Report Details Deep Community Involvement of Small Businesses in Local Communities; What Manufactured Housing Pros Could Learn to Promote More Organic Growth – Facts with MHVille Analysis
Anthony Smith, Oregon state director for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), said about the research provided below: it “…confirms with good data what we already knew about small business owners in our local communities, across the state, and nationwide—they are incredibly generous with their time and resources.” This may be the type of research that the NFIB does that ought to be mimicked with the appropriate parallels by the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) if they genuinely cared about promoting the acceptance of modern manufactured homes. More on what the industry could and should know and do to promote organic growth will be highlighted in Part II. Part I is the press release from the NFIB to MHProNews.
Part I
Report Details the Deep Community Involvement of Small Businesses
In Oregon as elsewhere, study finds they are much more than just the engines of local economies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SALEM, Ore., Nov. 21, 2024—The involvement of small businesses with their communities goes much deeper than just being the economic engine of a city or town, according to new research released this week by the nation’s largest small business association.
“This report might come as a surprise to some, but not for us at NFIB,” said Anthony Smith, Oregon state director for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), whose Research Center produced the report. “It confirms with good data what we already knew about small business owners in our local communities, across the state, and nationwide—they are incredibly generous with their time and resources.
“November 30 is Small Business Saturday – a great day to kick off the 2024 holiday season by showing our appreciation for Oregon’s small businesses. Good sales from now until the end of the year is undoubtedly near the top of most small business owners’ Christmas wish lists. We can all help with that. What you won’t find on that list is higher taxes and burdensome regulations, but we’ll have to leave that to the politicians in Salem and Washington, D.C.”
According to the nationwide survey:
“About three-quarters (76 percent) of all small business owners reported volunteering their time to work on behalf of civic groups, charities, youth sports programs, schools, religious organizations, or similar activities in the last 12 months.
“Financial support was the most common method small businesses used to support their communities … Ninety percent of small business owners have financially supported community or civic groups, charities, youth sports programs, schools, religious organization, or similar activities in the last 12 months.
“Sixty-three percent of small business owners reported providing in-kind contributions … (e.g., providing a meetings space for a local fundraiser, donating excess inventory for a cause, offering auction items to raise money, etc.).”
The report also looked at the groups of activities small businesses are part of. The report is a national snapshot of NFIB-member, small-business owners not broken down by state. The typical NFIB member employs between one and nine people and reports gross sales of about $500,000 a year.
Keep up with the latest Oregon small-business news at www.nfib.com/OR. Follow us on X at @NFIB_OR.
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For 80 years, NFIB has been advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, and member-driven association. Since our founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses and remains so today. For more information, please visit nfib.com.
Part II – Additional Information with More Analysis and Commentary
1) There are any number of ways that the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) could do in practice what they claim in words. Words have meaning. Words should be matched by deeds. The NAHB and others have effectively embarrassed MHI by issuing reports that show the low level of manufactured housing production and sales. The words below on MHI’s home page are arguably laughable when examined in the light of those pesky facts. If MHI is seriously “Celebrating” “50 years of Partnership with HUD,” then they are all but admitting that they carry a measure of responsibility for the relatively low level of manufactured housing industry performance.
2) MHI’s claims are self-serving and misleading at best, if not a bold falsehood for MHI to claim they are “expanding” manufactured homeownership or providing “news” about the manufactured home industry. They could, if they reworded their claim, honestly say that they promote themselves and they may promote their favored brands, sometimes those who are their brownnosers or bootlicks, and MHI ‘insiders.’ That would be fair. But as morning dawns in 11.26.2024 the most recent news on MHI’s website is dated 11.4.2024. It is laughable to say: “Keep current with…the latest in manufactured housing. Browse the latest industry news.” Are they saying nothing has happened in manufactured housing news for over 21 days?
3) MHI provides the public with no monthly data, as the Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform (MHARR), NAHB, NAR, or the RVIA does. No insights on how manufactured homes improved millions of Americans’ lives. Or how some local manufactured home businesses genuinely help their local communities. Instead, MHI provides fluff that elevates themselves, and may benefit several of their favored insiders. Illusory Truth effect and gaslighting come to mind.
“Here” is an apparent reference to some of those in Congress and in Washington, D.C.
4) The Illusory Truth effect is a real thing. MHI seems to understand paltering, posturing, spin, propaganda, and projection quite well. MHARR insightfully raised the topic of MHI’s “illusion of motion” some 5 years ago.
To dot that last i, “all segments” of the industry should be thankful to MHARR for getting and keeping those pesky facts in front of the industry so there is something to contrast MHI’s posturing against.
A recent expose of MHI with MHARR’s help is the Q&A posted below.
7) MHARR, for example, has publicly drawn attention to the opportunity that the Trump transition is giving to help stop the DOE energy rule in its tracks. If MHI were serious, why haven’t they done the same thing?
9) MHProNews began the process of exposing MHI and its insiders years ago. We did by systematically showing what MHI and their ‘leaders’ were doing versus what they could or should be doing. We pointed out via various fact checks, analysis, and expert commentary just how poorly the industry was performing when compared to some of the remarks of their own prior leaders.
Paradoxically, what the Castle and Moat methodology are doing is undermining that value. See quote from Buffett, below.
10) The income Trump administration is well aware the various ways that industry can work with bureaucrats in what has been described as regulatory capture. If that is what has been occurring with MHI and HUD, or MHI and FHFA, to use but two examples, it should call into question why MHI claims they have a “partnership” with HUD and what that partnership they are celebrating is doing.
11) MHI is failing as measured by their own previously stated metrics, or as measured by reasonable looks into affordable manufactured housing by others. The industry before the 21st century averaged some 250,000 shipments per year, according to one of their own members. Yet last year the industry slid back to under 90,000 shipments? Prior MHI president and CEO Richard “Dick” Jennison said in 2015 that the industry could be producing 500,000 new homes a year.
Historically, manufactured housing has proven it could double production in three years. So, in the 9 years since Jennison’s’ remark, what could the industry be producing today?
Continuing to follow that potential to double production every 3 years means that doubling 141,088 could have witnessed production of 282,176 new homes in 2021.
Doubling one more time by the end of 2024 means that MHVille nationally could have produced 564,352 new HUD Code manufactured homes.
Note: depending on your browser or device, many images in this report and others on MHProNews can be clicked to expand. Click the image and follow the prompts. For example, in some browsers/devices you click the image and select ‘open in a new window.’ After clicking that selection, you click the image in the open window to expand the image to a larger size. To return to this page, use your back key, escape or follow the prompts.
12) MHI is demonstrably failing consumers of affordable homes and is failing the independents who are growth minded. So, who are they serving? The consolidators of the industry.
13) There are posturing and faux trade groups. There are authentic trade groups. Who says? Recall what Dr. Richard Rahn said about “corrupt” nonprofits in the article linked below.
14) When a new administration is in place, expect MHProNews to draw attention to the years of footsie between MHI, consolidators, public officials, and others in a manner that may fit the “felony” antitrust concerns raised by Samuel Strommen and others. Stay tuned.
See what Copilot and Gemini had to say about these same issues.
A day of reckoning may be just over the horizon. NFIB draws regular attention to their issues that impact their members. MHARR does too. So does NAR, NAHB, or the RVIA. But MHI draws attention to itself and to their insiders. That’s part of the puzzle of problems that have keep manufactured housing underperforming during the Berkshire Hathaway era of manufactured housing. What we see more of is consolidation while production lags. Those are facts that MHI has not, perhaps can’t successfully, debate. Stay tuned for more.
that the industry ought to expect this current downturn because more expensive site-built housing is also in a downturn? MHI’s research and reasoning are arguably a classic example of PALTERING and the use of a RED HERRING logical fallacy. Note: depending on your browser or device, many images in this report and others on MHProNews can be clicked to expand. Click the image and follow the prompts. For example, in some browsers/devices you click the image and select ‘open in a new window.’ After clicking that selection, you click the image in the open window to expand the image to a larger size. To return to this page, use your back key, escape or follow the prompts.
MHARR said in a message to MHProNews that they look forward to working with Trump’s HUD nominee Eric Scott Turner for the full implementation of the 2000 Reform Act. More to come. ##
Our son has grown quite a bit since this 12.2019 photo. All on Capitol Hill were welcoming and interested in our manufactured housing industry related concerns. But Congressman Al Green’s office was tremendous in their hospitality. Our son’s hand is on a package that included the Constitution of the United States, bottled water, and other goodies.
Tony earned a journalism scholarship and earned numerous awards in history and in manufactured housing.
For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com.
This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.
