Interview with Kirby Horton from The Firm: Value-Add and Infill Specialist Mobile Home Park Operator

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 the highly experienced, value-add mobile home park operator and Co-Chief Executive Officer from The Firm, Kirby Horton. 

Kirby spent five years in the US Navy, acquired a degree in economics, and worked for 28 years in the employee benefits industry before starting his manufactured housing investing career. Kriby started his career in the midst of a recession and now has over 16 years of experience in the mobile home park asset class. Kirby Horton has done it all from buying, selling and operating mobile home parks primarily in the southeastern United States.

Kirby shares with us how he overcame getting started during a recession and he also talks about his unique and highly effective mobile home park investing strategy: massive infill! Kirby also emphasizes the importance of getting to know the people you’re going to be working with. He is a huge fan of building a cohesive team and keeping good people for the long term within his mobile home park investing company. Kriby Horton explains the importance of educating yourself in the mobile home park industry before diving in, in order to avoid costly mistakes. Kirby and Andrew also do a deep dive into Kirby’s infill processes and how he has dealt with regulatory issues that many mobile home park investors face.

***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

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

01:25 - Kirby’s start in manufactured housing

08:33 - How to build an amazing team

10:22 - Acquisition and expansion

13:05 - Municipalities using third party enforcement for inspections and code enforcement

15:31 - Infill is a team effort

18:26 - Kirby’s current mobile home park strategy: renting new mobile homes and infilling vacant lots

21:27 - Direct bill utilities

24:17 - Learning from everyone and everything, always ask questions

25:41 - Research the track record, integrity and quality of the GP (general partner)

27:52 - An achievable infill number in the first year for The Firm

32:11 - Building underground

36:46 - Highest and best use, and regulatory problems

40:30 - When ignorance can be bliss

42:00 - Reaching out to Kirby Horton

43:10 - The importance of due diligence

43:58 - Conclusion

Links & Mentions from This Episode:

The Firm Inc: https://thefirmmhp.com/

Kirby’s email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefirmmhp/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheFirmIncTN

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-firm-inc

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:

“We came and found them and sought them. And we've empowered them to basically be the best that they can be and to join us in our mission to build better communities.” - Kirby Horton, on finding his amazing team at The Firm.

“Whenever a home comes in, it's important to coordinate with the factory and with the drivers.” - Kirby Horton

“It's just important, I think, to understand what your plan B and plan C is. If plan A fails, you know, what is the cost of remedy for plan B and plan C?” - Kirby Horton

“And a lagoon is not much more than a septic tank with the lid off.” - Kirby Horton