The demand for campgrounds has never been higher than it has, since 2021, and the number of new operators entering the space has been staggering, with more demand than ever before for transient RV destinations. This leaves many buyers without management or ownership experience wondering if they are making the right purchase and what they could have missed.
Founders of outdoor hospitality group, Beyonder Camp, and investment group, Happy Camper Capital, Adam Lendi and Justin Hoggatt found themselves wondering the same thing when they first launched into the campground space three years ago.
At the time, the resources for underwriting and performing due diligence and inspections on an RV property were limited and those resources were primarily focused on long-term RV communities and were mostly adapted mobile-home courses. Anyone who has operated an RV resort or campground can argue that these properties couldn’t be more different.
As Lendi and Hoggatt made their first several campground purchases, they learned that there were deficiencies in many of the existing education platforms and they had to create many of their own processes, forms, and checklists to make sure they were asking the right questions, getting the right documents, underwriting properly, and setting themselves up for success.
They’ve spent the past three years further developing and refining their systems and have now used them to underwrite hundreds of RV destinations.
What started as a resource for training their own acquisition team members, the RV Destination Mastery Course, was quickly sought by other prospective campground buyers Lendi met through his network and at OHCE.
In November 2022, Happy Camper Capital launched the RV Destination Mastery Course for campground buyers outside of their company, to help them avoid common pitfalls in campground due diligence and to ensure they are purchasing a sound business which will be successful for years to come.
“Two years ago, it was easy to buy a campground and turn a profit, as demand increased,” said Lendi.
“As we move further into the unknown of this impending recession and as fuel prices remain high, the decision to purchase a campground is still a smart one, however, those who survive this downturn and thrive on the other side will be those who purchased them the right way and who went in with a plan.”