All Forum Posts by: Paul Stout

I recently stumbled on this show.  It is entertaining for sure.  I am certain these people are real. There may be some fluffing for the camera but I have dealt with tenants very similar to these.  Now, Dave obviously knows his stuff since he owns a large property management company, many of the properties they manage, and a large storage facility portfolio.  However, there is no possible way Dave would do 90% of this outside the lens of a camera.  He purposely involves himself in family and neighbor disputes and drama of all sorts. That is something I stay as far away from as possible.  Big portfolio or not that is a huge no-no.  Other than that stuff the rest of the show is interesting.  I would NOT recommend managing properties in the style he portrays on this show.  Whatever he does in real life is obviously working though. 

I'm not sure.  When Larry retired we lost touch.

You mentioned you were particularly interested in mobile home park funds @Kristin Brancaleone 

It is not hard to see why as they are an excellent investment.  There is a way that you can be involved with these groups without being an accredited investor.  If you find an excellent off market deal most of the fund managers like @Jefferson Lilly and @Account Closed will purchase the park with you as a partner, pay you a referral fee or purchase the deal from you if you have it under contract.  This is a great way to get involved with high quality mobile home operators without being an accredited investor.  There are most likely many options when it comes to your level of involvement in the running of the park post closing.  You do have to do your homework.  They all have their criteria and you need to learn it well and learn to evaluate parks like they would.  If you are truly interested and are willing to put in the time and energy I suggest you contact these guys. They have money coming into their funds and they need to get it working.  It could be a great partnership.

Look up @John Fedro.  He is the best in the mobile home rent business. 

Welcome @John Burtle! I have worked with John now since early May of 2016.  John is a stand up guy and always delivers what he promises.  John make sure you link up with @John Fedro.  He is the master of the class you are interested in.    

@Jacob Nunn It is nice to see your obvious excitement about real estate.  I am not going to offer advice on what you should invest in.  You will get plenty of that.  Only you will know what is right.  Your ideas will most likely change multiple times before you fall on your definite purpose.  I can offer you the advice to keep the drive and the passion you feel now no matter what happens and no matter what anyone says.  That is what is important.  A lot of people make a lot of money a lot of different ways.  Nobody becomes highly successful without drive, focus, and without taking action.  Everything else will fall into place. 

I am a licensed broker in Indiana.  I mostly work with investors. I am an investor myself.  Selling real estate is not my primary source of income.  I enjoy helping, teaching, learning from, and networking with other investors.  That is the reason I earned my license.  Feel free to PM me.

When you say 20 lots "filled" does that mean the lot rent is $150 per month and the tenants own the homes or does that mean the park owns the home and charges $150 per month for lot rent and home rent?  If its the former you can continue evaluating.  If its the latter I would run as fast as you can unless you believe you could immediately sell all of the homes to the tenants and charge $200 per lot for lot rent only.  You have to know the market.  I would wonder why there are 15 vacant lots if they are under market rents.  If its because of a lazy manager then ok.  If its because the market doesn't support it you are best advised to move on.  One of the major issues with Southern parks is that there are land home deals everywhere.  Does the surrounding area restrict the placement of mobile homes or can anyone buy a lot and plop a mobile home on it?  Land home deals are the kryptonite of any park.  I would personally never purchase a park anywhere where land home deals are allowed.  

Take a look at the utilities. If there is well and septic you should probably move on. This could make the IRR of a park that otherwise performs perfectly negative very quickly. As you can see there are a lot of little things to look at. There is not enough information here for anyone to give you the proper direction. I was always told that if a mechanic started diagnosing your car based on what you tell him the symptoms are, you need to find a new mechanic. We need to look under the hood to say whether this looks like a good deal or not.

It is understandable if you do not want to post all of the details on the open forum.  I welcome you to PM me and I will be happy to walk you through all of the evaluation steps I use and pitfalls to avoid.  If you make an offer be sure to put contingencies for everything.  In fact you will want to state that the contract can be canceled and you can retrieve you earnest money for any reason during the due diligence period (at least 30-45 days)

You will most likely not be able to get FHA financing since this would be considered a commercial property. I agree with @Jeffrey H. that your best bet is most likely owner financing.  I would take that a step further and try to get a lease option.  This way if this is not working out for you, you can walk away and only lose your option fee (keep it low).  You may be able to find a bank to finance this but it is unlikely.  If there is any shot it would be with a small local bank.  If the bank has no MHP experience they probably will not make this loan.  If they have MHP experience they will not include the home rent and neither should you on your valuation.  If you purchase this park it would be wise to convert your renters to owners.  There are many ways to do that but if the market is strong you can tell them to buy, get on a rent credit program or leave.  If the market is so weak that you are uncomfortable with that then you may want to re-evaluate the purchase.

Look up @John Fedro.  He is the master of this sector.