I went to a local real estate auction where about 30 mobile homes were being auctioned off. Before the auction, I previewed 27 of the 30 mobiles. Some were dogs, but many were very nice. This was an absolute auction.
The mobile home that I got at this auction was a decent 1983 14 x 70, 3 bedroom, bath and a half. My winning bid was $4,750. The next day I put an ad in the local weekly shopper, “Owner Will Finance, $2,000 down, monthly payments $274.15, purchase price $24,900. The phone rang off the hook with about 10 calls.
When the smoke cleared, I sold the mobile home for the $24,900 asking price, the buyer made a $1,500 down payment, and I took back a note of $23,400 at 13%, amortized over 20 years with a balloon in five years. Monthly payments to me being $274.15.
I had a quote to buy the $23,400 note for $15,500 cash, but decided not to sell it at that discount. If I had, I would have made approximately a $12,000 profit for about three hours of work.
You gotta love this business. Yup, I have Lonnie’s two books [Deals on Wheels and Making Money on Mobile Homes].