Forrest Bryant used to sell cars, not houses. He started at the bottom, cleaning cars at Strong Chevrolet after high school. A year or so in, he decided he was ready to be a mechanic. Bob Strong wasn’t convinced. So, Forest invested in his own toolbox and tools and told Bob it was either there or elsewhere. Bob gave him the job. A few years later, Forrest moved into the parts department. A few years later, he set his eye on sales. To earn the job, he worked nights and weekends. He loved it. He might have stayed except for Stevie Ralph who, in 2005, offered Forrest a job selling manufactured homes in Waldoboro. For those old enough to remember, Ralph’s Homes was originally Easier Living Homes sited where Ralph’s sits today. Easier Living opened in 1955 selling what used to be called ‘mobile’ homes. But the rise of these homes as permanent residences, HUD established a national building code for the homes in 1976 and renamed them ‘manufactured’ homes. Harold Ralph, who owned Tucker Chevrolet, bought Easier Living in the early 1980s. He passed it down to Ronnie Ralph, who passed it to Stevie Ralph who partnered with Rick Erickson, the current owner today. Although the Ralph family is no longer in this business, Rick has kept the name. The inventory is a mix of modular and manufactured homes, with the manufactured homes its mainstay because they are so affordable. As late as 1994, the price for a starter was $5,000. Like everything else, with each year, the price has inched up. The options have expanded. But with COVID, prices jumped. Today, the starting price for a single-section manufactured home is $74,000. Forrest Bryant is from Jefferson. But as general manager of this Waldoboro institution, he knows Ralph’s Homes inside and out.
It took a couple of months before I sold my first home. I’d always loved cars, but I had zero interest in building, even so much as a doghouse, so it was hard in the beginning for me. I remember having coffee with Stevie Ralph on Saturday mornings and he’d say, “Well, you sold anything?”
I’d say, “Not yet, I guess.”
And he’d say, “Why not?”
I’d say, “Well, I’m still trying to figure it out.”
And he’d say, “If there’s somebody who wants to buy something, just sell them what they want.”
And it’s really that simple. You don’t have to tell them, “You should have this, or you should have that.” People already know what they want. You don’t have to make it complicated. You let them know what options are available, and you let them buy what they want.
But there was also a lot to figure out. Unlike with selling a car, here there are a lot of moving parts that you have to keep your eye on. You’ve got the cost of a home, the cost to transport it, there’s warranty expenses, plus all the different contractors doing different things, and it just goes on and on. This business is crazy. We carry seven different manufacturers who all have multiple offerings. And that doesn’t even include the cosmetic choices. It’s a lot to keep up with. A lot of detail, a lot of paperwork.
Right now, the conversation is interest rates, which has tempered sales. We’re seeing people who were potentially qualified for a $250,000 budget, but now, with interest rates being two or three points higher, their project is being pushed back to $210,000 or $220,000 because of the financial ratios. So, the home that they were purchasing just got smaller because they had to downsize to fit their budget. So, the availability of financing is a conversation. These are hard conversations.
But it’s not the only conversation. The availability of property is another. Years past, we’d have fifteen to twenty properties. We’d buy properties so we could offer land-to-home packages which we still do, but it’s hard. People just can’t find property.
And then, there are the subcontractors that we use for the finishing. We have a number of good people we work with, but they can’t find employees. They advertise, but nobody applies. So, that’s a factor in our ability to do more. You can sell and sell until the cows come home, but if you can’t perform…
I don’t know how younger people are going to get going on their own. If you have a young couple where he’s working full-time at BIW, and she’s at home working part-time, and they have a child or two, and they’re in a rent – I don’t know how they’ll save enough to get their ten or twenty percent down so they can get qualified to buy a home. The numbers have gotten so large with a simple land-home package that is edging into $200,000 for a first-time homebuyer. That’s probably the most disheartening thing in this business. People come in with the idea that their friend so-and-so got his own home, so why can’t I? We break a lot of hearts.
On the flip side, we make relationships. It may be a year or two before they actually buy from us, but they come back because they were able to save money, or get their credit scores situated, or get that full-time job that qualifies them. We have lot of first-time homebuyers.
We have a lot of last-home buyers, too. Empty nesters who are trying to downsize and who don’t need the multi-level living anymore and want minimal heat bills and things like that, because with retirement, they’re potentially going into a fixed income.
Everybody’s situation is different. Everybody has their own story, their own plans, their own goals, their own agenda. That’s why closing deals is my favorite part. It’s trying to understand what all those parts are and trying to figure out how to get someone to that. I think that’s why I like it best.
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