Hi, I’m looking to buy my first mhp and would like to connect with others that are similar minded. Ideally I’m thinking it would be best to be a member of a team that obtains parks, start with one, go from there.
Do you want to make a difference? Build up awesome communities? How about providing a solution to the housing crisis?
I’m from North Carolina but live out of state. I would like to target the southeast, mid west, & southwest. Anywhere landlord friendly other than these will work as well.
Buy box: 30 paying pads and up thereabouts to start. Decent metro / demographics. etc, etc
We can get into more details. if you want to connect, feel free to reach out. I’m looking for others that care about the people in the communities. Who want to genuinely help them, and to keep the parks going by providing housing. Yes we will make money, but I want it to be fair and ethical. If you do what you say and are a straight shooter, please reach out.
Rob, welcome abord. For the past 40 years the similarities between farming and mobile parks is amazing. During the 1960’s small farms with doing great and then in the late 1970’s high interest rates took the last of the family farms out. 1966 bought a Marlette MH for $5,000 and parked at White’s MH Park for $30 per month. The former farmer was adding 10 new sites per year, and NEW HOMES were filling the sites. So, he keeps building and NEW mobile homes are parked. Today the children sold the park to investors whose only interest is raising the pad rent and now the park is 65% full of old homes, park owned homes and some vacant sites. Today most of the brokers are really just looking for the best parks for themselves and the ones they do not like they are listed at the park store. The GOOD parks are never seen by the general public or new to the business. As a very experienced owner-operator the smaller new investor is in for a very difficult time as like the young people trying to get into farming. You are seeing scraps, but you paid big money for a course that was more appropriate 20 years ago to buy mobile home parks. Where is the family run business that is part of a community and perhaps on a locate school boards. Owning and operating 1-2 parks can make you wealthy and part of making America a better place for our children to grow up. Today you are competing with a new apartment complex next door or who can afford a new $80,000 MH with +$500 per month rent. We have switched to RV parks where people can move in and out with newer rigs and stay with destination properties where our turnover is less than 10% per year. Just our observation with being owner-operators—we listen to our residents and right now times are diffluent.
Carl, thanks for your insight, but the fact is that the industry has changed just like so many others have. You may not like it, but every industry changes over time. You do not have to limit ownership to 1 or 2 parks and be on the local school board to professionally run quality housing. If you don’t raise rent to adjust to the market, your property will fail. I know this because I have bought properties from the “mom & pops” who haven’t raised rents enough to keep their infrastructure in good health. I think the changes to the industry are great. The old “trailer parks” are being upgraded to include better and safer housing stock, and more services are being added. I look forward to the direction the industry is going.