How the Obama Presidency will Affect the RV Park Industry

Tuesday night went faster than I expected. I was used to the Bush/Gore close call match-up, so I was shocked when the race was over before I went to bed. No sooner had the race ended, and Obama become the President-elect, that I asked myself “what will this do to the RV park industry?”  I was pretty happy with the conclusion I came to.

• Lower Gas Prices Means Good Things For The Entire RV Industry – Part I. The drop in oil prices is certainly no result of Obama and his policies. The initiative that I’m interested in is the one in which he wants to take some of the windfall profits from the oil industry and translate that into lower gas prices. Just his attitude of watching over gas prices like a hawk should yield lower pricing from worried oil executives. And when gasoline prices are lower, that means RV owners can hit the road more and spend more nights in RV parks. In addition, it means more RVs are sold and, you guessed it, spend more nights in RV parks.

• Lower Gas Prices Means Good Things For the Entire RV Industry – Part II. Let’s face it, Bush was not a great peacemaker or negotiator. His combative attitude has put a serious strain in relations with a lot of nations that have a lot of oil. Obama seems to want to mend those fences and, I’m hoping, that means more oil available for import. And with more oil coming in the door, that should mean lower gas prices – it’s just simple supply and demand. And low gasoline prices are good for the RV industry. It means more RVs are on the road and spending nights in RV parks.

• Tax Breaks For Middle Income Americans Is Good For The RV Park Industry. Obama has floated several concepts to reduce the tax burden on middle class America. Although there is a section of the RV industry that caters to well-heeled clientele who are looking at probably more taxes under Obama, there is a mass market section that can take those tax savings and translate that into more RV nights on the road. And the well-heeled clients are not going to stop using their RV over some additional taxes.

• Hope May Lead To Better Consumer Spending .  Americans seem to find that Obama inspires them with hope. And hope may lead people to have more faith in the economy. And to spend more money to keep the economy propped up. And since the majority of the U.S. economy is reliant on consumer spending, it just makes sense that it’s good for the RV park industry. People who are confident in their finances are more likely to hit the road and celebrate with some nights in an RV park.

In conclusion, the election of Obama as President-elect on November 4^th was a great moment for RV park owners. Any way you look at it, all the momentum seems to be in favor of the RV park industry. Even if you disagree with his platform, you have to love the positive impact it may have on your RV park. Politics aside, it is fun putting extra money in your park. And it appears that Obama was the right choice for that. At least we’re going to find out in a few months.

By Frank Rolfe Frank Rolfe is a mobile home park investor and owns over 100 parks with his partner Dave Reynolds. Frank also leads regular Mobile Home Park Investing Bootcamps through the MobileHomeUniversity.com.