What do you need before you start marketing online?
Before you post anything, gather these items. Without them, a listing does more harm than good because a prospect who calls and gets wrong information does not call back.
- Current lot rent for available lots (all-ages and 55-plus rates if you have both)
- Photos of the community entrance, a representative lot, and any amenities
- The number of lots currently available and their sizes
- Your phone number and the hours someone answers it
- A short description of what is included in lot rent, such as water, trash, or lawn care
National lot rent averaged $782 per month in 2025, and $751 for all-ages communities specifically, per MHInsider — Manufactured Housing Industry Trends & Statistics (2026). Those are national averages. Your state or metro may differ significantly, so check local comps before using these numbers in listing copy. If your rate is below the local apartment average, say so plainly. That one sentence does more work than any marketing phrase.
How do you set up your MHVillage listing?
MHVillage.com is the only listing site endorsed by the Manufactured Housing Institute, and it draws over 25 million unique visitors per year, per MHVillage — Advertising Your Community (MHInsider/MHVillage). A basic community listing is free.
Most manufactured housing communities are already in the MHVillage database, per MHVillage — Advertising Your Community (MHInsider/MHVillage). You do not build a listing from scratch. You claim the one that already exists and update it.
Nationally, manufactured housing community occupancy averaged 95% in 2025, meaning roughly 1 in 20 lots is vacant, per Northmarq — Manufactured Housing Community Occupancies Hold Steady Q2 2024. Online marketing competes directly to fill those lots.
- Go to MHVillage.com and search for your community by name and city.
- Click "Claim this community" and verify ownership with your contact information.
- Add current photos, lot rent, available lot count, and a plain description of what is included.
- If you have park-owned homes to sell or rent, add individual home listings. Professional home listings start at $84.95 per month and include photos, floor plans, and placement in Google and Yahoo search results, per MHVillage — Listing Options and Prices (primary: mhvillage.com).
- Set a reminder to update the listing whenever a lot fills or opens.
How do you use Facebook and local groups without spending money?
Facebook groups focused on mobile homes can have 60,000 or more members, and local city- or state-specific groups on Facebook and WhatsApp are a free channel operators use to reach active buyers and renters, per MHVillage — Advertising Your Community (MHInsider/MHVillage). This costs nothing but thirty minutes.
- Search Facebook for groups using terms like "mobile homes [your city]", "manufactured homes [your state]", and "affordable housing [your county]".
- Join the groups that allow listings or community posts.
- Post a short description of your available lots: location, lot rent, what is included, and your phone number.
- Respond to every comment the same day. A prospect who asks a question and waits two days calls someone else.
- Repost every two to four weeks when lots remain open.
With national manufactured housing vacancy near 5% entering 2025, per the IPA / Marcus & Millichap — 2H 2025 Manufactured Housing National Report (PDF), even filling one lot from a free Facebook post is a meaningful return on thirty minutes of work.
What does a working online marketing checklist look like?
Run through this list once a month while you have vacant lots.
- MHVillage community listing claimed and showing current lot rent
- At least four photos uploaded: entrance, a lot, an amenity, and the street view
- Park-owned homes listed individually if applicable
- Active posts in at least two local Facebook or WhatsApp groups
- Voicemail greeting mentions available lots and lot rent so a missed call still delivers information
Is there a hypothetical example of how this plays out in practice?
Hypothetical example. The operator claims the existing MHVillage listing on a Monday, uploads six photos, and adds the lot rent and a note that water and trash are included. That same week, the operator posts in three local Facebook groups with the same information and their cell number.
That data tells them where to spend more time the following month. No paid advertising was purchased in this example.
What mistakes do operators make with online listings?
The most common mistake is posting once and forgetting. A listing with a phone number that rings to a full voicemail box, or a lot rent that is six months out of date, turns a warm lead cold immediately.
A second mistake is skipping photos. A listing without photos ranks lower on MHVillage and gets fewer clicks. Four photos is a workable minimum.
A third mistake is listing only the community and not individual park-owned homes. If you have homes to sell or rent, each one deserves its own listing with its own photos and price. That is a separate search result and a separate chance to be found.
Note also that lot rent figures vary by state and metro. The 55-plus community average of $841 per month and the all-ages average of $751 per month, both from MHInsider — Manufactured Housing Industry Trends & Statistics (2026), are national figures. More than half of all metros recorded vacancy declines in 2024, per the IPA / Marcus & Millichap — 2H 2025 Manufactured Housing National Report (PDF), which means local demand and local rates can differ substantially from the national number. Use local comps to set your advertised rate.
What should you measure to know if online marketing is working?
Track these three numbers every month you have vacant lots.
Leads by source. Ask every caller how they found you. Write it down.
Days to fill. Count the days from when a lot opens to when a new resident signs. If that number drops after you start online marketing, the marketing is working.
Cost per filled lot. If you pay $84.95 per month for a MHVillage home listing, per MHVillage — Listing Options and Prices (primary: mhvillage.com), and fill one lot in that month at your current lot rent, the annual return on that one month of spend is straightforward to calculate. Keep the math simple and repeat it each time you evaluate whether to continue paid listings.
Collect leads-by-source in a notebook, a spreadsheet, or whatever you already use to track inquiries. The tool does not matter. The habit does.
What should you do next?
- Search MHVillage.com for your community today and claim the listing if you have not already.
- Update the listing with current lot rent, available lot count, and at least four photos this week.
- Join two or three local Facebook groups and post your available lots with your phone number.
- Ask every caller this month how they found you and write it down.
- If you have park-owned homes to sell or rent, evaluate whether a paid MHVillage home listing at $84.95 per month, per MHVillage — Listing Options and Prices (primary: mhvillage.com), makes sense given your current lot rent and how long homes have been sitting.