Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by AndyH

Real Estate Investing Mobile Homes & Mobile Home Parks
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Posted by Blane (MI) on March 05, 2001 at 13:52:41:

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Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by AndyH

Posted by AndyH on March 05, 2001 at 05:55:04:

Dear all,

I wonder if you can help

I have been offered to opportunity of investing in a land deal in upstate NY that is currently being converted to a mobile home park.

To be honest I know next to nothing about Mobile Home Parks as in England these are not very common - aside form sporadic and illegal ones.

Please could you answer the following:-

  1. What is say the average rent and how long are the standard tennancies . How is it broken down say between the home and the plot?

  2. What happens if tennants prove unreliable with payments - does the US governemnt help them out? -

3.What is the average deposit and what does it account for?

4.What kind of insurances MUST a management company have??

  1. Is there an OFFICIAL (government endorsed) association that oversees the Mobile Home world?

  2. Finally would you recommend such an investment??? And if not what nasty reasons should put me off? Any horror stories /investment scams would be appreciated - as would any success stories.

Let me thank you in advance for any advice- regards to all, Andy from London

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Re: Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by Ed

Posted by Ed on March 06, 2001 at 15:30:52:

Log onto www.foremost.com and click on the market facts
site. You should find it very helpful.

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Re: Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by DougO(NM)

Posted by DougO(NM) on March 05, 2001 at 15:34:11:

Here are some links you might find useful:

http://www.mfghome.org/index.html
MobileHome.com - All you need to know about Mobile and Manufactured Homes?
MobileHome.com - All you need to know about Mobile and Manufactured Homes

Doug

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Re: Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by Ed - Michigan

Posted by Ed - Michigan on March 05, 2001 at 13:13:39:

Foremost Insurance Company offers a Market Report for sale with very helpful and informative information regarding Mobile Homes, owners, residents, etc. You may want to contact them in Michigan at (616) 956-8261.

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Re: Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by Blane (MI)

Posted by Blane (MI) on March 05, 2001 at 08:14:29:

Hi Andy,

Not sure if I can answer all your questions but will offer my 2 cents anyway. Some of your questions don’t have straightforward answers. You might get a couple of folks from New York who can give you more specific info. If you decide to move forward though, you must do a lot more digging on your own and learn about mobile homes and parks yourself.

What do you know about the person developing a park? Is he a friend? Someone who contacted you on the internet? Has he shown you any numbers as far as return on investment? And most importantly, could you do as well or better by parking your money somewhere in London?

For example, lot rents vary all over the country. In my area (Detroit) most rents are over $300/month. In the South, many parks rent for $150 or less (maybe I should move!). I’m guessing New York rents will be closer to numbers around here. Deposits also vary and generally speaking are applied to any past due lot rent or damage done to the lot.

Homes are sold separately from the lots. Buyers finance homes sales generally through banks etc. but rent the lot from the park. Thus the homeowner must comply with park rules or face eviction (removing their home). I just read that park residents live on average 8-10 years in their home, but it varies and there’s probably no set amount of time you can use to calculate how it will affect your investment.

If tenants are unreliable with payments, or don’t pay, they get evicted. The US govt. doesn’t help with anything like that. Basically it’s you vs. them. If any sort of govt. entity gets involved, either they’re causing trouble for you, or you may have violated some law. Each state has it’s own regulations for MH’s and parks. Also, most states have some sort of Manufactured Housing Associations that I guess you could say are “govt. endorsed.” Unlike Europe, government doesn’t have it’s fingers in everything, yet anyways (this is not a putdown, especially for our English friends, just an observation).

I hope this helps a little. I’m not a mobile home know-it-all by any means. Don’t have any “horror stories.” I will say if a small park comes up for sale I’ll pursue it, as they could be a great investment. But you have a lot to learn about this kind of investment, especially being in another country, so I’d expand my level of knowledge before taking the dive. Other folks here will be able to expound further. Keep asking questions and good luck.

Blane

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Re: Very Nervy British Investor - PLEASE HELP - Posted by DougO(NM)

Posted by DougO(NM) on March 05, 2001 at 10:49:45:

Blane

Here are some links you might find useful:

http://www.mfghome.org/index.html
MobileHome.com - All you need to know about Mobile and Manufactured Homes?
MobileHome.com - All you need to know about Mobile and Manufactured Homes

Doug