Blackstone bets $550M on mobile homes – The Real Deal

Blackstones Jonathan Gray (Getty; iStock)

Blackstone is turning its attention to one of the most recession-resistant sectors of real estate.

The giant asset manager is planning to buy about 40 mobile-home parks from Summit Communities for about $550 million, according to Bloomberg. Most of the properties are in Florida, the publication reported, citing confidential sources.

Blackstone will make the investment through Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, also known as BREIT. Real estate investment trust Sun Communities also made an offer for the mobile-home communities.

Blackstone shelled out $200 million for seven mobile home parks largely in Florida and Arizona earlier this year, according to Bloomberg.

Large investment firms like Brookfield and Sam Zells Equity LifeStyle Properties have been eying mobile homes in recent years won over by the sectors high returns and limited supply.

There are just 6,250 mobile home parks in the U.S., according to a 2019 Cushman & Wakefield report. And despite their name, mobile homes are not that easy to move, and their occupants often cannot afford the upfront costs to relocate. That leaves them vulnerable to rent increases that boost profits for owners of trailer parks.

More than $800 million worth of such properties traded in the second quarter of this year, an increase of 23 percent from a previous year, according to JLL, Bloomberg reported. [Bloomberg] Keith Larsen

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Blackstone bets $550M on mobile homes - The Real Deal