Gilbert Escobar, general manager of Manufactured Housing Consultants in Corpus Christi, and his team of professionals make it their mission to help clients find solutions to owning a home. Photo by Jane Kathleen Gregorio
Editor’s Note: Area homes purchased from Manufactured Housing Consultants held up through Hurricane Harvey’s storm winds of 100 plus mlies per hour, said Gilbert Escobar, general manager of the Corpus Christi location.
“They are built to wind zone ratings for South Texas, so those that we have placed on properties haven’t budged at all,” he reported after the storm.
Escobar said the factory is expediting replacement homes for people who will be needing them throughout the Coastal Bend, including Port Aransas and Rockport, which were hit the hardest.
Local banks are adjusting their financing rules to accommodate swift replacement as well said Sales Manager Stephen Rodriguez.
“Banks have adjusted their financing rates to get people approved to buy,” he said. “They have adjusted their debt to income ration to more people approved quicker.”
Only one manufactured housing dealer in Corpus Christi carries more than eight brands of housing and 21 finance programs for the credit-challenged and is an independent dealer rather than a franchise. All together, these points have built Manufactured Housing Consultants a strong foundation in the local market after only four months in operation.
Helping customers find solutions to owning their own homes, regardless of income and credit status has proven the framework for success in the Corpus Christi market, General Manager Gilbert Escobar said.
Manufactured Housing Consultants was first established by owner Mauricio Lemos in Von Ormy, just South of San Antonio, in 2002. Escobar, who was in car sales for 27 years, has known Lemos since they were both 18 years old.
“My friend Mauricio, who is also a real estate and insurance broker, was doing very well in his company,” Escobar said. “I saw how successful he was, and he told me he planned to expand to the Corpus Christi region. I decided to join him, and we opened a new branch in Corpus Christi on April 1, 2017.”
The company offers a one-stop-shop where customers can choose any combination of manufactured homes and land packages, land only, home only, maintenance, real estate services and financing.
“We are the largest volume dealer in the state of Texas,” Escobar said. “And even though we’re not a credit-repair company, we offer services to help fix credit and enable people to buy a home. We make it easier for clients to get into their own home rather than paying rent.”
Business goals set in April have been achieved much sooner than expected, reported Sales Manager Stephen Rodriguez, who has been in the industry for six years.
“Corpus Christi is a really good market for our company,” Rodriguez said. “There are lots of job opportunities here with the oil industry and people needing homes, but not everyone has the best credit. Because we have over 21 different programs that help the credit-challenged, we achieved our sales goals earlier than expected. We had to jump on the wagon and get more homes in faster than we thought we needed.”
According to Rodriguez, many of their customers are coming in from other dealerships.
“The main problem we have is customers have so many different options to choose from,” he said. “We have so much inventory, customers forget what they saw. They see so many different houses that they would love to call home.”
According to Escobar, the manufactured homes built today are sturdier than ever — more like site-built homes. Sizes range from 400 square feet to 3,500 square feet with floor plans to accommodate any customization or preference. Manufactured Housing Consultants also guarantees the lowest prices on the market.
“Because we’re not a franchise or a corporation, we don’t have to follow any corporation rules,” Escobar said. “We’re an independent dealer, so we’re able to sell the same homes for much less.”
And while other dealers might turn away customers who have less-than-ideal credit, Manufactured Housing Consultants offers clients a wide variety of loan packages to fit any budget.
“We talk to everybody because we can help everybody,” Escobar continued. “When our customers come here, they are treated with respect. We have a team of eight highly trained staff members who are able to help just about everybody.”
Other clients include investors looking for income property as well as rental homes for affordable housing.
“A home is a once- or twice-in-a-lifetime purchase,” Escobar said. “We help solve problems in the housing industry and help people own their own homes so they don’t have to be renting.”
Manufactured Housing Consultants Corpus Christi is located at 1814 North Padre Island Drive. For more information, call (361) 299-6096 or email gilesco64@gmail.com or srod.mhc@gmail.com. Visit manufacturedhousingconsultants.com for more information.
