I bought my first park with infill upside. I drank the hell out of Frank’s kool-aide and thought it would be much easier than it actually is. (No disrespect to Frank)
The park came with 2 brand new homes, and one that was in like new condition. I sold the like-new and the new, but the last new one I’ve had for almost a year. I’ve concluded that new homes do not work well for my park’s tenant base and will stick to bringing in used homes. Almost all of my applicants are rejected based on income and DTI.
I get a tremendous amount of people who want to rent, but I’ve been holding out against renting a brand-new home. I can’t “re-new” the home if a renter trashes it… so I’m just playing the waiting game.
You might consider (as I am) reducing the price of the new homes. You might end up taking a loss on the sale, but the park valuation and the lot rent should make up for the difference over time. You can put a stake in the ground and say “I’m ok with a 2 year payback on the loss”. 24 months * lot rate profit and you’ll get a reduction amount. It sucks… but it might be better than large vacancies.
Have I practiced this at all? Absolutely not, at least not yet (although I’m getting closer). Food for thought though!