Barbara Corcoran and others are forced to make tough decisions as their beloved hidden LA gem, known as “humble hidden secret,” is destroyed by fires.

Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran found her slice of heaven in a trailer park.

The founder of one of New York’s most successful real estate companies, The Corcoran Group, boasts a $10 million duplex in Manhattan and a track record of selling high-end properties.

But if she had to pick one place to live, it would be the double-wide mobile home overlooking the Pacific Ocean she bought for $802,000 in 2017.

That was until it was destroyed in minutes.

Unfortunately, the two-and-a-half bedroom residence located in the Tahitian Terrace Mobile Home Park fell victim to the destructive Palisades Fire that ravaged Los Angeles communities earlier this year.

Having owned and lovingly improved the property for seven years, investing $150,000 in renovations, she watched as the house she cherished was consumed by flames alongside the rest of the neighborhood.

Now she and devastated residents from the tight-knit community are desperate to find out when they can return, and are stuck in limbo as the owner decides whether she can salvage what’s left and rebuild.

In an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail, Corcoran said some of her traumatized former neighbors are confused and waiting with ‘bated breath’ over the future of the mobile homes.

She added that she would rather rebuild her beloved Pacific Palisades home than settle in her New York City penthouse.

‘Nothing’s coming down definitive at all [on plans to rebuild]. But I do know one thing — every single person I have spoken to, which is just about everybody in the park at this point, is waiting with bated breath to build their new home. No one is thinking of leaving,’ Corcoran said.

‘There are very elderly folks who have lived at the park for years, and they panic a lot.

‘But in the absence of information there is always false rumors. Anything like that makes people nervous, and I don’t think I even expected to hear anything quantitative from the owner. 

Corcoran has been helping displaced Tahitian Terrace families rent temporary homes or stay in hotels.

There were more than 200 residents who lived in the 158 prefabricated homes. All but one was destroyed in the blaze.

Many were in their 80s and 90s, on fixed income and depended on the park’s rent control after careers working in civil service or the entertainment industry as crew members. 

Others were younger middle class families who were attracted to a more affordable part of the wealthy Pacific Palisades enclave.

Some who live in Tahitian Terrace have been back since the fire to try and retrieve any belongings that survived. Most found nothing left. 

Corcoran said she decided to buy at Tahitian Terrace when she got tired of staying in Beverly Hills hotels when she would tape Shark Tank.

Compared to the multi-million dollar mansions surrounding it, the property with pristine ocean views was a steal at just $802,000. 

She described it as her ‘special hidden secret’ and was immediately drawn to the people who lived there.

‘I think I was only rich one in the whole community, and I swear to God, I liked it that way,’ Corcoran said. 

‘If rich people moved in, it would’ve been a very different kind of neighborhood. The town of Palisades is definitely ‘rich’ but a lot of the people who lived in that park were not.’ 

‘It’s funny, I live in a lot of places, and I love all my homes because I love fixing them up, renovating, decorating, as many women do,’ Corcoran told Daily Mail. 

‘But I have to say, when I used to think about my homes and think, ‘What home, if I had one home, if I was going to hit the poor house and I just had to live one place, pick the one place?’ It would have been my trailer.

‘It’s such a simple way to live. I’m definitely going to, actually, if I can rebuild it, I’m going to dump my other houses and just move in there. That’s what I’m going to do and be happily ever after.’ 

But plans to restore the community to its former glory could take years. 

Mary McDonald, star of Bravo’s Million Dollar Decorators, is one of the co-owners of Tahitian Terrace.

The oceanfront site has been in her family for generations, but the fire has thrown its future into doubt.

However, panic among displaced residents is growing after some were given their deposits back recently, a source told DailyMail.com. 

McDonald, a decorator who boasts a list of celebrity clients, holds the key to what happens next with Tahitian Terrace.

She admitted to DailyMail.com that there has been some confusion over deposits, but she acknowledges that rebuilding the mobile homes would be an enormous undertaking.

Like many others picking up the pieces from the fires, she is waiting to find out when they can clean up the site.

And she and her brother have not yet made any definitive decisions on whether they will rebuild.

‘We have not said one way or the other because we are still exploring what it would even take to rebuild, McDonald said. ‘It’s a huge undertaking. We can’t even get answers as to when it will be cleaned up.’

McDonald said her grandfather, who was an attorney, built Tahitian Terrace in the 1960s. 

‘My grandfather built it as a project and he loved the Palisades,’ McDonald said. ‘So obviously, there’s a lot of memories for us there too. It’s a very special place.’

McDonald confirmed some residents who asked for their deposit back were provided their money.

‘It is not a functioning, operating mobile home park as it stands, so if they ask for a deposit back, we’re just doing the right thing,’ McDonald said. 

‘There’s a lot of rules that have to do with mobile home park ownership that has nothing to do with whether we’re reopening or not. 

She added: ‘We are still exploring what to do just like the rest of the world. People are making assumptions that has nothing to do with the park ownership. We’re waiting for the city and what they can do to even clean it up. 

‘And if that’s not cleaned up, we can’t even deal with the infrastructure to know what is. We are in the same exploratory period as the rest of the people in the Palisades.’ 

Corcoran said she has spoken to a lot of her former neighbors, many who want to return to the park and rebuild.

The businesswoman said the ocean view was not the only reason why she wants to come back.

‘I’ve lived in New York most of my life, so you don’t find friendly people here,’ she said. ‘They’re so old fashioned and ask, ‘Can you come over and play a game of checkers? Like, ‘Wow, I haven’t been invited to checkers since I was 12!” 

Corcoran said more than 80 percent of her neighbors were seniors on fixed income and middle-class families who worked in civil service or the entertainment industry as crew members. 

‘It was slow-paced and almost the entire community was retired,’ she said. ‘And when they did work, they were staffers. They were radio men. They were mic men. The lady I bought the house from was a stunt woman. So everybody’s humble. 

‘I could go on forever. I mean, what I miss so most of all, which I didn’t think I’d be able to say this, is I really miss my neighbors. I don’t think I’ll ever find I don’t think I’ll ever find that combination again. 

‘You’re in a great location on a cheap price and you have every neighbor agreeing with you. It was just delicious!’ 

After the January fires destroyed the mobile home park and most of the Pacific Palisades, Corcoran set up a GoFundMe for her neighbors.

The GoFundMe page has raised a total of $187,604 to date, and Corcoran has matched it with her own funds.

She said some of her neighbors initially refused the financial help until others who were in more desperate need were taken care of first.

‘We gave away the money so fast that people needed their first month’s rent,’ the TV star said. 

‘They needed hotel money. That really made me realize that people really had nothing. We bought people walkers. We bought one lady a wheelchair. They left it all behind. 

‘Most of them who needed money started the conversation with an apology and said they really could wait. 

‘They wanted neighbors who really needed money to have the money first. Everybody was for their neighbor, and that’s an unusual thing. Everybody was so generous.’

When asked if she would consider buying the land if the current owners decide to sell, the Shark Tank star said she would pass.

‘God, I never even thought of that,’ Corcoran told the Daily Mail. ‘First of all, I don’t think I could afford it. Honestly, it’s like 200 houses, 200 little plots, I think. 

‘No, I wouldn’t welcome a new business, and that would be a full time business for that kind of development, even if you had all the help in the world. 

‘I’m too smart. I know too much about development. However, I would make every motion I possibly could to make sure we could rebuild.’