Interview with Affordable Housing Influencer Franco Perez of Franco Mobile Homes

Welcome back to the Passive Mobile Home Park Investing Podcast, hosted by Andrew Keel. On this episode of the Passive Mobile Home Park Investing Podcast, Andrew talks with Franco Perez of Franco Mobile Homes. 

Franco is a Forbes Featured Mobile Home Expert, Affordable Housing Influencer and Author, YouTuber and Manufactured Housing Innovator. He is on a mission to break the stereotype of mobile home ownership by showcasing the “green” energy efficient process of building mobile homes, along with the opportunities manufactured housing provides for low income families to build equity vs. renting. Franco Perez also discusses how affordable housing can uplift an entire community as he has seen in San Jose, California. With his YouTube channel, Franco Perez reaches the younger generation, showing them that owning your own home is feasible. 

After years of dedication to his vision, Franco has established a devoted team to unlock the pathway to homeownership and help families establish financial security through mobile home ownership.

Andrew and Franco discuss what they feel created the mobile home park stigma, the Mobile Home Park asset class in San Jose, the economics of the area, the importance of educating the younger generation and some of the pitfalls that new investors, owners, and manufactured housing developers may experience within the mobile home park industry.

***Andrew Keel and Keel Team Real Estate Investments (Keel Team, LLC) do not endorse any interviewee. This interview is for informational purposes only and should not be depended upon for investment purposes. ***

Andrew Keel is the owner of Keel Team, LLC, a Top 100 Owner of Manufactured Housing Communities with over 2,500 lots under management. His team currently manages over 40 manufactured housing communities across more than 10 states. His expertise is in turning around under-managed manufactured housing communities by utilizing proven systems to maximize the occupancy while reducing operating costs. He specializes in bringing in homes to fill vacant lots, implementing utility bill back programs, and improving overall management and operating efficiencies, all of which significantly boost the asset value and net operating income of the communities. Check out KeelTeam.com to learn more. 

Andrew has been featured on some of the Top Podcasts in the manufactured housing space, click here to listen to his most recent interviews:  https://www.keelteam.com/podcast-links. In order to successfully implement his management strategy, Andrew’s team usually moves on location during the first several months of ownership. Find out more about Andrew’s story at AndrewKeel.com.

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Would you like to see mobile home park projects in progress? If so, follow us on Instagram: @passivemhpinvesting for photos and awesome videos from our recent mobile home park acquisitions.

Talking Points:

00:21 - Welcome to the Passive Mobile Home Park Investing Podcast

01:50 - Franco Perez’s background and journey into the Mobile Home Park industry

06:31 - The gap between renting and what people can afford

10:19 - The importance of knowing the value of your mobile home

13:45 - The stigma of mobile home parks in San Jose, CA

16:45 - Environmentally friendly mobile home park building and green production

19:58 - The “Not In My Backyard” Mentality (NIMBY)

21:40 - The cumbersome process of renovating a manufactured home

24:13 - Appreciation and equity 

25:00 - Entities that want to close down Mobile Home Park communities

28:12 - The Economics of the Area: Where is the money flowing?

30:25 - Getting past the stigma of mobile home parks by reaching out to younger generations

32:35 - Reaching out to Franco Perez, contact info

33:18 - Conclusion 

Links & Mentions from This Episode: 

Franco Mobile Homes: https://www.francomobilehomes.com/ 

Franco’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgQ4otKTfwxGJkUqH-dGEYg 

Franco Mobile Homes Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sexymobilehomes/?hl=en 

Keel Team's official website: https://www.keelteam.com/  

Andrew Keel's official website: https://www.andrewkeel.com/  

Andrew Keel LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewkeel  

Andrew Keel Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PassiveMHPinvestingPodcast 

Andrew Keel Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/passivemhpinvesting/ 

Twitter: @MHPinvestors

Quotes: 

“People don't have an excuse to go into a mobile home community unless you know somebody that lives there.” - Franco Perez

“I use this analogy a lot, but cars were originally only built for the rich and wealthy and it was only until they built it on an assembly line in a streamlined way that we got cars accessible to everybody.” - Franco Perez

“But because it's in an assembly line, in a process way, we can now optimize. How do we waste less material?” - Franco Perez

“Our team does a good job of pushing the stigmas with the smart tech and all of that. So I'd love for you guys to be able to kind of see that firsthand.” - Franco Perez