Do you look down at people who live in trailers? Is it okay to ridicule people who live in trailers?

[NurseJackie]

Last edited Wed Jan 12, 2022, 04:29 PM - Edit history (1)

Is it okay to insinuate that people who live in a trailers are Trumpers; or a Republicans; or anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers?

Is it funny and entertaining to make fun of people who live in trailer-parks, and to use the word "trailer" or "trailer-trash" as a slur and insult?

What's wrong with trailers? I live in a "trailer" in a "trailer park" and it's nothing for anyone to be ashamed of. Do you think you're BETTER than us?

We live where we can afford to live. Our humble double-wide is our "forever home" ... it's not temporary. We love it! It's HOME! It's not a stop on our way to elegant riches and a mc-Mansion. This is where we choose to live. It's what our budget allows. (Our next stop will be a nursing home or a funeral home.)

Do the people who use "trailer" as an insult ever stop to think about the KIND of person who lives in a trailer?

Just looking at the folks who live near me, we have: Democrats; conservatives; non-political; college-educated; gainfully employed; unemployed; high school drop-outs; religious and non; gay and straight. There's black, white, Asian, Hispanic... as well as folks just starting out; singles; young families; retirees; people saving for something more; as well as people who never had much to begin with (and feel damned lucky to not be on the street or living under an overpass.)

All kinds of people live in trailers. It's wrong to make us objects of scorn and ridicule and insults. Most of us aren't filthy rich, but I can tell you that it's wrong to presume that we're all uneducated, bigoted, bumpkins and rubes. Some of us are more comfortable that others, but we're all doing the best we can with what we have.

It's wrong to presume that we're all low-class and stupid. It's wrong to continually use it as an insult. This kind of shit pops up at least two or three times a year (sometimes more often) and y'all need to stop. (I'm not going to name-names, but you know who you are.) It's aggravating and disheartening to see how many folks like to join-in on the "fun" of ridiculing the humble trailer dwellers, rather than doing the right thing to stand up and call-out that type of behavior.


This is not my actual home, but it's a pretty close match. You get the idea. (We have a bigger lot and we're set-back from the pavement a good ways.)

Thank you for reading my rant.

[CanonRay]

1. Half my friends live in one of these

[underpants]

6. In one trailer???

[NurseJackie]

7. Good catch!

[CanonRay]

11. They are close friends

[Martin Eden]

88. Well, as long as you have an even number of friends

And you can count them on one hand, no problem.

[Ace Rothstein]

93. On rare occasions a post here makes me laugh out loud.

This was one of those times.

[NurseJackie]

117. I did too!

[mercuryblues]

214. Which half?

top or bottom?

[MineralMan]

2. Nope, and of course it's not OK to do that.

Many people are far too free with their broad insults, I'm afraid. I often wonder what in their lives might be worthy of insult or ridicule. I suspect they also have things that could be ridiculed by someone.

Ridiculing people for where they live, what they drive, or how they look or dress is just plain stupid. It really exposes the person who does that as judgmental and unthinking.

I'm sorry that anyone here did that.

[NurseJackie]

196. The "Marjorie Trailer Queen" insult has started to gain some popularity here...

The "Marjorie Trailer Queen" insult has started to gain some popularity here... I fear that it won't be long before this fad runs amuck on DU.

I imagine that for some, the thought process is something like this: "She's a despicable person, so let's use the word "trailer" to denigrate her! It's soooo clever, eh? Woo-hoo! Fun-times!"

[sarchasm]

198. I prefer "Marjorie Traitor Queen"

...I'm from Kentucky, went to school up east, and they all thought we lived barefoot back the holler. I took it in stride. My mother used to say, "kill 'em with kindness" ... always did, just smile and give them a compliment and never give them the satisfaction of getting the better of you. ...works every time.

[MineralMan]

202. I had not seen that. Ugly.

It would be interesting to see where people who say things like that live. However, I doubt that they'll be posting photos of their own abodes.

I have lived in many settings, including a mobile home, an apartment over a garage, and an SRO hotel. Now, I live in a quadhome townhouse. Not luxurious at all, but it's mine. Wherever I have lived, I have been the same person.

Lifestyle bias is an ugly thing.

[brer cat]

3. I agree, NJ.

It makes no sense at all.

[snowybirdie]

4. I agree

I get riled up when people use generalizations when trying to make a point. Your place (or one like it) looks nice and homey. I'd like to be your neighbor.

[tblue37]

5. I wouldn't mind living in a nice place like that. I do know many people who live in trailers or who

did in the past, including one of my sisters. They are not "trash.

[brush]

13. That home in the photo is not bad at all. On a nice lot...

nice.

[uponit7771]

8. K&R, I would live in a modular home or a California trailer park in a second. They are REALLY nice

... places to be had and with those kind of homes.

[EYESORE 9001]

9. Too much snobbery, regional chauvinism, and 'soft bigotry' goes unanswered here

Frankly, it’s embarrassing to see self-proclaimed liberals and progressives falling over themselves to one-up each other with cheap insults like that.

[ms liberty]

25. This. n/t

[crickets]

49. Well said. nt

[WarGamer]

107. I'd hate to be a Democrat living in Alabama here on DU...

Just the word "Alabama" brings out the worst in SOME people.

In the worst State... around 40% of the people are on OUR side.

[Tommymac]

213. I am proudly proclaiming I am Trailer Trash.

I was raised in a mobile home park. My parents were lower middle class - i.e. my dad was an NCO and my mom worked part time at Rose's Dept Store, High's Ice Cream and KFC. I was also a latch key kid when I was 10 (1968).

In my high school years I was in the 'free' lunch' program. I drove a school bus for 2.50 an hour so missed 2 periods of school everyday my Senior year. (Yes, in the 1970's NC let high school students drive the buses - we had a much better safety record then adult drivers.)

I smoked grass in the woods behind my trailer with other TPT'ers.

I was the salutatorian of my class.

Look at me now - I am a certified IT guru. I make 6 figures a year. I am happily married to the same woman for 30 years. I have overcome drug addiction, alcohol addiction, depression and anxiety.

And I am FUCKING PROUD to be Trailer Trash. I tell folks that all the time.

Being from the park made me work harder, made me strong. Made me turn the taunts into cheers in my mind - and I proved to all who know me that being Trailer Park Trash is an honor not an insult.

[EYESORE 9001]

216. Glad things turned out so great for you

For too many others, however, they believe what they hear from those who consider themselves better than people on a lower socioeconomic rung. It’s not their fault that they are ill-equipped to deal with all the shit that’s flung their way.

[Tommymac]

221. I always consider the source of criticisms. I am no more special then anyone else.

It's why I learned to reach out to others for help.

It's why I am a staunch Union advocate.

It's why I am an unapologetic liberal.

It's why I work to encourage youngsters (anyone under 45 lol) from similar backgrounds not to despair and to believe in themselves. To ignore the naysayers and turn the perceived insults into reasons to improve.

Those who lord it over peeps of 'lesser' economic status are fools and assholes, plain and simple.

It's why I am the most optimistic pessimist you will ever find.

[ck4829]

232. Indeed

[SYFROYH]

10. With the bougie tiny homes movement, people living in mobiles homes, trailers, buses and vans...

... is more socially acceptable.

I realized in my 20s, back in the 80s, that looking down on folks who live in these types of homes is ridiculous, elitist, and mean.

Its a very reasonable way to own your own home at far less cost, although resale is more uncertain.

[SammyWinstonJack]

71. I live in a fifth wheel rv in an RV park. Half of the park is full timers.My space rent

is $4200. per yr includes utilities. Hard to beat that.

[WarGamer]

109. 350/mo including utilities and I assume some extras like BBQ area, etc...

Is indeed a good deal.

[BobTheSubgenius]

175. I don't mean to be contentious AT ALL, so please don't take it that way.

It's an observation I made a few years ago, when I started hearing "bougie" used to mean "showy" and "elegant." I have to think it's a bastardization of "bourgeois," which was used as a synonym for "crass" or "pretentious" BITD.



Also, mobiles in my neck of the woods sell really well. First, there are fewer and fewer places to park a unit, which obviously heats up the market for existing. Second, as you said, "reasonable at a lower cost." I just got my tax assessment the other day, and, for a small (about 1100 square feet) house on a regular city lot (6000 square feet) in what used to be a VERY average to slightly below average neighbourhood, and my assessed value is $808,000. How is that reasonable in ANY way?

[hlthe2b]

14. A few years ago, I was behind a car that hit a dog just beyond a mobile home park and drove off...

I stopped, determined to try to catch up to the obviously injured dog and try to help. Within minutes, there were half a dozen residents of that trailer park joining me in the search. It took a while but we caught up with it and two wanted to come with me to seek help for the dog-- but only after taking up a donation collection from the now dozen people who'd come out to help. They did come along and helped to pay, the dog survived, and was later adopted by one of those kind-hearted people.

Now, I ask you, would that happen at the typical "McMansion" housing development? Maybe, but good, kind, and intelligent people can live anywhere. And those who don't think so or denigrate honest people living ANYWHERE are not worth my time.

[NurseJackie]

34. ...

[Sympthsical]

129. We would post about it on Next Door

A picture with, "Is this your injured dog?!" And then comments that devolve into discussing leash policies at the local park.

I'm just guessing about my neighborhood based on experience.

[EastMeetsWest]

181. What a nice story

And the dog survived and was adopted.

[S/V Loner]

15. Sometimes I think the people that live in...

mobile homes are the smart ones.

[StarryNite]

16. Well said.

I love the screened in porch on that one. And the lawn!

[mcar]

17. Mobile home parks such as yours are all over Florida

and make it an affordable option for many. I know people who live in such parks that have beautiful clubhouses with pools, are lakefront and their homes are lovely.

One such friend and her husband lost nearly everything in the W. Bush Great Recession. They moved here to the mobile home they had bought as their weekend and eventual retirement place.

Of course there are some mobile home parks that are not as nice - just as there are some neighborhoods with permanent homes that aren't nice.

Your home is your home and shouldn't be grouped into any derogatory insult.

[GoodRaisin]

18. Looks comfy.

I probably have more room than I need. Seems I’m only ever in 2 rooms of my home.

I’ve known people who lived in trailers. I don’t think anyone should be looked down on because of where they live.

[bucolic_frolic]

19. I knew a guy who lived in a trailer

He said, 'my wife and I bought 4 homes, we still own 3 and rent them out. Now we're divorced. I live in a trailer park, she lives elsewhere. Low maintenance, low taxes. Smartest move I ever made.'

[Hortensis]

53. :) We have friends who travel the world and use their MH

as a place to relax between. They also own a few other properties. Common story with plenty of variations.

[Mister Ed]

20. Just call it a "tiny house" and the snobs will adore you.

They'll admire you for being so cutting-edge.

[NurseJackie]

28. I hadn't thought of that! 🤣😂🤣

[Coventina]

55. That was my first thought as well.

My maternal grandmother and her partner lived in a single-wide for many years.

I could happily live in one, if I converted all my media to a digital format.

As it is, my husband and I live in a 900 sq. ft. "traditional" home that is smaller than many upscale "trailers."

We've often considered up-sizing, but we want to keep our carbon footprint small.

It did make going through the pandemic pretty challenging. It was the biggest stress our marriage has ever had.
We were driving each other crazy trying to work from home with no spare room.

[Jedi Guy]

151. "We were driving each other crazy..."

This bit made me smile, Coventina. It reminded me so much of me and my wife. Not long after we were married, we went on a road trip to visit my grandparents in Illinois. Wasn't a long drive, about 12 hours. But on the way home, my wife looked at me and said, "I figure our marriage can survive anything since we didn't snap on each other during this road trip."
We didn't have any issues during the neverending pandemic, either. I'm glad you and your hubby got through yours.

[Coventina]

170. Aw, thanks Jedi Guy!

[catsudon]

21. i only ever heard of the word

'trailer trash' referring to republicans and right wingers.

maybe that's why we gave it a pass? like the usage of the word 'karen'

[liberalmuse]

22. Not at all.

I envy them. I one day want to own a home, and these are still the only somewhat affordable homes in my area, though some run over 300k. They are actually pretty nice.

[gay texan]

23. If the trailer is festooned with

Trump flags, rebel flags, and let's go Brandon flags, yes.

[Mr.Bill]

75. Mobile Home parks around here

usually don't allow political signage in the park. To be honest, I don't really know much about my neighbor's politics, and that's fine with me.

[NurseJackie]

236. We have no "HOA" here... but I don't see political yard signs around here. Only bumper stickers.

We have a few folks who leave up their Christmas lights a little longer than they ought to, but at least they don't continue to illuminate them after the season is over. (And that's definitely a much more tolerable annoyance compared to pro-trump and anti-biden yard signs.)

[Hoyt]

24. +1. Right now, we live in house near my Lady Friend's kids and grandkids. I suspect, when

I quit working even part time -- and after a few years of worrying about our long-term finances -- something like your photo would be perfect, especially if it has some trees, maybe a nice view, some decent hiking trails, etc. That's a nice looking place.

[Vinca]

26. No, not at all. And I don't blame you for being annoyed.

[Wounded Bear]

27. My brother lives in a trailer, so no, I don't immediately go 'there'...

[sheshe2]

29. K&R

TY for the rant!

[MenloParque]

30. Fat shaming, body part shaming, trailer park shaming. It's so disappointing.

[iluvtennis]

111. + agree. n/t

[EastMeetsWest]

182. You said it

Some of the so-called "progressive" sites I used to frequent had that kind of crap. It was really annoying.

[Croney]

31. It's insensitive shorthand for what the person wants to say, like calling someone a Karen.

Generalizations always run the risk of being not only inaccurate, but insulting. My personal favorite is the tiny-dick generalization. I've never seen any correlation between intelligence and dick size, or political party and dick size, in my very long life. (I don't have one myself, but I've done my own research.)

[ShazzieB]

108. Oh, lord, yes.

I see comments about "tiny dicks," "small parts," etc. at DU almost every day. It's childish and silly, imo. (Also gendered insults, which are among my particular pet peeves.)

Some seem to think it's just fine to use insults that are classist, homophobic, sexist, body shaming, etc., as long as those insults are aimed at the "bad guys." I disagree. No matter what someone may have done to deserve being insulted, it's NEVER okay to (for example) call ANY woman a bitch or a skank, use homophobic insults when speaking of a (suspected) closeted gay man, or make fun of anyone's weight or (suspected) anatomical deficits. (Add to that comments about adults wearing diapers, which are offensively ableist, afaic.)

I've given up on commenting on these things when I see them in posts, because it never does any good, especially since there are no explicit rules against these kinds of insults. But I really wish more DUers could see how wrong this sort of thing is.

[Jedi Guy]

152. +1000

Bigotry, broad-brush generalizations, cruelty, and insensitivity are apparently perfectly fine as long as the targets are part of an "acceptable" group. It's disappointing.

[concretebluetwo]

178. Oh, but........

My wife and I have talked about this, as she is want to throw a"smoll PP energy" type insult at offensive males from time to time. I try not to bring up my girlfriends and playmates from my bachelor days, but made an exception when this topic came up recently. Two of my girlfriends who were, shall we say, more adventurous,said that in their experience, the bigger the truck, the smaller the parts.
Anecdotal, for sure, but.....

[MenloParque]

206. In the popular opinion of my very single, professional

Group of friends, male Tesla drivers in California are smaller in the pants that average. It’s of course all anecdotal you see.

[LoisB]

32. Great points.

[iscooterliberally]

33. My wife and I aspire to live in a trailer eventually.

We're saving up for a truck big enough to pull a decent travel trailer. We want to roam. We have been homeowner's and landlords and didn't really care for being either. We rent a regular house now, but we want to lower our housing costs and travel at the same time. One of my best friends lives in a double wide about 20 miles from me as well. The only thing that scares me about living in a double wide is hurricane season. I live in south Florida so I would have to have a plan to get to a shelter or some sort of concrete block structure to ride it out.

[babylonsister]

185. I live in a double wide in FL near the coast.

Our rule of thumb is any hurricane over a Cat.1 and we're out of here, heading to a friend's or a motel inland.
But hurricanes and accompanying tornadic activity can demolish any structure.

As for living in one of these, initially it was all about the $ and space I could get compared to tiny stucco homes with no land.

I found mine in foreclosure on 1/4 acre with city water and sewage and, per realtor, zoned to build a permanent structure if I choose.

I'm very happy in my home, which isn't mobile at all.

[lambchopp59]

195. May I suggest big enough a motorhome to pull a runabout vehicle?

Petrol isn't going to get any cheaper come retirement time! Running about for shopping in a monster truck adds up quickly!
That's the setup I'm aiming for. I only have a most remote "home" I'm likely only to stop at between snowbird migrations.

[iscooterliberally]

208. I was thinking about that too.

We met an older gentleman who was driving a large motor home and he said that he wished he had bought a truck and a fifth wheel rig instead. I don't want to get anything that large though. I'm thinking of a single rear axle diesel truck and maybe something like an Airstream or Black Series trailer. I know fuel is very expensive but we can boon-dock. Even camping in state parks will bring our housing costs low enough to offset the fuel expenses. I want to keep the clearance height down and be agile enough to drive on mountain roads. My wife and I love camping in the north Georgia mountains.

[Joinfortmill]

35. I hear you. Lovely photo.

[doc03]

36. I lived in a used mobile home for 14 years I saved

enough to buy a house for cash. Everyone can't buy a house just starting out.

[Trailrider1951]

37. **Raises hand** Me too, Nurse Jackie

I am an owner of a 1984 single wide in a 55 and older trailer park. Paid $11000 cash for it in 2017, and I've been fixing it up ever since. It is my HOME. It sure beats a 400 sq. ft./$1200 per month apartment. It was affordable, and in Western Washington State, that's hard to find. I moved here from Texas to be near my children and grandchildren. I, too, am tired of the disrespect shown to us by some people. Just because I live in a manufactured home, that doesn't make me "trailer trash".

One thing I can contribute is a link to a website that is all about manufactured homes. It takes on the stigma and problems associated with them, and has valuable information about the purchase, repair, remodel, and a wealth of other information I have found useful:

https://mobilehomeliving.org/

[NurseJackie]

39. Hi, Trailrider1951... thanks for checking in.

Thanks also for your comments AND for the link. I'm saving that one.

[Magoo48]

38. Definitely not OK, NurseJackie.

My family lived in trailers for quite some time.

I must admit though, I’m less than generous with my descriptions of the ridiculous palaces occupied by the morbidly rich. In today’s world, I feel like opulence is an embarrassment.

Am I just like the idle rich, or is that a false equivalency?

[Victor_c3]

85. I generally equate opulent with gaudy

It looks like a person is trying too hard to impress others. Clean, minimalist, and modern is the sort of style I like.

Now that I mentioned that, it is fair to point out that I do drive a Porsche

As a kid, I always wanted a huge mansion and all sorts stuff and I struggled for years to afford the lifestyle my ex wife and I thought was important to us. Since my divorce, I’ve moved into a modest 800 sqft apartment. I have two bedrooms that I just about never go into - I sleep on my living room couch many nights.

I certainly enjoy the $2,500+ a month I save by living in an apartment. Not to mention that my utilities are a fraction of what they used to be too. When my youngest graduates high school in 6.5 years, I’m not even going to need two bedrooms anymore. I will just need to make sure that I stay single between now and then.

[Magoo48]

121. Sounds like a solid plan.

[planetc]

149. Ooh! "morbidly rich"--Good one!

[BlackSkimmer]

40. Nope, it's not ok.

I hate the “trailer trash, white trash” comments I so often see here.

[48656c6c6f20]

41. Grew up in trailer Park

And yes at times called my family and myself trailer Park trash. Think it depends on the circumstances.

[ShazzieB]

114. I think it's different when people do that amongst themselves.

It's like gay men calling each other bitch or fag, black people using the n word, or people with disabilities referring to themselves as crips. If people in a particular group want to own and play with a slur that's been aimed at them, I think that's just fine.

In fact, I just thought of another example: nasty women!

[NurseJackie]

135. Some DU friends have called me a nasty woman...

... and I say "THANK YOU!"

[wryter2000]

42. I live in Oakland

All I can afford in Oakland is my run-down house, which I can't afford to fix up, or a teeny-tiny studio apartment. I'm moving into the apartment in a couple of months. I don't look down on anyone for what kind of abode they have.

And while we're at it, could we stop acting as if everyone from the South is ignorant, racist, and toothless? Granted, southern states tend to be red. So do some other states (how about Idaho?). But good people live there, too. It's easy to be liberal in Oakland. We need to support our folks who are surrounded by Trumpists.

[milestogo]

43. A lot of people here look down on renters.

[ProfessorGAC]

44. In Our Town...

...there were 2 mobile home parks.
One was REALLY nice. All the trailers well maintained, little flower boxes around each, nicely paved roads, paths & sidewalks. Decent cars, people looked like any other neighborhood, and those I knew were nice.
The other (which was just beyond our back fence when we were still renters) was a DUMP! It was owned by some lawyer, who was basically a slum lord. That park had some real pieces of work living there. Low rent biker dudes, sloppy dirty kids, junk cars (not just the one they drove, actual junk cars). We once saw a guy sitting in a lawn chair drinking beer, who just stood up & took a leak! Too lazy to go inside, I guess.
So, it wasn't that they lived in trailers. Some people are good, some people are punks!
BTW: the city condemned that latter park, sold it, used part of the proceeds to clean it up, and sent the rest to the slumlord. He took a beating on it. Now, it's real nice, like the other one. Right on the river. Actually a pretty desirable location.

[IronLionZion]

45. Tiny homes are fashionable these days

Trailers are probably great for folks who want their own space instead of apartments.

There's an opportunity for our party to gain votes from folks who live in such places if they are Dem leaning.

[Demsrule86]

189. Trailers are very roomy...Jackie's doublewide is likely as large as my bungalow.

[IronLionZion]

203. Trailers are probably more roomy than tiny houses

and harder to steal

[KS Toronado]

46. Can we thank Jeff Foxworthy for the term "trailer-trash"

Or did someone else say it first?

[NurseJackie]

48. Oh, I've heard it all my life. (I grew up in the South.)

The idea that I'd spend my golden years in a "trailer" was abhorrent to me at first. I grew up with the false belief that people who lived in trailers were deplorable, or to be pitied. It took me a while to adjust my way of thinking when we decided to move here.

He didn't invent it, but maybe he mainstreamed it and made it "acceptable" to denigrate us.

[Spider Jerusalem]

47. Here in coastal Southern California...

most of the mobile home parks are second/vacation homes where you're more likely to see a BMW or Mercedes than a beater F-150.

[hunter]

50. One of my brothers lives in a trailer out in the desert.

He's like Snoopy's brother Spike.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snoopy#Spike

I'm not Snoopy.

[Archae]

51. It really depends on the condition of the trailer, and the yard it's on.

I've seen good examples and bad examples of both double-wides and singles.

[NurseJackie]

59. I see. Interesting.

So, what I'm hearing is that if the trailer is in disrepair and the lot needs sod and landscaping (or if there's a sofa and washing machine on the front porch) then IS it acceptable to look down on and ridicule the people who live there.

[Archae]

82. If the people living there are that sloppy, they deserve to be called sloppy.

Like I said, I've seen good and bad examples.

[paleotn]

52. One important thing my dad impressed on me is....

"You'd be surprised." i.e. stereotypical short cuts don't work much of the time. He came from a more egalitarian background than mom. I try to live up to dad's example, but sometimes slip into mom's more elitist view. Short answer, no, don't make make stereotypical comments. I can't say I haven't in the past and won't in the future, but I try not to.

[KarenS]

54. Raises hand,,,,

My Husband & I live in a 'manufactured home' 55 & older community

and my name is 'Karen'

yikes,,,, and double yikes!!

I try more than ever not to paint with that broad brush,,,, it is both lazy and mean.

BTW We have a screen room and I love it!!

[NurseJackie]

61. Our screened-in porch has a open-flame propane heater/faux-fireplace

... of course we can't keep a screened porch warm, but it's nice to take the chill off the air on cool autumn nights.

[Ishoutandscream2]

77. Looking at wonderful, affordable manufactured homes

in a 55 and older community in Oregon. Excellent prices, nice homes. I would love to sell this house in Texas and pay cash for a nice, smaller, comfortable home in a nice neighborhood.

[NurseJackie]

113. Ideally, I'd want to live in a 55+ community. But so far....

... the young families and and families with kids who live here have been good company.

[EastMeetsWest]

183. I essentially live in a 55+ community,

but it wasn't designed like that. It started out as a new development 40 or so years ago. I heard that there were quite a few young families who moved in back then. But as the kids grew up and moved out, the parents stayed. It's not such an attractive place for young families now, even though you can buy a very nice house here for a very reasonable price, the property taxes are low, and there are several shopping centers within a 10-minute drive of here. The main reason is, it's too far from the nearest elementary school (elementary school kids almost always walk to school in this country), so young families prefer to live close to schools (and there has been a building boom near the local elementary schools, where houses are occupied as soon as they're built). So, it's VERY quiet around here

[RobinA]

215. If Your Husband

is named Brandon you've really hit the jackpot!

[KarenS]

223. Good one!!

[NurseJackie]

228. Ha!

[inthewind21]

56. Nope

I'm specifically looking for manufactured housing. There are some amazing mfg. homes out there and they are waaaaaaay more affordable. And in my opinion, a smarter option. I want my own space to paint purple if I want and not be attached to my neighbors, but i'm not willing to pay 400+K for a 1000 sq ft stick built that needs about 40K in work. Sick built would not financially allow me to "live" my life while I still can. It would have me working just to pay for a structure that sits empty all day while I work to pay for it an not much more.

[ECL213]

57. I know of one popular entertainer...

who lived in a van down by the river until his untimely death.

[OMGWTF]

212. Sly Stone?

[Hortensis]

58. Well, some can't resist, but smart people who aren't wealthy themselves

Last edited Wed Jan 12, 2022, 05:28 PM - Edit history (1)

might wonder if some of those in nicely maintained MHs might be as or a lot more well to do than them. Because some are.

Of course, although we can name a few, most are not sitting on a fortune. Very common is a need to live independently and nicely on less money than before. Retirement, forced or otherwise, after medical bills cleaned out savings is a very common story. These days, selling "the house" and buying a MH in a nice neighborhood of people of middle class backgrounds typically leaves a good amount to stand squarely on their own feet and enjoy life with. Someone we know of rented out the big house after divorce, and moved into a MH, to finance education for new lives for herself and her daughter.

Of course there are the vacation MHs whose owners have their main home elsewhere. Lots of those.

It really matters whether MHs and the neighborhoods they're in tend to be low-income rentals or are mainly owner-occupied. A quick glance is usually enough to guess. But a lot of those clearly very modest may also be nice family communities. Lol, though, remembering a couple in the back woods we ran across while looking for our own "fish camp" that I would not care to visit alone. "Deliverance" comes to mind.

But, different people make different choices. Including the many who live without a nickel to spare in "respectable" subdivision homes because that's what's important to them, or declining apartment buildings in declining neighborhoods that people in straitened circumstances may choose because they don't realize that MHs can be a way to set their lifestyle standards higher.

[MOMFUDSKI]

60. I live in Florida

but 8 years ago we decided it would really be great to spend about 5 months up in Milwaukee, WI, our hometown. SO we bought a trailer in a trailer park and have LOVED it. People are great. Many don't have a lot but they keep on truckin'. The "joke" is we are "trailer trash" in the summer but I have never looked down on anyone for where they live. We put in a summer garden and hang bird feeders and we chat with neighbors. Drinks on our large deck with friends/family happens every summer and then off to the restaurant. We will be very sad when we get just too old or sick and have to sell it. It is like having your own home as opposed to an apartment. You are not low-class OR stupid. Just enjoy life.

[NurseJackie]

64. Sometimes I envy the full-time RV'ers who just follow the wind (and seasons)...

... north for the summer and south for the winters. Not a lot of room to collect junk and clutter... but it certainly sounds like a fun way to live.

[P-Nutt]

62. We Are Proud

To live in a new 32 x 80 Doublewide Mobile Home. The fact that our home cost us $115,000.00 dollars, yet is valued at $500,000.00 dollars makes us far from "Trailer Park Trash". We live on a waterfront lot that everyone who sees it calls it the most beautiful property in the area. Having some of the amenities in our home that multi-million dollar homes have, makes us feel wonderfully lucky to have.

Our home has insulated windows, 6 inch exterior walls, 4 inch interior walls, fully sheetrocked interior, ultra-modern kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, stainlees steel deep double kitchen sink, porcelain sinks in the bathrooms, a Walk-in California style Shower, Handicap toilets as in commercial buildings, 2 fully rated Handicap ramps, a 12 x 16 front deck, and a 45 x 12 rear deck facing the water.

We have a mating pair of Bald Eagles in the area, Deer, Racoons, Opossums, and every kind of bird native to our area. Sorry, but YOU CAN'T AFFORD to live like me. I worked hard my entire life to have a nice place to retire. EFF YOU if you are so jealous that you have to try to demean my home and my lifestyle!

[NurseJackie]

65. Sweet!

We also have sheetrock walls, but the floors can "bounce" and echo a little, if someone is lead-footed or doesn't know how to walk gently. In Maryland, double-glazed windows are a must.

[Mr.Bill]

79. I didn't know you lived in Maryland.

I was born in Baltimore in 1953 but have lived in California since 1961.

[SWBTATTReg]

63. Thanks for being so positive on the merits of living in MH. As they say, Home is where the

heart is, and that saying/quote doesn't say one whit about the type of home, etc. If a person is happy living there, then I'm happy for them too.

My two sisters and I all have lived in mobile homes, and we all loved it. My brother, though, wouldn't get caught living in one, although he was the one that needed the help far more (he is an alcoholic too) in living somewhere, period, as all of his former landlords got tired of dealing w/ him and were kicking him out.

I ran a mobile home park too, and really enjoyed it. We had out of towners (lived by a state park) who rented by the weekends, and/or monthly renters, and we all enjoyed it, living in the country. Sure, it was a lot of work but worth it. We still have long term renters still there, since the late 1980s (WOW!) and my sister now runs it/owns it.

Like I said, home is where the heart is. but my sisters (two of them) actually lived in a mobile home and I would stay in my vacation mobile home when I came out to the Country to go fly fishing. Couldn't have picked a better place to stay at.

[NutmegYankee]

66. Your picture is what I would call a "premanufactured home" and not a trailer.

The double wide modular homes are just efficient for areas that don't need utilities deep under the earth.

I picture a single wide sitting on bricks or wheels when "trailer" is mentioned. They are uncommon up my way due to the cold, but they do exist here and there.

[NurseJackie]

76. That photos is one that's just similar in layout and curb-appeal.

For obvious reasons, I'm not going to post a photo of our actual home. But, i can assure you that both halves were was trucked-in on wheels and it is "perched" on concrete blocks.

Because of the cold and snow, our "crawl-space" is enclosed. But it's not airtight. It's prettier than corrugated aluminum, and not as open as the white-trellis material that one sees in warmer climates. In maryland, the frost-line is 30" for water/sewer... our waterline is insulated and heat-taped and at the point it pops through the ground, it's "boxed-in" so that any ground-heat or house-heat is captured. Fortunately we've never had to deal with frozen water lines. The outside water spigots are "hydrant" style with the valve part located well-inside the heated area of the house, and when closed, the "exterior" part that's vulnerable to freezing (about 10&quot drains dry.

The furnace is plenty enough to keep things warm, but on the rear, we have a window-unit AC to assist when the summer heat is too much for our little unit.

[NutmegYankee]

165. Those hydrant style faucets, usually called frost proof, are code up here.

I stayed with a traditional house (cape cod) for the region. I wouldn’t feel safe in a house not anchored into the earth given the vicious storms of New England. They frost line drives many houses to use basements, which is an advantage. It adds hundreds of square feet that can be used but it isn’t taxed as living space.

I had friends that lived in trailer parks back in my Southern days, but the parks weren’t the higher end ones you see now in retirement communities. They were old and quite rundown. By contrast my great grandmother had a pristine double wide in Florida.

[DownriverDem]

67. It's not the trailers

(although some are a mess). Your home and neighbors don't seem to be a problem. I'm thinking of the people who are trumper repubs full of guns and hate. They actually can be anywhere.

[nclib]

68. I lived in a trailer when I first started working.

I looked at apartments first but then found that buying my own trailer and paying lot rent was cheaper. I also didn't have to worry about paying extra for my cats. I lived there for ten years and had no problems. Loved having my own place.

[Mr.Bill]

69. I live in a trailer.

It's a 1977 single-wide with an expanded living room. It's 815 square feet. Medical issues forced us into retiring earlier than we had planned, and we didn't make much money when we sold our last house. The rental market was tight because a huge fire had destroyed 1,200 homes in our county. So the trailer was really our only choice for what we had to spend.

We bought a fixer-upper for 15K and put another 15K into it, including painting the inside (wife did not like wood paneling) and an entire new kitchen and vinyl flooring throughout the living space and new carpet in the bedrooms. It's in a very nice Senior park.

So I am living in the downtown of a small town in wine country in northern California and I own the trailer and my space rent is $500 a month with a contract that says they can't raise it more than 3% per year. I get to enjoy all that is nice about California and live on a mid-five figure income. I am walking distance to parks, shopping and less than one mile from the shoreline of the largest natural lake in California. People's trailer jokes don't really bother me and I admit to telling some myself back when I never dreamed I would be living in one.

Our park is very clean and well managed and so far crime-free. We have very nice neighbors. Everyone here looks out for each other and if you need help with fixing something there's always someone to lend a hand. It's a better sense of community than I have ever experienced.

If you're moving into one, take a good look at how well the park is managed. Our manager had been here for ten years. We just got a new one and she lives in the park and is doing a great job.

[NurseJackie]

78. The room we use for a guest-room / den is paneled. It's not my favorite...

... but it's possible to make it work. I don't hate it enough to re-do it, or to paint it.

[dixiechiken1]

70. Sticks and stones...

Who cares what anyone else thinks?

[Raine]

72. No and no ... it's very wrong to do that! nt

[albacore]

73. Trailer... or manufactured home...

...is the closest thing to "affordable housing" in our area. And "affordable" is stretching that term a lot.
Here's what $225K gets you... and this is in a small town about 35 miles from the nearest Costco. No garage...one lot... no landscaping... and it's being sold "as-is from an estate" so you know that sucker will never pass an inspection. The interior shots show a lot of "deferred maintenance".
With "real" houses going for minimum $450K, everybody has to re-think their prejudices against trailers and manufactured homes. They are all that working people can afford.

[NurseJackie]

116. We've often commented that our home would be worth MILLIONS...

... in the right neighborhood, and with the right view.

[oldsoftie]

74. You can get away with a lot here; as long as you're insulting the "right" people

Just like facts; some are alerted on when they point out something unpopular. Others get posted frequently

[Jedi Guy]

154. Exactly right. +1. N/T

[Celerity]

167. +2

[birdographer]

80. Agree!

We live in a double-wide, our first trailer. It has a wood-burning fireplace and a gigantic master bath. From the inside, this could be a brick ranch style house. Large deck that we put in. There are some single-wides around our town that are extremely shabby, I will say that. I follow an actress in a daytime show on Instagram. One time she made a crack about trumpers and their trailers, or some such. I commented that hey, I live in a trailer and I am far from a trumper. She responded and said that in fact her boyfriend had a trailer in the Bahamas that they go to on vacations. I think trailer comments are sometimes more a euphemism or meant as a representation of something rather than literally being about a trailer. Could be wrong, though.

[OneGrassRoot]

81. BRAVA!!!

I have this convo on Nextdoor all the time and have issued similar admonishments here before. I grew up living in a mobile home and have heard all the hateful stereotypes. I’m looking at them now for the last leg of my journey. Thank you

[NurseJackie]

100. I still have my Nextdoor account, but I unsubscribed from almost everything.

Even though it's only semi-anonymous... it's just amazing to me how judgemental and racist people are. Ugh.

[multigraincracker]

83. I have a couple of acres and on two sides of me is

a mobil home community and the other 2 sides there are 2,000 acres of woods. They are mostly older ones and they have been great neighbors.

[Farmer-Rick]

84. I think that's a holdover of when

Stick built houses were much more affordable and manufactured homes were of poor quality and cheap.

Those days are gone. Stick built houses not only are frequently way overpriced but are cheaply made and need major repairs. And manufactured homes are built very well now a days with all the latest upgrades.

I have neighbors half of which are owners of double wide trailers. Some are idiots. Some are good people as are the owners of stick built houses.

It's an old fashioned stereotype that was a way of making fun of the poor. Americans just love making fun of the poor.

[Kali]

86. there are trailer trash that live in million dollar houses

it is not so much the trailer as the assholes themselves. yes trailer trash is a stereotype, but there are some people that live up to stereotypes.

I know plenty of good people who live in trailers and manufactured homes. They aren't trailer trash.

[LAS14]

87. Good for you!!!

I like being a Democrat. I like being a member of DU. But I don't like it when we engage in the same prejudicial behavior as the right wing. We should always speak up!!!

Good for you!!! I've thought this often when I see aspersions cast on people who live in trailer parks.

[beemerphill]

89. I have a deal for you.

If you don't give me a rough time about where I live, I won't give you a rough time about your choice of home. I have been in many trailers. Some have been dumps, and some have been very nice. Just like stick houses I have been in. Buy what you want and enjoy living there. I could never understand the "trailer park" jokes myself.

[Demovictory9]

90. nice house. there are mobile home parks all over southern California. but they are placed

extremely close to each other.. very close

[NurseJackie]

96. Yeah... that's a little too-close for comfort.

I enjoy our semi-wooded lot, and being far enough away from the neighbors that we have some sense of privacy (although, I do have some pot-smoking neighbors who like that "skunk-weed" stuff and occasionally we're downwind of their odors, yuk! It really does smell like skunks.) We also have enough room that we added a separate garage with a concrete floor. (It functions as work-room in the summer, but an actual garage in the winter.)

And NO homeowners' association headaches.

[AllaN01Bear]

91. no. homes is homes dang nabbit. i know of people who live in boats , yurts . dugout cabins .

domes . i even heard once where a lady bought a old airliner and made it into a living space . pox to those who look down on pps homes .

[ForgedCrank]

92. I don't make

fun of people because of how much money they have or don't have, where they are from, or how they speak.
In fact, I don't make fun of other people at all. I find it childish in almost every way.

[pwb]

94. I have not seen that here it is probably

someone I have on ignore, for shit like that.

[MicaelS]

95. Excellent post. n/t

[paulkienitz]

97. I'm a software engineer and I live in a singlewide.

That's bay area housing for you.

[Riverman100]

98. I lost my "real house" in bush's recession.

I ended up in a 14x70 mobile home that is 40 years old. In the 14 years I have lived here, the park has changed hands several times. These latest owners have repaved the roads, tore down most of the old trashed trailers, and in the last 2 years have brought in maybe almost 100 new units. They don't play. If you cause trouble or get caught doing something illegal, you are OUT of here. I wish I could have one of those units, since mine is so old and beat up. However even if I could afford one I would have to move away from a great lot, woods in the back, great neighbors, my Daughter and grandson living next door, and my ex-wife (friends now) on the other side of her. I love living here, and take great offense at the trailer trash references. AND my close neighbors are all liberals or progressives. So please stop the evil stereotypes. You can live in your mc-mansion and be snooty or lonely, but we are happy here

[dchill]

99. I have lived in two mobile homes - one in a park and one not.

One single-wide, one double. They were problematic, to say the least. Incredibly bad insulation, frozen water and oil lines in winter, broiler ovens in the summer. I still miss them, though!

All kinds of people live everywhere - including trailer parks. Perhaps it's the close, personal view you get in a trailer park that reveals our shortcomings more distinctly.

Friends, enemies and frenemies wherever I go.

[NurseJackie]

103. We're able to keep ours warm with the fuel-oil furnace... but the AC needs a little help.

So we installed a window-unit in the rear. It works fine and it's cheaper than replacing the existing compressor (which mostly works fine... it just struggles on the hottest days.)

[cilla4progress]

101. I lived in a rundown single-wide on my rural property

until it burned down in a forest fire. And I may again, if it's the only way I can afford to relocate to Canada before the mid-terms!

I know the term "trailer trash." Like so many other unenlightened pejoratives, it would be helpful if it went the way of the other obsolete insults. Part of our ugly past.

[NurseJackie]

106. Yikes! So sorry to hear about the fire!

That's one of my biggest fears. We have a sprinkler system... but that certainly wouldn't help in a forest fire.

Be well and safe.

[cilla4progress]

160. Thanks!

It was 1994 - a precursor to what we see now.

Actually, we do set up sprinklers on the deck during fire season!

🙂

[TomWilm]

102. Raises my son in one of these ...

... size was 7 x 27 feet. Bathroom at the neighbors.

[Ziggysmom]

104. I hate stereotyping people and their lifestyles. As long as a home & yard is acceptably clean

there is no need to nit pick. My dad always told me, even if we are poor, we can still be clean and decent to others. He was from a poor family with 14 kids and he never looked down on anyone.

Thanks for the inspiring post Nurse Jackie

[WarGamer]

105. I will NEVER mock those living in trailers...

No Democrat should EVER talk shit about the poor.

Anyways... folks in trailers are NOT always poor. Sometimes they just choose to spend more of their money on other things in life.

[whathehell]

110. No. and I hate the practice of calling people " trash"

" trailer", or otherwise.

[Ellipsis]

112. Trailers can be quite cozy.

[NurseJackie]

115. We think so too.

I had my doubts and misgivings at first. I grew up believing the stigma and myths about trailers and mobile homes. It was hard to let go, but after I made the leap... I can say that I have no regrets.

[OMGWTF]

118. We just bought our first manufactured home

It’s lovely. Only five years old, very modern inside 1400 sf three-bed, two-bath in a 55+ park with high standards and cheap rent. Neighbors are great. It’s across the street from a river and bike trail. We sold our condo in an expensive area, bought this place (yay- no more noisy neighbors above us), and put $200K in our investment account.

[NurseJackie]

124. Congratulations!

I know the headache and annoyance of having upstairs neighbors... and the hassle of BEING the upstairs neighbor and trying to be very conscientious and aware that people live below us.

We once lived in a poorly designed duplex where our garage was BELOW our neighbor's bedroom. Every time we used our garage door opener, they heard it. (Sorry folks... we have to go to work and we have to come home.)

[George II]

119. 1. I don't give a crap about where you live, I care more about what kind of person you are. And 2...

Some of the scummiest and most selfish, nasty people live in those "McMansions" - I've run across a few in my lifetime.

A takeoff of what MLK Jr. said, "little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by style of their home but by the content of their character.”

[SmittyWerben]

120. I have lived in a double wide for the last 30 years, paid under 30k new for it in 1991

It was not my first choice, at all, but I have raised 4 kids in this house, have remodeled it fairly extensively and am fine with all that. The interesting part of this is that I will be able to sell this house on the land (4 small lots of 150' by 50') for around 150K because the price of real estate in this part of Texas has exploded. I am cool with 500% appreciation of a home that originally had a vehicle title.

[NurseJackie]

125. That's awesome!

You rock!

[Woodwizard]

122. My first housing buy was a trailer on an acre of land

The worst part it was insulated like crap not good in Catskills NY but it was mine and I had property at 24.

[NurseJackie]

126. Pride in ownership does help to make up for some of the shortcomings.

Fortunately, the Maryland winters are tolerable and we're able to stay warm with our fuel-oil furnace. But we ended up adding a window-unit AC at the rear to help keep up with the summer heat.

[Woodwizard]

162. I lived there for 18 years

I replaced the crank out windows redid the roof added to the walls and insulation, it was mine and I paid it off in 8 years.

[pnwmom]

123. We should definitely change the expression. From now on, it's not "trailer trash."

It's "Tower trash."

[NJCher]

177. LOL

I can't (gasp) possibly understand who you mean by that!

[oldsoftie]

186. Maybe "Trump trash"?

[Sympthsical]

127. I never forget I was poor.

There are a lot of framings we use for various social issues that are heavily rooted in classism. Hell, look at run of the mill racism. It's crazy rooted in classist beliefs. Being poor is seen as a moral failing in our country. Be it a lack of motivation or intelligence. We see it here. People struggling to make ends meet, with no reliable emergency funds just want "Free Stuff!" instead of, you know, basic social support. $7.50 federal minimum wage. Jesus.

I grew up poor. My father was injured and jobless. Mom struggled and went back to school. So we did the welfare and food stamps thing. Christmas was whatever Toys for Tots was (woo, coloring activity books 4 lyf!). My childhood was forever hearing we were about to lose the house. But he healed, she graduated. They were in a hole, however, and clawed on up to working class then to decently middle.

My brother and I have done better. He's a truck driver and makes bank. I'm an upperish middle class type in management.

But neither of us forget about poverty or hunger. We never make fun or look down or make judgements. Poverty drains the life out of people. Their souls become ashen with the effort and work and struggle, the idea that no matter how hard you try, tomorrow probably won't be better. It's economic despair.

Our system enables it and perpetuates it. And when people ask for better or even for basic relief, even our side goes all, "Freeeeeee stufffff. Bootstraps, assholes!" Usually followed by some charming story of how they worked through college in the 60s. You can feel the empathy.

Anyway. I proudly grew up poor white trash. It was interesting. Inside, I'm still that. I don't spend money often. Jeans and t-shirts. I think Disneyland for a weekend is a major vacation. The house is the first and only time I have thrown down money for something significant. But I still act poor. It never leaves you, really.

So I take a dim view of mocking those who are. Ignorance is classless. Cable news and social media should've proven that.

Side note: I'm going to inherit a trailer that looks much like that. Was recently informed my 85 year-old mother apparently updated her will, and apparently I'll need to figure out what to do with that 2,000 miles away. She uses it as a weekend place, so no idea.

[raging moderate]

130. Yes, I never forget my family was poor.

My family was so poor that we did not really get enough to eat much of the time, and we lived in slums some of the time. My mother had actually gone hungry sometimes during the Depression. After I grew up, my husband and I struggled to buy our first trailer, and we lived in a trailer for several decades, while raising our children. That was how we managed to keep our family fed and clothed and sheltered. Of course, I do not look down on people who live in trailers, or on homeless people either. I carry bags of food and little toiletries for those people holding the signs, and I stick in a couple of bucks in a little plastic bag taped to the little bag of bread. Oh, and very important: put in some of those hand warmers in the winter time!

[Sympthsical]

132. One of the big ones I remember is eyeglasses

They were so expensive, my mom was always using old lenses as her vision changed with age.

I wear contacts almost exclusively, but when I need new glasses, I donate my old ones. It's one of those things people don't think about when giving for the poor and homeless. There are a lot of people wandering around the world who don't have the simple ability to see clearly.

[NurseJackie]

131. I can relate to this.

But I still act poor. It never leaves you, really.

I can relate to this.

The husband and I have traveled abroad many times... but it's our thrift and planning and saving and budgeting that allows us to selectively "splurge". We've worked hard for what we've got, and we often "do without" (or do with less) in order to meet our savings/travel goals.

And after we quit smoking, it certainly makes it easier to save save save!!! It's been nearly six years for the two of us and that's a whopping $6.50 per pack x 2 people x 365 days a year x 6 years = $28,470.00

I don't feel guilty about spending that on travel. Instead... I feel FOOLISH for having burned that much during all the years that I was still smoking.

[Sympthsical]

137. You guys sound like my partner and me

We both make really good money. His family immigrated poor from the Philippines when he was a kid and started from scratch here.

We bought a nice house, but we debated it for ages. We will not turn on AC unless it's over 100. We have never turned on the furnace once this winter, even when it's in the low 30s. There are never any lights on unless we're in the room. Grocery shopping is endless couponing through apps. We both drive older cars (he wins with a 2004 Rav4). We shop for clothes at TJ Maxx and Ross.

It's like some kind of economic PTSD that never went away.

Congrats on the not smoking! That's very tough to do. I quit my way into vaping, so, lol.

I went abroad to Australia. It was a major two week once-in-a-lifetime trip. I set aside money for it each week, even though I could've paid for it easily just out of pocket.

We seriously refuse to spend money on anything. Either retirement is going to be totally awesome, or the nieces and nephews are going to be incredibly happy at the eventual will readings, lol.

[raging moderate]

139. Yes, that's why I can afford to feed homeless people, etc.

I wrote a Facebook post to poor kids: Don't be afraid to try to get some education or training; you have unusual money management skills! Growing up in a poor family trains a person in finding the cheapest possible ways to feed, clothe, and shelter yourself, and how to see through efforts to get your money out of you, and how to stretch your money and prolong the life of anything you have. Of course,
there was so much propaganda about smoking when my mother was young, she did become and remain addicted, and that did not help. I saw her physical suffering when she could not buy cigarettes, so I avoided that trap. And yes, glasses are a huge problem, too.

[NJCher]

179. maybe

But I still act poor. It never leaves you, really.

maybe you're just not materialistic.

Insightful post.

[Gore1FL]

128. Not for that reason.

But I am sure there are people who live in trailers and there are people who live in mansions who I look down on.

[ampm]

133. Nevada checking in

I lived in a park model 1954 trailer, and it was what I could afford. Now I live in a modular mobile home and it is bigger than some of my friend's houses because they utilize every bit of space. I love my home. I also own the land.

[NurseJackie]

134. Yes! Owning the land is a BIG plus.

[madamesilverspurs]

136. Kind of how I feel about blonde jokes, y'know?

As for trailers, I've lived in a few, my parents owned a lovely one, a number of friends currently own mobiles or modulars. In my admittedly limited experience/observation, instances of "trash" behavior usually track to the park owners' sometimes abusive treatment of tenants. The homes aren't cheap by any measure, and the designs appeal to just about every taste. I'd own one if I could.


.

[NurseJackie]

138. We know they have a limited lifespan. It's not like the old-days when...

... a home was passed-down through generations. We'll be long gone before this one has outlived its usefulness... but that's okay. We just need to last ONE DAY LONGER than we do.

[GPV]

140. 14 years in a single wide.

[NurseJackie]

143. If someone had told 25 year old me that I'd be living in a mobile home...

... I'd have laughed and laughed at how absurd that was. At that age, I had the same prejudices that many here show on a regular basis.

We've lived here since 2000 (it was manufactured in 1997) and we were the 2nd owners... lots of improvements too (screened-in porch, gas fireplace, separate steel-frame garage) and WE LOVE IT!!

I never want to leave! It's perfect!

I hope you're happy too.

[TrogL]

141. My boyfriend lives in a trailer. It's nicer than my house.

[NurseJackie]

142. That puts things into perspective.

Thanks!

[colorado_ufo]

144. Simply, that is a lovely home,

and I would have no problem at all living in it.

In a time where people routinely live above their means and overspend, you are to be hugely commended.

[rickford66]

145. Only a trashy trailer with the following

Brand new monster truck out front
trailer w/speed boat
Snow mobile
More than one ATV
More than one motorcycle
F**K Biden sign

Down the road from me

[Xolodno]

146. I'm probably going to move into a trailer in about five years.

Due to being virtual now, we plan to relocate to an area we want to eventually retire in. I could buy a very nice house, but that would bust the budget for travel...and I don't mean just here in the USA, but abroad, due to my time at the company, I was able to take almost a month off to visit France and Italy. Was planning on Russia next, but COVID hit.

There are some cheaper homes in the area, but they need work. Been there, done that, fuck that. I noticed some 55+ parks and the mobile homes are kept up nice, so thinking about going that route. Economical and allows us to extensively travel. We've have a number of friends, one always bites off more than he can chew, think I seen him take a vacation out of state once in the past five years and only for a week, but most of the time its a stay-cation (he even wrote an article on Linkedin once praising it, guess to massage the fact he couldn't afford to go anywhere). Another friend, I haven't seen take a vacation in a number of years, both him and his wife work and he is working a second job.

I just can't see myself living like that for "status" and waste your life dropping money into a property that once, if you are lucky, pay off, health catches up to you and many life experiences become off limits.

I currently rent a house that is it a bit too big for us and have my name on two others, but don't have to worry about major maintenance issues. In the owned house when we lived in it, plan for a weekend getaway...boom water heater goes out. So much for the getaway. I now have family living in it (the other house is family owned) and we made an arrangement where they pay the mortgage, upkeep, etc. and in turn, they get a share of the house. I eventually want to be bought out.

I just don't see the appeal of having an expensive house if it hinders you from doing the things you want to do in life.

[SWBTATTReg]

226. Make sure that the rural area you eventually move to does have multiple access points

to the Internet, via landline, cable, satellite, etc. My folks had to wait for some time before Sprint finally upgraded their lines so they my folks could finally get internet. Good luck to you too in living where you want (and also work!), such a nice choice now-a-day, eh?

[11 Bravo]

147. No, and HELL no!

[BadGimp]

148. That's a manufactured house -

I used to own one of those. My unit sat right on the Columbia River in Portland. It was a multi-million dollar view that costs me $895 a month in rent.

I was born and raised plain ole white trailer trash so I love Trailers

One of the hardest things to "do" is to not judge people etc. Try it for a day.

[Skittles]

150. my first home was a trailer

nope, I do not look down on people who live in trailers

[planetc]

153. I live in a single wide, quite happily.

What people who live in houses they own never talk much about is how much they cost to maintain and improve. In my little park, I have a postage stamp sized lawn, a minimal area to shovel after snows, and somebody else plows the streets, just like at my old house, which we sold to move here. I don't know all my neighbors, but the ones I know are lovely people, and the salt of the earth. I own this house free and clear, and have a lot less yard work to do. While I live in a hardhearted capitalistic society, I will never even think of apologizing for my little house. I have been steadily improving it, out of old habit, and it's both comfortable and pretty. A friend of mine used to say that owning a car was a controlled loss. Renting an apartment or a house will get you a good credit rating, but no equity. So ownership is the way to go, but who can afford current house prices? Let's just start spreading the word that trailer park residents are smart people.

[dawn5651]

155. well here where i live we call them homes.....i will never understand why there is such a stigma

to *trailers*

[Permanut]

156. My partner's grandson was abandoned by his Mother..

Who never has lived in a trailer. After grandson had lived several years with relatives, the father, who had been out of touch, found out what happened. Father had remarried, long story, and did and does live in a trailer. He took all the necessary steps to reclaim his son, who is now seventeen and a fine young man. Father disagrees with me politically, but we get along fine, and I consider him a stand up guy, and I don't care who he voted for or where he lives.

Just my two cents.

[ecstatic]

157. I was curious about RV life last year

I envisioned getting an RV and traveling around the West Coast. Ultimately I realized I probably don't have what it takes to make that lifestyle work, and it probably wouldn't be safe for me either.

[Solly Mack]

158. K&R

[ancianita]

159. Nope. I'm in one. Used to be our winter home, now it's our permanent one.

It's on the Florida "Sun Coast." Part of a small, well landscaped, pristine community with club house, pool, workshop rooms, game nights, library, monthly community breakfasts, potlucks, etc., etc. I can be as socially busy or solitary as I want.

My two spacious back porches sit twenty feet from the second biggest lake in the county. Most days I've got big sky, fluffy clouds, flocks of ibises, pelicans, cormorants, Canadian geese, moorhens, mallards, seagulls, resident families of 20 storks, 20 mallards, snowy egrets, our heron, Big Blue; our resident roseated spoonbill, Rosie, of course; and an occasional eagle and osprey who swoop down to snatch a fish. With so much bird drama, I can't even focus on my reading.

Tough life.

I just wish it weren't in Ron DeSenseless's "freedom" Florida.

Of course where people live doesn't define them. Monsters live in mansions.

Still, I gotta say that from 20 years of living in the South, and dialect that goes with it (part of my undergrad English major), "Trailer Trash" was a post WWII stereotype to describe the worst of low class white racists here. Trailer trash are adjacent to white trash and Walmart people stereotypes, imo.
So me, I don't take the phrase personally because I live in a "modular home".

We have travel trailer parks nearby where people live in travel trailers that they or their trucks drive.

In this "modular home" community, I don't have a problem seeing low class racist Trumpers here as trailer trash who have no excuse. I consider them adjacent to Nazis. I don't mind stopping use of the phrase, per your assertion, but I'ma use it when it applies.

I appreciate you smashing the stereotype, though.

[Retired Engineer Bob]

161. I sure hope I have never used the term here

Although I have to admit the phrase has passed through my mind. As long is it was those “bla bla blas” and not our “blah bla blas” it seemed ok. It was not.

MM posted something a while back regarding mocking the unvaccinated COVID dead. I’ll admit I was guilty. After some thought I decided it couldn’t be good for my Karma. Considered going back and deleted those posts, but it seemed too Winston Smith.

NurseJackie, I’m hoping you have a safe place to hang out if the weather gets severe, or you mentioned fire. I lived on the second floor of an apartment complex. A tornado passed about 10 miles away, video of a very similar size and construction apartment cleaned down to the slab had me concerned. Never did come up with a decent plan. Clime in the bathtub with my husband and two dogs, cover with our mattress, and get ready for a ride. Do the shoes need to be red for our return trip?

[58Sunliner]

163. No it is not okay and says volumes about the person who does so.

A home is what you make it. People who judge are sad people and live infinitely smaller lives.

[electric_blue68]

164. Probably some when I was in my teens, 20's, but then I learned better....

BTW that's a trailer!??!! (The photo you posted) wow!

Anyway it's what the person is like vs what they're living in.

[PatrickforB]

166. Not a bad built-on porch.

I can see how a couple or a single person could be quite content in something like this.

[DashOneBravo]

168. K&R

[DenaliDemocrat]

169. Fuck the snobs

My grandparents lived in a trailer and why not? We are looking to downgrade and cash out equity in a few years. We will probably buy a manufactured home b

[Ferrets are Cool]

171. Only the ones who have three cars on blocks in the "front" yard.

I've seen some great trailers. Usually, people live in trailers for two reason...either that's all they can afford or they love living in one. Either way, it's no skin off my back.

[Raine]

172. After my parents married their first home was a trailer

I don't know if it was even a single wide it was so tiny. It was so small they had to have special furniture for it so everything would fit just right. They loved that little trailer, called it the cabin but it was a trailer even had a hitch on it. It was eventually parked and left in my grandparents backyard when my parents started a family and needed a bigger place. My grandparents used it as a guest house. It might still be in that yard for all I know.

[Tumbulu]

173. A single wide is much bigger than a travel trailer

and so, for me, my well insulated singlewide seems palatial. It took me 5 years to get the permits required and the funds and financing to just put the singlewide in.

It is the norm in these modern times for most people who start out farming in the western US. Any moneys generated go towards irrigation equipment, barns, and all the other necessary infrastructure. Second generation generally has the luxury of putting up a site built house.

A farmer visiting from Canada remarked that it was exactly the same there.

I wish I had a big wrap around covered porch…..maybe in a few years time.

My single wide is highly energy efficient and well made and I am so grateful for it.

Many of my friends live in senior parks now, but in far more expensive areas nearer to the coast. They have the best deals too.

I’ve never understood anyone making fun of people for being environmentally conscious and living within reasonable means.

[Grey5]

174. I just loved my trailer.

My sister and Bil that lived in a rented cabin with no plumbing liked to refer to me as "trailer trash|." My trailer was paid off as was my car, they owned nothing but an old beater car but felt they could look down on us. I really believe that trailer was better built than the house I live now. My advice is sit back and smile, you are living the good life. Those people are just angry that they are not as well-off as you.

[applegrove]

176. I was surprised to find it such a common slur in the US. Only people

I know of, or know, who live in trailers were cool people.

[FreepFryer]

180. Home sweet home. Cheers! (Nt)

[Silent3]

184. I make good money, but I can easily see going that route in order to retire early

We don't need a really big space, so selling our house and downsizing could pad out our retirement savings nicely, as well as reducing property taxes and upkeep expenses.

[NurseJackie]

230. Yep... this is our retirement home (although we bought it many years before retirement.)

I had reservations and was hesitant... but I also knew that we wanted to do some traveling and we wanted to have enough for actual retirement. It does "force" you to downsize and to be careful about collecting (or keeping) too much junk and clutter.

[Shrek]

187. "Go back to your double-wide and fry something"

Candice Bergen as the Democratic mayor of NYC:

[Demsrule86]

188. Have you ever gone to Youtube and seen what people do to their trailers...amazing and

yours is lovely by the way.

[NurseJackie]

193. Thanks...

.... that photo is just similar not my actual home. (I've heard that it's possible to use "reverse image search" and google street level to find someone's address... so I decided to not take chances.)

YES! We've seen some of those same videos with makeovers and upgrades. The "log cabin" exterior facade is popular now.

Those videos (and other websites) are great for learning techniques and getting MOTIVATED to work on the upgrades and re-designs/facelifts.



Happy New Year, Demsrule86!

[obamanut2012]

190. Just say it's a tiny house

And, they'll make a series about you.

[NurseJackie]

194. I know, right? Whenever I feel "cramped" in our cozy abode...

... I just watch an episode of Tiny House Nation and I realize how SPACIOUS our home really is.

[dwayneb]

191. Of course it's not OK to ridicule people that live in trailers

Lived in one for a short while when my family was just getting started. But too small to be practical.

The "retirement trailer parks" in Florida are great, relatively inexpensive. MIL was in one down there, it was fantastic - I was envious.

Biggest downside are that they are not especially safe from tornadoes, if you live in the Midwest. Look at the recent damage in Kentucky, trailer homes were absolutely obliterated and thrown to the winds.

People that don't take care of their properties are the ones that start this stigma about "trailer trash" which of course is a terrible thing to call anyone. Inconsiderate lazy people are everywhere. We have some perfectly sound stick built homes in our neighborhood littered with junk cars and falling into disrepair.

[lambchopp59]

192. I work traveling ancillary medical.

Many of us live in our trailers, there are some RV parks here and there to avoid, it certainly is ignorant to equivocate all RV living with a meth-head mess. The sort are accelerating their own self destruction.
To that end, there are some who bought into exclusive mobile communities, long dissolved, and ended up aged and stuck in a horrible situation. One perusal of Bullhead City Arizona, of what were exclusive communities with golf courses, boat launch ramps and swimming pools half a century ago... what now are... "shudders".
All part of the last "acceptable" prejudice: economic strata, and precisely how did that get so out of check?
Hmm. Feigned fealty to "Lifestyles of the rich and famous"?
Get over it. We just had 4 years of proof that many of the filthy rich are creepy MF'ers-- one in particular that still produces nausea.
The sooner the ilk still praising the money hoarders and flashers the better off we'll all be.

[lark]

197. I'd be over the moon if my homeless but employed son could afford to live in one.

Instead he will be staying with us for a few months while he saves money. He does have a job, but at $12/hr. it's marginal, and don't know how he can live on his own now that the trailer where he was staying is condemened as not up to code. It's all he could afford on his own.

[pfitz59]

199. Never OK to dis trailer life

Its a home.

[AverageOldGuy]

200. Speaking of which . . .

I was born (1944) in rural Mississippi where we chopped cotton, picked cotton, and worshipped cotton . . . until my father finally earned a college degree thanks to his WW II service and the GI Bill. We then moved to East Tennessee where I was educated about snake handling religion, "hollers," "pop-skull likker," and "don't get above your raising."

As such, I hold a PhD in WhiteTrashOlogy. I know white trash when I see or hear it and I'm telling you, most of the white trash I know live in very nice homes -- some even have a building named for them in Manhattan while they live on a golf course in Florida.

[NurseJackie]

201. Those are some outstanding observations.

[Escurumbele]

204. You really do not live in a trailer, you live in a mobile home, which is really not mobile it is

just constructed in the same way as a trailer. You live in a nice subdivision that happens to have mobile homes, maybe it is a 55+ year kind of place?

But NO, it is not right to make fun of anyone, not all of us start life in the same way, not all of us have the advantages of a good education, good family home with good values, not all of us have the luck of going to College, etc. Given that, you must be treated as a human being, as a person of value, people are not defined by where they live.

Having said all that, it just happens that there are areas where true trailer subdivisions exist, and the environment is usually of low education, high in drugs and alcohol, and some violence. That doesn't mean there are not good people living there, because there are.

The rule must be that no one should make fun of anyone else, respect is important. The world will be a better place when we respect each other.

[SKKY]

205. I grew up in one. So, no. I get the stereotype, but for a party...

...that purports to speak for the working class, and which endeavors provide opportunities for folks to have a better life, it's not a good look.

[LuckyCharms]

207. Nothing wrong with trailers, in fact, they can be a good option.

I've been inside good trailers, and I've been inside crappy trailers.

I've been inside good houses, and I've been inside terrible houses.

I've been inside new million dollar homes that are actually pieces of shit. Poor building practices, shoddy materials, bad wiring, etc.

I dated a woman once who lived in an absolutely beautiful trailer, kind of similar to the one in your photo.

I bet your home is gorgeous.

I've never understood people who look down on people who live in trailers.

I don't negatively judge how anyone lives, where they live, or what they live in. Except for when stupid people buy overpriced homes that are actually pieces of shit, and they are not smart enough (or their ego is too big) to realize that they got taken to the cleaners on that purchase.

I do however, have the utmost respect for people who keep their properties in the best condition that they are able to personally achieve.

[LuckyCharms]

209. Oh, I have one more comment that is kind of related.

It has to do with people who look down on "pre-fab" homes.

I have stick-built a house before. When you do this, it is usually not under ideal conditions. Rain, cold and heat don't lend themselves to quality building practices. Of course, this can be overcome, but sometimes builders just don't give a shit and get shoddy in their workmanship when faced with harsh weather.

Pre-fab homes are built in climate controlled conditions using proven production methods and quality materials. In may ways, they can be preferable to stick built homes.

I cringe when people turn their noses up at both trailers, and pre-fab homes. When they do that, I immediately know they have no idea what they are talking about.

Another related issue: I do most of my remodeling myself, but I had both of my bathrooms done by a contractor. As he was nearing the end of the job on my downstairs bath, we were chatting as he went to pull the old vanity light off the wall and replace it with a new one. He said to me "I bet you when I pull this light off, there is no electrical box behind it. They'll just be a Romex cable coming through a hole in the wall". I said "Ok, I bet your wrong". He pulled the light off, and there was a proper electrical box there. He said "how did you know there was a box behind it"?

I said "Because I fucking put it there myself, years ago".

He then told me that he almost NEVER sees that. He told me that he does work on expensive homes that are literally death traps. He ranted about how builders today use the cheapest materials possible, hire the worst crews, do the shittiest jobs, and charge the most they can for their overpriced pieces of shit. There are, of course, outstanding builders out there, but you have to look for them.

[inanna]

210. Absolutely not.

I have looked into the option myself recently considering I am not that far away from retirement.

My ex and I lived in a trailer park for about a year very early on in our relationship. It was actually a far better place to live than some of the apartments we rented after we had the baby.

At this point, I actually prefer alternative forms of housing to that of conventional types. I think mobile homes lie somewhere in between - and are a terrific option for many people.

The housing market has become absolutely unaffordable to so many.

I only wish I had a cute, cozy little house like the one shown in the picture in the OP. I would be very, very content with something like that.

[jmowreader]

211. I grew up in a trailer

We were a BPR Family. BPR means Bureau of Public Roads. This federal agency was responsible for managing road construction all over the United States; if you drive on a road that was constructed before 1970, you have the BPR to thank. It was a job requirement that your family owned a trailer and a two-ton truck because we went into some fairly sparse areas to do our work. For instance, all the roads in Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks are BPR projects. (When my dad got Alzheimer’s toward the end of his life, he kept trying to bring the garbage can inside because he knew he needed to do that so the bears wouldn’t get in it. We’re out of bears, but he thought he had to still do it.) After the BPR broke up, we kept the trailer and bought land to put it on. If you go to Google Maps, type in “419 14th Street, St. Maries ID” and go to Street View, you can see it. The first site-built structure I ever lived in was my basic training barracks at Fort Dix. (If you want to see that, it’s at the corner of Birch and Hemlock Streets on Dix…and now, it’s part of the low-security federal prison they turned the basic training areas into.)

Having said that, there is definitely a subset of the American population that qualifies as “trailer park trash.” Our esteemed twice-impeached placeholder “president” and his equally worthless family are trailer park trash and they’ve probably never even been in a manufactured home in their lives. It’s all about how you act, not where you live.

[The Mouth]

217. Nothing wrong with prefabricated housing

It's the only affordable option in so many cases.

My in-laws were a doctor and a nurse and they lived in a very nice manufactured house.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

218. When I'm not living in my truck,

I live in my 5th wheel trailer with 3 pop outs and I love it.
After my wife passed away, I didn't see the need for my house anymore, so I sold it and bought my 5th wheel and a plot of land to put it on.

I don't look down on people living in trailers, that would be stupid.

[Harker]

219. Good post... thank you.

There's nothing quite like sitting happily and comfortably in a mobile home, reading snide comments on DU about "trailer trash", unless it's maybe seeing entire state's populations being ridiculed.

We don't all live in ritzy homes in wonderful places, which gives me reason to wonder how anyone who would denigrate another's home would think about homeless people.

Let's do our best to respect each other in all ways.

[NurseJackie]

235. I appreciate that...

[ShazamIam]

220. It isn't about trailers it is our tradition of abusing and blaming the poor for their poverty while

as a nation have been voting to protect and enhance the already wealthiest. The poor must be made responsible for their own status.

[nolabear]

222. I grew up in a trailer. In part on a military base.

We were non-com military poor and in rather dire straits as my mother was desperately ill. The base trailer park was neat and orderly but in those days trailers were small and had all kinds of problems. It was difficult but it wasn’t trash. We were just people who did what we could. As is everyone.

[NurseJackie]

227. Exactly... thanks! Great post.

We were just people who did what we could. As is everyone.

Exactly... thanks! Great post.

[Hekate]

224. No I don't and no it isn't. It's called "affordable housing"

[Dukkha]

225. The ones who do tend to live in excessive tacky McMansions well beyond their means

and end up foreclosing on their mortgage

I have relatives like that who call anything working class as "ghetto"

[Wingus Dingus]

229. There are some nice parks, and then there's the negative stereotype of trailer park.

Last edited Thu Jan 13, 2022, 05:54 PM - Edit history (1)

I would consider a home in a nice area or resort-type setting (had my eye on a 55+ park in Prescott, AZ for a while, but I'm not 55 yet and we're probably headed to another state anyway for retirement)--I would also definitely consider a manufactured home on owned land, especially if it can be placed on a permanent foundation. A few miles from where I currently live, we have the "other" type of trailer park. The old 70's single-wides lined up cheek-to-jowl with broken windows, bedsheets for curtains and old tires holding down the roof material. It's blight, but at least they're not homeless. My big issue with parks where you lease the lot is that they can price you out over time, it's happening in a lot of places and that's what would prevent me from pulling the trigger on a manufactured home.

[ck4829]

231. Kick

[NurseJackie]

234. ...

[csziggy]

233. No - I lived in a mobile home while in college

And in a double wide on my farm for thirty five years. Both were ideal for my life at the times I lived in them. The used, beat up trailer I bought for $2000 and put in a mobile home park for $35 a month saved a ton on rent. And once I graduated, I sold it for $1800 so got most of my money back.

The double wide was great - six weeks from when I ordered the new trailer and it was set up on my farm ready to move into. I only got rid of it when I got tired of putting money into it and was able to build a house. That one is still someone's home. I gave it to a family whose house had burned down. The house was only worth what it would cost to move it, so selling it was not possible. Instead of me paying for it to go to a landfill, the new owners paid for it to be moved at no cost to me. Fifteen years later, they are still living in it. We drive by every so often to see how the old house is doing.

[BobTheSubgenius]

238. My ex and her husband could have written your post.

They live in a single, homed in a park that I think is great, because, out of 50 units, there will be only a couple that are oriented the same way to the compass, and at an identical elevation.

It's built into a sidehill (small mountain, even) near a nice little lake, and has tons of old growth trees.

Their single is worth nearly $300,000 Cdn. They are NOT Okies, or pikeys or anything of the sort. It's an over-50 park, and the majority of people are quite pleasant and cooperative.

Please carry on living and enjoying your lives. Ignore the ignorant.

[Owl]

239. I loved the years I owned a mobile home.

Simpler times that I remember fondly. And made lasting friendships with neighbors.

[Budi]

240. NurseJackie, I love your home wherever you are.

This pic is quite nice & I'd could live quite happily there.