Financing a Mobile Home Park Purchase: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Loan Programs Compared
Use this comparison to decide which agency program to ask a lender about before you make an offer. It shows the loan-size, loan-to-value (LTV), debt service coverage ratio (DSCR), term, rate, interest-only, and home-ownership screens that can change a park deal.
This is general information, not legal, tax, or financing advice. Lending, title, zoning, utility, tax, and local rules vary by state and locality and change over time. Confirm current requirements with the lender, relevant agencies, and qualified professionals before making an offer or closing.
Start with the home mix and verified NOI
Count resident-owned homes separately from homes owned by the park, borrower, affiliates, or other investors. Both programs limit that ownership mix. Then reconcile the seller's net operating income (NOI) to rent rolls, collections, expenses, and utility records before treating it as income that can pay debt. The records list in this mobile home park due-diligence checklist is a practical starting point.
Agency terms are a screen, not an approval. A lender can still underwrite the property, borrower, income, expenses, market, condition, valuation, and loan structure differently from a first-pass calculation.
Fannie Mae Manufactured Housing Communities
For the United States, Fannie Mae's 2026 Manufactured Housing Communities term sheet sets a maximum 80% LTV, a minimum 1.25x DSCR, and 5- to 30-year terms. Its program page says there is no minimum or maximum loan-size limit. The term sheet offers fixed-rate and variable-rate choices.
The same 2026 term sheet generally limits park-owned homes to 25%. It allows up to 35% when the borrower has a business plan to reduce that share over time. The term sheet does not establish an interest-only option, so do not assume one is available; ask the lender about the current structure.
Freddie Mac Optigo Manufactured Housing Community Loan
In the United States, Freddie Mac's Optigo Manufactured Housing Community Loan term sheet, marked April 2026, requires a minimum loan of $1 million and a minimum 1.25x amortizing DSCR. It offers fixed-rate or floating-rate financing, with up to 5-, 7-, and 10-year terms; longer terms may be considered case by case.
Freddie Mac offers partial-term and full-term interest-only (IO) structures. A partial-IO loan needs at least two years of amortization, and its combined-maturity LTV cap is 70%, subject to the term sheet's adjustments. Its Seller/Servicer Guide, Chapter 22, updated April 22, 2025, makes a standard MHC mortgage ineligible when homes owned by the borrower, borrower affiliates, and third-party investors exceed 25% in aggregate.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: side-by-side
The table compares United States program terms in Fannie Mae's 2026 term sheet and Freddie Mac's April 2026 term sheet. It is not an approval matrix.
| Item | Fannie Mae MHC | Freddie Mac Optigo MHC |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum loan size | No minimum or maximum loan-size limit | $1 million |
| Maximum LTV | 80% | Amortizing: 75% at 5 to under 7 years; 80% at 7 years and over 7 years. Partial IO: the same 75%/80% matrix limits, plus a 70% combined-maturity cap. Full-term IO: 65% at 5 to under 7 years and at 7 years; 70% over 7 years |
| Minimum DSCR | 1.25x | 1.25x amortizing DSCR |
| Term | 5 to 30 years | Up to 5, 7, and 10 years; longer terms case by case |
| Rate choices | Fixed or variable | Fixed or floating |
| Interest-only | Could not confirm an IO option from the 2026 term sheet | Partial IO and full-term IO; partial IO needs at least two years of amortization |
| Park-owned or investor-owned homes | 25% generally; up to 35% with a plan to reduce the share | Up to 25% in aggregate for borrower, affiliate, and third-party-investor ownership |
The practical difference is in the structure. Fannie Mae's sheet gives one maximum LTV and its term sheet does not confirm IO. Freddie Mac's LTV changes with term and whether the loan is amortizing, partial IO, or full-term IO. A park with more than one-quarter non-resident-owned homes needs especially careful lender review under either program.
Worked example: the annual payment ceiling
Example only; this is not a real park, lender quote, approval, or promise of financing. Re-use the $313,200 annual NOI from the hypothetical in Mobile Home Park Cap Rates and Deal Math: A Worked Example for 2026. At the 1.25x DSCR in Fannie Mae's term sheet and 1.25x amortizing DSCR in Freddie Mac's term sheet, the largest annual debt service that NOI supports is:
Maximum annual debt service = annual NOI / required DSCR
$313,200 / 1.25 = $250,560
The result, $250,560, is the annual payment ceiling used in the DSCR test. It does not state a possible loan balance. A rate, amortization schedule, term, lender underwriting adjustments, and a valuation/LTV test are still needed to determine a loan amount.
Build a pre-offer lender package
Before you rely on a financing assumption in an offer, prepare these records for the lender:
- Trailing income and expense records, rent roll, and collection records.
- A site map and proof of the legal site count.
- A home-by-home list showing resident, park, borrower, affiliate, or third-party-investor ownership.
- Titles and identifying records for park-owned homes.
- Utility and infrastructure records.
- The purchase price and equity plan.
Use the fuller park due-diligence checklist to compare those records with the seller's claims. If projected rent growth or utility reimbursement is part of the NOI, make sure the leases, bills, and applicable rules support it before presenting it as underwritten income.
Confirm live program terms before you sign. This is general information, not legal, tax, or financing advice. Lending, title, zoning, utility, tax, and local rules vary by state and locality and change over time. Confirm current requirements with the lender, relevant agencies, and qualified professionals before making an offer or closing.