Welcome to where the elite meet, eat, and greet – in the Hamptons, on Long Island, NY.
Discover in this tony town, the “Billionaires’ Playground,” where the uber-rich and millionaires live by neighbors of more modest means. The common housing style?
Manufactured homes.
What was once a tent camping site, evolved into a mobile home park, and today is an image-shattering, coveted manufactured home community that’s a magnet for the wealthy.
According to the New York Post, Montauk Shores Resort, a manufactured home community on Long Island, has evolved from being a modest “trailer park” [sic] on a lazy beach town. Now, it’s the hot spot for billionaires looking for an ocean-front get-away home.
“Owning a trailer [sic] at the park [sic] has become the ultimate status symbol for the tony Long Island town’s summering rich and famous,” said the NY Post.
On MHLivingNews we routinely share stories of manufactured homes that are owned by celebrities, and other wealthy individuals.
Why?
Because it helps millions better understand that manufactured homes aren’t only for the low-to-moderate-income crowd. The wealthy, wise, and famous can spot a good deal.
There are manufactured homes at this gorgeous spot that cost hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars. The price – as with any real estate deal – will partially reflect the location, not just the size and extravagance of the home.
In Montauk Shores Resort Condominiums, it’s no different. Homes there reportedly range from $200,000 to $1.4 million. The community attracts a variety of people, from all walks of life.
“I know quite a few billionaires here,” architect and homeowner Fred Stelle said. “The most appealing aspect is the park’s quality of life. It’s a classic throwback to a summer community — relaxed and low-key in a funky way, like what Southern California must have been like in the 1950s, and it’s safe for kids.”
Montauk was first established in the 1940s as a campsite for tent camping – but in 1976 a group of 152 individuals and families came together to purchase the 20-acre plot of land, saving it from bankruptcy.
This made Montauk Shores Resort the first “trailer-park [sic] condo association” in the state.
From that point forward, to keep the community’s development under control, there was an unspoken rule that “Anything new had to be wheeled in.”
Originally, Montauk was home to many blue-collar workers, people who ordinarily would not be able to afford a scenic oceanfront property.
Police, firefighters, surfers, and retirees were among those who lived in the community.
But in recent years the scenic views, affordability, and quality of life in Montauk Shores has attracted more wealthy residents.
To rephrase, millionaires and billionaires could spot a good deal.
Most of the ultra-wealthy in the community are in what a local realtor calls the “billionaires’ corner.” Featuring oceanfront views, there are sporty Ferrari, Porsches parked and other elite cars outside their manufactured homes.
Today, the community is made up of a mixture of original residents, plus those who moved in over the years.
The billionaires and famous include:
- the co-founder of Vitaminwater, Darius Bikoff,
- hedge-fund manager, Dan Loeb,
- film producer Karen Lauder,
- and architect Fred Stelle, with his socialite wife Bettina,
plus the occasional star-power house guests like, Jimmy Buffett.
The homes range from older 200 square foot trailers (see the photo above, that’s a true trailer house) to 1,400 square feet manufactured homes. They are used as everything from weekend get-away, vacation homes, some live there full-time, others use a unit as a “glorified changing room.”
As the photos reveal, many homes are smaller single-section manufactured homes. Others are more spacious multi-sectionals. Some have even added a second level to their homes. However, residents are not able to expand outward on their lot.
Fees cost homeowners $150 per month, and includes upkeep of the grounds, maintenance of the pool and club house, as well as security for the gated community, per New York Post. Compared to a similar concept in Malibu, this is a bargain.
The community is made up of 152 individually owned sites or lots – as well as 47 that are leased. For those that are leasing the property, they must have their own manufactured home to place there.
“The location is still priceless,” said Greg Burns, a broker at Compass.
Burns is selling the $1.495 million home in Montauk Shores – and according to the New York Post there is already a bidding war going on.
The wealthy are finding a comfortable, enjoyable quality of life in their manufactured homes in Montauk Shores Resort – and clearly there are others eagerly waiting to jump on board as well.
“It has definitely become a thing — it’s epic,” a local realtor told the New York Post.
Will millionaires and billionaires acceptance of manufactured homes help tens of millions of others realize that it is OK to own a manufactured home somewhere else too? # #
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(Image credits are as shown above, and when provided by third parties, are shared under fair use guidelines.)
Submitted by Julia Granowicz to MHLivingNews.