Clayton vs Live Oak vs Champion: Florida mobile home dealers compared (2026)

If you're shopping for a new mobile home in Florida, you'll almost certainly encounter Clayton, Live Oak, and Champion. They dominate the new-home market in Central and South Florida. They're not equal — each has distinct strengths, weaknesses, and pricing habits that buyers should understand before walking onto a sales lot.

The 30-second take

• Clayton — largest, most inventory, most price-flexibility for cash buyers, most aggressive bundled-install pricing.
• Live Oak — smaller, regional Florida focus, stronger build quality on mid-tier homes, less negotiable on price.
• Champion — broader factory network, mid-pack inventory, mid-pack pricing, decent warranty terms.

Clayton Homes

Clayton is the largest mobile home manufacturer in the U.S. (owned by Berkshire Hathaway). They sell through both directly-operated Clayton-branded retailers and independent dealer partners. In Florida, they have a heavy footprint in Central and North Florida.

Strengths: enormous inventory, faster build times because of factory scale, generally good warranty support, multiple finance options. If you want a new home delivered fast, Clayton can usually deliver.

Watch-outs: this is where we see the most aggressive bundled installation pricing. We've seen Clayton dealers quote $28,000 to $35,000 for setup on a double-wide that an independent installer can do for $9,000 to $13,000 to the exact same code. Always ask Clayton to separate the home price from setup on the contract.

Live Oak Homes

Live Oak is a regional Alabama-based manufacturer with strong Florida distribution. Smaller than Clayton but with a reputation for tighter build quality on their mid-tier models. Their homes tend to use slightly heavier materials and more conservative engineering specs.

Strengths: quality-conscious buyers consistently report better fit-and-finish on Live Oak homes versus Clayton at similar price points. Customer service tends to be more personal because the company is smaller.

Watch-outs: less negotiation room on price than Clayton — Live Oak dealers hold firmer on MSRP. Installation pricing through Live Oak dealers is in the same $25K–$32K range as Clayton, so the install-shopping advice applies equally.

Champion Homes

Champion (Champion Homes / Skyline Champion) is a publicly traded national manufacturer. In Florida they distribute through both branded retail stores and independent dealers. They produce homes across the price spectrum.

Strengths: very broad model selection, including some popular Florida-specific floor plans. Decent factory warranty (typically 1-year limited + structural extensions). Inventory tends to be middle-of-pack — not as fast as Clayton, not as scarce as Live Oak.

Watch-outs: pricing is highly dealer-dependent because of the mixed retail model. Two Champion dealers in the same Florida county can quote $8K–$12K differently on the identical model. Get three quotes minimum.

Side-by-side

What's true of all three (and why it matters for your wallet)

All three dealer networks have similar installation-quote habits. The bundled "setup and install" line on a new mobile home sale typically runs $25,000–$35,000 in Florida, regardless of which of these three you go with. That's 2–3x what a licensed independent installer charges for the identical work.

Florida Statute 320.8249 gives you the right to use any licensed mobile home installer. You can sign with any of these three dealers for the home only, and contract installation separately. The dealer cannot legally refuse the sale for this reason.

Our recommendation

Get quotes from all three on the same model. The spread on an identical double-wide between Clayton, Live Oak, and Champion in Florida can easily reach $15,000. Then separately get an independent installation quote. Combine the lowest dealer home-only price with an independent installer, and you'll typically save $25,000–$40,000 versus signing the first bundled quote at the first dealer.