Terminology Tuesday - Hitch

(Note: I think it's important to know the terminology and words used when learning any new business including mobile home investing. I came up with 'Terminology Tuesday' as a day to go over the terminology used in the mobile home business. It's important to know the terminology when talking to people in the business so you're all on the same page).

As defined in Wikipedia:

"A tow hitch (or tow bar) is a device attached to the chassis of a vehicle for towing or a towbar to an aircraft nose gear, or paired main gears. It can take the form of a tow-ball to allow swiveling and articulation of a trailer, or a tow pin and jaw with a trailer loop - often used for large or agricultural vehicles where slack in the pivot pin allows the same movements. Another category is the towing pintle used on military vehicles worldwide.

In the U.S. the vehicle attachment is known as the trailer hitch. Trailer hitches come in two main configurations: receiver type and fixed-drawbar type. Receiver-type hitches consist of a portion that mounts to the frame of the vehicle that has a rearward facing opening that accepts removable ball mounts, hitch bike racks, cargo carriers, or other hitch mounted accessories. Fixed-drawbar hitches are typically built as one piece, have an integrated hole for the trailer ball, and are generally not compatible with aftermarket hitch accessories."

Definition Link

Basically, the hitch (aka "tongue") is attached to the front of the mobile home and used to transport the home from one place to another.

If you plan on buying mobile homes and moving them, it's best to see if the hitch is in place. Otherwise, you will need to get a hitch welded on by a professional welder. Without a hitch, a mobile home cannot be moved.

Also, the hitch will typically add 4 feet to the length of the mobile home. For example, if you have a 16x70 foot trailer the length of the trailer itself will be 16x66 (70 feet minus 4 feet for the hitch = 66 feet). It's important to know this kind of information especially when moving the home to a new location to make sure you have enough space for the new lot/area.

Here's a video on a mobile home being moved - you can see the truck is pulling the home which is connected to the hitch. Check it out!



Video Link