By Trevor Damyan, Commercial Mortgage Broker at Commercial Lending Solutions
RV park and campground financing is one of the fastest-growing specialty hospitality CRE niches in the country, fueled by the post-2020 outdoor recreation boom, RV ownership growth, and aggressive consolidation activity led by Sun Communities, Equity Lifestyle Properties (Thousand Trails), KOA, and several private equity sponsored consolidators. The asset class spans simple campgrounds with primitive sites at the low end to luxury glamping resorts with cabin rentals, restaurants, and amenities at the high end. Financing comes from SBA 504 and 7(a) for owner-operators, specialty outdoor hospitality lenders, conventional bank balance sheet for established operators, and increasing private credit appetite for consolidator strategies.
Get a RV Park Quote →RV park and campground financing operates across multiple channels reflecting the spectrum of operator sophistication and property scale. SBA 504 and 7(a) dominate the owner-operator end of the market. Specialty outdoor hospitality lenders (Live Oak, Wells Fargo, Live Oak Outdoor Hospitality, KOA Capital Funding) compete actively at the mid-market. Conventional bank balance sheet plays at the larger end with established operators. Private credit and CMBS finance consolidator portfolio plays.
Pricing is indicative and reflects active CLS CRE quote pipeline as of April 2026. Actual pricing depends on property condition, sponsor profile, deal size, and market dynamics.
RV park transactions range from $1.5M for small primitive campgrounds in secondary markets to $40M+ for trophy luxury glamping resorts in destination markets. Per-site pricing varies enormously: a basic full-hookup site might trade at $20,000 to $35,000 per site in a Midwest market, while a glamping or luxury site in a destination market can trade at $80,000 to $250,000 per site. Land value floors typically run 25 to 40 percent of total purchase price, providing meaningful lender comfort.
Operator profiles split into owner-operators (typically managing one to three parks, dominating the $2M to $10M segment), regional consolidators (3 to 15 parks, running the $10M to $30M segment), and institutional consolidators (Sun Communities, Equity Lifestyle Properties, BlueWater Development, others) targeting trophy properties and full portfolios in the $25M+ band. The consolidation cycle has accelerated significantly since 2020 driven by the outdoor recreation boom and RV ownership growth.
Operating revenue for a typical RV park combines daily and weekly transient site rent (the primary cash flow), monthly extended-stay site rent (typically 60 to 80 percent of total revenue at most parks), seasonal long-term site rent (often a stable annual revenue base), cabin and lodge rental, and ancillary revenue from store, propane, laundry, and recreational amenities. Lenders evaluate the durability and seasonality of each revenue line.
RV park underwriting evaluates the real estate, the operating business, and the regulatory environment with significant focus on seasonality, land value, and operator experience. The asset class has matured substantially with the institutional consolidation cycle, and lender underwriting metrics have standardized.
RV park transactions have specific failure modes around seasonality, infrastructure capital expenditure, and operator experience that catch first-time SBA buyers and inexperienced consolidators.
On a $7.4M acquisition of a 178-site RV park in a Sun Belt destination market, the sponsor was a second-time park operator with one stabilized property under management. The deal had 65 percent full hookup sites, 25 percent partial hookup, and 10 percent primitive, with year-round operating profile and 84 percent peak-season occupancy. SBA 504 financed the real estate at 90 percent LTC structured as a 50 percent bank first lien and 40 percent CDC second lien with 10 percent down. SBA 7(a) financed working capital and a planned bath house renovation at $850K. Total project cost was $8.25M including the renovation. The deal closed in 80 days. First-year operating cash flow came in 8 percent above pro forma supported by stronger-than-expected seasonal site rate increases. The bath house renovation completed at month 14 enabled a 12 percent rate increase on the following season's bookings, validating the planned capital expenditure investment.
All deal references anonymize borrower and lender identities and use city-level geography only.
RV parks combine real estate value (land and infrastructure), an operating business (hospitality and retail), and the longest-running consumer demand trend in CRE (outdoor recreation and RV ownership). The lender bench has matured with the consolidation cycle, and SBA 504 is purpose-built for owner-operators in this kind of asset class.
Tell us about your rv park deal. We will run it past lenders that actively fund this property type and send back terms within 48 hours.
Apply for Financing →