Out Of Curiosity

[NoBassPro]

Does anyone here know what is involved with moving a trailer/mobile home? My neighbor has one we are looking to remove, and our first thought was to scrap it, but since its fully furnished we thought maybe it would be worthwhile for someone looking for something to plop down on a few acres for deer camp. I'm not sure that would be cost effective, though. Anyone here have any input? All I know is the wheels are gone and you'd have to disconnect the utilities. it was on the property when he purchased it a few years ago, but no one has lived there since. He doesn't live close by, so is looking for some help in removing this.

Any input or anything else that you need to know, please let me know.

[tipptruck1]

I was going to say replace the tires. Then get a farm tractor to pull it. We did that when we needed to move a mobile home. But that was only like five miles. So I don't know if that will work for you.

You best bet is to call a trucking place, or a place that deals with moving mobile homes. That will be your best bet. It might not be cheap though. I say scrap it. You should get a few grand or more in scrap. I bet it will cost more then that to move.

[OHIO]

I would put it on Craigslist or something and try to sell it.

I don't think you will get a couple thousand for scrapping it, but I'm not an expert.

I bet SirSnookAlot could be of some help.

I think he said he used to own a scrap yard, so he may know how much you could get.

[tomustang]

Depends how big, you should really get some estimates first before you do anything else.

[NoBassPro]

Its just a regular single wide, I would pretty much offer it up for free or next to free if it was worth anything to anyone just so I don't have to mess with it now that my dumb hiney volunteered to help get rid of it.

[tipptruck1]

I would put it on Craigslist or something and try to sell it.

I don't think you will get a couple thousand for scrapping it, but I'm not an expert.

I bet SirSnookAlot could be of some help.

I think he said he used to own a scrap yard, so he may know how much you could get.

I am thinking about all the copper in the place. Copper is a little over over 3 bucks per pound. That alone would make me scrap it. a few weeks ago i took in 20lbs of copper and get almost 60 dollars. I would be pulling every inch of copper out of it. Then throw in the frame that weights a few tons by its self then other scrap steel. I bet he could get at lest a grand.

Here is a web site with current prices per pound or ton. It was up dated last week. This might change his mind on scraping it.

http://pandlrecycling.com/current_prices_for_weldon_location

[grimlin]

Not cheap to move them that's for sure.Lots of paper work involved as well. I've heard somewhere in the range of $1000-2000.

[NoBassPro]

Here is a web site with current prices per pound or ton. It was up dated last week. This might change his mind on scraping it.

http://pandlrecyclin...weldon_location

Thanks, its not all about the price per pound, though. Its also about the fact I've been working 70+ hrs a week with no signs of slowing down. Thought it would, but my boss fired the other guy in my position and said he wasn't going to rehire at this time. So right now, I am just hoping I don't fall asleep at work and putting everything else on autopilot..

[SirSnookalot]

I dealt strictly with industrial scrap, I did no salvage whatsoever, so I'm no expert. Just briefly what an auto salvage yard does is completely strip a car, truck, or in this case a mobile home, removing the wheels, tires, radiator, radio, doors and anything else than can be sold retail to a customer walking in. The scrap metals like aluminum, insulted wire, die cast, and the steel frame are then sold in volume, so the yard can get the best price. This can be a highly lucrative business.

To be honest, I haven't the faintest idea of how much weight is involved, or the size of this trailer, so whether it's worth the time and effort to strip it down, I can't say. My guess tells me there isn't as much copper as one may think, and what's there probably isn't clean copper, meaning it's going to be attached to some steel, reducing the value. The outer shell of aluminum is nothing but siding, not a real expensive item and weighs little.

I looked at that web site with scrap prices, seemed low to me, however scrap prices do vary from region to region, non ferrous prices flucuate daily and non ferrous monthly. Rural prices are never the same as urban prices.

Another issue may be ownership, is there a title and does the neighbor own it? I would check out the legality before I did anything, an ounce of prevention is worth a pond of cure, especially if the bucks aren't that big.

From a personal standpoint, I wouldn't be involved, let the neighbor deal with it..........he's going to want most of the money anyway.

Curious......who has been paying the utility bill for the trailor? If the unit has been abandoned and the neighbor has been paying the electricty, he may be able to get a mechanics lien, as I mentioned, do the legal first.

[Lund Explorer]

SirSnookalot provided you with your first priority when he mentioned the title. The owner of the property either needs this in hand, or has to file for a lost or abandoned title.

In the meantime, your best bet is to try to sell this trailer "AS IS" with the stipulation that the buyer must remove it from the property within so many days after the sale. The move will require a full set of axles and tires, plus a truck large enough to safely haul it down the road. Depending on where it's located, that could cost upwards to a few thousand dollars.

DO NOT try to salvage this thing on your own! You are going to find that 90% of these things are built of materials that you cannot re-sell at any price. The amount you will get for any scrap you can harvest is going to be less than what it will cost you in landfill fees for the rest of it. If you are going to scrap this trailer out, you would be better off signing it over to a professional salvage company that deals with mobile homes. They know what has value and have a market to sell it.

Bottom Line - A net profit of $0 makes you a winner.

[NoBassPro]

I

From a personal standpoint, I wouldn't be involved, let the neighbor deal with it..........he's going to want most of the money anyway.

Curious......who has been paying the utility bill for the trailor?

He doesn't want a dime for it and has the title. The neighbor pays the utilities on it, its been used a few times since he purchased the property to house extra guests. But now its time for it to go one way or another.

My neighbor comes up maybe twice a year, so to him having someone get rid of the eyesore is more important than worrying about splitting the money.

[Bassn Blvd]

Have a marshmallow roast.

[Jake P]

Have a marshmallow roast.

[NoBassPro]

We are going to scrap it assuming he pulls the permits and have a bonfire with the wood and whatever other random stuff we decide to burn. I found people interested in most of the stuff from the appliances to the windows and have a couple guys willing to help, so why not. Our township dump is pretty reasonable on fees, don't expect more than a trailer load of junk left to haul after looking at it.

Moving it would just be too costly, and given the age and overall condition, might not be safe. Not sure how well old 2x2's would handle bouncing down a road.