Inside the trailer park house-flipping phenomenon that is earning Americans big bucks
Byron Sellers, 39, of Tampa, said he has seen an increase in mobile home owners since he started flipping homes in 2018.
'It is cheaper,' he told DailyMail.com. 'Lots of people are being pushed out (of the main housing market).'
Victoria, of New York City, who asked to go by her first name, agreed.
She rents her Upstate New York and New Jersey mobile homes for $1,350 a month. That price, for a three bedroom, one bathroom home, is steeply cheaper than even studio rentals in the metropolitan area.
'Everybody wants a mobile home,' she told DailyMail.com. 'You can even move it.'
Both Byron and Victoria got started in the industry after they realized how expensive flipping residential homes was and how much more cost effective trailers are.
Byron started flipping homes near the Chicago area after he lost his job in 2016. He and his wife bought their first two mobile homes in March 2018 for a joint price of $4,300 in a trailer park.
Within 45 days, their ready-to-live-in trailer sold for $9,500. After putting in $3,000 of renovations into the second one, it sold for $10,000, Byron told DailyMail.com.
Some trailers, they've gotten even cheaper than that.
'I've gotten some for free,' Byron revealed.
Since starting their business, they've made a low six figures from flipping homes alone, Byron said.
Another $400,000 from mobile home parks and their equity in them. And another $40,000 teaching others how to do what they do.
The reason Bryon and his wife, Sharnice, migrated into the mobile home market was because the former had wanted to get into real estate for a long time, but multi-family homes were largely outside his budget.
He first heard of mobile home flipping while driving for a rideshare company and listening to a podcast to pass the time. He shared it with Sharnice and the rest is history.
Victoria agreed that sometimes landlords are just want something to move fast, so they'll hand it off for free. So far, the New York mogul has gotten two mobile homes for free.
Victoria has made around $80,000 doing the same, and put roughly $30,000 into the renovations of her seven homes - three of which she still owns and rents out.
Victoria says she sees a lot of Latinos snapping up hers and they're mainly upper lower and middle class families.
Meanwhile Byron and Sharnice have found that many of their buyers are usually within the $20,000 to $40,000 salary range, typically between the ages of 30 and 69 and are white or Hispanic.
'You have a bigger buyer pool of cash buyers,' Byron told DailyMail.com.
But not every mobile home is a steal. Since moving to Tampa, Byron has seen some trailers for the prices of starter homes.
And some parks even have pools, pickleball courts, and convenience stores. Those areas, however, are typically geared toward those in retirement and typically go more than $100,000.
Even without those perks, living in a mobile home can be a cost-effective strategy for those pinching pennies but looking for an affordable home solution.
Trailers typically run for $50,000 to $100,000 cheaper than a traditional home, Byron said, and there are no Homeowner Association fees to pay. After purchasing the home, if buyers live in a park, they will have to pay to lease the land.
On top of that, mobile homes are classified as property, like cars are, so insurance prices and property taxes are much lower than standard homes. However, unlike homes, they don't retain their value.
But for those willing to invest time and money into renovating them, they can make plenty of money doing it.
They 'don't depreciate' as much as people might warn you, Victoria told DailyMail.com.
Byron recently acquired a trailer for around $85,000, after fixing the septic tank and putting in $40,000 of work into it, he and his wife sold it for $212,000.
Another one, which was move-in-ready, he spent $200 for a cleaning crew and turned the property around and sold it for $7,000.
He got the trailer for free as someone was being evicted, he said.
On average he puts anywhere between $3,000 to $20,000 into the renovation and hopes to sell it for three times the price he put into it.
Since moving to Tampa, as it is a harder market, the couple hopes to net at least 50 percent more than what they paid.
'After the hurricanes, it's harder,' Byron told DailyMail.com. 'The market has slowed down.'
However, people are 'still buying' and he doesn't foresee the market ever becoming obsolete.
'It's a niche market,' he admitted. 'I just see the future of them. People are going to need affordable housing.'
The most Victoria has ever spent on a renovation was $6,000, spending less than that on average.
When she redoes a home, she focuses on the bathroom and kitchen, as she says those are the most eye-catching to potential buyers.
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