Mobile Home Park
The most recession-proof real estate on earth — tenants own their homes, you own the land
Bottom line
Strong cash-flow candidate with manageable operations.
Mobile home parks (manufactured housing communities) collect monthly lot rent from residents who own their own homes but lease the land underneath. This creates an extraordinarily sticky tenant base — moving a manufactured home costs $5,000–$15,000, so residents almost never leave. Average lot rent hit $554/site/month in 2025 and continues rising faster than inflation. A 50-site park at $500/month generates $300K in gross revenue at margins of 40–60%. Private equity has been aggressively rolling up parks, making small and mid-sized parks prime acquisition targets for individual operators.
Avg Revenue
$450K
Profit Margin
45%
Acquisition Multiple
4x - 9x
Startup Cost
$200K - $1.5M
How It Works
You buy the land, infrastructure (roads, utility connections, common areas), and collect monthly lot rent from each resident. Residents own and maintain their own homes — dramatically reducing your maintenance burden vs. apartment ownership. Revenue = (number of occupied sites) × (lot rent). Value-add plays include raising below-market rents to market, filling vacant lots, and adding utility billing (RUBS) for water/electricity passthrough. Parks are valued on a cap rate basis: NOI ÷ cap rate = value. A park generating $100K NOI at a 7% cap rate is worth ~$1.43M.
Revenue Range
BizBite underwriting snapshot
Watch / verify
Mobile Home Park has enough high-level data for a first look, but BizBite has not assigned a category-specific operating model yet. Treat the score as preliminary.
Category-level fit before lender-specific diligence.
Weak source data caps the final score.
Why it may work
- +Attractive 45% estimated margin profile
Be careful
- !Source link status has not been verified yet
- !No last-checked date yet
- !No category operating model yet
- !No category model yet
- !Premium entry multiple
Real Acquisitions in This Category
SBA 7(a) change-of-ownership loans · NAICS 531190 · Lessors of Other Real Estate Property
Deal Size Distribution
Financing Profile
Recent Comparable Deals
| Closed | State | Loan | Implied deal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2024 | NY | $621K | $731K |
| Dec 2022 | NJ | $792K | $932K |
| Sep 2022 | MI | $1.4M | $1.7M |
| May 2022 | PA | $1.5M | $1.7M |
| Apr 2022 | PA | $394K | $464K |
| Mar 2022 | NC | $1.1M | $1.3M |
| Dec 2021 | CO | $618K | $727K |
| Oct 2021 | OH | $280K | $329K |
| Sep 2021 | CA | $334K | $393K |
| Sep 2021 | TX | $994K | $1.2M |
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA dataset, filtered to acquisitions (loans where business age is "Change of Ownership"). Implied deal size assumes an 85% loan-to-purchase ratio, a common SBA change-of-ownership structure. Charge-off rate shown only when 10+ loans have resolved (paid in full or charged off). Interest rates reflect last 24 months only. Actual deal values vary with equity injections, seller financing, and working capital terms.
Pros
- +Tenants almost never leave — moving a manufactured home costs $5K–$15K
- +You don't maintain the homes, only the land and infrastructure
- +Recession-proof — affordable housing demand is inelastic
- +Strong value-add potential in parks with below-market rents
Cons
- -High acquisition multiples (4–9× revenue) require significant capital
- -Regulatory and political scrutiny is increasing as housing crisis intensifies
- -Infrastructure repairs (water, sewer, electrical) can be expensive surprises
- -Evictions are more complex than apartment evictions in most states
Best For
Real estate investors seeking passive income with inflation protection and minimal maintenance overhead
Operating Costs
Operating costs are lean: property taxes (1–3% of value), minimal staffing for small parks, maintenance reserves for infrastructure, and insurance. Profit margins of 40–60% on lot rent income are common. Utility billing passthroughs can be added to boost NOI.
SBA Financing Estimator
Adjust the deal — see if it cash flows after debt service
Estimates only. Excludes owner compensation, capex, working capital draws, and taxes. Margin assumes average occupancy and volume. Actual SBA terms vary by lender and borrower profile.
Where to Buy
Largest dedicated marketplace for mobile home park acquisitions
Commercial real estate listings including manufactured housing communities
Frank Rolfe's education and deal network — the industry's most active community
Acquisition Score
Scores margin (30), entry multiple (25), SBA market depth (20), category risk (15), and deal momentum (10). Higher = better acquisition candidate.
Quick Facts
- Category
- physical
- Difficulty
- 3/5
- Buy price
- $1.8M–$4.0M
Buyer's Toolkit
Essential tools to get started
Some links may be affiliate links. We only recommend tools we'd use ourselves.
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Largest business-for-sale marketplace in the US
SBA loans and business acquisition financing — get funded fast
ROBS financing — use retirement funds to buy a business tax-free
Bookkeeping for small business owners — hands-off financials
Some links may be affiliate links. We only recommend tools we'd use ourselves.
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