BaseCamp :: Thoughtful Guided Investment
Vision. Strategy. Teamwork. BaseCamp Capital LLC is a Colorado-based private equity incubator dedicated to guiding specialty business and real estate ventures to their financial peak through the thoughtful application of experience and investment.
Case Study— Yes! Communities
DECEMBER 1, 2009
In early 2007 while much of the real estate industry was focused on homes at the luxury end of the economic spectrum, BaseCamp Capital saw a rapidly approaching need for affordable housing. The company's investment thesis held that the glut of mortgage dollars would eventually dry up and buyers would be forced to live within their means, creating a demand for affordable real estate properties.
BaseCamp began to source properties and portfolios specifically within the manufactured housing submarket, one with which the principals had many years of experience.
BaseCamp focused on a portfolio owned by Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary Clayton Homes. The portfolio consisted of 67 communities with 18,500 home sites. Additionally the portfolio contained over 2,000 vacant inventory homes and over 6,000 mortgages on homes within the communities.
BaseCamp was able leverage their deep domain experience to negotiate favorable deal terms with the Berkshire subsidiary. Further, the team was able to attract the attention of Stockbridge Capital Partners and together raise over $100 million in equity and $300 million in debt to buy the portfolio.
Such a substantial portfolio requires solid and active management. BaseCamp leveraged their extensive startup experience to rapidly launch a new company - Yes! Communities – as a vehicle to manage these assets. Yes! quickly grew to more than 350 employees in 12 states. Most importantly, BaseCamp drove Yes! to develop a dynamic culture, attitude and business model that has reshaped the fundamentals of the business and led to the group being voted Operator of the Year in only their second full year in business.
BaseCamp's combination of market knowledge, deep domain expertise, financial savvy and willingness to develop a new business model for affordable housing has been an unqualified success. The result is that the company has provided solid investment returns to their equity partners during one of the most punishing downturns in our economy –-- and perhaps as importantly has provided a quality affordable housing solution to thousands in a time of real need.