Niche Investment Network has been busy working on our Facebook page.

Head on over and ‘like’ the Niche Investment Network.  Once we hit 200 likes- we’ll be giving away an official article of clothing from Frank and Dave’s Trailer Wear department!

See you there!

We want to know YOUR top 3 ways to keep your park full of tenants.

We know that some people struggle with keeping their parks full, so we would like to hear your tips. If you have a full park, tell us how you keep it that way.

The winner of this month’s content will be whoever can provide us the top 3 ways to keep a mobile home park full of tenants.
If you win, you’ll receive a custom mobile home park T-shirt from Frank & Dave’s Trailer Wear department. These shirts are so rare that you can’t buy them! So give it a shot, and send in, or email, your entry ASAP.

Rules:
-Must send your entry to mhpscontest@gmail.com.
-Email must include contact details. (Email address and phone number) Please include how you would like to be contacted if you are one of the winners.
-Entries must be submitted to mhpscontest@gmail.com no later than January 31, 2011 at 11:59pm CST.
-After January 31, a creative team will narrow down entries and determine the top entry. The winner will then be contacted for their shipping address.

We see all types of deals out there. Small parks. Large parks. RV parks. But the deals that make money all seem to share the same DNA. Here’s a short course in the basics of making money with mobile home parks – just in time for the New Year.

To make money, buy only parks that won’t lose money

I know it sounds elementary, but the first rule of making money is to make sure you buy a park that will not lose money. What this means is that the park in question already has a positive cash flow sufficient to cover the note payment and provide a return on capital. What does this eliminate? You got it – parks that sell at a price higher than a 10% cap rate, and parks that are vacant. If you buy a park at a 4% cap rate, then how are you going to make any money? Never buy into the concept of land appreciation. While that might sell well in California and Florida, that’s not the mobile home park business – that’s land speculation. We are in the income property business, and the only way values rise is when income rises. If you are starting out at a 4% cap rate, then it will take you a lifetime just to get the park in a position where it is worth what you paid for it. Don’t be a sucker.

Focus on parks that have upside that you can control

A good mobile home park will have upside in raising rents and cutting costs. These are variables that you can control. RVs and mobile homes moving in are things you can’t. Raising your rents is one of the best ways to make money – every dollar you bring in goes straight to the bottom line with no time, effort or risk on your part. Sub-metering water and billing it back to the customer is another great strategy. It costs money up front, but is a fast pay back. Cutting costs, such as replacing the manager with a less expensive alternative or appealing property taxes, are another great way to increase the net income, without a lot of effort and capital investment.

Buying a park at a 10% cap rate is great – but you need some additional upside, even if it’s only raising the rent annually.

Do terrific due diligence

If you do lousy due diligence – or none at all – you will probably never make any money with a mobile home park, unless it is through sheer luck. Due diligence is what allows you to confirm that the park is a good buy, and to detect a clunker and ditch it early on. When you do great due diligence, the odds that you will make money are huge, and that you will fail slight. When we talk to people who have done well with their park, they all share a propensity to do great diligence. When people call us who have parks that don’t work and won’t sell, you find that they have done no basic research at all prior to buying the park.

And be a decent operator

You don’t have to be a great manager to have a successful park. But you can’t be terrible. You have to know how to collect rent and stay on top of rules violations, and hold expenses down. You would be shocked at some of the income and expense statements we see on parks we do due diligence on. And the property condition is even worse. Even if you buy the greatest deal in the world, it’s not going anywhere if you don’t know how to run it.

Conclusion

The mobile home park industry is being fueled by the decline of the U.S. economy – and this is a huge market shift, not just a fad. There is plenty of money to be made in mobile home parks. But you have to go about it the right way.

We’re looking for the ugliest entry signage to a mobile home park. Have you driven into a really ugly one recently?

If so, we’d like to see what it looked like. Send us a photo. If it was so ugly that it broke the camera lens, then draw us a picture.

The winner of this month’s content will be whoever can provide us with a photo of the ugliest entry signage for a mobile home park in the U.S.

If you win, you’ll receive a custom mobile home park T-shirt from Frank & Dave’s Trailer Wear department. These shirts are so rare that you can’t buy them!  So give it a shot, and send in, or email, your entry ASAP.

Rules:

-Must send it a picture of the ugliest signage you have ever seen to mhpscontest@gmail.com.

-Email must include contact details.  (Email address and phone number)  Please include how you would like to be contacted if you are one of the winners.

-Entries must be submitted to mhpscontest@gmail.com no later than December 31,  2011 at 11:59pm CST.

-After December  31, a creative team will narrow down entries and determine the top entry. The winner will then be contacted for their shipping address.

Rv parks can have good cash flow, without most of the traditional headaches of being a landlord. The downside? (Every investment has one.) The income can be variable and unpredictable.

We used to travel in a conversion van that we sometimes camped in. When staying at RV parks, I noticed that the managers always seemed relatively relaxed and cheerful. I think this may be because the job is not that stressful. It certainly isn’t like being a landlord.

First, as an owner/operator of an RV park, you don’t own any housing or vehicles that need to be repaired. Every tenant is responsible for their own Recreational Vehicle. You need only maintain the common areas, and can do that how you want.

Second, even if they stay for months, you can collect in advance and ask them to leave on a day’s notice if they cause trouble or don’t pay. Regular tenant/landlord law does not apply. These are very mobile residences, unlike regular “mobile homes.”

Finally, you have visitors, not tenants. They are vacationing or escaping winter, and are generally in a good mood more often than apartment or house renters would be.

On the other hand, these are visitors, who have no lease. They can leave at any time. In other words, your income can be very unpredictable from month to month. It also can vary a lot seasonally, so you have to budget well. Some RV parks are just closed for half of each year – and this may be the time when taxes and insurance need to be paid.

In buying an RV park, you have to see the actual income from the previous several years. One year is not enough. You want to see that the income has been steady or is growing. You don’t want to buy a dying business.

Look at the tax returns to get the truest – or at least the safest – record of income and expenses. Determine the net income before debt service. Decide what you can invest, and what kind of return you want for your trouble. Subtract that “profit” from the net before debt service. What remains is how much you can pay on whatever loans you need to buy the property.

The amount you can borrow – with payments that fit into that number – plus the amount you have for a down payment, determines the most you can pay for the property. Don’t forget to account for any additional costs you will have that the current owners don’t have, such as higher insurance rates or property taxes. Also, base your calculations on existing income, even if you have a plan to increase it – that is the safest way.

How much do RV parks sell for? I have seen them as low $85,000 for a really small one. Others are priced in the millions. As you look in a given area, you will notice that they are often selling for a similar amount per space. In some parts of Arizona, for example, parks sell for as cheap as $8,000 per space, because of a limited season. In other parts of the country, they sell for as much as $30,000 per space.

You can use this as a rough guide to see if a park is priced in line with others in the area, but in the end it can be very misleading. Good management can make a nice park worth $20,000 per space, while one a mile away may be in a bad location and worth only $14,000 per space. You have to see the actual income and expenses before investing in RV parks.

A mobile home park in Florida just sold for $11.56 million. What a profit! I love this business- What are you waiting for???

:    What is the best or most funny excuse you have received for a tenant not paying their rent?  We want to hear them all.

The top winner will be determined and awarded our new Mobile Home Park Store shirt.

Good Luck!!!

Rules:

-Must state in email your tenants best or most funny excuse  to mhpscontest@gmail.com.

-Email must include contact details.  (Email address and phone number. )  Please include how you would like to be contacted if you are one of the winners.

-Entries must be submitted to mhpscontest@gmail.com no later than November  30,  2011 at 11:59pm CST.

-After November 30, a creative team will narrow down entries and determine the top entry. The winner will then be contacted for their shipping address.

Mobilehomeparkstore.com has started a FREE monthly newsletter.  If you would like a copy, please send me an email at mhpsfeedback@gmail.com!

October contest:    What would be your most compelling argument to a national lender to make a loan on a new or used mobile/manufactured home?

 The top winner will be determined and awarded our new Mobile Home Park Store shirt.

 Good Luck!!!

 Rules:

-Must state in email your most compelling argument to mhpscontest@gmail.com.

-Email must include contact details.  (Email address and phone number. )  Please include how you would like to be contacted if you are one of the winners.

-Entries must be submitted to mhpscontest@gmail.com no later than October 31,  2011 at 11:59pm CST.

-After October 31, a creative team will narrow down entries and determine the top entry. The winner will then be contacted for their shipping address.

Outdoorbillboard.com, America’s #1 source of information on the billboard industry, has announced the publication of a new, free monthly newsletter. The newsletter will feature articles, tips and other timely information. The author is Frank Rolfe, who built from scratch the largest privately-owned billboard company in Dallas/Ft. Worth.

“We’ve wanted to put out a free monthly newsletter for years” said Frank Rolfe. “We finally got it all together and the first issue is going to go out on November 1, 2011 – and every month thereafter”. The billboard industry is booming as a result of the damage the internet has done to the competing media options, such as newspaper, radio and television, with outdoor rates doubling over the past decade. In addition, longer commute times and greater traffic have resulted in a huge audience – and growing.

To get your free copy, register on-line at www.Outdoorbillboard.com or call (800) 950-1364.

It is always a good time to go over the basics.  It became obvious recently that my commuter files could use a little cleaning up and in the process of this cleanup I came across several articles that I’ve written over the years.  One stood out as being viable today, with a little up dating.  The list was called “How to Make an Underwriter Happy”.  Also, our perception of responsibility has changed.  So now we need to recognize that the tenant is part of the equation and they too have responsibilities.  Following are two sets of responsibilities that hopefully will help you make your community safer.

MANUFACTURED HOUSING

                                                           RISK MANAGEMENT CHECK LIST TO A SAFER FACILITY

1. Community Owner Responsibilities 

• Do you have Rules & Regulations including Pet Rules, and are they enforced?
•  If you have rental units are they equipped with smoke alarms and fire extinguishers and are all stairs equipped with andrails and non-skid tape? 
• Are all lights (street and other common areas) in working order and provide adequate illumination? 
• Are all paved surfaces in good repair – no cracks, potholes or raised surfaces? 
• Are speed bumps, wheel chair ramps and stairs marked with “bright contrasting paint”? 
• Are speed limits posted, visible and enforceable? 
• Do playgrounds and equipment meet playground minimum underwriting standards? 
• Are trees properly maintained and inspected for disease and damage? 
• Are septic systems pumped and maintained at an adequate frequency? 
• Is the clubhouse, laundry room or other common area buildings provided with fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, emergency lighting and are exits adequately marked? 
• Is the recreational vehicle or tenant storage area adequately secured and lighted? 
• Does the pool area meet the Swimming Pool minimum underwriting standards? 
• Are all contractors (home movers, landscapers, tree services, septic or propane providers) required to provide certificates of insurance equal to your insurance limits? 
• Do management personnel routinely inspect the community to determine what repairs are needed; and is a maintenance log maintained?

MANUFACTURED HOUSING

                                                      RISK MANAGEMENT CHECK LIST TO A SAFER FACILITY

1. Tenants Responsibilities

• Is the tenant’s site free of debris, broken appliances and inoperable vehicles? 
• Are pets confined to tenant’s site and are pets of a non-aggressive nature – i.e. NO Pit Bulls, Dobermans, Chow Chows, Rottweilers or Wolf-hybrids? 
• Is tenant owned sporting equipment – i.e. portable basketball hoops – confined to the tenant’s site?  This does not apply to trampolines.  They should not be allowed in the community under any circumstances. 
• Are children supervised in playgrounds or swimming pool areas? 
• If the tenant has a swimming pool, does it meet the life safety minimums as required by county code? 
• Are tenants prohibited from having commercial activities on premises?  i.e. Day Care, Auto repair. 
• Is tenant parking confined to the tenant site, leaving streets open for emergency vehicles?

I am constantly amazed by my good luck in owning manufactured home communities during a period in American history where every single megatrend pushes me forward. For those who were not around in the 1980s, the term “Megatrend” means “a trend of unusually large size and staying power” – basically a regular trend on steroids. And there are more than a few in play right now.

The Demand for Affordable Housing in Manufactured Home Communities

Ask any community owner, and you’ll find that their phone rings off the hook whenever they run an ad offering a manufactured home for sale or rent. We have some properties that garner over 100 calls per week from such ads. So how is that possible? I believe that this megatrend is the result of some changes in the apartment industry. First of all, apartments are not that cheap anymore. The average two-bedroom apartment rent in the U.S. in 2010 was $1,030 per month. Compare this to a two-bedroom manufactured home at $495 per month including lot rent. The other reason is that the existing apartment stock at the lowest price points is absolutely awful. Poor condition, terrible location – something that no self-respecting human would live in.

The Never Ending U.S. Recession

This megatrend is a painful one, but is accelerating daily – the decline of the U.S. economy. As America produces more low-paying jobs (and eliminates more high paying jobs) the general population becomes less affluent. And with 20% of the U.S. population earning only $20,000 per year or less, the numbers reflect a housing budget that only manufactured housing can satisfy. If you assume that, at $20,000 per year, housing should not exceed 30% of income, these people can only afford $500 per month. Which puts them right back into the sweet spot of manufactured home communities.

Constant New Household Formation

Warren Buffet gave an interview recently on the ever-increasing amount of new household formation in the U.S., and the inability of this group to afford current housing options. So where can these new households afford to live? Manufactured home communities. And these new nuclear family units are being formed by the thousands, every day.

The Aging of the U.S. Population

With the “baby boomers” the largest segment of the population – and turning 60 –  we are entering an era in which more people than ever before are trying to make do on very low fixed incomes on retirement. Where can you live on $1,000 per month of social security benefits? Again, you’re right back in the manufactured home community sweet spot.

The Collapse of the U.S. Mortgage Market and Housing Values

Now that you can no longer obtain no-documentation, zero-down mortgages for new and used stick-built homes, the game is over for those who used the system to buy more home than they could afford. There was a time in which you could buy a $300,000 brick house for less down and less scrutiny than a $30,000 manufactured home. Well, those days are over. The swarm of people that avoided manufactured home living in favor of these easy credit custom homes can no longer do so. And the people who obtained such loans are now defaulting and ending up back in manufactured home communities again.

Rediculously Low Interest Rates

This megatrend works in two different directions. First, it makes mortgages on manufactured home communities less expensive. Indeed, interest rates are at historic lows — and then get lower again. The other benefit is that CDs and T-Bills are paying maybe 2% on a 10 year instrument – hardly compelling numbers on savings versus the returns generated with a typical manufactured home community. And what about the stock market? Does anyone even need to ask anymore?

New City Administrator Attitudes

This megatrend caught us totally off-guard. Fifteen years ago, I was treated like a leper at any city hall in the U.S., because they absolutely hated having manufactured home community owners. Now I get treated like a VIP. Why? Two reasons. First, the U.S. government is strong-arming cities to provide more affordable housing. If they want to keep their federal funding, they’ve got to address where less affluent citizens can live. Secondly, they are finally realizing that manufactured home communities can provide housing that is significantly cleaner and more slightly than apartments. Where’s the real crime center in most cities and towns? Apartment complexes, not manufactured home communities.

Acceptance as an Asset Class

Manufactured home communities continue to gain ground as an investment-grade real estate class. With the lowest default rate among all forms of commercial real estate, this megatrend continues to increase velocity. And it brings in new portfolio buyers, as well as lenders, constantly.

Conclusion

How did we all get so lucky as to have all these megatrends line up at the same time? Fifteen years ago, when I purchase my first manufactured home community, it was definitely not the case. But now, it seems that every new megatrend is in our favor. And I don’t see any of them ending for a long time, if ever. My final megatrend? The value of manufactured home communities. I see them continuing to rise, driven by ever-increasing net income and favorable outside forces.

Frank Rolfe is regarded as one of the leading Manufactured Housing Industry experts. Frank is involved with leading websites on Mobile Home Parks and Mobile Homes for Sale

Most Americans have more stuff than they know what to do with. As a result, they need extra space to store their stuff in. This basic need is the back-bone of the self-storage industry. But just because the demand is there doesn’t mean that making money filling that void is simple and guaranteed. The self-storage industry is more complicated than it looks, and there are many important issues to understand and address.

The Right Type of Facility

There have been a number of different types of self-storage facilities built over the last four decades. However, the profitable ones are among the first variety – they are called “Generation One” or “Generation Two”. The important component is that they have all rentable units located on the ground floor, and in a manner that a car can drive right up to the roll-up door. Why is this? Studies have found that self-storage tenants want to be able to drive right up to their self-storage unit door, roll it up, throw their stuff into it (or pull it out of the it), close the door and drive off. What’s not in demand are units that are located on a second floor or higher, or that you can only reach on foot. Nobody wants to have to take an elevator to their unit, or walk down a hallway with their stuff in tow. There never really was a demand for these type of facilities – it was more a fabrication by self-storage developers trying to rationalize building facilities on more expensive land, which required a greater number of units on that “footprint”.

Just as multi-story facilities have proven to be a flop, so have “climate controlled” units. It appears that the items that most Americans store are not valuable enough to require heating and air-conditioning. If you go to most facilities today, you will find the bulk of the “climate controlled” space vacant. At the worst end of this spectrum are the California invention of “wine storage” units. I was in a facility recently that had only 20% occupancy in “wine storage”. The cheap wine refrigerator available at Costo and other retailers has replaced this concept for most people. And don’t forget that “climate controlled” areas are extremely expensive to operate.

The Right Kind of Location

It is extremely important in self-storage to have excellent street frontage and visibility. The most successful self-storage facilities in the U.S. all share this common trait. This is because many Americans rent space in facilities that they drive by all the time and have awareness of – kind of a “point of purchase” decision. When you have a self-storage facility with poor visibility and an out-of-the-way location, there is no way that anyone will “think” to rent from you, or even find you if they wanted to.

Don’t forget that self-storage is extremely competitive in most markets. Given this fact, it is important that your facility have the correct basic gifts to compete. We all enjoy the stories of underdogs who go on to victory – like the one-handed baseball player – but it is far easier to win when you don’t have a disadvantage from day one.

The Right Kind of Market

Self-storage requires a high density of potential customers. Not everyone needs it, and there are competitors who are also asking for their business.  There is a general rule that there should be a population of at least 50,000 people within a three mile radius of the facility. While this is only a guideline, the key thought is that you need a heavy population density for a facility to be successful.

As important as population density, is the density of self-storage space in the market. An over-built market will have low rents and excessive vacancy. The general rule of thumb is that there should not be more than 6 square feet of storage space for every person in that market. For example, a market of 100,000 people should not have more than 600,000 square feet of self-storage capacity.

Demographics are also a key part of a healthy self-storage market. Markets with household income of $50,000+ per year are best. Why? Because the more money you make, the more stuff you buy – and the more stuff you need to store!

The Right Kind of Price and Terms

An essential part of any self-storage acquisition – probably the most important of all – is the price and terms of the deal. Even the best self-storage facility will be a loser if you over-pay for it. You should never buy a self-storage facility at less than around a 10% cap rate (return on the total price). In addition, you should be able to finance the deal with around 20% down, so that your cash-on-cash return is in the mid-teens.

The best buys in self-storage facilities are from “moms & pops” – individuals who own the property free and clear and do not provide very sophisticated management. You can normally buy from these moms & pops at very attractive prices, and they can seller-finance the purchase, avoiding the entire banking application and approval cycle.

Conclusion

Making money investing in self-storage facilities is a very attainable goal. But you need to make sure that you follow some basic guidelines to ensure that your purchase will be a good one.

There are over 60,000,000 Americans with household incomes under $20,000 per year. To this giant market, a mobile home is the only form of detached housing that they will ever be able to afford. And, as a result, the demand for mobile homes has never been higher. But how can you take advantage of this opportunity?

The Basics of Affordable Housing

Before you can begin to invest in mobile homes, you must first understand your customer. For those families with household incomes under $20,000 per year using the government’s own ratio of housing cost to income of 33% their housing budget is around $500 per month. At the same time, the average cost of an apartment in the U.S. in 2010 was around $1,030 per month. The point is that this market segment is extremely thankful to find something that they can afford, and is not very discriminating on the quality of the product. They are looking for basic shelter literally a roof over their head, a solid floor, running water and sewer, and heat in the winter. These customers are not expecting fine carpets, hardwood floors, upscale cabinetry. As a result, a successful investor in mobile homes will not focus on providing more than the basics. That is not to say that the home should not be clean and attractive. But the American obsession with upscale bathrooms and kitchens has no place in affordable housing.

And before you think that this customer is different than you and I, look around you. If you earn $10 per hour or less, you are in this segment. And that is a giant pool of jobs in America today. Almost everyone who works at the grocery store, McDonald’s everywhere you go earns in this range. And as America’s economy continues to decline, this number grows.

Why Mobile Homes Are The Answer to Affordable Housing

Mobile homes are the lowest cost form of detached housing to build. It costs less than $30 per square foot to build a mobile home, as opposed to around $100 for a stick-built home. And used homes often sell in the area of $10 to $15 per square foot. HUD has controlled the construction standards of mobile homes since the 1970s, with the goal of keeping costs at a minimum. If there’s been a way to shave costs, it’s been done.

The other key is the quality of life that a mobile home can provide the resident as compared to other inexpensive housing options. Unlike an apartment, the customer has nobody banging on their walls or ceiling. They have a yard. They can have a pet. Basically, mobile homes allow residents to have self-respect, and a neighborhood feel that supports a healthy lifestyle.

Why Mobile Homes Are Easy To Renovate

Mobile homes have some unusual attributes that other forms of housing do not share. One is that they have no permanent foundation. A mobile homes foundation is nothing more than a steel chassis, to which the wooden floor is attached. There are so slabs and no piers nothing expensive to settle or crack. Leveling a mobile home costs in the hundreds compared to a stick-built homes thousands. All utilities run in a common trough as opposed to the myriad of wires and pipes in a stick-built home. This makes it easy to locate and repair the water, sewer and electric pipes and lines.

One of the most unusual components of a mobile home is the fact that none of the walls are load-bearing. A mobile home is structurally similar to a shoe box the walls and roof are the only components needed to make it stand up. This gives you much more freedom in renovations, as virtually all internal walls are simply cosmetic.

An Unbelievable Amount of Demand

If the U.S. is in a recession, you would never know it if you run an ad for a mobile home for sale or rent. Even in a small market, you should receive 30 to 50 calls a week in response to your ad. At a mobile home park in Pueblo, Colorado recently, the number of calls exceeded 150 in one week. Why all the calls? Because there is a huge, unsatisfied demand for affordable housing. But that’s not the whole story. The other cause of the giant demand is the poor quality of traditional apartment offerings. Have you seen an affordable housing apartment complex recently? Anyone who thinks that mobile home parks are unattractive has not visited apartments. The true crime center of most cities today are the lower-income apartment developments, with drug dealers standing out in front and prostitutes, gangs and drug addicts living inside. This is a horrible environment for any family or individual to live in, and many buyers and renters of mobile homes are fleeing from these terrible situations. In fact, most cities now view aging apartment complexes as their #1 problem- not trailer parks.

Healthy Numbers

Mobile homes are an attractive investment due to very attractive numbers. Essentially, it is easy to sell a mobile home for much more than you paid for it. A mobile home that you buy and renovate for $8,000 can be sold for $15,000 and a home that costs $12,000 can be sold for $30,000. You can buy them relatively cheaply because most people do not want to invest in this asset type. At the same time, there is a huge supply/demand gap, so you can price them high without much competition. The important fundamental and the one that needs to be your guide in every decision you make is to stick with the business model of affordable housing. You have to construct the monthly payment , including mobile home park lot rent, to not exceed around $500 per month. This is what the customer can afford. If you place the consumer in a position of having a bigger monthly obligation than they can afford as was just demonstrated in the sub-prime mortgage meltdown you will end up in endless defaults. This serves no one, as you are constantly having to clean and re-sell the home and your customers are denied the affordable housing, and long term benefit, that they are searching for.

Gaining Knowledge In This Niche

There are two websites that contain a large amount of information on this investment sector. One is www.Mobilehomeparkstore.com  and the other is www.MHBay.com  which together make up the largest portfolio of websites for the industry. There is also a new site that contains a vast assortment of articles and tips on investing in mobile homes at www.Mobilehomer.com .

Conclusion

Affordable housing is going to be one of the key investment sectors in real estate in the coming years. Get in now, on the ground floor. You can obtain spectacular returns and — equally important — provide nice housing to hard-working Americans who need it badly. This is a giant market, and one that you will be hearing a lot more about in the future.

A question that I get all the time is “what’s going to happen to all these manufactured home communities when the old homes are thrown away and there’s no new ones being sold to replace them?” That question drives me crazy, because I can’t figure out why people think that old homes can only last for so many years and then off they go to the trash can – like some appliance. I do not believe that old manufactured homes have a shelf life. I think they can last forever, given the right maintenance.

What’s the shelf life of a stick-built home?

Everyone assumes that a stick-built home in some subdivision can last forever. There are, in fact, homes in the U.S. that are from the 1700’s – from the beginning of our nation. Those homes are 300+ years in age. And over in Europe, there are homes that are several hundred years older than that. So what goes into a stick-built home that makes them eligible for such long life spans? Basically just lumber. The same kind of lumber that goes into a manufactured home. Humans have been building with lumber since they first learned how to use tools. So I guess we’re all in agreement that lumber has no shelf life.

But if a stick-built home and a manufactured home are both built out of lumber, what makes the stick-built permanent and the manufactured home temporary?

Maybe the foundation is the key

“But a stick-built home has a slab or pier-and-beam foundation”, you may say.  Well, the manufactured home has a metal “foundation” in the form of the steel outriggers that hold up the floors. And by not touching the ground, the wooden supports and floors of the manufactured home are even less prone to rot and decay. In addition, stick-built foundations are subject to cracks and complete failure due to shifts in the soil. Not true in manufactured homes.

Can it be the roofs?

No, I think you’d find that manufactured home roofs – whether metal or shingle – have the exact same longevity as stick-built roofs have. In fact, since manufactured homes are significantly smaller, they are even less prone to problems since there is less square footage at work. Additionally, since manufactured home roofs are smaller and cheaper to fix, there is every reason to believe that they get more maintenance than stick-built roofs do. Also, there are few gutters on manufactured homes – other than some of the newest models – so there’s no stopped-up gutters to cause problems.

What about the siding?

On the classic design of metal-on-metal, the home is surrounded by steel – far more durable than the wood that surrounds stick-built homes of that same vintage. On modern manufactured homes, it’s the same vinyl siding that stick-built homes enjoy. There was, however, a period in which some models used a very poor imitation wood product. This siding, while suitable if kept free of moisture, is the only weak link in the structural chain. But the good news is that it can be readily replaced with better materials if rot has set in. And it is only a small subset of the manufactured home inventory out there.

What about floor-plan obsolescence?

Yes, the really old manufactured home inventory has really small rooms. But so does the stick-built housing of that same era. The concept of huge bedrooms and living rooms is fairly new. Have you ever looked at a 4-bedroom, 1,000 sq. ft. stick-built house in Boston? As long as a manufactured home has a bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom, it has the basics needed for habitation. And let’s face it, most of our customers are not the pickiest people in the world. They are looking for affordable housing and willing to make do with what they can find that meets their budget.

So why does everyone think that manufactured homes can’t last forever?

I think you can lay some of the blame on the dealer network in the U.S., who has always been trying to convince customers to “trade-in that old home” for a new one. For a long time – and especially during the go-go late 90’s – dealers saw a great opportunity in getting customers to trade-in their old “paid-for” homes so they could buy a new one. This created a feeling that these homes were more like cars than dwellings, and should be traded in every few years. Now, of course, that pressure no longer exists.

Conclusion

Manufactured homes can live forever. You don’t have to be selling new homes constantly to repopulate the vacant lots left by old inventory that had to be thrown in the trash. It is possible to have a healthy community business in the complete absence of new home construction, just as a built-out stick-built subdivision doesn’t really care if Centex sales are going well a few subdivisions only. I can tell you that we only lose about one or two old homes per year out of our 5,000 lots – and those are normally to fire.

The myth about shelf-life of manufactured homes is not based on fact, only on opinion of uneducated “experts”. Ask anyone who owns a manufactured home community for the real story.

We are in an age of uncertainty and change. The biggest force in today’s market are trends which can shift once powerful business models into failures at very fast speeds. You have to be on top of these trends to succeed. And there are definite market trends at play in the RV park industry.

Gas prices are high – but moderating

It’s very expensive to fill up the gas tank on an RV – but it’s stabilized now. Initially, there was huge sticker shock as gas rocketed from $1 to almost $4 per gallon. But now the giant increases are over. So RVs are taking to the road again. This is good news if you own an RV park. But the way they’re travelling is changing. Read on.

RVs are staying in one spot longer and not driving as much

This is a very important shift that you need to be aware of. RV owners are trying to hold their gasoline costs down by going to one RV park and staying there for a longer time. Rather than hop between areas of interest, they are picking one single destination; driving directly there and then driving directly home. So the key is to own a “destination RV park” as opposed to one that is nothing but a sleepover on the way to the destination, or a lesser destination that nobody is that interested in. A “destination” RV park would be a location that has a large number of exciting activities to participate in, and is a very scenic, attractive spot. For example, Yellowstone National Park is a “destination” RV area.

RV buyers are becoming a younger group with less expensive units

The biggest growth pattern in RV sales have been in the low-cost inventory. This is because many families are turning to RVs to lower their cost of travel and accommodate a bigger interest in nature and “camping”. This means that the growth area in RV parks, going forward, is on areas of natural beauty and activities. Remember all those RV parks that people built next to outlet malls and casinos? New data suggests that was not a great idea.

RV customers are staying at parks with national marketing and memberships

The top 50 RV park companies only own 25% of the total number of RV parks in the U.S. What this means is a high level of fragmentation. Just as customers seek out a McDonalds on the road to assure them of cleanliness, safety and an enjoyable experience, RV customers seek out national brands such as KOA and Good Sam Club. Since any RV park owner can join these clubs – under certain conditions – it would be an important step to understand and join the clubs that give RV customers confidence in their stay.

Conclusion

There are around 8 million RVs in the U.S. You only need to capture a tiny fraction of those to have an RV park that is a raging success. But stay on top of trends to make sure that you are on the right side of the curve.

Everybody has had them. I can remember the name of every one of them. These are the tenants that won’t play by the rules, and have no limitations to the amount of grief they can cause you – most actually delight in calling a hundred times a day, and complaining about things that most people would never dream to even talk about.

So until every mobile home park tenant becomes a solid citizen, this is a primer on how to handle them, and avoid the type of liability and unpleasantness that they can cause.

Which Type Are They?

For the sake of simplicity, I’m going to divide problem tenants into two groups: 1) behavioral  and 2) verbal. “Behavioral” problem tenants take actions that jeopardize the welfare and aesthetics of the community. “Verbal” problem tenants do their damage by harassment of the park management.

Both types are not conducive to a well-managed, profitable park, and must be immediately disarmed and/or removed from the property. However, in many cases, the proper steps can cure their issues and make them a normal, paying tenant again.

“Behavioral” Problems

The first type of behavioral problem is the tenant who engages in criminal activity. The most common of these is manufacturing/dealing in drugs. Signs of this type of behavior include a constant stream of cars dropping by the house – normally at night – for very short intervals, as well as people milling around in the street at night, in the vicinity of the mobile home.

The important step here is to do nothing yourself, but to only take action through the local police department. You should never get directly involved with this type of tenant, due to risks of physical harm to you and potential liability. Call the police department and tell them what you have been observing. If there really is something to what you suspect, the police will take care of it.

But if the police fail to take action, then your next step is to non-renew the tenant’s lease. Assuming that the tenant is on a month-to-month agreement, you can simply not renew, and they have to move out at the end of the next full month. Even then, it is smart to have a local attorney file this notice and to handle any subsequent legal action to evict them.

The Tenant Who Won’t Keep Their Property Up

Equally disruptive – but not as scary – is the tenant who refuses to keep their property in an acceptable condition. Debris everywhere in the yard, a house with a paint job that you can hardly tell what the original color was, or grass that is 3’ tall. It is impossible to ask the rest of the park community to keep up their property when you allow this individual to get away with murder. So what do you do?

The first step is to notify the tenant in writing that they are not in keeping with the park rules. This assumes that your park has rules; if not, you need to adopt some immediately. It is essential to keep everything in writing so that you have a legal paper trail in case you should have to go to court for any reason.

Give the tenant a detailed request of what needs to be done to be in compliance with park rules, as well as a timetable to complete the work. Of course, they will rarely meet this deadline, but it’s the critical first step to show the court that you are trying to be reasonable.

Once the deadline has passed – and the clean-up has not been completed (or probably even started) – then you have two choices: 1) non-renew the tenant’s lease or 2) take matters into your own hands. To take matters into your own hands, I’m suggesting that you clean up their yard, mow the grass, or re-paint their house at your own expense. You can then either bill the cost back to the tenant, or just write it off. How do you choose what to do? The key is the tenant. If your tenant is old and infirmed, then they simply do not have the ability or funds to make the needed repairs. If they have paid their rent like clockwork for the past several years, why cut off that income stream by evicting a good-paying tenant? If, however, the tenant is young and able to do the work themselves – but too lazy to do it – then you might want to bill it back to the tenant to send a clear message that breaking of the rules is not tolerated. You might break the charges up into several monthly installments to make it more affordable. But you cannot let people continue to ruin the park for everyone.

The Verbal Problem Tenant

These are the tenants who complain continuously about anything and everything. They don’t necessarily disturb the other tenants – their aggression is focused on the park management. I have had these type of tenants who will call at 11 PM and then again at 6 AM; they have virtually no boundaries.

These are much  easier to dispatch than the behavioral problem tenants. You simply have to turn the tables on them. Here’s how.

When the tenant calls  to complain, tell them “you are clearly unhappy living here, you really should move to a mobile home park where you would be happier.” This throws the tenant off immediately, as they think that their power over you is that you don’t want to lose them. When you let them know that you don’t care about their rent anymore, they are now in a position of weakness. In addition, it costs around $3,000 to move and set a mobile home. So for them to move, they will need to come up with $3,000 cash. Who’s in a position of weakness now?

Conclusion

Problem tenants can be solved. Don’t let a tenant ruin your day. Take action and turn the tables on them. It’s good for you, and it’s good for the community 

Which Type Are They?

For the sake of simplicity, I’m going to divide problem tenants into two groups: 1) behavioral  and 2) verbal. “Behavioral” problem tenants take actions that jeopardize the welfare and aesthetics of the community. “Verbal” problem tenants do their damage by harassment of the park management.

Both types are not conducive to a well-managed, profitable park, and must be immediately disarmed and/or removed from the property. However, in many cases, the proper steps can cure their issues and make them a normal, paying tenant again.

“Behavioral” Problems

The first type of behavioral problem is the tenant who engages in criminal activity. The most common of these is manufacturing/dealing in drugs. Signs of this type of behavior include a constant stream of cars dropping by the house – normally at night – for very short intervals, as well as people milling around in the street at night, in the vicinity of the mobile home.

The important step here is to do nothing yourself, but to only take action through the local police department. You should never get directly involved with this type of tenant, due to risks of physical harm to you and potential liability. Call the police department and tell them what you have been observing. If there really is something to what you suspect, the police will take care of it.

But if the police fail to take action, then your next step is to non-renew the tenant’s lease. Assuming that the tenant is on a month-to-month agreement, you can simply not renew, and they have to move out at the end of the next full month. Even then, it is smart to have a local attorney file this notice and to handle any subsequent legal action to evict them.

The Tenant Who Won’t Keep Their Property Up

Equally disruptive – but not as scary – is the tenant who refuses to keep their property in an acceptable condition. Debris everywhere in the yard, a house with a paint job that you can hardly tell what the original color was, or grass that is 3’ tall. It is impossible to ask the rest of the park community to keep up their property when you allow this individual to get away with murder. So what do you do?

The first step is to notify the tenant in writing that they are not in keeping with the park rules. This assumes that your park has rules; if not, you need to adopt some immediately. It is essential to keep everything in writing so that you have a legal paper trail in case you should have to go to court for any reason.

Give the tenant a detailed request of what needs to be done to be in compliance with park rules, as well as a timetable to complete the work. Of course, they will rarely meet this deadline, but it’s the critical first step to show the court that you are trying to be reasonable.

Once the deadline has passed – and the clean-up has not been completed (or probably even started) – then you have two choices: 1) non-renew the tenant’s lease or 2) take matters into your own hands. To take matters into your own hands, I’m suggesting that you clean up their yard, mow the grass, or re-paint their house at your own expense. You can then either bill the cost back to the tenant, or just write it off. How do you choose what to do? The key is the tenant. If your tenant is old and infirmed, then they simply do not have the ability or funds to make the needed repairs. If they have paid their rent like clockwork for the past several years, why cut off that income stream by evicting a good-paying tenant? If, however, the tenant is young and able to do the work themselves – but too lazy to do it – then you might want to bill it back to the tenant to send a clear message that breaking of the rules is not tolerated. You might break the charges up into several monthly installments to make it more affordable. But you cannot let people continue to ruin the park for everyone.

The Verbal Problem Tenant

These are the tenants who complain continuously about anything and everything. They don’t necessarily disturb the other tenants – their aggression is focused on the park management. I have had these type of tenants who will call at 11 PM and then again at 6 AM; they have virtually no boundaries.

These are much  easier to dispatch than the behavioral problem tenants. You simply have to turn the tables on them. Here’s how.

When the tenant calls  to complain, tell them “you are clearly unhappy living here, you really should move to a mobile home park where you would be happier.” This throws the tenant off immediately, as they think that their power over you is that you don’t want to lose them. When you let them know that you don’t care about their rent anymore, they are now in a position of weakness. In addition, it costs around $3,000 to move and set a mobile home. So for them to move, they will need to come up with $3,000 cash. Who’s in a position of weakness now?

Conclusion

Problem tenants can be solved. Don’t let a tenant ruin your day. Take action and turn the tables on them. It’s good for you, and it’s good for the community

Secrets of Successful Ads

Throughout my life, I’ve seen billions of ads. Several of these ads are good, and several are bad. Since advertising is expensive, it is important for us learn how to produce successful ads so we don’t waste any money on bad advertisements. This article will show you the secrets of producing successful ads.

Secret #1 – Simplicity

This is a very powerful yet most overlooked rule of design. The truth is that a clean, crisp, non-cluttered ad will outperform a clutter, hard to read ad.

The main purpose of an ad is to get people to purchase your product or service. The next objective of an ad is make

people want to learn more about your product or service.

Secret #2 – Focus on a Benefit

Benefits sell, features do not!

People want to know what’s in it for them. They would rather know how your product can help them (benefits) instead of what your product can do (features.)

For example, let’s say you are a real estate agent and your company has just won the best real estate award possible. I know you’re proud of the award and you should be, but please don’t make the award a big part of your ads. People that are buying or selling property would rather know that your agency will list their property on-line for convince and to time-savings.

Secret #3 – Appeal to your target market

Don’t try to make your ad appeal to everyone. Design your layout so it will appeal to your target market. Your ad response rate will be greater this way.

Remember each of us is in a different stages of life, and we all want different things. Once you find out what stage of life your target market is in, then you can make your ads reflect their emotional status.

Secret #4 – Emotional Appeal

Design your ads in a way that will show consumers how your product or service will make them feel. This is a very effective marketing technique because ads us subliminal messages that will make us feel a certain way about your product or service.

Kay’s Jewelers ads are a good example of this technique. These ads always show happy people that exchange jewelry, hugs and kisses. When we view or hear these ads, we feel warm, loving, and happy. After seeing these ads several times, we start to associate warm, loving and happy feelings towards Kay Jewelers.

Secret #5 – Eye Catching & Unique

Ever since I was little, I was always told to “color inside of the lines” and “you have to color apples red instead of blue.” When I colored things the same way every else did, my work got lost in the crowd because it looked the same as everyone else’s.

In advertising the rules have changed. It’s ok to be different; in fact it’s great to “think outside of the box.” Some of the best advertisements are so effective because they are completely different from all the other ads.

Decide what is the single most important part of your ad. Then find a way to make it stand out more than anything else. Arrange the ad so the human eye will see the most important item first, then the second most important item, and so on.

Secret #6 – Colors

According to psychology.about.com, “Psychologists have suggested that color impression can account for 60% of the acceptance or rejection of that product or service.” The human eye is attracted to the colors red and yellow before any other color. Yellow backgrounds with black text is the most effective color combination.

Each color has different meanings to different cultures. For advertising purposes, it is extremely important to design your ads in a way that appeals to your target market. Try to choose colors that will compliment the message you are sending to your consumers.

Secret #7 – Copy

Use as little words as possible. Try to use words that catch attention like powerful, amazing, shocking, and revealing.

Be sure the copy you use will be legible for your audience. Use fonts that are clear, easy to read and big enough for each particular ad.

Also be sure your ads have a smooth flow. Viewers may get confused if your ads constantly jump from one topic to another.

Secret #8 – Creditability

An ad will not be effective if no one believes it. You can have the most creative, colorful, and eye-catching ad, but if people read your ad and say “Yeah, Right,” than your ad will not be profitable. For example, an ad that says “Earn $100,000 a week with XYZ product” will not be as believable as an ad that says “Increase your sales by 20% with XYZ product.”

Secret #9 – Problems Sell

People always want help with things and are always looking for easier ways to do things. Make your ads help them and solve a certain problem your consumers have.

Try to start your ads with a question that allows your product to be the answer. Here are a common few examples:

· “Is your cold keeping you up all night?”

· “Are you tired watching your weight?”

· “Do you want to be your own boss?”

· “Is your cellular phone bill as low as possible?”

· “Are you unhappy with your current internet service?”

Secret #10 – Call to Action

Don’t forget to tell people what you want them to do after they see your ad. Don’t be afraid to come right out and say “Order Now,” “Call Today!” or “Visit our web-site at www.bpsoutdoor.com.”

Secret #11 – Advertiser Recognition

Don’t forget to put your name and / or logo on all your ads. Make sure they are big enough to be seen. There’s nothing worse than seeing a great ad and wondering who the advertiser was.

Secret #12 – Tie it all together

Make sure your graphics, words, slogans, and so on make sense when used together. If your viewers have to ask what your ad has to do with your product than it won’t be effective.

Secret #13 – Memorable

Successful ads make a lasting impression on everyone. Give your ads something special and unique that will help make your ads memorable.

Good examples of this are: The AFLAC duck, the “Whats up?” telephone commercials, Wendy’s “Where’s the beef?” from the 80′s, and Verizon’s “Can you hear me now?” commercials.

Secret #14 – Repetition

Your ads will look more professional if you use the same fonts and colors as often as possible.

The average person must see an ad 7 times before they remember it. Once you’ve found an ad that produces results, use it everywhere and as often as possible. This will brand your ad into consumers’ minds.

Are you confined to certain rv parks because you need electricity?  Or are you using a generator that costs too much in gas? Would you like to be independent of these confinements and gas costs? 

Consider trying RV Solar Panel Kits, they can give you the freedom to travel anywhere you want for as long as you want without worry. Your generator will now act as an accessory rather than a necessity and may eliminate it all together.

A Solar Power Panel or Kit is designed to keep your RV batteries charged so you can have light and operate other RV appliances.  This allows you to go anywhere you want in the USA. Every year thousands of people install solar charging systems on their RVs. Why? A solar system can put an end to battery worries, allowing you to dry camp without giving up the luxury of electricity. From simple battery maintenance to full-time live aboard power, Solar RV Kits come in a range of sizes and can be installed on RVs, campers, trailers, 5th wheels and motorhomes.  Click here for more on RV solar panels.

SELECTING A SOLAR POWER BATTERY-WHAT TO CONSIDER

When Selecting a Solar Battery Charger for Your RV Consider These Items:
1. Batteries are exposed to varying temperature extremes:
If not taken into consideration, this can lead to plate sulfation and/or excess water loss. It is important to include battery temperature compensation in the charge controller.

2. Operating of solar panels:
Solar panels operate at higher than normal temperatures when laid flat on the roof of RVs, from which they suffer a voltage drop. Make sure your solar panels are rated at about 17 volts or higher in order to allow for this voltage drop and still be able to fully charge your battery.

3. Use of charge controllers:
The use of incorrect charge controllers may lead to unsatisfactory performance and possible battery damage.

What Type of System Do You Need?

The selection of a power system starts with a look at your current power needs and the type of camping you enjoy (i.e. weekend, extended or fulltime). If your power demands increase for any reason, solar systems are easily expanded.

If you are interested in having freedom to travel anywhere in the USA consider Solar Power.  For more information on Solar Power kits, chargers, etc…. please come join us at Insideyourrv.com.

One of the most overlooked improvements you can make to your RV Park or Campground is professional-quality signage.  Good looking signage gives customers a great first impression, and has a real purpose — giving good information and directions.  It’s the amenity that keeps on giving; making your job easier and looking good while doing it.

Many RV Park and Campground owners don’t want to spend the time or money creating good signage. They are prone to just hand write some letters on a good old piece of plywood and nail it to a tree or lean it up against a wall.  Boy, that sure looks good to your customers!

Nobody would disagree that great signage has many benefits to the RV park owner including:

· Makes a great first, and lasting, impression on your customers, making them feel good about their choice and increasing the odds they’ll come back.

· Gives the customer accurate instructions on when to check in, where to go etc.

· Leads to higher appraised value when financing.

· Can cause the RV park to sell for a higher price to a new owner.

So if we all agree on this, then why would you not have good quality signs in your RV park? Normally it’s money that stands in the way.  Here is some ideas on how to improve your signage on the cheap:

· Make the standard post to hold up all of your signs a 4” x 4” wood post sleeved in white PVC. Then put a nice white PVC cap on the sleeve.  This low cost finishing touch makes your old wooden post look great.  And the PVC never needs paint.  You can even use this trick on any existing 4” x 4”.

· Convert all your signs to vinyl lettering on painted aluminum.  I use white lettering on a forest green aluminum background, but there are many other choices.  The key is that the finished product lasts virtually forever and requires no painting or maintenance.  And you can get signs like these inexpensively at Kinkos or Fast Signs.  They are strong and can be easily attached to almost any surface.

· Consider putting your entire budget into your entry sign.  This is where you make the first impression of your business, and customers may not come in if the sign looks less than professional.  For entry signs. I use routed PVC.  I chose this because it is permanent, needs no maintenance or painting, an is hard to vandalize.  The signs I installed a decade ago look as great today as they did then.  And you can choose a color scheme to complement your park and your other signage.

Before you re-paint that old plywood sign, consider the cost of perpetual maintenance and periodic replacement of your poor quality sign against the program I have just outlined.  You will soon see that the permanent solution is better financially.

Great signage can mean better sales and greater re-sale value.  Invest in good signage, and the dividends will be endless!

The last time I was at a National Park, I noticed that there is a certain “feel” to being there.  It’s a happy, safe feeling, kind of like being a kid at your Grandmother’s house.  And I think you get that feeling from the attitude of the Park Rangers and employees.

So what makes National Park employees different and so attractive as role models for RV Park Management?  I think the reasons are numerous:

• The Uniform:  You don’t have to wear a specific uniform, but some reasonable dress code sure helps, coupled with the RV Park name on a shirt or a badge.  It creates trust with the customer that you are legitimate and gives you a “big company” feel that people tend to favor.  It sends the subliminal message to the customer that you care about their stay and stand behind that pledge.  You can buy off the internet custom cotton polo shirts with the RV Park name sewn on and they look as good as FedEx.  Couple that with some khaki pants and you have a top-notch look.
  
• The Park Service teaches a positive, friendly attitude.  Then you are happy.  It makes the customer happy too.  Nobody wants to be greeted with “what do you want?” upon arrival.  “Hi, how can I help you” sure works a lot better for customer retention and repeat business.
  
• Fair solutions to customer problems.  At the Park Service, the customer is always right within certain set boundaries.  A study has shown that a customer has greater satisfaction with a business that screwed up at all.  When a customer is unhappy for any reason, be sure to fix the problem happily and quickly.  Word will get around.
  
• Quality signage.  Not to beat this to death, but having professional looking signage sure makes you look a lot better as a business.  And it costs very little to make great signage over junk signage.  The Park Service has some of the best RV signage to be found anywhere.

If you are trying to improve the look and success of your RV Park, I would recommend you look no further than the Park Service for your inspiration.  While, they are not perfect, most of the National Parks I have been to do a great job, and every RV Park would be money ahead to follow their lead.

Rv parks can have good cash flow, without most of the traditional headaches of being a landlord. The downside? (Every investment has one.) The income can be variable and unpredictable.We used to travel in a conversion van that we sometimes camped in. When staying at RV parks, I noticed that the managers always seemed relatively relaxed and cheerful. I think this may be because the job is not that stressful. It certainly isn’t like being a landlord.

First, as an owner/operator of an RV park, you don’t own any housing or vehicles that need to be repaired. Every tenant is responsible for their own Recreational Vehicle. You need only maintain the common areas, and can do that how you want.

Second, even if they stay for months, you can collect in advance and ask them to leave on a day’s notice if they cause trouble or don’t pay. Regular tenant/landlord law does not apply. These are very mobile residences, unlike regular “mobile homes.”

Finally, you have visitors, not tenants. They are vacationing or escaping winter, and are generally in a good mood more often than apartment or house renters would be.

On the other hand, these are visitors, who have no lease. They can leave at any time. In other words, your income can be very unpredictable from month to month. It also can vary a lot seasonally, so you have to budget well. Some RV parks are just closed for half of each year – and this may be the time when taxes and insurance need to be paid.

In buying an RV park, you have to see the actual income from the previous several years. One year is not enough. You want to see that the income has been steady or is growing. You don’t want to buy a dying business.

Look at the tax returns to get the truest – or at least the safest – record of income and expenses. Determine the net income before debt service. Decide what you can invest, and what kind of return you want for your trouble. Subtract that “profit” from the net before debt service. What remains is how much you can pay on whatever loans you need to buy the property.

The amount you can borrow – with payments that fit into that number – plus the amount you have for a down payment, determines the most you can pay for the property. Don’t forget to account for any additional costs you will have that the current owners don’t have, such as higher insurance rates or property taxes. Also, base your calculations on existing income, even if you have a plan to increase it – that is the safest way.

How much do RV parks sell for? I have seen them as low $85,000 for a really small one. Others are priced in the millions. As you look in a given area, you will notice that they are often selling for a similar amount per space. In some parts of Arizona, for example, parks sell for as cheap as $8,000 per space, because of a limited season. In other parts of the country, they sell for as much as $30,000 per space.

You can use this as a rough guide to see if a park is priced in line with others in the area, but in the end it can be very misleading. Good management can make a nice park worth $20,000 per space, while one a mile away may be in a bad location and worth only $14,000 per space. You have to see the actual income and expenses before investing in RV parks.



The United States is in a depression. Money is short. And advertisers want real value for their dollar. One of the best ways of attracting advertisers – and providing a great return on their advertising dollar – is to reduce the cost of their advertisement. But how can you do that, when you have a minimum amount you can take for the sign?

Well, here are some ideas on how you can reduce the cost to the advertiser, and still meet your budget for revenue on the sign. And they are all a win/win for both your client and you.

Create a “combo” advertisement.

Why not split the billboard in half – and have two advertisers instead of one? This automatically reduces the cost to each advertiser by 50%. All you have to do to pull this off is find two advertisers who share a common exit. Then you pitch them each to share one billboard with a common exit number across the bottom. The most successful of these approaches are when you can match two businesses with similar goals who are not competitive, such as a motel and a restaurant. But even two competitive businesses, such as two restaurants or two motels, can profit from getting customers off the highway and then let them choose which one they prefer.

By splitting the advertisement in half, you have reduced the cost to each advertiser by 50%, and that means that they only have to sell half as much merchandise to pay for the billboard. And you have not had to reduce your revenue by a penny. Some of the longest-running billboards in America are these type of “combo” signs – they offer such an outstanding value to advertisers that they renew continually.

Creat a “large-scale combo” advertisement.

Sometimes, you can take the “combo” concept to the next level by combining a large number of advertisers into one common theme. An example is a billboard that I organized in the 1980’s for the merchants of Downtown Denton, Texas. The advertisement promoted tourists to visit Downtown Denton by getting off the highway at a certain exit. To pay for it, I organized the merchants together. Even though the billboard cost $1,000 per month, there were 50 merchants in Downtown Denton, so it cost only $20 per month each – a very, very reasonable sum.

The only downside to this type of structure is the extreme management nightmare of organizing and collecting from this many advertisers at one time. That’s why I choose to let the Downtown Denton billboard disband once the Texas economy strengthened – it was much easier to manage and collect from one advertiser rather than 50. But in an economic depression, like we’re in now, it’s a whole lot more fun to have a sign rented – despite the extra work – than have it sit empty.

Learn the available “coop” programs.

Many billboard salespeople are not even aware of the “coop” programs available by major brands. For example, western wear manufacturers such as Justin and Resistol often will pay a percentage of a billboard that promotes both their product and the western wear store that sells it. And it’s not just western wear. Automotive products such as Amalie and Goodyear also have similar programs, as do many other name brands. You need to learn which brands have these programs in place and then go to stores that sell these goods and see if they would rent a billboard if the brand would pay a percentage of the cost. Some of these programs pay up to 50% of the total cost of the billboard, so it is a great opportunity to cut the cost to the billboard advertiser substantially – while not costing you a penny in revenue.

You have to be careful in these programs to make sure that you follow the instructions that the brand requires to get money for your account. The logo must be of a certain size, and there is substantial paperwork required to make the program official. But the payoff is that the advertiser pays a fraction of the normal cost for the sign – with the brand paying the other portion – and your budget for the billboard is not impacted at all.

Conclusion

Everybody loves a bargain – your advertising clients included. Since all three of these techniques allow you to meet your revenue goals for your billboard, while at the same time allowing the advertiser to cut their cost substantially, you should immediately implement these ideas when you are trying to rent that vacant billboard face.

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There are over 8,000,000 RV owners in the U.S. And they all have to stay somewhere. But that’s no excuse for not treating every single one as though they are the most important customer in the world. That kind of attitude will propel you to the top of the pile in RV park owners – and reward you with outstanding occupancy and cash flow.

So how do you earn lifetime RV park customers?

Over-Deliver

It’s not enough that your customer should be pleased. You want them to be so excited about their experience that they tell all their friends! If you think about it, there are only a few things you have to do to over-deliver in an RV park:

• Have an attractive entry. It sets the first impression in the customer’s mind, and validates their idea to stay at your RV park all the others out there. There is no excuse not to have decent landscaping and an attractive sign. And the grass should always be manicured and edged.

• Greet your customer with a smile and a warm, sincere “welcome”. These folks are paying your mortgage, and they sure deserve more than a cold “what do you want?” This ties in to their first impression of their experience.

• Freely dispense travel advice. They are new to the area, and need a laundry list of things to do. And you need to know the times of operation and all the other information a concierge at a hotel can provide. It does not hurt to have a map and flyers to all the attractions handy that they can take with them. Isn’t that what you’d want?

• Check on them again after they’ve connected their utilities and settled in. Make sure everything is going O.K. It only takes a couple minutes, but they really appreciate the customer service – the same as when the restaurant manager checks on your during your dinner.

When There Is A Problem – Solve It

Studies have shown that a customer who is unhappy and then made happy is more loyal than one that never had a problem in the first place. This means that it is extremely important to solve every customer issue immediately and to their satisfaction.

Remember that the alternative to a happy customer is a walking billboard of negative feedback on your RV park. If you want to be successful, having an unhappy customer is just not an option.

Sure, everyone has a billboard face with poor visibility. Maybe you built the sign for the great visibility of the other side, or maybe it was a great read at one time, but there is at least one bad advertising face in every portfolio. So what do you do to maximize that one clunker?

Here are some ideas:

·          If the problem is blockage – try to fix it. As long as a tree is on private property, you have the right to ask the neighbor if you can trim or remove it. It never hurts to ask. You may offer them cash or some other concession if they will allow you to do so. Even if a tree is on highway right-of-way, it still never hurts to ask. You’d be amazed how many trees and other vegetation obstructions have been removed legally by just asking the proper authority. If the problem is blockage from a man-made obstacle, such as a flag or someone’s business sign – again, it’s the right step to ask if the obstruction can be moved or removed. One of my best billboard deals of all time was buying a vacant sign in downtown Dallas from a big company for next to nothing, because it had a terrible blockage from a “parking” sign right in the middle of it. Apparently, they had never bothered to ask the “parking” sign owner if it could be moved. I immediately got the green light from the owner, without a penny of compensation, just to be a good neighbor. I lowered the sign to where it did not block the billboard at all, yet did not damage to the effectiveness of the “parking” sign either.

·          If the problem is the angle of the billboard face to the highway – try to increase it. Many a billboard has gone from a dog sign to a winner by significantly increasing the angle of the “V” – the angle of the sign face in relation to the road. For example, a back-to-back sign , depending on the orientation of the highway, be virtually unreadable. However, with a sharp angle aimed at the traffic, that same read takes on a new life. If the law allows you to, it is possible to increase the V of the sign without a lot of construction – but be sure it’s legal to do so. In some markets, the ordinance allows such a trick since you are not increasing the size, height, or lighting of the ad face, just the angle (which is normally not even in the ordinance). If you have not built the sign yet, then put a big V on it from day one.

·          If the problem is the height of the billboard face over an obstruction that cannot be changed, such as a roof line of a neighboring building, see if you can build a smaller sign or a taller sign. Many times, a billboard owner does not realize that he can actually build the sign higher than he thinks. Often, this is due to a lack of understanding as to where the height of the sign is measured from. Sometimes, you are given some extra feet in height if the sign begins on land below the grade of the highway. Another thing to check is if there is a different configuration that eliminates the blockage. For example, instead of a 14’ x 48’, maybe you should build a 10’6” x 36’? You’ll pick up almost 4’ of additional clearance. A clearly visible 10’6” x 36’ is worth a whole lot more money than a badly blocked 14’ x 48’.

·          If there is no way to fix the visibility issue, then try and improve what you’ve got to sell. Paint the empty face day-glow yellow and put your phone number in huge black letters, the full height of the sign face. Or put some “rhinestones” on it so that the face glimmers in the light. If someone should rent the sign, then make sure their ad copy if only a few HUGE words, and paint it in obnoxious colors to get your attention.

·          Use this sign for public service messages or put in a barter program. Sometimes, when people are not paying cash, they are more tolerant of a bad sign than others.

As I’ve said many times, I’ve never met a sign I couldn’t rent. Even if your sign is the worst one in the world there is, at some price, someone who will rent it. At least demand is always strong, even when your visibility isn’t. Never give up, and often something goes your way. Remember the ugly duckling that becomes a swan. Well, you may not get a swan, but you could get a pricey chicken. You just don’t want a turkey!

With the price of gasoline and diesel fuel approaching $5 per gallon, many RV park owners are getting very concerned about how many guests will pull into their RV park this year. Although RV users are not as susceptible to fuel prices as the average American, due to higher disposable income and more willingness to spend it on their RV trips, it still makes sense to make the guests that come into your RV park stay for more nights. Remember that one RV that stays for four days is the same cash flow as having four different RVs stay overnight. Indeed, one of the best ways to hedge your revenue risk is to have guests stay more nights before moving on. So how do you do it?

The first step is to realistically assess what your area has to offer the average RV customer. If your park is a scenic area near a national park, then the key benefit is nature and nature-based activities. If you are in a big city, it may be museums or shopping. Whatever the benefits are, you need to sit down and make a list of things that people would want to experience in your area. And be brutally honest with yourself. You do not want to over promise customers all kinds of fun stuff, only to have them find it to be a lie and never come back again. Don’t put anything on your list that you would not proudly invite a friend or family member to do with you.

Once you have perfected this, you need to break these activities into bite-sized units of three to four hours duration. For example, if you are in a nature area and the hike around Sampson Springs takes four hours, then that would be one unit. You will want to offer your guests several units of fun things to do, but let them design their own day. Some people will have physical handicaps that will preclude some of the activities, and others just won’t have any interest in all the activities. However, they will greatly appreciate your “menu” of items to choose from, and may stay an extra day or two to sample your ideas. In fact, I have seen cases where, given a list of activities, the overnight guest stays for a couple weeks! A lot of RV park owners do not bother with this ridiculously simple exercise, so customers really appreciate it when they find someone who cares.

Once you have your “menu”, gather all the brochures and information you can on these things. The key concept is to entice the guest to stay longer by showing them photos and maps of all the fun things to do. Most of these brochures are available at no charge from the activity itself. Some RV parks in New Mexico have guests who stay for weeks just to fulfill all of the fun flyers that the RV parks offer. Be sure to have a wide array of activities for people of all ages. Include family activities for kids, as well as some senior oriented fare. The bigger your “menu”, the longer the average guest will stay.

Some RV parks have taken even greater steps to make the guests stay, by creating their own menu of activities. There are RV parks that offer live entertainment on weekends, and some that have miniature golf and other activities year round. Having some on-site activities will help guests remember their stay with you, and make sure that they come back year after year. It is also possible to work with the activity to sponsor some special benefits to guests, such as having a shuttle that comes directly to the RV Park. An example of this would be river float trips that the RV guest simply has to board to shuttle at the park and take off.

Of course, even if you have all of the amenities in the world, you still must offer a decent housing option to your guests. Your RV park must be clean and slightly, and the staff cheerful and helpful. Remember that many guests are paying more this year to stop by, due to fuel prices, so be sure and go the extra mile. The important point here is the “golden rule” – do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Never allow your RV park to offer a product or service that you, yourself, would not want to buy into. If the pool is a little shaggy, clean it up. See that litter? Pick it up. Guests really appreciate the extra effort, and it’s free most of the time for the owner.

So if you want to keep your revenue climbing despite fewer guests, no problem – just extend their stays. And the best news is that guests who enjoy themselves will tell all of their friends and come back year after year. And that’s a pretty big dividend for not that much work or investment. Make yourself a destination, and your park’s value will grow, despite $5 fuel.

There is a right way and a wrong way to build a billboard. Unfortunately, the punishment for not building the right way can be crushing – from $10,000 to move the sign to total loss of your investment if property damage leads to expensive litigation. Building a billboard the correct way is essential to prospering in the outdoor billboard business.

The first step in building a billboard is to gather all of the relevant information regarding billboard placement. You need to know the front and side setback regulations (both city and state), the exact dimensions of the structure (from the blueprints), and distance that the light fixtures stick out from the catwalks – everything that will determine sign placement.

The next step is to map out, with all this information in hand, exactly where the billboard column should go. When the driller gets there to drill the billboard foundation, the only question he will ask you is where the center of the column will go. You need to map out, well ahead of time and without any pressure, where that center should exactly be. One of the best methods is to buy some wooden stakes and a hammer, and map out where all the corners of the sign will be. This will help you to visualize all of the setbacks and their relation to the real sign.

Once you have figured out exactly where the center of the column should go, give yourself a break and increase the front and side setback by an extra foot or two. I learned this from experience, since you never really know 100% where the property lines are. If there is ever a dispute on the property boundary, you will have to hire a surveyor to find the exact property line, and it may be a foot or so different than where you assumed it is. Even if the property owner tells you with great authority exactly where their property begins, don’t count on it. I once had a land owner show me where the easements and underground pipes on his property were, and then I dug down and hit an 18” water main. The cost to move a billboard is extremely high – around $10,000 or so. However, nobody will ever notice a 2’ additional setback. It’s a simple case of risk vs. reward.

Before you start building the sign make sure that you have removed any obstruction to the sign that it is within your power to do. If you have permission from the neighbor to trim his tree, then trim it before the sign goes in. It always works best to do your trimming and removing before the sign calls a lot of attention to what you are doing. You never know what impact the actual sign may have on the agreeable neighbor – they may change their mind when they see the huge size of the sign they will be staring out forever.

Now that you have a mastery of the sign’s location, it’s time to get ready for the steel to arrive and the construction to begin. Prior to the arrival of the heavy equipment and some huge pieces of steel, it is important to obtain complete permission and cooperation from the landowner (and tenant) for the dislocation that will occur at his property on the day of construction. You should also make 100% that you have all of the necessary permits and that none have expired. Remember that in some cities, you must commence construction within so many days of the permit issuance, or it terminates. You cannot take the risk of building a sign that has no legal permit. You should also scout out all of the access issues – how will the big trucks get in? Hopefully, your sign erector has already walked the site with you.

Once the sign erector and foundation driller show up, you should never leave the job site. There are many problems that can come up during construction, and you need to be there to help make the choices on how to remedy them. The first potential risk is the possibility of hitting water or rock when drilling the foundation. While the driller should have a solution ready in the event that either should occur, you will have to give on-the-spot approval for the additional cost to fix the problem. Other reasons to stay on-site the entire time is to help resolve any problems with the property owner or neighbors (noise issues, etc.), and to make sure that the exact location you marked for the center of the pole is utilized. I have been on job sites where the driller pulls out the stake and then forgets exactly where it was.

Once the driller is at work, he may get lazy and not drill quite as deep as the plans recommend. This compromises the safety of the sign, as well as throwing off your height limit. Make sure and police that the hole is the correct depth. Even a 6” difference can be a huge problem. Watch him measure the depth, and make sure that he does not cheat.

Once the pole is in the hole, it is time to choose the “V” – the angles of the sign faces in relation to the traffic. This is something you never want to leave up to the installer. It’s not their sign, they will not be saddled with renting the ad space, so they get lazy and don’t do nearly as good as job as you can do yourself. The correct way to choose the “V” angles is from the road it is seen from. It sounds awkward, but you have to normally spot the angles from the middle of the road or highway. I normally use a cell phone to do this as the sign installer cannot hear you from 100 yards away.

When the pole is in the hole and aligned, it is time for the concrete truck. This is the final step that requires your presence. With the concrete, your focus is to make sure that they do not over-fill the hole, or make a big mess on the property. The concrete should stop about 2” from ground level, so that you can put dirt and grass back over the hole. And the biggest mess you can make on the property is a bunch of concrete dumped on the property. Often, just your presence makes the concrete guy more careful.

Once the concrete has been poured, you no longer have to be on-site through the end of the construction process. However, you still have some additional duties to build a sign properly. Make sure that the permit is clearly affixed to the billboard pole, so that the city inspector knows you have one and that you are following it. Also, take some sort of thank-you gift to the landowner or tenant to show your appreciation for letting you tear up their property for a few days. It makes a great first impression.

You should make a lot of money with your first billboard. So it is important that you do not waste any money on having to fix the setback, height, angle, and visibility that you could have easily prevented through informed thinking and attention to detail. Follow these directions, and your billboard should go smoothly and successfully.

If the thought of earning money in the billboard business excites you, you are in luck!  We are holding a Billboard Bootcamp in St. Louis, Missouri, August 13th and 14th.  For more information, contact Frank Rolfe at (573) 535- 0206 or at frank.rolfe@gmail.com.