Cash Flow Over Ego
I’ll be honest.
There was a time I laughed at investors who bought mobile home parks.
I didn’t get it.
I didn’t see the appeal.
And like most people, I carried the same mental picture everyone else does when they hear the words “trailer park.”
But then I started looking at the numbers.
And everything changed.
Most People Don’t Understand the Business Model
The average person thinks owning a mobile home park means you’re in the “trailer business.”
You’re not.
You’re in the land business.
You’re not selling anything over a counter.
You’re not managing hundreds of plumbing calls inside units (if you structure it right).
You’re not flipping inventory.
You’re renting dirt.
It’s one of the simplest business models in real estate:
- Own the land
- Provide infrastructure (roads, utilities, lots)
- Lease lots to homeowners
- Collect rent
It’s more like owning a parking lot than owning an apartment complex.
When that clicked for me, I stopped laughing.
The Stigma Is the Moat
There’s a massive negative stigma around mobile home parks.
And ironically… that’s what makes them powerful.
Because people don’t like them:
- Cities rarely approve new ones
- Zoning is restrictive
- Overbuilding is almost impossible
Compare that to Class A apartments. Everyone loves them. They get overbuilt constantly.
But mobile home parks?
Try building one in most cities and see what happens.
That resistance creates scarcity.
Scarcity creates pricing power.
Pricing power creates long-term value.
The very thing that keeps most investors away is what protects the asset class.
The Money Isn’t in the Homes
This was a big mental shift for me.
The value isn’t in the “trailers.”
It’s in:
- The land
- The infrastructure
- The zoning
- The cash flow
- The replacement cost barrier
When I started analyzing deals, I stopped looking at the homes first.
I started asking:
- What’s the lot rent vs. market?
- What’s occupancy?
- What’s the infill potential?
- What would it cost to build this today?
- Could zoning ever allow a competitor across the street?
That’s when the numbers started making sense.
The Hidden Value Most People Miss
A lot of parks are owned by mom-and-pop operators who:
- Haven’t raised rents in years
- Let occupancy slide
- Avoid enforcing rules
- Don’t push collections
- Don’t optimize utilities
When you bring professional systems, management, and modest improvements, you can:
- Increase occupancy
- Bring rents to market (while still being affordable housing)
- Improve tenant quality
- Clean up deferred maintenance
- Increase NOI dramatically
And since commercial real estate is valued based on income…
Small improvements in NOI can create massive jumps in value.
That’s when it stopped being a “risky trailer park” in my mind.
It became an undervalued income machine.
You Have to Be Willing to Be Contrarian
Real estate rewards discipline and patience.
But it also rewards being willing to go where others won’t.
When everyone is chasing:
- Luxury flips
- Short-term rentals
- Class A multifamily
- The shiny object of the year
There’s opportunity in the boring, overlooked assets.
Mobile home parks aren’t flashy.
They’re not glamorous.
They won’t impress your neighbors.
But they can produce durable, predictable cash flow — especially when structured correctly.
And if you’ve followed my journey in mobile home and affordable housing communities, you know I’m a big believer in:
Build something predictable. Build something that lasts.
This asset class aligns with that mindset.
The Funny Part
The same investors who once laughed at the idea?
Many of them are now trying to buy parks.
Banks that once avoided them now actively lend on them.
Private lenders who once hesitated now understand the stability of lot-rent income.
The perception changed.
The fundamentals didn’t.
Final Thoughts
If you want approval from everyone, don’t buy mobile home parks.
If you want:
- Strong cash flow
- Supply constraints
- Affordable housing demand
- Long-term durability
Then it’s worth taking a serious look.