Transitioning to Larger Parcels & Mobile Home Parks – Tips?

Question

Hey everyone,

This year, I’m shifting my focus more toward land development and moving away from smaller infill lots. I’ve been diving into larger parcels, seeing them as more versatile for future projects, and exploring the potential for mobile home parks specifically.

I’d love to hear from others who’ve made similar moves or have experience with larger tracts of land. What challenges did you face, especially when it comes to things like entitlement, zoning, and overall project planning? Any tips on sourcing land for mobile home parks?

I’m excited to continue growing and learning in this space, so any insights would be really appreciated!

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

Ty Coutts · Answer

Hi Shema,

It’s great that you’re expanding into land development and mobile home parks! For larger tracts, entitlement and zoning are key, so I recommend working closely with local planning and zoning departments early on to understand regulations and potential hurdles. You may also want to consider hiring a land use attorney or consultant to help navigate any zoning changes or entitlements needed for your mobile home park.

When sourcing land, focus on parcels that are already zoned for multi-family or manufactured housing, or at least close to it, to avoid lengthy approval processes. Look for areas with strong demand for affordable housing and check infrastructure availability like water, sewer, and roads.

Building relationships with local real estate brokers and connecting with municipal contacts can help uncover off-market deals and streamline your search. Finally, be prepared for long timelines and budget flexibility due to the permitting and approval process.

Good luck as you grow your portfolio! If you need any help with the financing, Aslan is beginning to offer the Chattel loan very soon which could be a great help. If you have any questions, feel free to DM me.

Robert Ellis · Answer

same with us, we study infill every day though through case examples. the best part about infill is no risk. buying lots like what builders are doing even national builders still are shifting the risk to local land developers. my recommendation is to look at permitted uses, price per acre, etc. if you want lower risk buy a larger tract of land from a large developer out of a 100+ acre development to lower the risk. if you are doing it from scratch work with a group who's doing subdivisions. you can go and read the subdivision plats in your recorders office online every county has one. in columbus where I do the majority of our development we are specifically starting to target zones where the economics are also favorable. I'm not sure why you'd target mobile home parks that's one of the hardest to entitle. if you want a scalable strategy for 10+ years stick to residential horizontal, apartment, etc that is more common for your market.

Rachel H. · Answer

@Shema Cochrane Most investors I've known in the mobile home investing space who have transitioned from smaller deals to larger deals have worked with partners to offset the risk especially when purchasing mobile home parks.

You may want to network with other investors locally through your real estate investment club. Find others who are doing what you want to do and learn from them from a local perspective especially in the niche you're planning to pursue. This can help tremendously as it teaches you the ins and outs at a local level.

Hope that helps!

Kristi Kandel · Answer

@Shema Cochrane Ty covered a lot of it. One thing to consider on developing new MHP is that if cities don't want them they can make it very difficult to build new ones. Typically I recommend that people get very clear on your vision for not only what you want to do but the exact markets you want to do projects in and narrow your focus to those. Local knowledge is the ultimate advantage. Even if you venture into new markets where you're not the local you can still find those partners (brokers, architects, engineers, contractors, lenders, etc.) who are and have the deep roots and insights.   Over 75% of US cities have less than 10K people so the city staff and planning dept are very accessible and are a great free resource to understand zoning and where your vision can fit into their community.

Shema Cochrane · Answer

@Ty Coutts

Thank you so much for your thoughtful response! The tips on zoning and entitlement are invaluable, and I really appreciate you sharing that insight.

I’ve reached out via DM regarding the broker tip since that’s an area I’m looking to explore more. Your input is truly guiding my next steps, and I’m grateful for the direction you’ve provided!

Transitioning to Larger Parcels & Mobile Home Parks – Tips?

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