All Forum Posts by: Samuel Coronado

 I'm about to bite the cost of upgrading pipes on two of the homes soon, then going two more each month. The pipes are actually very cheap. $15 per 100 foot of 3/4 inch, but the fittings and such can literally double the cost. I'm looking online to buy them by the pound lol

I have the opportunity to buy from a motivated seller. 1 acre with four lots consisting of 3x POHs and 1x TOHs, plus a single detached garage that can be rented out as a mechanic shop. The situation is this-

Lot rent x1 is 195/month. 

Rent for POH x2 is 450/month

4th unit empty and needs large renovation ($8k or so) or drug off. 

Garage is currently used as storage for the current owners' other business. 

Units all on one water meter. Landlord covers water 150 a month. 

Insurance is likely 100 a month based on other parks I own in the area. 

Taxes are super low because it's AL. Possibly 30/month. 

Pinched field line on septic and likely some other septic issues. 

Market rent for POHs are easily 700-800/month. Garage would be 800 or more if used to highest use. Lot rent could be 250-300/month. All for a total of 3450 with garage or 2650 without garage mechanic rental. 

Current income is only 1100 a month. Owners do not owe anything on the property. They are selling because they're tired of nonpaying tenants and want to throw some money at new businesses they are starting and expanding. Asking price is 105k OBO, down from 130k in October 2023. 

I am thinking about making an offer of about 70,000 with a contingency of owner finance for the first 18 months with a balloon for refinancing later. I need this time to make the renovations and bring rents up, process evictions, etc. What is the best way to present this? I am looking at it almost at book value vs conventional commercial valuations (especially since it's really only four units until I can get the garage set up). $10,000 for each POH and another $40,000 for the acre of land and improvements. This will need a lot of work and improvements to get it back up to standard, but it's not impossible. 

Hi, Kate, 

SECO is the gold standard for community managers and owners from my understanding. I missed it last year and this year may be falling on a previous engagement that I have at another real estate conference, but I highly recommend it. Here is the link:

https://secoconference.com/

I had a home from the 60s moved not too long ago. It really depends on the state of the home more than the age. There is no real set rule unless your local government has made a law about it. It may be worth it to have a mover come out and look at it before buying one and they can give you a lot of insight into it. They don't want the liability of having one falling apart on the road when they're moving it so some are getting more cautious and will gladly tell you what's feasible or not. Having three to move as well may present an opportunity to get you a discount. Going rate around here is 5000 a move but if you have more than one then I know people around my area who may be able to drop that to 3000 per. That's $6,000 saved, which you can pass on to your tenants if you wish or pocket it. 

It takes $2000-$3000 to replace all those old crappy copper or PVC pipes with PEX. Way cheaper if you do it yourself (very easy DIY for a one day adventure). I'd take that route and you'll never have an issue of busted pipes again. No pinhole leaks, cracks from expansion, or long wait times for glue to cure in freezing temperatures. PEX is king. 

I'd say the biggest and easiest thing is redo the pipes in PEX. PEX can expand way more than copper or PVC pipes, fittings are much cheaper, and you can make very quick patches without having to wait for glue to bond and cure. Just one crimp or clamp and it's done instantly, ready for 180 psi. Glue takes longer to cure under 40 degrees and existing fittings such as elbows and couplings can be weakened with the cold. 

I take it a step further. Week to week. We get a 13th month of rent as such. Say the monthly rent is $1000. We divide that by 4 to equal $250. $250 x 52 = $13,000 a year instead of $12,000. These are still tenants who stay for years (4 years in some cases for our longest one) and love the weekly option. 

 I own one and I am looking at developing one as well. We should talk. Mine will be in north Alabama, 1 hour outside Huntsville. 

 That's an interesting article from a great authority in the niche. I'm thinking there are a lot more nuances to it though. He is right on a national scale, but closer to my area the situation is different. People are filling these things up faster than I can develop them. 

Flat fee listing on MLS with a 3% buyer commission if you're not at the scale to get a dedicated agent who works full time for you.