Public Relations

[Margret Bigham]

Every time any kind of crime is commited in our area (or I might say in our state) local T.V. stations always insist on telling people that the person committing the crime lives in a mobile home. They don't ever seem to mention when criminals live in a $300,000 brick mansion . Just wanted to know if you have any suggestions on countering this kind of blantant bigotry. Our R.V. park has never in thirteen years had a serious crime perpertrated from this location ; something I couldn't say about some of our "finer" neighborhoods. And in the thirteen years we''ve owned the park we've recieved one bad check. Most businesses would kill for that kind of record. And yet when I tell people I own a manufactured home business, eye brows go sky high and the remark is always made that its hard to get my rent. Noone who tools around the country in a $150,000 R.V. could be considered poor and the construction workers who live here make good wages (has anyone tried to hire an electrician lately) It seems to me that there should be some way to counter these ignorant and biased notions.

[David Oxhandler]

Margaret -
Shhh.... don't tell everyone what a great business this is. If you let the secret out they will all want to what we do. How much more competition do you want ?
Your detractors are not very well informed. The myths of MHC investment have been exposed. It is more difficult to buy a park today then ever before because of the competition to buy each one that comes on the market. Thanks to low interest rates, community prices are at an all time high. Here is a quote from Ed Hicks' web site called I Want To Buy Your Mobile Home Park!
There are many more buyers than sellers of m/h land lease (M/HLL) communities right now, and it probably isn’t going to improve in the near future, so you can expect a lot of competition. It’s no secret anymore that investing in M/HLL communities, at the right price and good financing, can be one of the most lucrative and safe of all the real estate investment opportunities. With so many buyers and so few communities for sale out there, it’s a seller’s market. Not only is there a lot of competition, there is also an on-going decrease in inventory created by changes in land use for older communities in areas where the underlying land may not be at its “highest and best”.
Let them say what they want. Just smile. You have a good business and a secure future. Please don't let anyone else in on our secret.