York County, SC has placed the public and regulatory mood towards manufactured home communities back on the radar, if it ever left the stage for industry professionals.
“It’s been several instances in my district where developers have attempted to use this threat of a mobile home park in order to increase the number of lots that are available inside a particular area,” York County Councilwoman Christi Cox said. She represents parts of Fort Mill and Rock Hill, SC.
“That, to me, is problematic,” she said, per the HeraldOnline.
While it is ‘inside baseball’ for locals, it is one of numerous cases that arise every month of how the public reacts to the notion of a new manufactured home community. Of course, local media and officials often refer to these new communities as ‘trailer parks’ [sic] or ‘mobile home parks’ [sic].
The featured image used in the Herald’s report is the photo below.
Yet, how many developers would create a new manufactured home community designed for metal sided homes that are decades old?
Rather, true manufactured home community developers routinely will use upscale new homes, often with clubhouse, and other amenities. Yet, how many developers would create a new manufactured home community designed for metal sided homes that are decades old?
Back to York…
For the developer in York, their apparent goal isn’t to build a land-lease community at all. Rather, it is to use – as Cox said – the ‘threat’ to leverage what they actually want, higher density with conventional housing.
“Those developers also said the county’s comprehensive and future land use plans allows for a high-end density threshold of 890 residential units,” per the Herald.
“The developer has shown this to the people who are there and they said either you like what we’ve presented tonight, which is 189 homes — 100 more than they’re allowed to put without a rezoning — or the county’s going to allow 890 units,” Councilwoman Allison Love said. “Or, we’re either going to a trailer park, or we’re going to have 890 units. And the reality is, we’re going to have (89) if we’re going to have anything.”
“It’s been several instances in my district where developers have attempted to use this threat of a mobile home park in order to increase the number of lots that are available inside a particular area,” York County Councilwoman Christi Cox said. She represents parts of Fort Mill and Rock Hill, SC.
“That, to me, is problematic,” she said, per the HeraldOnline.
Rather, true manufactured home community developers routinely will use upscale new homes, often with clubhouse, and other amenities.
Back to York…
For the developer, their apparent goal isn’t to build a community at all. Rather, it is to use – as Cox said – the ‘threat’ to leverage what they actually want, higher density with conventional housing.
“Those developers also said the county’s comprehensive and future land use plans allows for a high-end density threshold of 890 residential units,” per the Herald.
“The developer has shown this to the people who are there and they said either you like what we’ve presented tonight, which is 189 homes — 100 more than they’re allowed to put without a rezoning — or the county’s going to allow 890 units,” Councilwoman Allison Love said. “Or, we’re either going to a trailer park, or we’re going to have 890 units. And the reality is, we’re going to have (89) if we’re going to have anything.”
Solutions?
This is a socially and economically complex issue, that would require that industry, media, researchers, investors, and public officials work together to educate themselves and the public about what modern manufactured home living actually is, as opposed to promoting the fear and phobias on display in the case noted above.
Local media, such as the report by the Herald, ought to politely be encouraged to get with the times.
The Urban Institute in their recent research did not adequately address this type of issue as part of the cause for manufactured housing’s relative low sales levels. It’s perhaps implied in the zoning mention, but isn’t directly dealt with. While sales are rising, the total sales of new manufactured homes ought to be many times higher than they current production levels.
Bloomberg, HousingWire, Realtor and Fox all suggest Manufactured Homes as Important Solution for Affordable Housing in America – manufacturedhomelivingnews.com
While housing becomes more and more expensive across the United States, there’s a simple solution. For those who either want to be frugal and still get great quality or those who have limited funds, but desire to be a homeowner – the answer, suggests and HousingWire – could be modern manufactured homes.
For that kind of growth to occur, industry business owners must be part of the solution, in their own local market(s). Without action, only more of the same will occur. ## (News, analysis, and commentary.)
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” We recently did an audit of where we stand year over year, and we are up at a rate about double that of the industry’s growth,” said Stan Posey, sales manager at Sunshine Homes. ” 2016 was up about double the growth rate of the industry at large over 2015.
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