Fact is, traditional pre-owned (site-built) housing has priced most lower and middle income families completely out of the market, at least for the foreseeable future.

However, many are discovering their dream home, and it will be built in a factory – today’s modern high quality affordable manufactured home. The following are 10 important reasons why a manufactured home is at least equal, and often superior, in every respect to a traditional site-built home, with a cost of about 50% less. Check these comparisons.

Affordability and Pricing: A manufactured home is a sound investment. Today’s modern new manufactured home is at least equal, and often superior, in every respect to a traditional site-built home, with a cost of about 50% less. Check these comparisons.

Average national price of a pre-owned site-built home: $435,000

(Realtors.com)

Average price of a new manufactured home:                 $124,900*

(U.S. Census Bureau) * Without land costs

Value Appreciation: Across the country the median value of manufactured homes increased 34.6% on average between 2016-2021, compared to 35.4% for single family homes.(Based on a Lending Tree Analysis of U.S. Census data – May 2022.

Architectural Styles: Today’s manufactured homes have experienced an evolution in the types and quality of homes available to homebuyers. Technological advancements allow manufactured/modular home builders to offer a variety of styles and exterior finishes that will suit any buyer’s dreams while allowing the home to blend seamlessly into most any neighborhood.

Customization: Greater flexibility in the construction process allows for customization to meet a homeowner’s lifestyle and needs. Interior finishes include vaulted ceilings, working fireplaces, state of the art kitchens, luxurious baths, covered porches, giving the homebuyer all the features found in traditional site-built homes that can cost many thousands of dollars more.

Energy Efficiency: Enhanced energy efficiency in manufactured homes, achieved with upgraded levels of insulation, more efficient heating, cooling systems, and the efficiency of the factory building process provides another source of savings for homeowners – especially in this era of rising energy costs.

Stringent Building Code: Manufactured housing is the only form of home regulated by a stringent federal building Code (HUD) Code, which includes energy efficiency, safety and durability. Manufactured homes are the only form of single family housing with a federal mandated warranty against defects in material, workmanship, and structural defects for at least one year following occupancy.

Wind And Storm Safety: A study by the University of Florida found not one manufactured home built and installed after 1994 HUD Code changes was destroyed or seriously damaged by four hurricanes that struck Florida in 2004.

Fire Safety: A national fire study by the Foremost Insurance Company showed that site-built homes are more than twice as likely to experience the occasion of fire than manufactured homes.

Multiple Financing Choices: Multiple financing programs are available, whether the home is placed on private property or within a land-lease community. A manufactured home affixed to real estate will qualify for mortgage financing similar to a traditional site-built home, including FHA, VA, with down payment as low as 3%

Customer Satisfaction: According to a study from a few years ago by the Foremost Insurance Company, 88% of manufactured homeowners reported satisfaction with their housing choice. Likewise, a more recent study by the National Family Opinion, found that 93% of manufactured homeowners are satisfied with their housing choice.

The post 10 Ways a New Quality Affordable Manufactured Home is “Everything a Home Should be” appeared first on Manufactured Homes.

For many, the realization of that unique element of the American Dream is becoming illusive in the traditional sense, (site-built homes), as the affordability gap widens between hardworking low to middle income families and those in the upper range of wage owners.

There is a form of housing that bridges that affordability gap and is “everything a home should be” – today’s modern manufactured home – which is generally equal and often superior, in every respect to a traditional site-built home and will have a cost up to 50% less per square foot than a comparably size custom home constructed on site.

It is conceivable that within the not-so distant future a majority of America’s new housing stock will be built in a factory. That being said, the burgeoning manufactured housing industry offers an opportunity for families to realize high quality, value oriented homeownership.

Headwinds in the home building industry are potential tailwinds for manufactured housing, as the competitive pricing and speed at which manufactured homes can be built. The average cost of a HUD Code manufactured home costs $127,300, which is well below the pricing of traditional site-built homes. Furthermore, the industry will likely benefit from government initiatives to improve the growing housing shortage issues.

The affordability of manufactured homes is due to the efficiency of the factory building process, utilizing the same building materials as site-built homes. The controlled environment and assembly line techniques remove many of the problems during traditional on-site construction, such as weather, theft, vandalism,etc.

The following are 5 of the many manufactured home attributes versus traditional homes built on site:

(1) Manufactured housing is the only form of home regulated by a federal building code which includes health, safety, energy efficiency and durability.

(2) Manufactured homes/modular homes can open the door to quality homeownership for millions of families; they can appreciate in value and be a long-term affordable solution for families and communities across the country.

(3) Greater flexibility in the construction process allows for customization to meet a homebuyer lifestyle and needs, including enhanced energy efficiency such as Energy Star-labeled homes for substantial savings in many aspects if owning and operating a home, and an array of amenities, decor features and appliances.

(4) Technological advances allow manufactured home/modular home builders to offer a variety of architectural styles and finishes that will allow a manufactured home to blend smoothly into most any neighborhood.

(5) Multiple manufactured home/modular home financing choices are available, whether the home is placed on private property or within a land-lease community. A manufactured home affixed to real estate will qualify for mortgage financing similar to a traditional site-built home, including FHA and Va. Because the total consideration is lower, the required down payment requirement will be proportionately less.

The post Growing Manufactured Housing Industry is Positioned to Address the Nation’s Affordable Housing Needs appeared first on Manufactured Homes.

The Manufactured Housing Community Sustainability Act recently was co-sponsored by U.S.Sen. Angus, I-Maine.

The proposal would be beneficial to park residents in Maine and across the nation, King said.

An estimated 22 million Americans live in manufactured housing with over 50,000 manufactured home communities, according to a news release.

Maine has over 600 manufactured housing communities,  the most out of any New England state. Ten of them are resident-owned housing cooperatives. Up to one-fifth of manufactured housing communities in Maine are owned by out-of-state investors. The bill would create a 75% federal tax credit offsetting capital gains if the property is sold to a resident-owned cooperative or non-profit.

“Communities across America are facing a serious affordable housing crisis, so we must continue to provide creative solutions to lower housing prices across the country,” sad King. The Act “ would give residents the opportunity to form a cooperative and buy the land to keep large out-of- state investors from buying out their landlord and jacking up rent prices.”

Maine Law

Maine has passed a new law that requires owners of manufactured housing communities to give residents an advance notice to offer a purchase price two months before the sale date and three months for residents to acquire financing.

Recently, two resident-owned communities secured financing to buy the land they live on in Rockland and Thomaston.

In 2020, residents at Charter Oaks Village, a manufactured home community on the Biddeford-Arundel line, bought the 40-site property on Route 111 after receiving notice saying the property was going to be sold.

Many manufactured park owners, like owners of other businesses are at or near retirement age. Combined with the way parks are structured – the owner owns the land, leasing it to residents, who usually own their home – they are ripe for investors.

An increasing trend is investors, many from out of state, buying the parks and raising rents past what those living there can afford, or reselling the property for development.

Manufactured homes are an important part of the state’s affordable housing stock.

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Manufactured homes are an affordable alternative for home buyers, and are available with features and amenities found only in site-built homes, and will have a cost of about 50% less than a comparable site-built home.

Here’s what to consider if you are thinking about buying a new manufactured home.

What is a manufactured home? – Manufactured homes are built in factories according to construction and safety standards set by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,or HUD. The homes are built on permanent chassis – base frame with wheels – and then professionally transported in one or more sections and installed on site. The wheels and axles are removed, and the homes are anchored in place. They can be set on permanent or semi permanent foundations.

What is a mobile home? – The terms “mobile homes” and manufactured homes are sometimes used interchangeably, but there is a big difference. Mobile homes are factory-built homes that were built before June 15, 1976, when the federal standards went into effect. Manufactured homes are those built after that date, 

The Manufactured home industry has come a long way in 40-some years, so new models are a far cry from the mobile home stereotype.

Buying a manufactured home- Most manufactured homes are sold through retailers. You may find retailers and available homes near you here at ManufacturedHomes.com., including a large selection of 3D videos of interiors of model homes available, as well as online price quotations before visiting a retailer.

Cost of a manufactured home – The average sales price of a manufactured home in November 2019 was $81,600, according to the latest available data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

But the basic home price isn’t the only cost to consider. There are also upfront costs for land if you purchase a lot and for adding any features, such as steps or patios, or sitting the home on a permanent foundation. Often the cost of transporting and setting up the home is included in the price. Make sure you understand everything that is required and include those costs in your budget.

Residents in manufactured home communities typically pay ongoing ground rent as well as fees for shared amenities, services and utilities. Factor in those costs when thinking about living in a community.

Manufactured home loans- You can find a lender through a manufactured home retailer. Manufactured home lenders and retailers have agreements to work with one another. Or you can find a lender on your own that’s willing to finance a purchase from that retailer.

Two main types of loans are used to finance a manufactured home: mortgages and chattel loans. Generally, manufactured homes must be permanently fixed on a foundation and titled as real property with the land to be eligible for financing with a mortgage. Other manufactured homes are titled as personal property and are eligible for chattel loans.

  Source: NERD WALLET

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“This is a cherished award for us,” said Champion Homes President and CEO Mark Yost. ”It lets us know that today’s manufactured home buyers look to us for excellence in quality, customer experience, and satisfaction. That’s a high bar to clear, and we work every day to clear it.”

Skyline Homes Net Trust Quotient Score of 98.5 secured the Michigan-based company the highest trust rating among the most prominent builders in the manufactured home industry.

The honor is significant, in part, because trust is a crucial element in today’s competitive manufactured housing landscape. Trust means customers are more likely to:

• Purchase a product when they trust the brand to deliver on it’s promises
• Maintain a long-term commitment to the brand
• Recommend and refer the brand

Skyline Homes creates that trust with every home, from designing each one to enhance buyers’ lifestyles to exhibiting its highly regarded – and uncompromising – dedication to quality materials. Even after all of that effort, the Company applies an exhaustive quality control process and continues supporting customers beyond closing. The results of the America’s Most Trusted studies are conducted annually, surveying hundreds of thousands of customers about their feelings about different brands and products.

About Skyline Champion Corporation

Skyline Champion Corporation (NYSE:SKY) is a leading producer of factory-built housing in North America and employs approximately 8,600 people.With more than 70 years of homebuilding experience and 48 manufacturing locations throughout the United States and western Canada. Skyline Champion is well positioned with an innovative portfolio of manufactured and modular homes, ADUs, park models and modular buildings for the single and multi-family housing markets.

In addition to its core home building business, Skyline Champion provides construction services to install and set-up factory-built homes, operates a factory-direct retail business with 74 retail locations across the United States, and operates Star Fleet Trucking, providing transportation services to the manufactured housing and other industries from several locations across the United States.

Skyline Homes builds homes under some of the most well-known brand names in the industry including Skyline Homes, Champion Homes,Genesis Homes,Regional Homes,Athens Park, Dutch Housing, Atlantic Homes, Excel Homes, Homes of Merit, All American Homes, New Era, Redman Homes, Scotbilt, Shore Park, Silvercrest, and Titan Homes in the U.S., and Moduline and SRI Homes in western Canada

Source: Business Wire

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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing  and Urban Development (HUD) announced on July 19, 2024 the appointment of five new members to serve on the Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee (MHCC), a Federal Advisory Committee. These appointments maintain the MHCC at 21 members authorized under statue to ensure the committee can continue to play its critical role in advising HUD’s Office of Manufactured Housing Programs on recommendations to the standards.

“With today’s appointments, we support the manufactured housing expertise offered to HUD by the Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee as well as a broad diversity of viewpoints and experience,” said Assistant Secretary for Housing julia Gordon. “We look forward to welcoming new members at the next committee meeting this fall.”

The following new MHCC members are being announced today:

• David Kruczek, consumer;
• Tim Sheahan, National Manufactured Homeowners Association;
• Sean Roberts, Villa Homes;
• Kaye Lawlis, Kentucky Housing Corporation; and
• Randy Sanders, RADCO.

About HUD’s Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee

The Manufactured Housing Consensus Committee (MHCC) is a statutory Federal Advisory Committee body charged with providing recommendations to the Secretary on the revision and interpretation of HUD’s manufactured home construction and safety standards and related procedural and enforcement regulations. By regulation, HUD has included the MHCC in the process of revising the Manufactured Home Model installation standards and related procedural and enforcement regulations. By regulation, HUD has included the MHCC in the process of revising the Manufactured Home Model Installation standards, Installation Program Regulations, and Dispute Resolution Program regulations.

Source: HUD Public Affairs  For Release Friday July 19, 2024

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For many, the realization of that unique element of the American Dream is becoming illusive in the traditional sense (site-built homes), as the affordability gap widens between hardworking low to middle income families and those in the upper range of age earners.

According to a recent report by the National Association of Realtors the median prices of homes rose to over $420,000, up 5.8% from previous year. Home builders say inflation is killing the market, along with high financing rates and rent increases over 21% and rising.

Home prices reaching new highs are creating a wide divide between those owning properties and those who wish to be home owners, especially first-time home buyers, effectively eliminating most of those potential home purchasers. Indications are that traditional home prices will continue to soar.

There is a form of housing that bridges that affordability gap and is “everything a home should be” – today’s modern manufactured home- which is generally equal, and often superior, in every respect, to a traditional site-built home and will have a cost up to 50% less than a comparably sized custom home constructed on site.

Additional Advantages Of Manufactured Home Ownership

• Manufactured housing is the only form of home regulated by a federal building code, which includes health, safety, energy efficiency and durability.
• Manufactured homes can open the door to high quality homeownership. They can appreciate in value and be an effective long-term affordable solution for families and communities across the country.
• A manufactured home is a sound investment, with a cost up to 50% less per square foot than a comparable traditional site-built home, equal and often superior in quality of construction, appearance and amenities.
• Multiple manufactured home financing choices are available, whether placed on private property or within a land-lease community. A manufactured home affixed to real estate will qualify for mortgage financing similar to a traditional site-built home, including FHA and VA. Because total consideration is lower, the required down payment will be proportionately less.
• Greater flexibility in the construction process allows for customization to meet a homebuyer’s lifestyle and needs, including enhanced Energy Star – labeled manufactured homes for substantial savings in many respects of owning and operating a home, and an array of amenities, decor, fixtures and appliances.

Source: Excerpts from our previous blog posting –“Top 10 Surprising Advantages Of Owning A High Quality Affordable Manufactured Home”

The post Site-Built Home Prices Continue to Soar, Eliminating Homeownership for First-Time Homeowners (in the Traditional Sense) appeared first on Manufactured Homes.

Manufactured homes have long been maligned, defamed and discounted as a fiscally responsible source of affordable housing, thanks to archaic stereotypes of mobile homes and “trailer parks”.

The facts are undeniable – mobile homes were, and to some extent, a blessing for thousands of families in achieving the unique affordable American dream of homeownership. It is also undeniable that the stigma associated with mobile homes of 50 + years ago has had a negative impact on manufactured homes of today.

Often potential purchasers of manufactured homes will voice concerns that the manufactured homes of today are not any different from the mobile homes of the past. In fact, shoppers of manufactured homes will most often call today’s manufactured housing- “mobile homes.”

The following are some definitions commonly used in the mobile home era spanning the years prior to 1976 HUD Code implementation.

Mobile home: “trailer” or “trailer house” – “wobbly box”
Single wide: “slick side” or “expando” (expando was a single wide with a slide out room to expand the living room area and/or a double expando with also a slide out room from the rear bedroom.
Double wide: The two section mobile home was initiated in the 1960’s. Often referred to as a “two banger.”
Triple wide: The three section home was not prominent until the late 1960’s and early 1970’s.

Today’s manufactured homes are not your grandpa’s mobile homes .. They are factory assembled, energy efficient and come with features and amenities equal to new site built homes, such as covered porches and garages.

Manufactured homes look much the same as stick-built homes, but carry a much smaller price tag. In fact, a new manufactured home will have a cost up to one-half the price of a site-built.

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In a meeting with with HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman on June 18, 2024, Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform (MHARR) President and CEO, Mark Weiss, called for decisive action by HUD to address and remove discriminatory zoning mandates which exclude affordable, mainstream HUD regulated manufactured housing from many communities and is one of the principle drivers of housing unaffordability and unavailability in the United States. More precisely, discriminatory and exclusionary zoning are one of three major bottlenecks that have suppressed the long-term growth of the manufactured housing industry as well as the availability of mainstream HUD Code manufactured housing for all too many American consumers (the others being consumer financing discrimination by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and looming excessive federal energy regulation).

As published reports continue to reflect, the United States faces a severe and chronic shortage of affordable housing, which has reduced the United States’ rate of homeownership and housing affordability to their lowest levels ever. This extreme shortage which corresponds with unprecedented low production numbers for HUD Code manufactured homes (which have fallen below 100,000 homes annually in 15 of the past 17 years) represents a catastrophe for lower and moderate-income families due, in substantial part, to zoning exclusion. As legal scholars have recently emphasized, “Exclusionary zoning severely reduces the housing supply in many jurisdictions, thereby preventing people from moving to areas where they could find better jobs and educational opportunities. It also increases homelessness by pricing poor residents out of the housing market. Exclusionary zoning causes enormous harm.” (Emphasis added)

The Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform is a Washington,D.C.,-based national trade association representing the views and interests of independent producers of federal – regulated manufactured housing.

“MHARR was one of the principal proponents of the “enhanced” federal preemptions of the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000-MHARR has consistently urged HUD to exercise this statutory authority.”
– Mark Weiss, J.D., President and CEO of MHARR.

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More than 400,000 people live in manufactured homes across the Sunshine State, making up just 8% of housing.

State Rep. Paula Stark, (R) St. Cloud, said the rent for the lot where their homes are put is on the rise, sometimes by hundreds of dollars.

“Most of the time seniors are retired, or you’re talking about your most vulnerable citizens who just can’t afford those kinds of increases,” Rep.Paula said.

Rep. Stark passed a new law in the legislature to help manufactured homeowners. The new law, taking effect July 1, changes how property rent increases are notified and shortens the time for mediation between the community owner and homeowner.

“They wouldn’t get a mediation set up then their rent increases took place before they could do anything about it, so this has shortened the timeline,” Rep Stark said.

This new law is seen as a win-win for community owners and homeowners across the state.

“It is really important to us to see if we can resolve issues and provide really good value to people who move into our communities,” Florida Manufactured Housing Association CEO Jim Ayotte said.

Ayotte said until now, the state controlled any mediation which could take several months.

“Everyone knows what’s going on at the same time and if the parties agree to it, they can elect to expedite the mediation process,”Ayotte said.

Park owners can raise rents if they match the Consumer Price Index. The Florida Manufactured Housing Association says the average lot rent increase went up about seven percent last year.

Another section of the law allows for people living in manufactured home parks to have live-in health aids without any extra fees.

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