Why do trailer parks have such a bad rap?

[Catlover614]

I don't understand why mobile home parks are known for "white trash". They seem nice to me. I have been considering living in one, but fear for my safety. Do you guys feel safe where you live or do you feel like you need to sleep with one eye open? I've never lived alone before, but it's likely to happen in the future. How do you feel safe in your own home? This is a fear I'm going to have to overcome, but need suggestions.

 

[garnetflower13]

I guess it depends upon where the park is located. I have never lived in a mobile home park, but have heard of some places which seem to attract the kind of neighbors one wouldn't want. If the park is in a fairly nice location, perhaps that might make a difference. Personally, I wouldn't want to live in one, but that is just my opinion.

 

[Rayner]

I've lived in a trailer park for over two years. I've been called "white trash". Some of the people that live in trailer parks aren't exactly model citizens. I feel relatively safe where I live, But i Do keep my guard up.

Why are you going to live alone in the future?

I don't understand why mobile home parks are known for "white trash". They seem nice to me. I have been considering living in one, but fear for my safety. Do you guys feel safe where you live or do you feel like you need to sleep with one eye open? I've never lived alone before, but it's likely to happen in the future. How do you feel safe in your own home? This is a fear I'm going to have to overcome, but need suggestions.

 

[Mia]

Don’t know if there are crime statistics related to people who live in trailer parks, suspect that there is no more danger in living in one than in any urban city center.

It seems as if the media likes to scapegoat people who are working class as somehow more criminal than others. Seeing as the media tends to be almost universally middle class in its agenda and outlook it’s obvious to me that they require people to feel better than, although many of the reasons are related to capitalism. Where I grew up everyone was working class, there was a trailer park too, and people were proud to have their own homes.

If you aren’t like them, then your priorities will be different; you won’t spend all your hard-earned cash on ‘stuff’ to keep the economy afloat. So that other people who don’t do the actual work can make a profit and keep their hands clean. There’s still a hierarchy pretty much everywhere with an ‘us’ and ‘them’ doctrine that is about manipulation and control. When you leave that behind, and think for yourself, that’s when you actually begin to live the kind of life you need.

 

[Crossbreed]

Statistically, certain kinds of criminal activity follow the desperation of poverty. (I've been poor long enough to realize that it isn't all of us, but it is enough to ruin some living arrangements.) Not only are trailer parks vulnerable to this influence, so are enclosed or courtyard-style apartments.

We always opted for less house in better neighborhoods rather than more house in bad neighborhoods. Front doors that open to a public street are a plus, too, because of the increased likelihood of witnesses, if necessary.

 

[Judge]

Being worried about personal safety is a factor, I suppose mostly relevant to the quality of the park, tenants and location in no particular order. However these days I'd think the one person you have to be concerned the most about in living in a trailer park is your landlord. The predatory kind who applies a ruthless business model squeezing their tenants with continuous rent/utility hikes and miscellaneous fees.

Apparently this industry attracts any number of "get rich quick" people who have no problems exploiting poorer tenants who don't have lots of options in where they live. Renter beware.


https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-trailer-park-residents-fight-mobile-home-university-moguls/
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/16/magazine/the-cold-hard-lessons-of-mobile-home-u.html

 

[midlife aspie]

I lived in one until I was eleven. How it is run and the tenancy standards are important. In my case, it helped that the neighborhood was owned and operated by my grandfather. I never saw a run-down home or unkempt lot the entire time he owned it. Hurricane finally put an end to the place just before he sold the property. I will also add that the coastal Virginia town I am from was, and is more so now, a community of financially well-off people. We native types have had to move elsewhere. Have to blame my own kin for selling off their land to developers.

 

[Warmheart]

A new beginning is a new beginning! If you have a life transition and begin anew in a trailer that will be your new home, you can take steps to stay safe. Once you have your first cup of tea there, it will begin to feel more like home. The freedom and independence to be healthy, strong, amd happy will all feel good. From this new start, you can envision a life of healing, growth, and using your strengths to fell your sense of purpose. I am wishing you the best, wherever you live.

 

[Rayner]

Exactly. No place you live is perfect but we do just have to make the best of it.

A new beginning us a new beginning! If you have a life transition and begin anew in a trailer that will be your new home, you can take steps to stay safe. Once you have your first cup of tea there, it will begin to feel more like home. The freedom and independence to be healthy, strong, amd happy will all feel good. From this new start, you can envision a life of healing, growth, and using your strengths to fell your sense of purpose. I am wishing you the best, wherever you live.

 

[Catlover614]

A new beginning us a new beginning! If you have a life transition and begin anew in a trailer that will be your new home, you can take steps to stay safe. Once you have your first cup of tea there, it will begin to feel more like home. The freedom and independence to be healthy, strong, amd happy will all feel good. From this new start, you can envision a life of healing, growth, and using your strengths to fell your sense of purpose. I am wishing you the best, wherever you live.

Thank you so much Warmheart

 

[Judge]

I agree with garnetflower13, it depends on where they're located. In Florida they have some very nice retirement (55 or older) communities that are nothing but mobile homes.

Good point. Despite any stigma trailer parks may have in general, there are some rather nice ones. Both the trailers and the grounds. I know of a few in Southern California where my grandparents, and an uncle and aunt lived many years ago.

 

[wanderer03]

I don't understand why mobile home parks are known for "white trash". They seem nice to me. I have been considering living in one, but fear for my safety. Do you guys feel safe where you live or do you feel like you need to sleep with one eye open? I've never lived alone before, but it's likely to happen in the future. How do you feel safe in your own home? This is a fear I'm going to have to overcome, but need suggestions.

Television and movies perpetuate stereotypes. I'll live in one in a heart beat. Most folks that live in places like these are just poor folk or people who are down on their luck. Life is hard. Being partially disabled myself, I'm sensitive to others in hardship.

In fact, I'm saving for a trailer to put in a trailer or mobile home park. Poor folk are good, decent people.

 

[midlife aspie]

One thing to be aware of is the potential for severe weather. In Illinois tornadoes are a real threat and a mobile home is the last place you want to be during one, and they often occur in the middle of the night.

 

[Destination Unknown]

I think part of the problem is mobile homes are usually obtained by those who cannot afford better, which in turn tends to attract all sorts of people. The poverty could be because of a variety of reasons, but the lower elements and the decent elements get clumped together in a small community like that and problems ensue. That's based on my personal experience and being one of the lower elements.

As for being safe, take a look at where you're considering. If it looks unsafe, then it probably is. It's prudent to be aware of your surroundings at all times regardless if you live in a fortress or in a war zone.

Agree with Sportster.
Check the park out on a hot night. See if it is quiet, or a lot of activity going on.

 

[Catlover614]

Well, the trailer park I'm considering seems to have well maintained grounds with a swimming pool, playground, clubhouse and basketball court. The inside of the trailer is very nice....large kitchen with appliances, nice built in shelves in the living room, garden tub in the bathroom with separate shower and walk in closet. 3br/2bath
But it's the outside I'm worried about. Are they easy to break in to? Can I feel secure by myself (i'm a petite woman)? I don't think they have security guard there.

 

[Nitro]

I lived in one once. It was silly that we weren't allowed to work on our cars there or have a clothesline because it made the place look trashy. Like stacking 50 tin boxes up against each other wasn't?

 

[Nitro]

Well, the trailer park I'm considering seems to have well maintained grounds with a swimming pool, playground, clubhouse and basketball court. The inside of the trailer is very nice....large kitchen with appliances, nice built in shelves in the living room, garden tub in the bathroom with separate shower and walk in closet. 3br/2bath
But it's the outside I'm worried about. Are they easy to break in to? Can I feel secure by myself (i'm a petite woman)? I don't think they have security guard there.

You can break into any home with relative ease

 

[WereBear]

The best bit of security a woman alone can have is a big, well-trained, dog. But I have been told that any dog is an excellent addition in case of worries about people breaking in.

What you describe sounds like a delightful place. I have known trailer parks straight out of white trash hell, and those which are wonderful communities. In the South, which already has a tendency to oppress all its residents, it is a cheap way to house people and dysfunctional families find they are thrown out of their other options because of the behavior of some of their family members. It is sadly rare to be thrown out of the kinds of trailer parks they wind up in, and thus, the stereotype.

Also, both TV news and crime dramas have a tendency to increased someone's perception of their personal vulnerability. So you also need to assess if this is a realistic worry, and how much of one it is.

 

[Catlover614]

The best bit of security a woman alone can have is a big, well-trained, dog. But I have been told that any dog is an excellent addition in case of worries about people breaking in.

What you describe sounds like a delightful place. I have known trailer parks straight out of white trash hell, and those which are wonderful communities. In the South, which already has a tendency to oppress all its residents, it is a cheap way to house people and dysfunctional families find they are thrown out of their other options because of the behavior of some of their family members. It is sadly rare to be thrown out of the kinds of trailer parks they wind up in, and thus, the stereotype.

Also, both TV news and crime dramas have a tendency to increased someone's perception of their personal vulnerability. So you also need to assess if this is a realistic worry, and how much of one it is.

Hi WereBear . To me, it is a realistic worry. I don't own a gun, but wouldn't mind owning a baseball bat and a doberman. Problem is that they have a 2 pet limit and I already have 2 cats that I'm not willing to give up. I want to be able to sleep peacefully at night...not constantly on guard.

 

[Judge]

Another important but basic thing to consider is your safety relative to the elements. Mother nature in Texas can be quite unforgiving.

Just understand that mobile homes don't necessarily hold up well in seriously bad weather.