The United States of America (USA) is the largest economy in the world. That’s what the data compiled in the infographic below from Visual Capitalist reveals.
Yet, some 40 nations around the world that have a higher rate of home ownership than the U.S., per data compiled by Wikipedia.
When the U.S. has a stronger economy, a higher total Gross Domestic Product, and a generally higher per capita GDP, how is the relatively low rate of home ownership possible?
Let’s rephrase the question in a more manufactured housing industry related fashion.
The graphic below reveals the then latest data on manufactured home prices compared to conventional housing prices.
Manufactured home quality is superior to the mobile homes or trailer houses of yesteryear. Who says? Independent research by the National Association of Realtors™ (NAR).
From the video interview with an informed former HUD official – to the focus group of unpaid manufactured home owners that follow below, and more – there is plenty of evidence for the quality and satisfaction with today’s manufactured homes.
Rephrased, there is plenty of indicators from home owners to third party sources that demonstrate that an obvious part of the solution to the affordable housing crisis is hiding in plain sight.
So, given a raft of possible sources that prove the value of HUD Code manufactured homes, why is manufactured housing trailing conventional housing by such a wide margin? See the data that the NAR also provided. The percentage of manufactured homes sold relative to all conventional housing is hovering near historic lows.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) in their 2014 research found that the monthly cost for owning a manufactured home was lower than rentals, or other forms of housing. NAR came to a similar finding in 2018.
Manufactured housing has the benefit – at least on paper – of “enhanced preemption” under the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000. So why isn’t it aspect of the law better known, much less enforced?
Enforcing Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) could create a boom for all factory-built housing, but especially so for manufactured homes, due to federally enhanced preemption.
Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing, a Novel Yet Proven Solution to the Affordable Housing Crisis That Will Create Opportunities, Based Upon Existing Laws – manufacturedhomelivingnews.com
Affordable quality housing is one of the most critical issues of our time. So too is affordable home ownership, which should be the ideal goal over rental housing. A challenge is zoning and land use, which is highly politicized, and thus is often misunderstood. What follows is adapted from the comments letter addressed as shown below.
This Google search done on 12.30.2018 reflects the first two pages of search results for the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act (MHIA) of 2000.
The Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) has been online for about 2 decades. They just did their latest renovation of their website fairly recently. So why doesn’t the MHI website reflect any information on the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act (MHIA) on the first two pages of the Google results, shown above?
George Allen or – any other full- or part-time surrogate(s) – for the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) can call these facts “conspiracy theories.” But facts and data are what they are.
The facts beg an answer to the question, why isn’t manufactured housing performing better?
It’s a #nettlesome question that the Urban Institute – in a report fisked by MHProNews previously – similarly asked about a year ago.
Given that MHI claims to represent all aspects of factory-built housing, how does one rate their performance?
For example, when MHI claims to have reached tens of millions of potential Americans – an outrageous claim on its face, but let’s take MHI at their word on that for the next few moments – how does one explain that 2018 will close with perhaps only 100,000 (+/-) new HUD Code manufactured homes shipped?
MHI created a ‘self-promotional’ video. From MHI’s video, the above composite images with commentary by MHProNews was compiled into one image. If even 1/10th the number of 84 million Americans they claim to have exposed manufactured housing to actually read one of their advertorials – meaning 8.4 million vs. 84 million – that would mean that only 0.0119047619 of them purchased a new HUD Code home in 2018.
That’s a puny result at best.
But it is worse than that, because the year before the new HUD Code manufactured home production statistics revealed that some 92,900 new HUD Code homes where shipped. The new home shipments were already trending up modestly on a national basis. So, an objective view of the facts reflects that no appreciable change in shipment levels took place. Those are just facts, MHI claims, and some applied logic.
We’ve said before on MHProNews that facts are #nettlesome things. This is just part of the proof.
One can research the links further below under the related resources for what our follow-the-money, follow-the-facts, follow-the-evidence analysis reveals. But as of this writing, no one at MHI, or Berkshire Hathaway, Clayton Homes, 21st Mortgage, etc. – nor surrogates like MH industry scandal-defending and -attached Allen – have tried to debunk any of these points.
We’ve repeatedly offered the powers-that-be with the Omaha-Knoxville-Arlington axis to reply to these or these concerns and issues, or those found in the related links further below.
In terms of direct response? Nada. Silence. But what they have done are a series of purportedly indirect replies, like the MHI video, George Allen, etc. But none of their efforts refute the facts shown. Rather, what MHI has produced are at best efforts to distract from the facts and evidence.
So, the logical, reason-led mind is left with 3 primary options. The post-production – promoting ‘all aspects of factory-built housing’ Arlington, VA based MHI is arguably:
- * Incompetent.
- * Ineffective.
- * Corrupt, as it is helping a small number of firms consolidate ever larger portions of the industry.
- * Some combination of the above.
Can you find another logical conclusion to the evidence? If so, sound off via the link below. MHI supporters and defenders are encouraged to chime in.
Clearly, the leadership of MHI must think their staff are doing a fine job, as their form 990s report bonuses paid the President Richard ‘Dick’ Jennison and other key members of the Arlington-based trade group.
That would lead an objective analyst to ponder that MHI’s leadership are rewarding their paid staff’s lack of performance, which once more points to bullets 3 or 4, above.
Razzle-dazzle videos, splashy power points, or new magazines or websites that sing the praises of MHI and their “MH Insiders” doesn’t change any of what is shown above.
We once more invite their leaders or designated representatives to explain to the industry at large via a video recorded and third-party moderated discussion at Louisville or Tunica to disprove any of the above, or what follows below. That would be transparency.
Will they be transparent?
A nation – with the world watching – is seeking the solution that’s been hiding in plain sight to the affordable housing crisis. “We Provide, You Decide.” © ## – (News, commentary, and analysis.)
(See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them. Third-party images and content are provided under fair use guidelines.)
Tony is the multiple award-winning managing member of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com.
Office 863-213-4090 |Connect on LinkedIn:
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The text/image boxes below are linked to other reports, which an be accessed by clicking on them.
Affordable Housing, the Visible, Yet Mysterious Struggle for an Obvious Solution, Case Examples
