Attached is draft field guidance for IPIAs to use in conducting Plant certifications or certification updates. If the guidance is followed and the IPIA has made on-going observations and records as to the manufacturer's implementation of the revised QA or QC procedures, the IPIA will reduce the time and effort to prepare the report and allow HUD program staff to more accurately evaluate your efforts. The report will probably be no more than 5 to 10 pages which includes attachments.
Both your HUD program liaison and IBTS will be making follow up calls to answer any questions or comments you may have. We will circulate a final document after your comments have been received. In addition, please be prepared to discuss the status of all your clients and where they are at in the SOP phase.
Any plants that you have finished evaluating and feel satisfied that they can continue to build complying homes and their manual is up to date should be reported on at the time of the call. You will be asked to follow up with a list of those plants.
If you are having any difficulty with any of your client's plants in motivating them of updating their QA manual and procedures, be prepared to discuss those concerns as well.

Stocks finished the week on a low note thanks to Greece’s ongoing debt drama, and ended the week in the red. Those watched stocks losing ground Friday included Affiliated Managers Group, Inc., down $1.14 (1.07 percent) to $105.60. Clayton Homes, Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance, as well as MH home-building, lending and other housing suppliers...
10 Feb 2012
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From Massachusetts and Nashoba Publishing, MHProNews.com learns that George Clark, president of Clark’s Retirement Homes Park met with a zoning board there recently to address a discrepancy over the number of homes identified in his application for a Manufactured Housing Community permit. Clark told the committee members the board had...
10 Feb 2012
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Realtors say that housing affordability conditions improved in most metropolitan areas from softer existing-home prices and record-low mortgage interest rates in the fourth quarter, with rising sales and lower inventory creating more balanced conditions. Introduced with this release is a new annual metro-level housing affordability index, with...
10 Feb 2012
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A mobile home fire in Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada is due to a crack in a fire box in a faulty furnace according to a story in DailyHeraldTribune.com. Fire Marshall Mark Whelpton tells reporters the cause has been determined to be a recalled furnace, which caused some $25,000 in damages. Whelpton also says other homes [...]...
10 Feb 2012
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As follow up on a story we published Feb. 6, Joe Kelly, executive vice president of the Iowa Manufactured Housing Association (IMHA), tells MHProNews.com house bill 593 that would create a fund to assist consumers purchase manufactured housing passed out of the subcommittee by a 3-0 vote. Committee member Jeff Grassley, chairman of the Economic...
10 Feb 2012
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MoneyNews tells MHProNews.com Sam Zell, CEO of Equity Lifestyle Properties says if the government had not stepped in to try and solve the housing market problems we would have a healthy market today. He says government intervention prevented the market from clearing itself. “We are the only country in the world where you can borrow [...]...
10 Feb 2012
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CNNMoney tells MHProNews.com good news from Greece concerning their austerity plan gave breathing room to U.S. investors who watched the U.S. markets zig-zag all day, but it finally edged up on the plus side. The Dow Jones Industrial average gained +0.05 percent to close at 12,890.46, while the Nasdaq gained +0.39 points to end the [...]...
09 Feb 2012
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In their release of the nation’s housing scorecard for 2011, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury noted mixed signals as foreclosure starts fell but foreclosure completions climbed and as new home sales fell existing home sales climbed. Existing home inventories fell from 3.2...
09 Feb 2012
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According to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), MHProNews.com has learned a survey taken by McGraw-Hill Construction Company reveals green home building accounted for 17 percent of the residential market in 2011, but that figure is expected to increase to between 29 and 38 percent in four years. In dollar terms that’s moving...
09 Feb 2012
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NorthCentralPA reports the Wall Street Journal says the Fleetwood Homes factory in Nampa, Idaho has increased production 25 percent since last fall to keep up with demand in the North Dakota oilfields for manufactured homes. Upon adding 40 employees, factory manager Jeff Chrisman says without this new demand he would be giving employees furloughs...
09 Feb 2012
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MHProNews.com has learned from Robert S. Coldren of Hart, King & Coldren in Santa Ana, California, a Vista (CA) Superior Court judge’s ruling may help MHC owners sell their land if they cannot earn enough from renting home sites. According to utsandiego rent control has been in effect in Oceanside MHCs since 1984. Since 2008, [...]...
09 Feb 2012
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by Nadeen Green I thought about holding a contest to see who might be able to come up with what I believe may be the two most important words for fair... Read more
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT & FAIR HOUSING (LEGAL)

by Eddie Hicks To build or not to build. That's the question. To "take up arms against a sea of trouble." Perchance to "dream"? Is that the rub? Sorry, Bill. I... Read more
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT & FAIR HOUSING (LEGAL)

by Chrissy Jackson In our last column, we covered Manufactured Home Community “Guidelines for Living” topics ranging from Refuse Removal through Rights of Management. This month, we will explore Security and... Read more
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT & FAIR HOUSING (LEGAL)

by Kurt D. Kelley, JD It’s exciting. You just purchased a manufactured home community. It has fifty (50) sites, forty eight (48) of which are occupied by home owning tenants paying... Read more
COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT & FAIR HOUSING (LEGAL)

by Boe Davis This is our second installment about how a Multiple Listing Service (MLS) functions and how it could help manufactured home sales throughout the country. In this article we... Read more
GENERAL MANUFACTURED HOUSING INDUSTRY TOPICS

by Deanna Fields March 1-2 will be here before you know it! Do you want access to more financing? Do you need new sources for inventory, services or just want to... Read more
GENERAL MANUFACTURED HOUSING INDUSTRY TOPICS

by Joe Geller Many of us have gone through the frustration of not receiving an email, even after we verify the sender has sent the email, and he or she has... Read more
GENERAL MANUFACTURED HOUSING INDUSTRY TOPICS

by George Porter Have you ever heard of anyone replacing anchors because they were worn out or not good anymore? I know I haven't and it worries me. Have you ever... Read more
GENERAL MANUFACTURED HOUSING INDUSTRY TOPICS

by Tim Connor, CSP One of my daughter’s favorite lines is, it is what it is. Every time I hear that from her it makes me stop and think – why... Read more
MANAGEMENT

by Zig Ziglar In recent years, in manufactured housing and in other industries too, we've seen fear take a toll. There really is "healthy fear." For example, it's very healthy to... Read more
PERSONAL REFLECTIONS, MOTIVATION and INSPIRATION

by Tim Connor, CSP Creating a team of super-stars is manufactured housing – business to business or business to consumers – is not as difficult as many managers or trainers would... Read more
SALES

by 'L. A.' Tony Kovach As we have noted before, at the heart of any successful career or business, there are certain basics or fundamentals. Being on the Cutting Edge of... Read more
SALES

by 'L. A.' Tony Kovach With approaching half a year of increasing shipment levels, we are seeing what could be the start of an industry turn around. This is not the... Read more
FINANCING

by Dave Shanklin Over the years, I have noted several helpful procedures that make our loan processing smoother. In the past I have written on this topic. Here are some new... Read more
FINANCING

by Jeff Templeton I try to listen and learn about marketing and business from as many experts as possible. I believe that their insights will make myself and those that I... Read more
MARKETING

by Katie Weldon Whether the term is model home or staged home, the definition is the same. It is the detailed and creative preparation of a house to be sold. If... Read more
MARKETING