the money spent on rent is money that doesn’t build any equity for you over time.
Monthly Costs
The monthly costs of owning a trailer include loan payments if you have a trailer loan, along with lot rent, utilities, insurance, taxes, and maintenance. Expect to pay at least USD$300 per month or more for lot rent alone. Accounting for all other monthly costs, you may end up paying USD$500-800 per month or more for ownership costs.
Renting a trailer eliminates loan payments, taxes, and maintenance, but you will still have to pay lot rent, utilities, and potentially renters insurance. Overall monthly costs to rent a trailer often run USD$400-600 per month
Comparing the monthly costs of renting and owning depends on many factors like trailer quality, lot location, financing terms, maintenance needs, and more. Ownership might mean higher monthly costs for some while renting makes more sense monthly for others.
Building Equity
One of the biggest financial perks of buying over renting is the ability to build home equity over time. As you pay down your trailer loan or make improvements, you gain equity that you can later get back through selling or borrowing against the trailer. Rent payments build no long-term equity.
However, building equity relies on the trailer appreciating in value over time. Trailers typically depreciate quickly at first and may appreciate minimally, if at all. Low resale value limits the equity you can gain, so building equity should not be a primary motivator.
Maintenance And Repairs
When you rent a trailer, the responsibility of maintenance and repairs falls on the owner. If anything breaks down or needs upgrading, you simply notify the property manager. The cost is not yours to worry about.
Owning the trailer makes you responsible for any maintenance, repairs, or upgrades. From leaky plumbing to replacing appliances, the costs come out of your pocket. Depending on the age and condition of the trailer, maintenance can become quite costly over time.
Customization
Renting a trailer means accepting the space as is, with no option to customize. Ownership gives you the freedom to remodel, upgrade fixtures, paint walls, change flooring, and make the space your own. If you plan to be in a trailer longer term, customization can be a major perk of ownership.
But realize upgrades come at your own expense. And any investments into customizing your owned trailer may not provide much return when you go to sell.
Location Flexibility
Renting a trailer allows flexibility to relocate more easily. If you need to move for a new job or simply want a change of scenery, you can typically pack up and move out at the end of your lease.
Ownership means your trailer is fixed in place until you can sell it. Moving an owned trailer to a new park involves paying to move the home and may require expensive upgrades to meet park standards. Ownership locks you into a location for the long haul.
Security
Renting leaves open the possibility of the owner selling the trailer or changing rental terms. You could be forced to move on short notice. Owning the trailer means lease terms are secured as long as you own the trailer. You don’t have to worry about losing the space.
But, owning a trailer also comes with financial liability. Failure to pay for lot rent or loan payments means risking losing ownership of an asset through repossession. Renting frees you of these major financial risks.
Wrapping Up
In the end, the choice between renting and owning a trailer depends on your financial situation, how long you plan to live in a trailer, and your priorities around cost, customization, and location flexibility. So, take time to carefully weigh the pros and cons before making this big financial decision. With realistic expectations about costs, equity, maintenance, and flexibility, you can determine the best option for your housing needs.
