Palm harbor

PROFILE • PALM HARBOR HOMES

PALM HARBOR HOMES • PROFILE

TEXAS-BASED PALM HARBOR HOMES IS IN A GREAT POSITION IN THE HOUSING INDUSTRY. FOLLOWING A DIFFICULT FIVE-YEAR PERIOD, THE INDUSTRY IS ON THE REBOUND, AND DEMAND FOR THE COMPANY’S PRODUCT—MANUFACTURED AND MODULAR HOMES—IS GREATER THAN EVER. DAN HARVEY PROVIDES AN OPTIMISTIC MARKET PICTURE. ALM HARBOR HOMES PROVIDES HOME BUYERS A HIGHquality, cost-effective option. The Dallas, Texas-based enterprise is the leading US builder of modular and manufactured home construction. First, let’s define terms. According to the company, a manufactured home is one that is built in a protected environment under a federal code established by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). They’re no longer considered mobile homes. “A manufactured home used be called a mobile home, but codes have improved dramatically since the [1976 HUD Code enactment],” says Mike Winneck, Palm Harbor’s senior vice president of sales and marketing. Similarly, a modular home is one built in a controlled, environmentally protected building center according to local building codes, and using precise and efficient construction technology, the company relates. These residences are built to the same codes as a site-built home. But as they need to be transported to the site, modular homes are much stronger than site-built homes. Winneck describes the advantage. “You wouldn’t want to build a computer in the rain, so why build a house in inclement weather,” he asks. “A modular home is built in a factory. All materials are stored inside a climate-controlled building, which leads to elevated quality levels.” Modular homes are the fastest-growing segment of the home building industry, he points out. “Modular homes, as they are tighter, are much more energy efficient,” he says. “They are gaining the reputation of being of a higher quality than a sitebuilt home, where materials are left out in the rain while waiting to be used.” Further, modular allows for customization. “It enables custom site building—for even something that is very exotic—and it integrates as much quality as people are willing to pay for.” Winneck describes differences between the two home styles: “The main difference between a manufactured and modular home is that the frame that the manufactured unit is transported on stays with the home. It is the anchored from frame members. Conversely, a modular home goes out on a carrier, with bigger floor joints and a stronger floor system because the metal frame—or the carrier—is removed and taken back to the factory for reuse. Also, modular involves some site work.” LAW OF ATTRACTION

For nearly 35 years, Palm Harbor Homes has delivered this high-quality option. The business was established by Lee Posey in 1978, shortly after the HUD Code enactment. Since then, it has offered manufactured and modular homes that are as attractive as they are innovative. Its homes are available through company owned model centers or independent manufactured/modular home dealers in Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

INDUSTRY TODAY 3

2 INDUSTRY TODAY

PROFILE • PALM HARBOR HOMES

PALM HARBOR HOMES • PROFILE

“We build products in building centers, or factories, from coast to coast,” says Winneck. “Also, we can export to places such as the Caribbean, Europe, Central America, and South America. We can ship anywhere.” That points to another Palm Harbor advantage: speed of execution. “Some of our products are placed in premium areas such as Florida, along the coastline, where there are high wind velocity and flood zones,” Winneck describes. “Construction must reside upon concrete or wood stilts. That’s a situation where a modular home represents a great advantage. It can be assembled in one day to a week, with the finishing on-site work accomplished in three to four weeks, whereas an on-site construction of a home can take six months to two years, depending on project complexity.” And, again, there is the custom element. “What we do is very customizable, and at commodity pricing,” says Winneck. “You can’t find site-build companies that will customize. Typically, most of those builders will say choose from my models or go away, especially when business is good.”

1/2 PAGE ADVERTISEMENT

VERTICALLY INTEGRATED

Pictured: Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions; Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions.

Palm Harbor is a vertically integrated organization that offers one-stop shopping for new homes. The company not only builds and sells; it also offers financing and insurance services. As such, for more than a decade, Palm Harbor has enjoyed a position as the best-selling brand name in multi-section manufactured homes. In 2006, it became one of the United States’ top producers of modular homes. Today, the company is a subsidiary of Cavco Industries, a leading designer and builder of systems-built structures including

INDUSTRY TODAY 5

4 INDUSTRY TODAY

PROFILE • PALM HARBOR HOMES

PALM HARBOR HOMES • PROFILE

manufactured homes, modular homes commercial buildings, park model homes, and vacation cabins. The operation includes 15 manufacturing facilities located throughout the United States and the most widely recognized brand names in the industry. Along with Palm Harbor Homes, these include Cavco Homes, Fleetwood Homes, and Nationwide Homes. Like its parent company, Palm Harbor also offers commercial modular development for workforce housing, hospitality, medical, retail, office and dormitory facilities. A SMART CHOICE

As far as the homeowner, Palm Harbor attracts the “educated” homebuyer. “They’ve done their homework. They have researched on the Internet, and they better understand what’s available,” say Winneck. “This includes first-home buyers and retirees, and everyone in between.” Consumers are attracted to Palm Harbor’s major differentiator: its SmartPlus Construction. This concept results in highquality customization, durable construction and energy efficiency. “Green, energy efficient construction is a major selling point,” reports Winneck. “We can utilize advanced foam systems, which leads greater attention to detail and a more thorough inspection process, which includes government inspectors and our own quality control people.”

Pictured: Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions;

1/2 PAGE ADVERTISEMENT

INDUSTRY TODAY 7

6 INDUSTRY TODAY

PROFILE • PALM HARBOR HOMES

PALM HARBOR HOMES • PROFILE

In addition, Palm Harbor can place one of its homes exactly where the buyer wants it – on their own land or within a community. “We can build in the middle of nowhere, if that’s what the purchaser wants,” says Winneck. “Many site builders don’t like to venture farther than 10 miles from the center of town. Much of our product goes out on one acre, or 10 acres, or even 40 acres out of the countryside. So we do a lot of building.” At the same time, the company can place a product near or within communities. “We can build in the 55-plus age-range communities or in traditional site-build communities, always providing advantages related to speed, price and quality,” informs Winneck.

1/2 PAGE ADVERTISEMENT

Pictured: Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions; Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions Please Provide Captions.

SITTING PRETTY

All of the aforementioned attributes places Palm Harbor—and its niche housing industry segment—in a good position, especially as the national and global economies appear to be recovering from the recession. “We perceive an expansion coming up, and I see the builders of manufactured and modular homes have a tremendous advantage,” observes Winneck. True, the past five years have been tough. “No part of the housing industry has been spared by economic circumstances,” says Winneck. “But we are rebounding. For instance, the Florida division is running 22 percent ahead of last year. Texas is also rebounding strongly. The rest of the country is rebounding more slowly, but rebounding nevertheless. “As long as the economy doesn’t tank again, this company is looking toward a major upswing in business,” he adds. “Demand for housing is stronger than ever. The only thing holding the industry back is financing, and the impact of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and poor lending practices. But things in the industry are getting cleaned up. Financing will loosen up, which means the business could skyrocket. On the flipside, you see a shortage of quality inventory. That means demand for our products will accelerate.”

•

INDUSTRY TODAY 9

8 INDUSTRY TODAY

Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook