Multi-Million $ Sales of Manufactured Home Land-Lease Communities
Manufactured home land-lease communities (aka “mobile home” parks) have long been entry-level homeownership for lower to middle-income Americans in family parks, as well as seniors with fixed incomes in age-restricted communities. The community resident owns the home and rents the space from the community owner.
Historically, 32% is the percentage of manufactured homes that have been placed within manufactured housing communities. Presently there are 4.2 million Americans residing in approximately 45,000 to 50,000 (exact number unknown) land-lease manufactured home/mobile home communities. The overall occupancy rate is near 95 percent.
Scant few new manufactured home land-lease communities have been developed over the last dozen-plus years, resulting in a nonexistent new supply of those communities, a result of restrictive zoning regulations and nimby-ism (Not in my Backyard).
The lack of new community development has increased the value of existing land-lease communities and has become a valuable asset for investors and large consolidators. Today, approximately 725,000 manufactured home sites are owned by the top 50 fifty community owners/operators.
Over the last few years, there has been a flurry of multi-million dollar acquisitions of existing manufactured home communities– a good deal for the sellers, often not so great for many community residents, who typically will be faced with a substantial increase in monthly rental payments. For example, click our previous post — City of Fullerton, Ca May Consider A Moratorium on Rent Hikes For Mobile Home Park —
The following are press release announcements of recent multi-million dollar acquisitions of manufactured home land-lease communities in the upper midwest.
MINNESOTA MOBILE HOME PARK SELLS FOR $40 MILLION
May 3, 2021 – Manufactured home operator Havenpark Communities has purchased Chaska’s Brandondale Chaska Mobile Home Park for $40 Million. (Reported by swnewsmedia.com)
The sale went through on April 28, encompassing the land at 1 Kelly Road. Divisional Vice President Sean King said work will shortly ensue.
“We will not be redeveloping the community. We will be investing back into the community and I would say within the first 12 months we’ll probably reinvest around $1 million in capital improvements,” King said.
RHP PROPERTIES PURCHASES 29 MANUFACTURED HOME COMMUNITIES IN THREE STATES FOR $184 MILLION
April 30, 2021 – The nation’s largest private owner and operator of manufactured home communities has acquired 29 manufactured home communities in Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan with more than 4,200 homesites for a purchase price of $184 million.
RHP Properties CEO Ross Partrich said the transaction brings the total of owned manufactured home communities to 297 nationwide. The communities provide 71,184 homesites.
“RHP Properties is pleased to announce the purchase of the Heritage Portfolio. We are proud to be preserving affordable housing for more than 4,000 families,” Partrich said.”We also plan to improve these communities, including the addition of brand new homes. Source: MHInsider mhvillage.com
