Mobile Home Park
Any idiot can get a portable home park. And many do. If your goal would be to earn money with it, then there are several simple rules that you have to consider before taking that step. If you follow these guidelines, your opportunity for success is 1,000% greater, and your opportunity for failure is virtually eliminated.
Stay with affordable housing
You will find two various kinds of mobile home parks out there. Fancy ones and simple ones. And the fancy ones, despite popular belief, do not make any money. The bullseye in mobile home park is going after lower income tenants. They don't have to be downscale and dangerous. However they have to be folks who make from minimum wage to $10 per hour. To the customer based, a portable home park offers an incredible value, where they could have the security of their particular home, and a garden for the youngsters and dog. And it's the only real form of detached housing they could ever afford.
The more upper-end parks are always in a precarious position. Their lot rent plus home cost often exceeds $1,000 monthly - and at that price, they have many options. They may purchase a mobile home, but will likely grow disenchanted with it a couple of months later, and find a stick build home they like better at the exact same monthly rate. So that they elope, and your continuity of lot rent is ruined. A whole lot worse, the lender then yanks the foreclosed home from the park, and you've a vacant lot with little prospect of re-filling it in the present economy.
Understand the real economics of mobile home parks
Mobile home parks have their particular standard costs and ratios. They are in contrast to some other form of real estate. Just because you've owned an apartment complex does not mean you've any grasp of this particular niche. And don't expect the seller's numbers to shine any light about them - 9 out of 10 times they have "cooked" the books better than Julia Childs.
If you wish to purchase a mobile home park, you've got to know the actual line items for both revenue and expense, and the number of what those should be.
Do spectacular due diligence
Everytime somebody calls our website to complain of a dreadful park investment they have made, it always revolves around their insufficient due diligence. Maybe they trusted what the seller said concerning the property tax, only to get these were off by 300%. Or they only guessed on the water and sewer cost and it turns out these were wrong by 200%. Or possibly the entire operating permit is no good. There's no excuse for these kind of problems. Should you choose great due diligence, you only buy great deals.
Buy parks that have the right fundamentals for success
Not totally all parks are made equal. Some have great futures and some haven't any future. You have to discover ways to spot why is for successful and why is for a loser. And it's more difficult than being positioned in some "Top 10 Metro Areas" list off the internet.
Some of the items that'll point towards a successful deal include location, size, utility system construction, size of lots, road infrastructure, competing apartment rents, etc. If you do not buy on the basis of the right pair of criteria, you could have trouble creating a deal work.
Execute on your own plan
Many people buy parks with a good strategy in writing, but can't translate it into reality because of insufficient knowledge on how to properly operate a park. Running a portable home park is unlike some other form of real estate. Part of it's the personality of the customer, and part of it's the unusual pair of responsibilities a park owner has.
If you like your purchase to work, you'll need working out to know how to operate the property effectively, and just how to implement your battle plan.
Conclusion
Many, many people have made themselves millionaires through owning mobile home parks. In the 1990s book "The Millionaire Next Door", mobile home parks made the listing of top tools to amass significant money. However, those folks knew what these were doing - they took enough time to learn about the business, to perform proper due diligence, and to operate professionally.
Before you invest your hard earned money, you'll need to invest your time in learning the subject. That's the key to earning profits in the mobile home park business.
For over 10 years, Frank has been involved with all facets of the mobile home park business being an owner/operator of parks in four different states.
His experience includes:
Purchasing and operating over 25 mobile home park being an investor
Performing "due diligence" on countless other mobile home parks. At one time, ranking because the 63rd largest owner of mobile home parks in the U.S. Frank has achieved a high-level of expertise in evaluating, buying, operating, turning around, financing, and selling mobile home parks. His experiences are true to life, and he can provide you with true to life scenarios and solutions on nearly every issue that you could face being an investor or operator. His knowledge can be yours through the unique offerings at "Mobile Home Park College" as a Faculty Member.
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