 |
Multifamily InsightsAuthor: John Casmon
Each week, John Casmon speaks with real estate pros and marketing specialists to provide useful tips for multifamily investing. Listen and learn insights for market research, finding deals, attracting capital, and growing your portfolio. Language: en-us Genres: Business, Entrepreneurship, Investing Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
Listen Now...
How to Add Value Beyond Raising Rents with Andrew Cramer, Ep. 814
Tuesday, 20 October, 2026
Andrew Cramer is the founder of Bridgeview Asset Management, which invests in value-add manufactured housing communities across the greater Pacific Northwest. He has completed more than 40 manufactured housing community (MHC) transactions, and his team focuses on home technology, park development, and operations. Andrew entered manufactured housing in 2011 with no real estate background, buying his first mobile home park with a 12% loan from a family connection. Over roughly 15 years, he has also invested in apartments and single-family homes. Today, he pairs investment management with active advocacy for manufactured housing as an affordable housing solution. In this episode, Andrew Cramer explains why the stigma around manufactured housing comes from pre-1976 construction, and how the federal HUD code reshaped the product. He walks through Bridgeview's value-add playbook, from recovering lost density and submetering utilities to community improvements that qualify parks for agency financing. Andrew also shares why the order of operations decides whether residents work with you or against you, and where the recession-resistant reputation of manufactured housing holds up. Make sure to download our free guide, 7 Questions Every Passive Investor Should Ask, here. Key Takeaways Invest in the community before raising rents Use recovered density to add lots without a full land use process Submeter utilities to cut expenses and give residents control Target agency financing to raise value without relying on rent growth Work with city officials, even when you are right Topics The Stigma Around Manufactured Housing Most of the bias traces back to homes built before the 1976 HUD code Every manufactured home since then follows a single federal standard Factory building means controlled conditions and centralized inspection Manufactured Housing as a Wealth-Building Tool A two-bedroom manufactured home often costs the same or less per month than a two-bedroom apartment Andrew says that resident can accumulate about $55,000 over five years The stigma steers lower-income renters away from ownership Invest in the Community First Paved roads, playgrounds, and locking mailboxes rarely add rent directly Those improvements earn resident buy-in for future rent increases Raising rents on day one creates an immediate adversarial relationship Andrew finds illicit activity usually stems from mismanagement and fades once investment begins How Improvements Unlock Agency Financing Upgrades can push a park into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac qualification Better rates and terms raise value even if rents do not move Agency-quality assets attract a larger pool of buyers What Modern Manufactured Homes Look Like Andrew dates the modern manufactured home to around 2005 Recent HUD revisions removed the chassis requirement and allow stacked two-story homes He says the functional difference between manufactured and modular homes is gone Local inspectors may push back, and cooperation works better than confrontation Bridgeview's Value-Add Playbook Recovered density: documenting historic spaces to add lots as an existing nonconforming use Expense reduction: submetering water, which typically cuts usage by 25% or more Community investment: improvements that support agency qualification Rehabbing vacant homes early to improve the community and prove market rent Converting renters into homeowners wherever possible Is Manufactured Housing Recession Resistant? Affordable housing captures people moving up and people moving down Homeowner-heavy communities see much lower turnover than apartments Lower turnover also slows rent growth in strong economies Residents can unify against an operator, so management quality matters 📢 Announcement: Learn about our Apartment Investing Mastermind here. Round of Insights Failure that set Andrew up for success: Picking a fight with a city, even when he was right. He won in court and is still paying for it, because the city is not going anywhere. Digital or mobile resource: ChatGPT, used as an educational resource rather than a tool to do the work for you. Book recommendation: Good to Great by Jim Collins. Daily habit: Writing down ten things to accomplish the next day before going to bed. #1 insight for investing in manufactured homes: Get educated. Tour a manufactured home factory near you, and stay in a manufactured home through Airbnb. Favorite restaurant in the Portland, OR area: Sushi spots in Vancouver, WA. Next Steps Learn more about Bridgeview Asset Management here: bridgeviewassetmanagement.com Follow Andrew on LinkedIn for his writing on manufactured housing Schedule a tour of a manufactured home factory near you Browse current models from manufacturers such as Cavco, Marlette, and Palm Harbor Identify community improvements that drive retention and financing upside Sequence improvements before rent increases Thank you for joining us for another great episode! If you're enjoying the show, please LEAVE A RATING OR REVIEW, and be sure to hit that subscribe button so you don't miss an episode.
