Do I Need to Travel for Out of State Deals?

[Emma Morris]

I want to start investing in Mobile Home Parks, most of which will be out of state. I don't have the income to travel to each potential deal. What are my options?

[Frank Rolfe]

You have no need to travel to any deal until you have it under contract. You can see it on googlemaps and streetview, look at the market on bestplaces.net, get the top employers from the chamber of commerce or wikipedia -- literally everything you need to know about any mobile home park is right on line. These days, virtually nobody goes out to the park until it's tied up under contract.

[Ian Whiteman]

Not to sound like a smart a$$ but this sounds like your saying you want to buy a Ferrari but you can't afford the maintenance. If you don't have the money to travel do you have the capital to purchase a park? You will likely need around 25% down. 

If you do not, that's okay, but you may need a new strategy. Perhaps find a partner that can handle the capital and you do the work. Although that may not be viable if you are not local. You may also want to start smaller until you can make a bigger move. 

[Rachel H.]

@Emma Morris Maybe it's best to start looking at opportunities in your area first before you look out of state.  Many of the mobile home park owners I know personally bought in their state of residence. Good luck! 

[Emma Morris]

@Ian Whiteman not too sound like an a$$ but it seems like you, yourself, don't have enough experience to be giving me feed back and/or you're making assumptions that I know of only one way to fund a deal, which is to use only my money. 1. I have private money contacts 2. I have credit partner contacts and 3. There's the option in doing seller financing with a master lease and option to get a down payment as low as 10%. But thanks for your concern I guess.

[Frank Rolfe]

I bought my first mobile home park for $400,000, with $10,000 down and the seller carried $390,000 for 30 years. We have also done 12 zero down deals and a bunch of master lease with option deals. As long as the majority of parks are owned by moms & pops, there are some really crazy financing structures out there. And, of course, you can still sell assignments of contracts.

I'm only saying this because I would not want anyone to be discouraged. Sure, the standard deal is 20% to 30% down and the rest in bank debt, but the truth is that -- if you bond well with sellers and are a good listener -- anything is possible in this industry. That's what attracted me to it in the first place. I had never even heard of seller financing until I got into mobile home parks (I thought all real estate required bank debt). Once I figured it out, that's all I used to buy my first deals -- high leverage seller carry. My second deal was $65,000 with $5,000 down. You don't find that in any other industry.

[Adam R.]

@Frank Rolfe I know this thread is a bit stale, but hoping you don't mind responding. After you have it under contract and start your diligence, when would you travel to the park? Is this step 1 in diligence process or after environmental, confirming whether conforming or grandfathered, etc.? What should be the goal of the onsite visit?  Thank you

[Lexey Vezzoso]

Hey Heather!

I know a lot of people who don't have to travel to invest out of state. 

If you're interested in mobile home parks you should look up Heather Blankenship on instagram. I believe she coaches as well but she would be a great resource to help you get stated!

Good Luck!

Lexey 

[Teonia Riley]

@Ian Whiteman How would you go about locating partners who are willing to allow “I do the work, They front the Capital or %” of course networking, but thru social media etc? Other ways? Approaching per say.

[Cody Neumann]

Quote from @Emma Morris:

I want to start investing in Mobile Home Parks, most of which will be out of state. I don't have the income to travel to each potential deal. What are my options?

If you're interested in investing in mobile home parks, but don't have the income to travel to each potential deal, there are a few options you can consider:

1. Virtual tours: Many mobile home parks have virtual tours available on their website or on third-party platforms such as Google Street View, which can give you a good idea of the property.
2. Remote inspections: You can hire a professional property inspector to conduct a remote inspection of the property. The inspector can use tools such as drones or cameras to capture detailed footage of the property, which you can review later.
3. Hire a local property manager: If you're unable to visit the property yourself, you can hire a local property manager to take care of the day-to-day operations of the property on your behalf.
4. Use technology: You can use software and tools such as video conferencing, online document signing, and cloud-based property management software to manage the property remotely.
5. Partner with local investors: You can partner with local investors who can act as your eyes and ears on the ground. They can help you evaluate potential deals, inspect properties, and handle the day-to-day management of the property.
6. Join a Mobile Home Park Investing Group or Network: There are groups and networks of investors in this asset class that can provide you with access to deals and resources that can help you navigate the process of investing in MHP

It's important to note that investing in out of state properties can come with additional risks and challenges. Make sure you do your due diligence and research before making any investment decisions.

[Drew Sygit]

You should be able to do all the financials remotely to weed out at least 80% of possible deals.