So said Donald (“Don”) C. Westphal, a member of the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) in an article published in Kurt Kelley’s MHR and MHVillage’s MHInsider about “New Greenfield” manufactured home community development projects, community expansions, older community upgrades.
MHR and MHInsider are arguably largely thinly-veiled marketing and/or present vantage points deemed acceptable to the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI). MHInsider has made it clear for those who read the fine print that they are closely aligned with MHI on their masthead and elsewhere. To MHR’s credit, they periodically share an article from the MHI rival Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform (MHARR), but nevertheless, the bulk of what they publish is pro-MHI.
As Kelley put it in a message to MHProNews, they focus on other issues than industry politics.
There is often irony in reading what these pro-MHI sources have published. When the concept of “bas relief” is considered – even pro-MHI publications and pro-MHI writers say, carefully read – reflect poorly on MHI’s self-proclaimed ‘leadership’ and ‘benefits’ for the manufactured housing industry at large.
When Don Westphal says that the manufactured home “industry a much-needed image boost and ready the market for expansion,” that’s stating the obvious to objective thinkers. Data tells the story.
Any industry that has plunged from its 1998 high of some 373,143 new HUD Code manufactured homes to a low of 49,683 in 2009 – a drop of over 86 percent – clearly had problems.
When manufactured home industry cheerleaders tout the ‘recovery’ of the industry to 96,555 manufactured homes by the end of 2018 and say that’s 1.94 growth – without disclosing the historic trends data before or since – they are arguably failing their readers.
MHI reports a decade ago were talking about ‘industry recovery’ and wanted to improve the image of the industry to prepare “the market for expansion.” But stop and examine that claim in the light of what multifamily housing teaches the manufactured home industry.
Someone could rank multifamily housing properties with 1 to 5 stars, just as they can – and do – rank manufactured home land-lease communities. Does the presence of 1- or 2-star apartments keep developers from building new multifamily housing? Hardly. That begs the question – why does the presence of 1- or 2-star manufactured home communities – a.k.a. ‘mobile home parks’ – cause manufactured housing such a ‘drag?’ Why is there always ‘something else’ that must occur before the manufactured housing “market” is ready “for expansion” –?
Per Statista, “281,000 multifamily housing units” were built in 2019. By comparison, 94,615 HUD Code manufactured homes were built. About 1/3rd of those HUD Code manufactured housing units went into land-lease communities. Despite the challenges faced in all developing, there is obviously more challenges facing HUD Code manufactured homes than conventional housing or multifamily housing.
Bas relief is a form of art that has a type of three-dimensional quality to it. While the foreground stands out, one must be careful to pay attention to what is in the background. By analogy, when an MHI source makes a claim, even if it is accurate, look at not only the foreground, but one must examine the background details too.
After years of MHI claims of “momentum” and their “promotion” manufactured housing is in year two of its decline during an affordable housing crisis. That despite years and reams of research, such as that of bipartisan legislators that said that manufactured homes were more cost-efficient than conventional housing.
With that backdrop, our featured focus this evening will be the “greenfield” or new development portion of Don Westphal’s missive, because the other two segments broke no new ground and were arguably a plug for using his services.
That featured focus will follow two of our three market snapshots, some quotable quotes, and the left-right headlines. The final market snapshot of manufactured home connected equities will be found after our featured focus and related reports.
Quotes That Shed Light – American Social, Industry, National Issues…
Headlines from left-of-center CNN Business
- Closed for good
- A table stands empty at a permanently closed restaurant in Manhattan on August 31, 2020 in New York City. While New York City restaurants are currently permitted to serve take-out and to offer sidewalk dining, they are not allowed to offer indoor dining due to Covid-19 and there are currently no plans to let them begin indoor dining. As restaurants across the city continue to suffer financially and to close, a group of 100 restaurant owners from Brooklyn and Staten Island have banded together to launch a class-action lawsuit against the city over its refusal to allow indoor dining.
- More than half of businesses that shuttered during the pandemic won’t reopen
- Fed pledges to keep interest rates near zero for years
- LIVE UPDATES We can’t forget about the millions of people who are still unemployed
- Trump’s Fed pick doesn’t have the votes
- The rich own 87% of all stocks. Trump doesn’t get that a hot market doesn’t mean a strong economy
- Here’s why some state economies are recovering faster than others
- The best stock in the S&P 500 is 105 years old
- Will an Apple One subscription save you money? We break it down
- Jim Carrey will play Joe Biden on ‘SNL’
- McDonald’s new ‘Travis Scott Meal’ is in short supply at some restaurants
- Why a Dutch bicycle company just landed $40 million from venture capitalists
- Bud Light ad features Black-owned restaurants on Thursday Night Football
- Why people are flocking to ugly produce during the pandemic
- Prize wall at Chuck E Cheese’s arcade attraction in Roseville, CA on May 25, 2019.
- Chuck E. Cheese wants to destroy 7 billion prize tickets
- Cloud data warehouse company Snowflake is promoted at the Nasdaq MarketSite, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020, in New York’s Times Square.
- Snowflake shares more than double. It’s the biggest software IPO ever
- MARKETS
- APPLE’S BIG DAY
- Apple watch series 6 solo loop braided.
- Apple reveals two new watches, two new iPads and a subscription bundle
- Where is the iPhone 12?
- Everything you need to know about iOS 14
- Apple takes on Peloton with Fitness+ service
- See Apple Watch Series 6’s new health capabilities
- WHAT TO DRINK
- New Pepsi drink aims to get a piece of the $1 billion sleep aid industry
- Yuengling beer will be available in more states
- Dr Pepper is the latest pandemic shortage
- Taco Bell is now selling its own custom wine
- Why Gatorade wants to analyze your sweat
Headlines from right-of-center Fox Business
- ECONOMY
- Central bank likely to hold interest rates near 0 through ’23 to bolster economy
- The U.S. central bank, as widely expected, held the benchmark federal funds rate at a range between 0 percent and 0.25 percent.
- Stocks surge after Fed holds rates
- ECONOMY
- Second coronavirus stimulus deal unlikely before election: Sen. Chuck Grassley
- LIFESTYLE
- Apple provided Seattle investigators with iCloud data belonging to rioter
- ECONOMY
- Damage during the George Floyd riots may be the most historic in insurance history
- POLITICS
- Trump slams Dems for not sending help to people who ‘desperately need money’
- Kayleigh McEnany: Pelosi causing stimulus stalemate that could help unemployed
- UNMASKED EXHIBITION
- LIFESTYLE
- Anti-mask protesters march through Florida Target
- PANDEMIC PRICING
- ECONOMY
- Sonoma Valley wineries embrace discounts COVID-19
- NOT WAFFLING
- MARKETS
- This restaurant chain is highlighting the severity of Hurricane Sally
- GREAT SCOTT!
- MARKETS
- McDonald’s collaboration with rapper leading to ingredient shortages
- ‘HUGE UNDERTAKING’
- REAL ESTATE
- ‘Sopranos’ star renovates Italian home purchased for one euro
- JOE BLOW?
- POLITICS
- How a Biden presidency could change your tax bill
- ‘STRONGHEART MANOR’
- REAL ESTATE
- SEE IT: Matt Lauer puts Hamptons mansion on market for $44 million
- ‘AN IMPORTANT DAY’
- HEALTHCARE
- COVID antibody treatment from Eli-Lilly reduces need for hospitalization: study
- NEW TRACK
- NEWS
- The NASCAR Truck Series is changing its name, here’s why
- MONEY
- Nevada company that hosted indoor Trump rally fined $3,000
- POLITICS
- Federal government unveils plans to make coronavirus vaccine free for all Americans
- TECH
- DOJ charges Chinese citizens in ‘unprecedented’ global hacking campaign
- MARKETS
- Snowflake stock more than doubles in trading debut
- NEWS
- American Girl’s new ’80s-inspired doll promotes STEM learning
- POLITICS
- Biden ups ante, spending $65M on ad blitz this week
- FOOD & DRINKS
- Yuengling partners with Molson Coors to expand beer nationwide
- LIFESTYLE
- Skimpy ‘Tiger King’ Halloween costumes were pretty much inevitable, weren’t they?
- ENTERTAINMENT
- Judd Apatow accuses film industry of censorship: ‘China has bought our silence’
- PERSONAL FINANCE
- Social Security benefits in 2021: How much your check is likely to increase next year
- TECH
- Senators skeptical of Google claim it doesn’t have ad market monopoly
- MARKETS
- China’s Communist Party demands private sector’s loyalty as external risks rise
- TECHNOLOGY
- Tesla in discussions with Canadian mining company for low carbon nickel supply: report
- MARKETS
- DraftKings inks exclusive deal with New York Giants
- RETAIL
- Patagonia clothing gets political: ‘Vote the a–holes out’
- MARKETS
- US House report blasts failures of Boeing, FAA in 737 MAX certification
- MARKETS
- Amazon’s Career Day goes virtual due to coronavirus
- MONEY
- ITT Tech student loan lender to cancel millions in debt in multistate settlement
- ECONOMY
- US economy top among investors’ 2020 election concerns
- BUSINESS LEADERS
- Kodak CEO’s options grants did not violate internal policies, says law firm
Market Indicator Closing Summaries – Yahoo Finance Closing Tickers on MHProNews…
Featured Focus –
Where Business, Politics and Investing Can Meet
“A Planner’s Perspective Owners and operators of manufactured home communities are seeing interesting developments in three areas of the business.” So said Don Westphal. He elaborated as follows.
- Community Expansions
- Older Community Upgrades
Greenfield Projects
The need for new communities is great in most parts of the country. After years of vacancies in communities, most desirable existing communities are at or near capacity, resulting in an increasing demand for new projects.
Unfortunately, zoning new sites is difficult. Sewer and water availability in desirable locations where zoning is attainable is rare. Many available zoned sites are in undesirable or difficult locations. And public opposition to new communities continues to come from the “trailer park” perception.
Construction costs are rising, but so is the value of the finished project. As a result, it is important to take advantage of unique ways development costs can be minimized by using knowledgeable manufactured housing community planners and engineers.”
What Westphal didn’t go into detail on are the possible motivations for this state of affairs. His fellow MHI/NCC member Flagship Communities co-founders are touting the paucity of new manufactured home community development – ‘greenfield development’ or construction – too.
More specifically, their IPO points to the following.
The reasons that there are a surge in interest is due, in part per sources, to the relative paucity of land lease communities.
Big Surge in Manufactured Home Community Deals, Insider Details Others Missed
Realistically, Westphal’s arguments obliquely point to the failure of MHI to press the industry’s three big issues of zoning/placement, financing, and image.
22 years after the industry’s last peak, some 20 years since the passage of the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000, and 12 years since the Duty to Serve manufactured housing was made law as part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, the industry is still struggling at historic lows. Given the years of positive third-party reports, how is that possible unless it is the desire outcome? Why would that be desired, save for the purpose of fostering consolidation and promoting barriers for entry, persistence, and exit?
Barriers to Entry, Persistence, and Exiting in Business, Affordable Housing, and Manufactured Homes
Related, Recent, and Read Hot Reports
Manufactured Housing Industry Investments Connected Closing Equities Tickers
Some of these firms invest in manufactured housing, or are otherwise connected, but may do other forms of investing or business activities too.
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- NOTE: The chart below includes the Canadian stock, ECN, which purchased Triad Financial Services, a manufactured home industry lender
- NOTE: Drew changed its name and trading symbol at the end of 2016 to Lippert (LCII).
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Summer 2020…
Berkshire Hathaway is the parent company to Clayton Homes, 21st Mortgage, Vanderbilt Mortgage and other factory built housing industry suppliers.
· LCI Industries, Patrick, UFPI, and LP each are suppliers to the manufactured housing industry, among others.
· AMG, CG, and TAVFX have investments in manufactured housing related businesses. For insights from third-parties and clients about our publisher, click here.
Enjoy these ‘blast from the past’ comments.
MHProNews. MHProNews – previously a.k.a. MHMSM.com – has celebrated our tenth anniversary and is in year 11 of publishing.
Learn more about our evolutionary journey as the industry’s leading trade media, at the report linked below.
https://www.manufacturedhomepronews.com/celebrating-10-years-of-goal-and-solution-oriented-manufactured-home-industry-innovation-information-and-inspiration-for-industry-professionals/
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Disclosure. MHProNews holds no positions in the stocks in this report.
That’s a wrap on this installment of “News Through the Lens of Manufactured Homes and Factory-Built Housing” © where “We Provide, You Decide.” © (Affordable housing, manufactured homes, stock, investing, data, metrics, reports, fact-checks, analysis, and commentary. Third-party images or content are provided under fair use guidelines for media.) (See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them.)
By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHLivingNews.com.
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.
