Your road to trailer sweet trailer starts here.

Get pre-qualified with Kara

Before anything else, let's know the numbers. Manufactured homes finance a little differently, so this call matters more than usual. Kara Cuka at New American Funding is one of our very favorite lenders: patient, sharp and great at explaining options. She'll look at income, credit and savings and talk through which loan types fit the kind of home you're after.

• Ask Kara about the difference between a pre-qualification and a fuller pre-approval. A pre-approval usually carries more weight with sellers.
• Home with land: if the home sits on land you'll own and is on a permanent foundation, it can often be financed like any other house. Ask Kara which programs she offers for manufactured homes.
• Home on a leased lot (park or community): the home is usually titled as personal property, so it often takes a home-only (chattel) loan or cash. If Kara doesn't do these, she'll know who does.
• Comfortable payment beats maximum approval, and in a park, remember to add the monthly lot rent to the payment.
• Budget beyond the down payment: a typical home inspection runs a few hundred dollars, and lending and title fees are due at closing. Kara's Loan Estimate spells out the numbers.

Set up your search & start touring

Kylie will set up your saved search with your must-haves, and then the fun begins. When something pops, we'll book a showing, and on a second visit you stop falling in love and start picturing real life: coffee on the deck, where the skis go, how the winter drive looks.

• Check the practical stuff: storage, laundry, a shed or carport, natural light, water pressure, and how the floors feel underfoot.
• In a park or community, ask for the lot rent, what it covers, the community rules (pets, sheds, rentals, age limits), and the approval process for new residents.
• Look for the HUD certification label on the outside of each section and the data plate inside (usually near the electrical panel, in a kitchen cabinet or in a bedroom closet). They confirm the home was built to federal code.

• How the week works: most new listings hit Thursday and Friday, and Tuesday is when we look at what's left over from the weekend. We'll set you up on an MLS auto-email and our home search app so you see new homes the moment they appear.
• Open houses, dealer lots and model homes: go whenever you like. Let them know up front that you're a licensed agent with The Brozville Group, so everyone's clear from the first hello.
• Off-market homes: we also market your "buyer need" to agents and community managers, which sometimes surfaces homes before they list.

Read the seller's disclosure & MLS write-up

Once you find the one, we'll post the seller's disclosure and full listing write-up here. It's the best homework before an offer. For a manufactured home, also ask for the year built, the serial number, the title or deed, and any park lease or community rules, so nothing surprises you later.

Agency form & your licensee disclosure

You know this form by heart, so here's the twist: when a principal in the transaction is a licensee, Minnesota requires that fact to be disclosed in writing before negotiating. Kylie will make sure your licensee-buyer disclosure goes to the seller's side, and the agency form gets reviewed with whoever represents the seller, before any offer is written.

Write your offer

This is your offer, and you decide the terms. Kylie will make the paperwork easy and keep the file clean. Once it's submitted, we'll confirm the listing side received it and note when to expect the next update, so even the pro isn't left refreshing his phone.

Negotiate, accept & deliver earnest money

The seller may accept, counter, or ask questions. A little back-and-forth is normal, and yes, you're allowed to stress a little this time. Once everyone signs, you're officially under contract (cue the happy dance), your earnest money is delivered, and Carlee sends you an intro email with the inspection and title timelines. Then we meet you at the home for your "Said Yes to the Address" photo.

Inspection period

Now you can have the home professionally looked over as much as you'd like during the inspection period. The goal is peace of mind that it's a healthy, safe home. Pick an inspector who regularly inspects manufactured homes.

• What we're looking for: major items, or health and safety concerns, that would change your decision to buy, your price, or lead you to ask the sellers for repairs.
• What it isn't for: routine maintenance. The home wasn't marketed as brand new, so normal wear and tear is expected.
• Manufactured-home extras: piers and foundation, tie-downs or anchoring, skirting and ventilation, the underbelly wrap, roof seams, plumbing connections, and any additions built onto the home.
• Go to the inspection if you can. You'll learn a ton about how the home works.
• If the home is in a park or association, you'll get the lot lease or association documents and a short review period to read the rules, rent increases and fees, and the park will review your residency application.
• Want a home warranty for the first year? Ask us and we'll introduce you to our warranty rep.

Your lender gets to work

Once inspections wrap up, Kara and her staff, including Loan Processor Breanna Davidson and Loan Manager Sheila Stephens, take the lead on your loan, collecting your updated financial information and statements, ordering the appraisal, and working toward final approval. They'll be your main point of contact on the mortgage side.

• Respond to document requests quickly. Speed here keeps your closing date on track.
• Hold off on new credit cards, car loans, big purchases or job changes until after closing, and check with Kara first if something comes up.
• Shop for manufactured-home insurance. Not every carrier writes it, so start early. Your lender will need it before closing.

Meet Carlee & the title team

You'll keep hearing from Kylie, and Carlee Davich, our Transaction Coordinator, will run your file, our Transaction Coordinator. She keeps everyone up to speed on timelines and benchmarks with routine check-ins from accepted offer to closing. Same as your clients get. No special treatment, no shortcuts.

Carlee also gets things rolling with our title and closing partner, Lacey Rentz at All American Title. Their team does the behind-the-scenes work: making sure anyone who may have a right to the property is paid off in full, so you receive the home free and clear in your name.

• Home with land: the home may already be part of the real estate, or the title may need to be surrendered and an affidavit of affixation recorded so it becomes part of the land.
• Home on a leased lot: ownership usually transfers on a certificate of title through Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services, and property taxes on the home typically must be paid before the title can transfer.

Review your Closing Disclosure

By law, you'll receive your Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing. It shows your final loan terms and costs. Compare it to your Loan Estimate and ask Kara about anything that looks different.

Utilities & the final walk-through

As closing approaches, utilities get switched into your name, so the lights and heat are on when you arrive. Then we'll do a final walk-through together to make sure the home is in the condition we all expect.

• Schedule electric, gas or propane, water/sewer, trash, and internet to start on your closing date. In a park, some of these may run through the community; we'll confirm which ones serve the home.
• At the walk-through, confirm any agreed repairs were done and that included items are still there.

Closing day: sign, celebrate, move in

You'll meet at All American Title to hand-sign the remaining documents, your loan and the title paperwork. The moment that last page is signed, it's a celebration. You can head straight to your new home and move right in.

• A few days ahead, Kylie confirms the closing time and location and that your funds are ready as a cashier's check or verified wire. Bring a valid photo ID.
• Expect a SOLD-sign photo and a little celebration. We don't skip that part, even for the boss.
• If this will be your homestead, apply with the county after closing. Homes taxed as real property follow the normal county deadline; manufactured homes taxed as personal property (on a leased lot) must request homestead by May 29 of the assessment year, and some counties mail a new application every year.