Expert’s Guide to Mobile Home Investing: How to Find, Finance & Profit

Decide up front whether you’ll own the land or just the home. Owning the dirt — either as a land + home package or an entire park — gives you control over rules, rents, and long-term value, but you also inherit responsibility for roads, trees, and utilities.

Placing a home on a rented lot keeps your buy-in lower and your obligations lighter, yet exposes you to park approvals and future lot-rent increases. At the park level, the mix of tenant-owned homes (TOH) versus park-owned homes (POH) changes your workload; TOH reduces repairs and turns, while POH offers control but adds ongoing maintenance and collections.

How the asset is titled dictates the lender lane. A home titled as personal property usually means chattel financing or cash/seller terms — different rates, documents, and underwriting than a standard mortgage. Properly affixed land-home packages can qualify for conventional-style loans, which simplifies refinancing and resale. Parks are typically financed by community banks or credit unions that underwrite in-place NOI, occupancy, and infrastructure risk; expect more attention to your experience and, often, some recourse.

Line up lender and insurer conversations early so your buy box matches what you can actually close.

With individual homes, the big questions are legal and physical: can you prove ownership and compliance (title/VIN/HUD label), and is the structure sound (roof, tie-downs, underbelly, major systems)? You also need the park’s written approval and a clear picture of lot rent, fees, and any age/condition rules that affect your exit.

With parks, focus on income that actually shows up (rent roll, collections, occupancy trend), the infrastructure you’re buying (public vs. private water/sewer, road condition, trees), and whether the community’s use is properly zoned or grandfathered. The goal is simple: confirm what you’re buying, what it earns today, and what it will realistically cost to keep safe and compliant.

Manufactured housing is highly local. Confirm that the site or community is properly zoned or legally nonconforming (grandfathered), and understand density limits, setbacks, age/size restrictions, design standards, and any conditions of approval.

Small details — like whether new homes can be brought in, how many, and with what skirting or foundation — directly affect infill potential and appraisals. If utilities are private (well/septic), ask what permits and testing are required to repair, replace, or expand them.

Resident protections vary by state and sometimes by municipality. Know notice periods, deposit rules, abandonment procedures, and the allowed fees before you buy, and ensure your screening and advertising comply with fair-housing laws.

In parks, approval processes for buyers and subleases must be applied consistently and documented. Strong, clear rules help — but they only work if they’re legal, transparent, and enforced evenly.

If you won’t self-manage, your management agreement should spell out scope (collections, turns, approvals), KPIs (occupancy, delinquency, days-to-turn), and who carries compliance risk. Define vendor oversight for high-impact items like transport/setup, tree work, and utility repairs, and set approval thresholds for CapEx. Keep licenses, registrations, and inspections current — missing a renewal or failing a water test can derail operations and financing.

What it is: You own the home, not the land. The home is titled like a vehicle in many states, and you or your resident pays lot rent to a park.

Common options:

• Chattel lenders that specialize in manufactured housing.
• Cash or seller financing/notes (ensure you comply with federal/state lending rules).
• Occasional FHA Title I (owner-occupant only; limited investor use).

How to qualify (what lenders look for):

• Home & site: Age/condition, HUD label/VIN match, approved placement in a park with written lot-rent terms.
• You: Solid credit, verifiable income (for borrower-based loans), and a reasonable down payment.
• Paperwork: Clean title, bill of sale, park approval letter, insurance binder.

Heads-up: If you plan to sell with a note, some states require a licensed loan originator/servicer and specific disclosures. Budget for compliance early.

What it is: You own both the land and the home. With a permanent foundation and affixture recorded, lenders treat it like real estate.

Common options:

• Conventional/portfolio mortgages (requirements vary by lender and by the home’s specs, foundation, and appraisals).
• Agency-aligned programs for qualified homes (certain modern HUD-code homes meeting design/installation criteria).
• Investor loans (including DSCR-style products) when the property is clearly titled as real property.

How to qualify (what lenders look for):

• Property: Engineer’s foundation certification (where required), recorded affixture, proper skirting/installation, access, and utilities.
• Valuation: Appraisal comps for similar manufactured homes on land; clear rent comps if using DSCR.
• You: Credit/income or DSCR metrics, reserves, and insurance that matches the risk (wind zones, tie-downs).
• Paperwork: Title conversion/retirement proof, survey (if needed), permits/finaled installation, insurance binder.

Heads-up: Appraisal comps drive leverage. In rural markets with thin comps, expect conservative valuations and be ready with data (recent sales, build specs, installation docs).

What it is: You own the community land and infrastructure; homes may be tenant-owned (TOH) or park-owned (POH).

Common options:

• Community banks/credit unions (most common for small to mid-size parks).
• Debt funds/bridge loans for heavy value-add or infill plays.
• Agency and life-company loans for larger, stabilized communities with strong TOH mix (selectively available).

How to qualify (what lenders look for):

• Income & stability: Current rent roll, T-12 (trailing 12 months) financials, occupancy trend, and collections.
• Physical plant: Utilities (public vs. well/septic), road condition, trees, common areas — plus realistic CapEx and reserves.
• Borrower strength: Experience operating parks or similar assets, post-close liquidity, and net worth relative to the loan.
• Covenants: Expect DSCR and LTV targets, and often recourse from local banks.

Heads-up: Private utilities and heavy POH mixes don’t kill deals, but they tighten terms. Bring a clear plan (and budget) for infill, conversions, and infrastructure.

It’s a strategy where you buy a mobile/manufactured home (usually on a rented lot) at a discount and sell it with payments, keeping the promissory note and collecting monthly. It can work well in affordable markets, but you must follow federal and state lending rules (SAFE Act/Dodd-Frank, etc.), use proper disclosures, and — depending on your state — work through a licensed loan originator/servicer. You also need the park’s written approval and a clean title before you sell.

“Mobile home” technically refers to factory-built homes made before 1976 (pre-HUD code). “Manufactured home” means HUD-code homes built 1976 or later; you’ll see a HUD data plate and certification label. “Modular” homes are factory-built too, but to local/state building codes (often the International Residential Code), then set on a permanent foundation and inspected like site-built houses.

Financing and appraisal often follow those definitions: manufactured homes can be chattel (home-only) or real property (land + home), while modular homes on permanent foundations are typically financed like site-built properties.

Steps vary by state, but the pattern is similar:

1. Confirm the home is HUD-code (1976+) and eligible.
2. Install a compliant permanent foundation; many lenders require an engineer’s certification.
3. “Affix” or “retire” the home’s title with the DMV/agency and record the affidavit of affixture with the county so the home and land are legally one parcel.
4. Pull and finalize permits (installation, utilities, skirting), obtain any required certificate of occupancy, and update taxes/assessor records to real property.
5. Bind proper insurance and keep all docs (foundation cert, title-retirement proof, permits) for lenders and appraisers.