Why this step decides your price
Occupancy is NOI. NOI is price. A rumor is an occupancy event:
- Long-term guests start shopping other parks “just in case.”
- Monthly residents delay renewals or stop reporting maintenance (why fix up for a new owner?).
- Staff gossip becomes guest gossip by Saturday check-in.
- Buyers then underwrite lower occupancy and higher turnover — and your price follows their fear, not your July peak.
Confidential process is not secrecy for its own sake. It is cash-flow protection while you still own the machine. It also filters unserious buyers before they burn your weekends and your staff’s nerves.
This guidance is operational seller-prep for an FSBO / owner-direct path (not listed on the MLS). It is not legal advice on NDAs or privacy statutes — have counsel review forms you actually sign.
What to do this week (checklist)
Write a confidential teaser — site counts and aggregate economics without naming the park. Include: region or state (not street address), approximate site count, 30A/50A mix at a high level, occupancy range, trailing NOI or gross (aggregate), utility structure in one line (e.g., “master electric with partial recovery”), and that this is an owner-direct / FSBO inquiry. Omit park name, exact city if it identifies you, parcel IDs, and tenant-level detail
Example: “~65-site owner-operated park, Pacific Northwest inland, ~70% monthly, mixed 30/50, T-12 NOI available under NDA” got serious replies. Naming the park in the first email started a Facebook rumor among three long-term tenants within 48 hours on another deal.
Use a mutual NDA before tax returns, rent rolls with names, or parcel data. Teaser first → interest → mutual NDA → deal room. Do not email three years of returns to a stranger who “might be interested.” Mutual means both sides protect confidential info; you are not only protecting buyer ego — you are protecting your tenant list and your negotiating position
Example: A buyer asked for “full books and the address” in the first reply. Owner insisted on NDA + POF first. The tire-kicker vanished; the funded buyer signed within a day.
Require proof of funds (POF) from buyers — as a filter, not theater. POF means evidence the buyer (or their fund/entity) can perform — bank letter, custodial statement, or comparable institutional proof appropriate to the price range. Sellers should require POF from buyers. Do not ask listing brokers or random intermediaries for their personal POF; they are not the principal. A pretty LOI with no POF is entertainment. POF with no substantive conversation after is still a pass — capital without seriousness wastes time; seriousness without capital wastes more
Example: Five “buyers” requested tours. Two produced POF. One of those never replied after receiving the teaser under NDA — still a pass. The remaining one earned a diligence path. Tours for the other three would have lit up the front desk grapevine.
Build a two-layer information room: teaser vs deal room. Teaser layer: anonymous economics, site counts, high-level utility notes, process (NDA → POF → materials). Deal room (post-NDA + POF): tax returns, T-12, rent roll, utility bills, infrastructure photos, title exceptions, known issues. Do not collapse the layers
Example: Dumping the full rent roll (with tenant names) into a group email “to save time” created a forwardable packet. One forward later, a tenant’s relative texted the office: “Heard you’re selling.”
Give staff a short talking-points card — and stick to it. If someone asks, staff should not invent. Sample posture (adapt with counsel): “Ownership is always looking at ways to improve the park. Any changes would be communicated properly. Please send guests to the office for official info.” No winking. No “between us.” Fire or retrain anyone who treats the sale as break-room content
Example: A weekend clerk told three check-ins “the owners are getting out.” Two monthlies gave notice “to get ahead of it.” The rumor discounted more value than a month of clerk wages.
Control physical tours like a sterile procedure. Limit tour windows, escort always, no unsupervised “look around,” no chatting up tenants about “what might change,” and no group broker open-house energy on an FSBO process. Prefer off-peak hours when possible
Example: An unescorted “investor” asked tenants about rents and “whether they’d stay if ownership changed.” Three complaints hit the office the same day. Escorted, silent tours only after that.
Choose quiet FSBO / owner-direct outreach over loud marketing — and if you use a broker door, keep it quiet and contractual. Public “Park for sale!” posts, roadside signs, and social media threads are occupancy hazards. A controlled private list, a confidential desk introduction, or a tightly scoped broker conversation under clear terms is different from broadcasting. If a broker is already involved or you are considering one, say so to the desk — and still protect tenants
Example: A Craigslist-style blast brought tire-kickers and a local Facebook share. Occupancy dipped before a single serious underwriting package went out.
Log every inquiry: date, name, entity, POF status, NDA status, materials sent. Treat buyer screening like a rent roll — written, not memory. It prevents double-sending sensitive files and shows pattern (who ghosts after POF, who negotiates in good faith)
Example: Without a log, an owner resent tax returns to a duplicate Gmail the buyer “forgot.” The duplicate was not the buyer.
Documents / proof buyers will demand (after NDA + POF)
Only after screens clear:
- Teaser confirmation + executed mutual NDA
- Buyer POF (and entity docs if purchasing in an LLC)
- Then: tax returns, T-12, rent roll, utility masters, infrastructure evidence (Steps 01–02)
- Preliminary title / survey if available
- Form of LOI or term sheet after they have earned the room
What belongs on a teaser vs deal room
| Teaser (pre-NDA) | Deal room (post-NDA + POF) |
|---|---|
| Region / state level | Exact address / parcels |
| Site count, amp mix (summary) | Site-by-site rent roll |
| Aggregate NOI / gross ranges | Full T-12 and tax returns |
| High-level utility model | Bills, meters, recovery reports |
| Process next steps | Tenant names, deposits, arrears |
Common mistakes that cost six figures
- Announcing the sale in the office or to “trusted” long-term tenants. Trust leaks. Occupancy is the casualty.
- Sending tax returns before NDA. You cannot unspread a PDF.
- Skipping POF because someone “sounds rich” or has a broker’s card. POF is for buyers, not vibes — and not a request aimed at brokers as stand-ins for capital.
- Treating POF as theater (accepting a blurry screenshot and immediately scheduling a circus tour).
- Open-house style tours that interview your tenants for free.
- Loud public marketing when a quiet owner-direct process would have preserved cash flow.
- No staff script. Silence without a script becomes rumor; a script without enforcement becomes theater.
How Way-Ya-Go helps (Glitch Audit — no Zoom)
Way-Ya-Go helps owners run a quiet, screened path: what to put on a teaser, when to open the deal room, and how to keep the front desk from becoming a rumor mill — alongside the financial and infrastructure Glitch Audit.
Email: wayyago@gmail.com Subject: Glitch Audit — Confidential process / Step 03
Attach / include:
- T-12 / rent roll / infrastructure notes (as available)
- Whether anyone on staff or any tenant already heard something
- Whether a broker has an exclusive or is circling
- Your preferred geography wording for a teaser (what you can say without identifying the park)
No exploratory Zoom. No public listing circus required. Buyer pays; no commissions to the seller on the direct path.
Request a confidential Glitch Audit
No brokers. No commissions to the seller. Attach T-12 / rent roll / infrastructure notes. No exploratory Zoom.
Prefer plain email? wayyago@gmail.com — same desk. No exploratory booking links.