How Robert Howell Builds Affordable Housing with Mobile Homes & Land Development

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Show Summary

In this episode of the Real Estate Pros podcast, host Q Edmonds interviews Robert Howell, a passionate advocate for affordable housing. Robert shares his journey into real estate, starting with his first investment in Memphis, Tennessee, and his transition to full-time real estate during the COVID-19 pandemic. He discusses the importance of building a strong team, having effective systems in place, and the challenges he has faced along the way. Robert emphasizes the significance of finding one’s purpose and why in the real estate business, and he shares his future goals of expanding into larger developments. The conversation highlights the importance of showing up, taking action, and helping others in the community.

Resources and Links from this show:

• • • Investor Fuel Real Estate Mastermind
    • Investor Machine Real Estate Lead Generation
    • Mike on Facebook
    • Mike on Instagram
    • Mike on LinkedIn
    • Robert Howell’s Phone Number: (864) 293-2798

  Listen to the Audio Version of this Episode

  Investor Fuel Show Transcript:

  Robert Howell (00:00)
  even this year we had one of those where it was a parcel in Greenville, South Carolina, which is a great market. It was for $30,000. And we thought, well, shoot, if you can buy, and typically we’re buying land, $20,000 to $40,000. And if you can buy a piece of land in Greenville, South Carolina for $30,000, then you can make a big profit. Well, come to find out that piece of land was in a hole. We had to bring a lot of field dirt.

  There’s a lot more development needed. so we ended up finishing the project and I think we ended up losing about $4,000. But the good news about the manufacturer housing project, there’s a lot of margin typically, although we’re providing affordable housing and typically the best and most affordable option, there’s still margin for us to make profit. So even though we had made a mistake there in the parcel that we selected, we were still able to come out. Not too bad, right? So that I’d say that was probably one where it was like, didn’t go as planned,

  Quentin (02:29)
  everyone. Welcome to the Real Estate Pros podcast. I am your host, Q Edmonds. And y’all know what I’m going to say. I’m excited to be here. I’m excited. I’m excited about my guests. I’m excited. I’ve been talking to him, asking him some questions and he always come back what I call to the through line. And for him, it’s about helping people. First time home buyers providing affordable housing. So I’m so excited.

  for you to peek through his lens, for him to tell you why he do what he do, what it is that he does. And so I’m super, super excited to introduce you guys to Mr. Robert Howell. How you doing today, sir?

  Robert Howell (03:09)
  Great, doing great. I really appreciate you having me on and appreciate the time and look forward to our conversation.

  Quentin (03:12)
  Absolutely.

  Absolutely, same here, man. I got that last name right, it’s Howl, correct? I’m looking at it correctly, right? Okay, awesome. Just wanna make sure, I I like to put respect on people’s names, so I just wanna make sure. And so, man, I just, again, I appreciate you being here, and I’ma be honest, man. I want to, I don’t wanna do too much talking. I want you to kind of take us into your world. Tell us the things that you’re mainly focused on.

  Robert Howell (03:20)
  That’s right. That’s right. That’s right.

  Quentin (03:42)
  you know, maybe how you got started, what markets you’re operating in. And so, man, I just want to turn this floor over to you so you can just, you know, bless us with the nuggets that you have.

  Robert Howell (03:51)
  Yeah, for sure. All right. Where do you want me to start? Do want me to start with how this got started and where we are today?

  Quentin (03:58)
  Man, I want you to start wherever you want to start. That sounds like a good point to me, sir. Yes, sir.

  Robert Howell (04:02)
  All right, sounds good. I started in real estate before COVID. I told myself, hey, I want to intentionally buy some real estate. And so I searched markets and did research on different markets and set on Memphis, Tennessee. I live in South Carolina. I live in Clemson, South Carolina. Tigers. But I was searching for a market. Memphis, Tennessee was a well-developed market for real estate. And I bought my first house there for $10,000. And this was before COVID, right? All the good days.

  Quentin (04:18)
  Tigers.

  Robert Howell (04:30)
  But anyhow, and renovate that house and thought, well, worst thing, I’d never rent it and my mortgage can be $300. Well, at that point, fell in love with affordable housing. And when COVID hit, my full-time job was event marketing. And I was doing, working on the Olympics in Tokyo for Coca-Cola. And that being said, COVID hit, said, man, there’s never going to be an event again. I got to go full-time into real estate.

  So started buying and selling affordable houses in South Carolina. And through that process ran across some mobile home parks. I was buying some houses from a gentleman and he said, Hey, my nephew owns this mobile home park. I didn’t know anything about mobile home parks, but I knew about affordable housing. And so I said, Hey, let me go. I’ll buy that. So bought that, sold it, bought some more mobile home parks and then kept buying. As a result of that, I had to get my mobile home dealers license.

  And in the state of South Carolina, if you sell more than two mobile homes, you’re supposed to have a dealer’s license. And so I bought that and I saw, well, shoot, I can actually buy these mobile homes for pretty cheap. And if I can do that, I should buy some land and put the mobile homes on land. And so started doing that. And really that’s, I still have mobile home parks. own 28 mobile home parks in South Carolina. But now primarily my day to day is buying land.

  and putting new mobile homes on the land. And then selling those to typically first time homeowners. And so just love the process, love being able to help address the affordable housing need that we have here in the US. so much so that now teaching other people how to do it started a thing called the Land Home League in December last year. And so we have students all over the country that we teach how to do this.

  So the more affordable housing we can provide, the better. And I thought the best route to do that was I can’t address that all by myself. So why don’t we teach some people how to do it?

  Quentin (07:07)
  Absolutely, no, absolutely love it. And like, y’all hear it, you you hear this guy through line, you know, he want to help people. And not only do you want to help people with homes, you want to teach other people how to do what he does, so they can go and help other people. And so I love hearing this, Mr. Howe, I love hearing your passion and your servitude come in, just your care for people who need these affordable housing. ⁓

  I’ll be honest with you, you make it sound easy, but I know it’s not always easy, especially in this climate. So what’s been the key to keeping that machine running smoothly?

  Robert Howell (07:39)
  You know, at the end of the day, comes down to number one, the team that you work with and making sure that we have a great team, right? And we do. And, you know, we continue to operate and follow processes and systems that we’ve developed over time. You know, the very first project probably didn’t go exactly as we planned, but we learned something. The second project, same thing, right? We learned things. So we continue to improve our process and systems. And, you know, really that’s what I love about

  putting new manufactured housing on land is as long as you do your due diligence right and you make sure the land’s good, the process is the same every single time. It’s pretty similar to like a site built house, right? So it’s a lot different than flipping houses where there’s surprises and everything’s different, right? Every project for manufacturer housing, it’s the same every time as long as you follow your process. And so to answer your question of what’s working, it’s really about

  having the right team and having the right process and systems in place to be able to execute confidently. In 2025, we’ve done about 50 of these projects. And so, I wanna sleep, I’ve already got enough gray hair, I wanna sleep at night. And if I follow the process, then I can sleep at night knowing that, hey, I’ve done everything I can do to make this a successful project.

  Quentin (08:55)
  Absolutely, well, it sounds like your price is successful. sounds like the systems are working. absolutely, you know, this is great. Now you’re an operator, so I know you know there’s moments when things get real. Maybe a deal goes sideways or a time when you have to pivot fast. And I like, you know, so many people, they focus on a success. Sometimes people don’t hear the journey, the process to get into that success.

  And so I was wondering if you had one of those stories that or moments you could share with us, a time when you kind of had the pivot facts.

  Robert Howell (10:01)
  Yeah, that’s a good question. You know, there have been projects where, know, it’s maybe we were desperate for a deal, right? And I’m sure there’s a lot of real estate investors like that where it’s like, hey, man, it’s great. Like we did first quarter, you know, maybe we did 10 deals. Start a second quarter, we were maybe low on deals, right? And so you start to get a little desperate for the next deal, right?

  Quentin (10:11)
  Hmm.

  Robert Howell (10:26)
  And so

  even this year we had one of those where it was a parcel in Greenville, South Carolina, which is a great market. It was for $30,000. And we thought, well, shoot, if you can buy, and typically we’re buying land, $20,000 to $40,000. And if you can buy a piece of land in Greenville, South Carolina for $30,000, then you can make a big profit. Well, come to find out that piece of land was in a hole. We had to bring a lot of field dirt.

  There’s a lot more development needed. so we ended up finishing the project and I think we ended up losing about $4,000. But the good news about the manufacturer housing project, there’s a lot of margin typically, although we’re providing affordable housing and typically the best and most affordable option, there’s still margin for us to make profit. So even though we had made a mistake there in the parcel that we selected, we were still

  able to come out. Not too bad, right? So that I’d say that was probably one where it was like, didn’t go as planned,

  right?

  Quentin (11:24)
  Yeah, yeah. No, and I appreciate you sharing. mean, I think, you know, actually definitely from your unique lens, you know, this is the kind of stuff people kind of don’t talk about enough. And sometimes people don’t hear enough. And honestly, it was separate folks from the people that just dabble to the ones that ended for the longterm. And it seemed like, like now, you know, you got your systems in place, you know, you, you’re doing about 50 of these projects a year, like putting those systems in place really separates people from.

  short-term and long-term success. And so I thank you for sharing that. love when our viewers get to get a peek and see just how the process of success looks sometimes. And so let me ask you this, Mr. Robert, what are you most focused on solving or scaling next? Like what’s the next real goal for you?

  Robert Howell (12:08)
  Yeah, so we like to continue to offer more and more affordable housing and kind of address that need. so, you know, as we look to 2026, because we need to start looking to that goal now, you know, the goal is to continue to buy more land. And we’ve done a lot of one off parcels. And so we’ve started to look at, you know, could we do a larger development?

  We’re not talking a hundred houses, right? We’re not to that scale yet, but, you know, can we do ⁓ a 20 lot neighborhood and what does that look like? Right. There’d be a lot of efficiencies gained in that process. But, you know, there are obviously some more risk associated, but that, that was probably one of the big goals as we look to 2026. Can we do a larger development?

  Quentin (12:58)
  Yeah, yeah. And now that’s big. Like you said, you got your systems in place, but also looking to the future, like how can we push it a little bit more? And so you’re talking about this larger development. I think that’s incredible. That’s an incredible move that you’re thinking about doing. And I know you’ve been in it long enough that you know the next move can even compound things or create total chaos, depending on how you play it. But, you know, again, it’s the systems that we have in place that we can trust. And so.

  There’s no doubt in my mind that you guys are to take this larger development and knock it off the park. I’m excited about hearing it. Yeah, I really am. And so a lot of people is listening, and people are either early in their journey or they’re looking to level up. And I think they benefit hearing this from you. When it comes to building relationships and growing your network, what has made the biggest difference for you?

  Robert Howell (14:30)
  Man, I would say showing up, right? Showing up and taking action, doing what you say you’re gonna do. I talk to a lot of people every week about what we do and how we do it. Pretty transparent and I like helping people that then can go and offer more affordable housing. And there’s people that you talk to that say,

  Quentin (14:33)
  Yeah.

  Robert Howell (14:50)
  You know, kind of give you the lip service and say, yeah, that sounds cool. I like making money. I like helping people. Then you don’t ever hear from them. Right. And then there’s other people. We’ve got a guy in Georgia who’s part of our program, 22 years old, and he’ll do, he’ll do five or six deals this year in Georgia. And by the end of the year, I think he’ll make 200, 250 K, which is huge, but he’s an action taker. Like he shows up at the real estate.

  Quentin (14:57)
  Yeah.

  Yeah. Yeah.

  Robert Howell (15:14)
  investor meetings, he shows up every single call that we have, he’s there. And, you know, so so I’d say show up, right. And that will take you a long way and a lot longer than you think it will.

  Quentin (15:26)
  Yeah, yeah. No, I love that, man. Showing up, that’s half of the battle, is just showing up. But like you said, show up, but then also take action. this is, I kind of want to ask this question before we wrap. You’re talking about teaching people. And so I want to see if we can create a teachable moment. And so is there anything that’s on your heart, education-wise, encouragement-wise, for people who may be looking to do the mobile home thing, or just?

  looking to just push for success in general. Mr. Rob, is there any words maybe or teachable moments that you want to give them right now while we got these viewers that’s listening in?

  Robert Howell (16:05)
  Yeah, that’s a great question, Q. I’d say, you know, I think it comes down to really thinking about what your purpose is and what’s your why, right? Because, you know, if we go back to the previous question about showing up, the only way that you’re going to show up is that if your why is big enough, right? And if your why is not big enough, you’re not going to show up every single day, you know, and

  at the end of the day, but if it is, then you’re going to show up, right? And I’ll tell you my why. I got a couple things here. One is, you know, if I can build a legacy for my family, I think that’s important. I’ve got two kids that are in high school. at least one of them has interest in doing real estate. And so can I create a business, create a legacy that they can be part of later? And for me, that drives me because family is important, right?

  ⁓ the second is, man, can I show I’m a Christian guy. Can I show God’s love through affordable housing? And that’s a, and I’ve been a Christian for a long time, but, a fairly recent thing, for me is like, Hey, I’d like making money. mean, everybody likes making money, right? I want to make a lot of money, but what’s the bigger purpose, right? Like we make a bunch of money and we leave this earth with it. Like it doesn’t do anything. Right. But what if I can help?

  the next guy and it’s not about like, Hey, can I just give 10 % tied to my church? Like that’s cool. Right. But how can I look at my entire process? And I’ll tell you like three months ago, I would tell you like, I could care less about meeting the buyers of the house that buyer houses, right? Like, honestly, I’d rather not talk to them. But now today my, my mindset, my vision has changed. It’s like, how could I make that experience so special for them?

  that they say, there’s something different about that guy, right? And anyway, so that’s a big thing for me right now is trying to figure that out and say, look at my entire process. Can I show God’s love through the work that I’m doing to my subcontractors, to the guys that build my houses, to the people that are buying my houses and so on. And so that drives me, right? Between family and between showing God’s love, I think it’s big thing.

  Quentin (18:11)
  What an answer, And I’m glad I asked the question. Man, that was golden. You and I, were talking before we got on, and I told you, my wife and I, have some of our best conversations, three o’clock in the morning. So today’s conversation, I asked my wife, said, babe, I said, do you ever just feel the weight of responsibility? I said, when God shows you something so big, that you just feel the weight of it, because you’re like, how in the world?

  Am I going to do that? And so I asked her that, that was my mindset. So I got into my devotions and I was reading my devotions and it was talking about God gives us a big dream, but the beauty of the big dreams, the only way to get it is walking with him every step of the way. So it was like, don’t focus on a big thing, focus on the small steps of walking with him every single day. And so the reality that I came to was that

  when it came to responsibility, what scares me is not the big thing. What kind of makes me concerned is he has given me the ability to respond. Will I show up every single day because of my why? That’s the part that was concerning to me. Are you gonna show up? Like that’s the part that should never really makes you concerned because sometimes you wanna get distracted. You wanna take days off. But the fact of the matter is in order to get to the next step, you really can’t. You gotta walk out the next step one step at a time.

  And so what you just said about showing up, the words you just gave about what’s your why. Mr. Robby, this is golden. And I thank you so much for sharing, sir. I really do.

  Robert Howell (19:40)
  Happy to be here, man, and I think it’s important, right? And my goal is to, I mean, I’m just a guy that’s doing real estate, right? And not doing anything really that special other than trying to help people, right? And so, I enjoy it, I love it, it’s my passion, and we’ll see what we can do in this world,

  Quentin (19:52)
  Yeah. Yeah.

  Absolutely, absolutely. Now know you say it’s not special, but I’m a pushback on you doing something very, very special. Now it’s your why. So it’s just like, man, this is what I do. But I tell you, a lot of people do not have the same perspective as you. So I hear you, but just if you can allow me just to just kind of do it on you, you’re doing something very, very special, man. So I appreciate you, sir. I appreciate your why. I appreciate your passion. So listen, Mr. Robbie, listen, before we wrap.

  If someone wanted to reach out to you, connect with you, maybe collaborate or learn more about what you’re doing, what’s the best way for them to reach out to you,

  Robert Howell (20:33)
  Man, the best way is shoot me a text message, really. I’ll give you, don’t have a fancy CRM or anything like that. I think I’ve mentioned to you, I’m just an operator, right? I’m no guru or, mean, yeah, do I educate people, but my cell phone is 864-293-2798. That’s my personal Verizon cell phone. You can just shoot me a text and be happy to have a conversation or text you back any words of advice that I have.

  Quentin (20:40)
  Thank you.

  Yeah.

  soon.

  Absolutely. Well, listen, man, again, I appreciate you. Hopefully you can see my authenticity coming through. This was just wonderful. I just thank you for all that you shared. I thank you for your story, for your perspective, for your time. We definitely need more people in this space that’s doing it the right way, just like you, sir. So again, Mr. Robert, I thank you so much,

  Robert Howell (21:20)
  Thank you. Appreciate you having me.

  Quentin (21:22)
  Absolutely.

  That same man. And so listen, y’all, you got it. You heard it. You heard the valuable stories, the nuggets. when I say I’m excited, I guess I think it translates, right? Y’all see it. I’m having these great, valuable conversations with just amazing people. And you do not want to miss out on these opportunities to do it. So just go ahead and subscribe, click that button. That way you can come back when the alert goes off. All right. So again, thank you, Mr. Robert and everyone else. We will see you on the next time.