Building an RV Park from scratch under 50k?

elialane7 wrote:
That's my worry that its too little and the process is backwards and they're so ....willfully ignorant, they think I'm a buzzkill when I link them to articles or facts or ask questions about permits and building plans...

If the property is located in an incorporated town - there will be zoning and permit requirements.

If the property is located in rural Medina County - there will be very few in any zoning restrictions and few permit requirements. I have friends who bought a 1 acre lot near Lake Medina Thousand Trails three years ago - and needed no permits for anything. Though the lot did have electrical access, a well and a small septic system on it. They came in, tore down the shack themselves, got a friend to grade a bit and now live there five or six months a year in their class A. Last year they built a storage shed with a bathroom and a washer/dryer - with no permits or inspections required.

Texas really does have very few requirements about what a person does with their land compared to the other lower 48 states. (This is why HOAs are so big in developments - because my ex-neighbor could literally put up two major wind turbines, or drill a well, or run a retail business on the 1/2 acre lot next to mine in an incorporated town. Only the HOA could stop him, not the city or Collin county.)

I don't have a clue about the other surrounding counties except Comal, though a friend in Kendall county recently complained about a new requirement to have septic system designs 'approved'.

The more rural they are - the more it will cost to bring in power.

Well's are a problem. I have friends who built on a hill overlooking Canyon Lake about 12 years ago. The number of requirements for wells close to the Edwards Aquifer made them abandon the idea of a well. They put in a 20,000 gallon tank and have lived on rains water captured from the roof of the home and their shop/ RV garage even through the recent drought. (The property has a 125 foot elevation change from road front to the house in the back - 900 ft straight line distance. They put in a 1,200 ft driveway to make the climb. The shop building has two RV hookups - 50A/W/S. When they asked about putting in the RV spots - so they could live in their 5th wheel while they finished out the inside of the house - they were told that Comal county had no special requirements "put in as many as you want".

To answer your key question - MYOB

You have done more than due diligence and more than friendship requires to offer warnings and suggestions.

Sometimes we just have to sit back and watch our friends (family, kids, grandkids) make their own mistakes. We can only shake our heads, and never say "I told you not to do it"

What does the well permit cost? how deep must you go to get water? how much per foot does the driller charge?

westernrvparkowner wrote:
It would be possible to put in 15 sites with $50,000 if the people involved had all the skills and equipment necessary, there weren't any fees other than construction costs to pay and they never had a single misstep in the process. This, however, sounds like the only plan in place is to fleece an investor out of $50,000.
Property zoned residential isn't going to allow for 15 "tiny homes". Go in front of the planning an zoning board and tell them it is going to be an "artist community" and they are rightfully going to visualize a bunch of bums living in shacks. There is no way there won't be a bunch of opposition from the neighbors. Wells, septic and sewage systems, bringing in commercial electricity, roads and other infrastructure all cost significant amounts of money.
But what is really going to happen is this. They are going to plug away without any permits. They may move a little dirt. They will probably talk a good game. For every investor dollar sunk into the project, three dollars are going to be spent on their personal expenses. (I'd bet nearly everything I have that the people building the park have their personal finances is complete disarray). The project will collapse and the only thing anyone will have to show for it is a bank account with $50,000 less dollars in it. Take the advice of others and get as far away from this as possible. It isn't your money being frittered away, be thankful for that.

I HOPE it works out, I don't want to be any sort of bearer of bad news but I feel terrible watching this going down without saying anything AT ALL...I just need to know how to save it productively and in a way where they will listen...

It would be possible to put in 15 sites with $50,000 if the people involved had all the skills and equipment necessary, there weren't any fees other than construction costs to pay and they never had a single misstep in the process. This, however, sounds like the only plan in place is to fleece an investor out of $50,000.
Property zoned residential isn't going to allow for 15 "tiny homes". Go in front of the planning an zoning board and tell them it is going to be an "artist community" and they are rightfully going to visualize a bunch of bums living in shacks. There is no way there won't be a bunch of opposition from the neighbors. Wells, septic and sewage systems, bringing in commercial electricity, roads and other infrastructure all cost significant amounts of money.
But what is really going to happen is this. They are going to plug away without any permits. They may move a little dirt. They will probably talk a good game. For every investor dollar sunk into the project, three dollars are going to be spent on their personal expenses. (I'd bet nearly everything I have that the people building the park have their personal finances is complete disarray). The project will collapse and the only thing anyone will have to show for it is a bank account with $50,000 less dollars in it. Take the advice of others and get as far away from this as possible. It isn't your money being frittered away, be thankful for that.

coolbreeze01 wrote:

DownTheAvenue wrote:
MY advice:
MYOB. (mind your own business)

Apparently your friend and the investor did not ask for your advice, so don't offer any. These people seem to have a dream, and your statements are interpreted has offensive and not wanted. Just stay out of it.

Your comments should be something like this, "You have a lot of work ahead of you but seem determined, so I wish you the best and hope your endeavor is wildly successful."

And what if you are wrong and they do make a go of it?

I agree......

I would give my friends my opinion on the venture by stating from what I've heard, it takes a lot more money than $3000 per site to get this thing going. I would not tell them they are fools. Around here where permits and construction costs are high, the cost per site can easily run between $15,000 and $25,000. And that cost is using an existing water & sewer system in the area. You can get 50 sites on 9ac but around here you would not also get the sewage disposal system within that same area.

DownTheAvenue wrote:
MY advice:
MYOB. (mind your own business)

Apparently your friend and the investor did not ask for your advice, so don't offer any. These people seem to have a dream, and your statements are interpreted has offensive and not wanted. Just stay out of it.

Your comments should be something like this, "You have a lot of work ahead of you but seem determined, so I wish you the best and hope your endeavor is wildly successful."

And what if you are wrong and they do make a go of it?

I agree......

They are lost. If they dont know for fact that it can legally be done they are wasting every dime. There could be next to no rules and there can be everything from setback from property lines to an expensive septic system. More and more often it seems that I hear people say that they can no longer install a traditional septic system. It's not comparing apples to apples but my sons above ground septic on an acre home site outside the city of Arvada Co was $28,000 and that's only sized for a 3 bedroom house. Septic are usually sized by bedrooms/number of people. When you mention flood plain it makes the possibility of a raised septic all the more likely.

By being the bearer of bad news you will end up hated. Believe it or not when I have been in similar situations I have even been blamed!!!!

The investor is a fool if he has not looked into what is needed for this venture and simply handed over the cash. They are not free to do as they wish with their land, the government has its hand in everything and they want to collect their pound of flesh (taxes) off of any development of anything let alone the regulations that must be complied with. If they wish to remain willfully ignorant of what is needed to do this legally on the up and up then maybe you just can't save them from themselves. How far are you willing to go to save them from themselves? Sic the county on them from the get go? shut them down before they get too far along? Sometimes you just have to step aside and let things play out. Good luck.

elialane7 wrote:
That's my worry that its too little and the process is backwards and they're so ....willfully ignorant, they think I'm a buzzkill when I link them to articles or facts or ask questions about permits and building plans...

Honestly, if you've done what you can (and it sounds like you have), just back off and help them out when you go visit. Just don't "invest" any of your own money. Otherwise you will lose your friends.

Sometimes people just have a need to give something a try. Sometimes it works! A lot of times it doesn't, and is chalked up to a learning experience. Sometimes learning experiences can be expensive...

Please, keep us updated on the progress of your friend's project.