Matthew Silver

Following a 25-year career operating a custom hardwood furnishing business and occasional writing, Matthew Silver has been writing professionally for over a dozen years, six of those for the factory-built housing industry. Otherwise, he may be found performing folk music in the Indianapolis area.

With New Director, CFPB May Emerge Swinging—or Not

With President Obama’s questioned recess appointment of Richard Cordray as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the agency can now implement the full authority of the Dodd-Frank Act, according to BusinessWeek. Dodd-Frank resulted from lawmakers complaining that regulators did not do enough to protect borrowers, and was passed …

With New Director, CFPB May Emerge Swinging—or Not Read More

Passages…Lenny Jones Gregory

After a year-long battle with cancer, former MHC owner Lenny Jones Gregory passed away in Falcon, Colorado. TheRecordDelta of Buckhannon, WV tells MHProNews.com Gregory moved to Colorado from West Virginia in the 1970’s to help his brother manage Alpine Village Mobile Home Park in Florence, CO and then began transporting …

Passages…Lenny Jones Gregory Read More

Dow Advances Cautiously; Housing Stocks Close Mixed

Stocks notched up slightly as investors anticipate fourth-quarter corporate reports amid continuing concerns about the debt crisis in Europe. CNNMoney reports the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 32.77 points, +0.27 percent, to close at 12,392.69. The NASDAQ moved up +0.09 percent, and the S&P gained +0.23 percent. The Yahoo! Finance …

Dow Advances Cautiously; Housing Stocks Close Mixed Read More

Long Island Builder Moves to Modular

Before the housing bubble burst, builder Howard Kipnes would buy land speculatively and then build the home upon receiving a contract. That ended with the housing bust. Newsdays tells MHProNews.com that according to the U.S. Census Bureau, permits for single-family homes on Long Island, New York, fell to 90 in …

Long Island Builder Moves to Modular Read More

Employment Rises in December

Market Watch tells MHProNews.com that ADP says 325,000 jobs in the private sector were added in December. According to CBIZ Payroll Services, their Small Business Employment Index (SBEI) rose 1.75 percent last month, the largest increase since 1.77 percent in December 2009. The November 2011 gain was only .35 percent. …

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Modular Homes Prompt Concern

Following up on an article we ran Nov. 21, 2011 about the May 22 tornado that wiped out one-third of Joplin, Missouri’s housing, KOAMTV tells MhproNews.com some residents are up in arms about three modular homes moving into a neighborhood of traditional homes. The neighbors are concerned the units, built …

Modular Homes Prompt Concern Read More

New CFPB Director Fills Staff Positions

According to HousingWire, Richard Cordray, the newly-appointed director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), chose Raj Date as the agency’s first deputy director. Originally the head of research, markets, and the regulations division, Date took over from CFPB architect Elizabeth Warren as special advisor to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. …

New CFPB Director Fills Staff Positions Read More

CEOs Cautiously Optimistic for Growth in New Year

ChiefExecutive tells MHProNews.com 69 percent of chief executives in their CEO Confidence Index expect an increase in revenues in 2012, and 42 percent anticipate more capital expenses, although Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett is ahead of the pack. The owner of Clayton Homes through Berkshire, with $40 billion in cash …

CEOs Cautiously Optimistic for Growth in New Year Read More

Most Tracked Housing Stocks Advance Including MH Composite

Investors fears about the ongoing Euro debt crisis were tempered by good economic news at home that resulted in a fairly flat day overall for U.S. stocks. CNNMoney reports the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost a mere 3.1 points, -0.02 percent, to close at 12,415.32. The NASDAQ gained 21.5 points, …

Most Tracked Housing Stocks Advance Including MH Composite Read More

Bernanke: Aggressively Avoid Foreclosure

MhproNews.com has learned from the HuffingtonPost that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says foreclosure is not a good way to deal with delinquent mortgage holders because it leads to deteriorating houses and depression of area home prices. In a report sent to the housing affairs and banking services committees of …

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Shock-resistant Homes

A report from the BOI Fair 2011 in Bangkok, Thailand, says the Siam Cement Group (SCG) of Thailand is looking to invest five billion dollars in Southeast Asia, especially Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, countries where it already has a strong presence. As BusinessMirror tells MHProNews.com, in keeping with the …

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Dump Truck Economic Index

Florida author Jim Boeglin tells MHProNews.com that while economists study manufacturing reports, employment numbers, building permits, consumer confidence surveys, etc., to tap into the state of the U.S. economy, he counts dump trucks. Writing in the NaplesNews, he says from 2003 to 2006 Southwest Florida was crawling with dump trucks. …

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FOMC Notes: What to Do, What to Do?

MHProNews.com has learned from NationalMortgageNews the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting Dec. 13 reveal disappointment that attempts by the government to stimulate a housing recovery, combined with low interest rates and increasing employment, has had little effect. Response to the expansion of the Home Affordable Refinance …

FOMC Notes: What to Do, What to Do? Read More

Home Ownership: Good Investment?

HousingWire reports David Blitzer, chairman of Standard & Poor’s Index Committee, says when current home prices are adjusted for inflation, they are back to 2001 levels. This suggests the rapid rise and decline of home prices did little more than create havoc for the economy. “Allowing for a dip in …

Home Ownership: Good Investment? Read More

Sam Zell: Hunting in South America

ReutersAfrica reports that U.S. business magnate Sam Zell, chairman of Equity Lifestyle Properties, the real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns over 134,000 manufactured housing homesites in North America, is in talks to buy a controlling interest in Brazil’s Grupo Tha. At 115 years of age, Grupo Tha is the …

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Dow Begins Year Well, Most MH Stocks Follow

No negative news from Europe, and positive manufacturing news from the U.S., China and India cheered investors as the market rallied for the first day of trading, 2012. CNNMoney reports the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 179.82 points, 1.47 percent, to close at 12,397.98. The NASDAQ moved up 1.67 percent, …

Dow Begins Year Well, Most MH Stocks Follow Read More

New Year Sun Shines on Sun Stock

MHProNews.com learned the stock of MHC owner Sun Communities Inc. has been upgraded by equity analysts at BMO Capital Markets from “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating. LocalizedUSA reports as of Dec. 31, 2009, the real estate investment trust (REIT)’s portfolio was comprised of 136 properties, 124 of which …

New Year Sun Shines on Sun Stock Read More

Freddie Mac: Sales Should Rise this Year

RealtorMag quotes Frank Northaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac, as saying, “”Mortgage rates ended the year hovering near historic lows in an already affordable housing market,” noting the 3.95 percent mortgage rate for the 30-year FRM. The rate only crossed the five percent line twice in 2011. He says a …

Freddie Mac: Sales Should Rise this Year Read More

Lustron House Needs Household Goods

Following up on an article we ran Dec. 27, 2011 about a Lustron House exhibit being displayed at the Ohio Historical Center in Columbus, the DaytonDailyNews tells MHProNews.com history curator Cameron Woods has sent out a call for the public to help furnish this steel and ceramic relic from the …

Lustron House Needs Household Goods Read More

The Other Side of the ND Housing Shortage

MHPronews.com has reported several times about the North Dakota oil boom that is drawing thousands seeking well-paying jobs, spiking the demand for ASAP housing. “Man camps”, modular dormitories for mostly male oil field workers have sprung up around Williston, ND. Some people are sleeping in cars, tents, and RVs. The …

The Other Side of the ND Housing Shortage Read More

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