Pop quiz time. Does financing influence the levels of manufactured housing sales? Of course it does. An objective thinker need not look farther than what happened in the site-built housing market in 2008 for evidence. Choke off lending, and conventional real estate crashed in value. The slow, painful climb back up for housing has in many ways mirrored the return of credit to the market.
Similarly, while manufactured housing sales took a slide after 2008, the return of lending to the market has seen manufactured home sales slowly climb. That climb could be faster if loans being made 2 years ago, before CFPB regulations hit, were still being made today. There are reasons why there is bi-partisan support for HR 650 – which has already passed the House – and S 682.
So those who market and sell manufactured homes (MH) ought to and typically do care deeply about what the media, various lobbying groups and others say about manufactured housing or MH home loans. Engaging the media, public policy makers and influencers matters to the bottom lines of home owners and business owners alike, even if for whatever reason some don’t realize it.
As professionals, we should not ignore bad news that unfairly spins the facts about our vital industry. Cheap shots about lending by the ill-informed or agenda driven may paint a dark picture about MH personal property lending. We’re told anecdotally by some that it has not slowed demand, but we also know that it has created negative media and political buzz in DC. These can’t be ignored.
Of course, you can find people who have lost their conventional or MH homes to foreclosure or repossession. Does the fact that some lose their job mean that no one should be hired for work? Hardly!
By similar reasoning, just because a sub-set of buyers sadly loses their homes for whatever cause doesn’t mean that no personal property loans (or site-built housing loans) should be made. Should public policy force renting? MH lenders, who routinely hold their loan paper, make those loans because far more are successful than fail. Articles like the one linked here reveal that our MH customers are being forced to pick between renting longer, or getting loans at perhaps 3 times higher annual interest rates than an MH lender could make that loan for today.
The Mouse That Roared
The truth well told is powerful. The truth untold is akin to the biblical warning of placing your light under a basket. The mouse that roars in literature might shake up the proverbial mighty lion. David can slay Goliath.
Even when larger organizations or media sources opt to try to place “mobile home loans” (sic) in a bad light – as the Seattle Times, the Center for Public Integrity or non-profit ‘consumer’ groups such as CFED has – we must provide a response for serious researchers and for the staffs of both the House and Senate. Reputation defenders will tell you how important it is to provide the other side of the story.
With the above in mind, please see for yourself how doing “response stories” that set the record straight can rank well in Google searches.
Google “Doug Ryan CFED”
As full disclosure, Google searches can change moment by moment, day by day. It can vary according to where you are, or what kind of device is doing the search. We should also add that we employ a white hat SEO strategy.
That said, on the dates and times shown below, the following results were found for the Google searches shown.
Dodd-Frank Preserving Access to Manufactured Housing
It is easy to see from the above examples why MHProNews – and increasingly, MHLivingNews.com – are being followed by public officials, media, investors and others interested in manufactured housing. Engaging media, federal or other non-profit organization’s publications with responses pays off over time. The opposition is motivated! You must be motivated and do your part too. When you do, in turn, you can look your peers in the eye and say, please do the same.
We could do this same type of Google Search exercises on a wide variety of topics relevant to manufactured housing. On some, we will be page 1, #1 above the fold, on others we may still score page 1, but further down the page of organic search results.
The point is that responses do matter! Some effort is better than no effort. Information like the articles linked below, when shared with your Congressman, U.S. Senators, other public officials, the media etc. can make a difference. Do your part. Share the links via email, Facebook or other social media. ##
