Ponderosa Mobile Home Park

Dublin, OH| Off-Market Acquisition | Q2 2026

Overview

Ponderosa is a 108-site, 55+ mobile home community located in Dublin, Ohio, one of the most affluent suburbs in the Columbus, Ohio MSA. The asset combines immediate, in-place cash flow with a clear, low-complexity path to added value. It was 97% occupied at acquisition and almost entirely tenant-owned, with only two park-owned homes in the community, supporting a stable, age-qualified resident base and low management intensity.

What makes Ponderosa especially compelling is that it already performs as a stabilized operating asset while sitting directly in the path of a major master-planned development bringing 1,800 residential homes and several amenities, accessible to our residents. It is a well-located, income-producing community in a market where Sunrise continues to expand its existing Columbus footprint, operating in-house through its own management company, Sunrise Communities.

About the Project

Manufactured housing is one of the most resilient asset classes in real estate, anchored by a structural shortage of affordable housing and high barriers to developing new communities. Ponderosa pairs that durability with the strength of its location. It sits in Dublin, where median household incomes run north of $100,000 annually and area home prices comfortably exceed $500,000 – a market in which traditional homeownership is out of reach for most residents and attainable housing is scarce.

Key attributes of the asset include:

108 sites in Dublin, Ohio, within the Columbus MSA
A 55+ age-restricted community with a stable, long-tenured resident base
97% occupied at acquisition and almost entirely tenant-owned, with only two park-owned homes, supporting stable cash flow and a low management burden
Located in one of Columbus’s most affluent suburbs, where median household incomes run north of $100,000 and home prices exceed $500,000
Immediately adjacent to Avery Crossings, a master-planned development bringing roughly 1,800 residential units, nearly 50 acres of parks, trails, and open space, new retail and restaurants, and higher-end homes selling above $1M, with a planned landscape buffer preserving the community’s privacy
Part of Sunrise’s growing Columbus MSA footprint, with in-house operations through Sunrise Communities already in place

For Sunrise, Ponderosa represents an opportunity to add a stable, cash-flowing community to a market it already knows well, with the characteristics we value most: affordability, resident stability, and a location positioned to benefit from significant surrounding draws for demand.

The Challenge

Ponderosa was 97% occupied at acquisition, almost entirely tenant-owned, and generated positive cash flow. The opportunity is to operate an already stable asset efficiently while methodically realizing the value embedded in its below-market rents, its basis, and its location – without lease-up or redevelopment risk.

Key aspects of the opportunity include:

Below-market rents. In-place lot rents average roughly $450 per month against comparable market rents in the mid-$600s, and higher across parts of the Columbus MSA. On a conservative basis, this represents approximately 44% of rental upside to be captured methodically over time.
Vacant-home infill. The two park-owned homes have already been walked and are considered salvageable; once renovated, they are expected to lease quickly at an attractive price point (roughly $80,000–$90,000) in a market where median home prices exceed $500,000.
Vacant-lot infill. A small number of vacant lots offer room to place new homes, adding occupancy and income.
Attractive basis. The community was acquired at what Sunrise views as an attractive basis relative to its stabilized value.
Surrounding investment. The adjacent Avery Crossings master-planned development is expected to support rising land values and stronger pricing power over the hold period.
Operational efficiency. The community integrates into Sunrise’s existing Columbus operations, with in-house management already in place through Sunrise Communities.
Tax efficiency. The acquisition is expected to generate meaningful first-year tax benefits through cost segregation and bonus accelerated depreciation, consistent with the tax efficiency historically associated with manufactured housing. Specific figures are subject to final cost segregation analysis.

The challenge here is to operate an already stable community efficiently and translate its below-market rents, its basis, and its location into durable, long-term performance.

The Execution Plan

Sunrise Capital’s plan for Ponderosa centers on efficient operation, disciplined management, and integration into its existing Columbus platform. Because the community is already stabilized and cash-flowing, Sunrise can operate from a position of stability from day one.

The plan includes:

Beginning phased, responsible rent increases to bring lot rents closer to market over time
Completing the infill of the remaining vacant homes during year one
Placing new homes on the community’s vacant lots to add occupancy and income
Executing roughly $160,000 in targeted capital improvements ( including road repaving, stormwater repairs, enhanced signage, and curb-appeal upgrades) to improve the resident experience and protect long-term asset value; this is not a heavy CapEx project
Acquiring the property all-cash at closing to preserve flexibility, then placing long-term agency (Fannie/Freddie) financing once collections are seasoned and the below-market rents are substantially recaptured – consistent with Sunrise’s conservative, fixed-rate, lower-leverage approach across the portfolio
Operating the community in-house through Sunrise Communities, maintaining its high occupancy and stable, tenant-owned resident base
Applying the same repeatable, light value-add operating playbook Sunrise has run across its other communities for more than a decade
Capturing first-year tax efficiency through cost segregation
Benefiting from the surrounding Avery Crossings development as it supports land values and pricing power over the hold period

Through disciplined operation and integration into a market it already knows, Sunrise Capital aims to preserve the stability and affordability that make Ponderosa a strong long-term income asset, while realizing the value embedded in its below-market rents, its basis, and its location.