Leo Young Real Estate

Leo Young Real Estate 🏘️Real Estate Investor & Broker
🏦$50M+ in deals & transactions
📈I share lessons from my journey to inspire & make you more money!

02/26/2026

“Why do you invest in mobile home parks?”

Because it checks 2 boxes most deals miss:

It works financially, AND it matters socially.

I used to see impact as a bonus, a feel-good if the numbers pencil.

But now I pay closer attention 👀

We buy and operate mobile home parks.
We create affordable housing for working families.
Simple. Repeatable. Needed.

For a while, I lead with the returns:
→ Here’s the IRR
→ Here’s the cash flow
→ Here’s the upside

THEN I mention the mission.
“Oh, and it helps solve the affordable housing crisis.”

That part always lands → it's what people lean into.

Not just the numbers → The why behind them.

Because the investors I talk to now want EVERYTHING:
✅ They want alignment
✅ They want impact
✅ They want outcome

This isn’t charity.
It’s SMART CAPITAL, placed with PURPOSE.

And for the right investors, that’s the return they’re really chasing.

__

P.S. Have you felt that shift?

P.P.S. Follow if you believe capital should create value beyond the spreadsheet.

02/24/2026

I’ve noticed I don’t actually want most of the things people chase.

Not because I’m above it.
It just doesn’t move me.

I’m fine taking a walk.
I’m fine spending ten bucks on food and calling it a night.

That’s enough for me.

Sometimes it feels like enjoying that kind of life makes people uncomfortable.
Like happiness is supposed to be louder or more expensive.

But this is what works for me.

What have you realized you don’t actually need?

We raised rents at a MHP we acquired,..And residents thanked us!Why? Here’s the context:Rents had been under market for ...
02/23/2026

We raised rents at a MHP we acquired,..And residents thanked us!

Why? Here’s the context:

Rents had been under market for a long time (and it shows)

• Roads were deteriorating
• Landscaping was out of control
• Signage and fencing were neglected
• Deferred maintenance had piled up

So we invested $$ to clean this up:

→ Repaired the roads
→ Installed proper fencing and signage
→ Got landscaping back under control
→ Cleaned up the overall feel of the park

None of that shows up on a rent roll.
But residents notice it immediately.

When rents went up, some grumbled, but others were happy??

They said:
"We're glad someone finally cared."
That the park felt safer.
That it felt respected.

Rent increases aren’t the problem. Neglect is.

When people see reinvestment, they understand the why.

Operating real estate isn’t just spreadsheets.

What have you seen make residents actually buy in to change?

02/19/2026

Here's a mistake operators make:

They drown their managers in tasks:
→ Applications.
→ Collections.
→ Enforcement.

But here's how Ryan does it (managing his 2000+ units):

1. Specialist handles every lease.
2. Runs the applications.
3. Processes the payments.
4. Even manages collections off-site with texts and calls.

Managers?
They stay in the community.
→ Meeting residents
→ Posting notices
→ Protecting the property

It’s cleaner.
It’s faster.
And it actually works.

__

P.S. What’s 1 process that improved your business?

A lot of people talk about “value-add.”Here’s what it looked like on one of our parks.We acquired a distressed asset.Def...
02/18/2026

A lot of people talk about “value-add.”

Here’s what it looked like on one of our parks.

We acquired a distressed asset.
Deferred maintenance.
Below-market rents.
Real loss-to-lease.

Nothing fancy.

We fixed what was broken.
Improved the areas residents actually live in.
Ran the property like a business again.

Then we normalized rents.
Brought them closer to market.
At a pace residents could understand and accept.

We infilled vacant units.
Reduced loss-to-lease.
Stabilized operations.

About a year later:

Refi and broker pricing came back north of $1.5M.
Nearly a 4x increase in value.

The lesson is simple.

Value isn’t created in a spreadsheet.
It’s created on site.

This is how we approach MHP value-add.
→ Slow.
→ Operational.
→ Repeatable.
__

What do you pay attention to first?

02/17/2026

“You can do ANYTHING, not everything”

People aaalways talk about work-life balance,
But balance is not the goal (for winners) → It’s optimization

Life moves in seasons 🍂

1️⃣ When your first kid shows up → everything else fades out for a while.
2️⃣ When you're building wealth → your calendar looks different.
3️⃣ When your health slips → priorities shift real fast.

But trying to keep EVERY area full doesn’t work → You'll burn out.

The real skill is knowing how to calibrate:
→ Filling the right cup at the right time
→ Protecting what truly matters
→ And letting the rest sit at 70%

It’s not about being perfectly balanced.
It’s about being FULLY OPTIMIZED.

That’s how I try to keep moving, without falling apart.

__

P.S. What season are you in right now?

Would you pass on a 12 cap MHP?We did, and here's why:THE DEAL:- 43-lot MHP in the midwest- All tenant-owned homes- 85% ...
02/16/2026

Would you pass on a 12 cap MHP?
We did, and here's why:

THE DEAL:
- 43-lot MHP in the midwest
- All tenant-owned homes
- 85% occupancy
- City utilities

On paper, the deal was attractive:
Investors would net 20%+ returns!

So we continue to the metro:
- Steady population growth
- Decent rent-to-buy ratio
- Crime rate 2x higher than US average

Interesting.
We look more into the crime stats,
And unfortunately it wasn't just petty crime
(won't share details to avoid upsetting the algo)

It was disappointing to pump the brakes like this, but as a leader I had to,
Because no cap rate compensates for putting people in harm’s way.

So we passed.

Not because the returns didn’t work.
Because the human risk didn’t meet our standards.

Would you have done the same? Have you ever invested in a sketchy area?

“Capital does not come from convincing banks to say yes. It comes from earning trust, educating people, and building rel...
02/13/2026

“Capital does not come from convincing banks to say yes. It comes from earning trust, educating people, and building relationships that compound over time.”

On this episode of The Journey, I sat down with Jay Conner, real estate investor, educator, and nationally recognized expert on raising private money without relying on banks.

Jay shares how he transitioned from traditional financing to funding deals entirely with private lenders, the mindset shift most investors never make, and why trust matters more than interest rates when raising capital. He also breaks down the simple frameworks he uses to educate investors and create long-term funding partners in any market cycle.

Link to podcast below!

02/12/2026

Sometimes you don’t realize the impact you made
until it stands right in front of you.

Ryan just got back from an industry conference.
At his mentorship meetup, 30 people showed up.
30 lives he’d impacted.

One woman teared up as she said it
“You’ve made my life better.”

And in that moment, it hit him.

This isn’t everyone.
There are SO many others who couldn’t be here.
People quietly changed because someone took the time to help.

That moment hit harder than any paycheck.
Harder than any car or title.

Because this is what really compounds:
→ Time
→ Mentorship
→ Generosity
→ Care

That’s the real return.
__

P.S. Who was your best mentor?

One of the most meaningful moments for me isn’t buying a deal.It’s sending distributions.Because I know what that money ...
02/11/2026

One of the most meaningful moments for me isn’t buying a deal.

It’s sending distributions.

Because I know what that money actually represents.

For some investors, it covers groceries.
For others, monthly bills.
Sometimes it just creates breathing room.

That matters.

That’s how I live too.

My personal expenses are paid from cash flow.
Not from grinding more hours.
Not from hoping an asset sells someday.

This is the Rich Dad idea in practice.

Assets paying for life.
Steadily. Predictably.

Cash flow isn’t exciting to talk about.
But it’s reliable.
And reliability is what creates freedom.

That’s why we focus on it.
__

What would change for you if your investments started covering real expenses?

02/10/2026

Most people chase a version of happiness that was sold to them:

1. Job title
2. Bigger house
3. Safer path

It looks good on paper.
But it rarely feels good in life.

Real happiness isn’t theoretical.
It’s LIVED.

The better question is:
"What actually makes me happy?"
(not what I think should)

For some, the answer is clear:
“I can’t spend my life in an office. That’s not who I am.”

Admitting that takes honesty.
Acting on it takes courage.

That’s the pursuit of happiness worth fighting for.

__

P.S. Are you living the happiness you were told to want, or the one that’s true to you?

The risky question you ask yourself in a competitive market:How much upside do you bake in your underwriting?Competition...
02/09/2026

The risky question you ask yourself in a competitive market:
How much upside do you bake in your underwriting?

Competition is fierce right now in mobile home parks
Everyone wants to buy them (big players & small)

And sometimes you look at a winning bid
and wonder how someone got there!

This one checked a lot of boxes:
→ 52 units
→ Strong metro
→ High average household income
→ Same state we already operate in

We submitted an offer that worked, but didn’t get it...turns out we were $400k off the winning bid!

Biggest reason why is that we factored in the new statewide rent regulations.

So someone else was willing to:
1. Pay for more future upside
2. Accept more regulatory risk
3. Assume a cleaner biz plan ex*****on
(Or maybe all 3)

Good asset.
Good market.
≠ the right price for us.

On to the next one.

Address

126 Newbury Street
Boston, MA
02116

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