The Mobile Home That Sold For $3.75 Million



In the summer of 1998, Ken Hilderbrandt was contemplating buying a bigger boat, or maybe even a beachfront trailer on a wave-swept bluff in The Hamptons overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. What he found was a dilapidated trailer sitting on a 1,972-square-foot lot of land in the seaside town of Montauk, New York. It was definitely a fixer-upper, but the million-dollar ocean views pulled him in like a riptide. The asking price was a ridiculous $150,000. He wound up counter-offering $95,000, the seller countered back at $96,500, and Hilderbrandt bought the trailer. Now, the 800-square-foot trailer is under contract for a record $3.75 million, making it $5,000 per square foot. It’s a high price to pay for sure — roughly the same price as New York City’s luxury market. Although it has been remodeled, the humble trailer is raking in the bucks mainly because it features 180-degree views of the ocean from the living room and back deck.