National Showcase Draws Eyes to Manufactured Housing Industry

Photo Courtesy of Cavco Industries

TThree manufactured homes on the National Mall June 7-12 drew the attention and the praise of Washington D.C. lawmakers and policymakers, as well as passersby.

Cavco Industries teamed with UMH Properties to showcase a single-section manufactured home, and

Skyline Champion Corporation brought out a pair of homes, one small-floorplan accessory dwelling unit, and a new CrossMod multi-section home with a pitched roof and attached garage.

“We made the decision to showcase our two homes because the country has a crisis and we have the solution,” Champion Homes Executive Vice President of

Business Development Wade Lyall said. “Affordable, attainable housing is a crisis in our country and manufactured housing is the solution. We need improved zoning acceptance and better access to attainable financing solutions, and by showcasing with MHI we get a chance to show members of Congress the industry’s newest products that can help solve the affordable housing issue.” »

New homes built in the factory dominated the event's first week. Then, in the second week of the showcase, manufactured homes were joined by panelized and modular homes. A 3D printer building homes and alternative building materials — such as container construction and system building — also were featured.

“When people come in the house, it speaks for itself,” MHI Chairman Leo Poggione said. “They walk in and they’re like, ‘I can’t believe how beautiful this home is.'”

Mark Sickles, from the Virginia House of Delegates, said he wished more people knew about the manufactured housing industry and the homes it produces.

“I think if more boards of supervisors and city councils saw these homes they would be more willing to change their codes to allow them to occur. It’s really beautiful,” Sickles said.

A Showcase for June as Homeownership Month

The Innovative Housing Showcase, hosted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, is part of a push toward high-quality, affordable housing solutions, which is also is a White House priority. The Manufactured Housing Institute, the national advocacy group for factory-built housing, joined HUD early in the week to host Homes on the Hill, an opportunity for its members to appeal to lawmakers from their home states or states in which they operate.

“I don’t know anywhere in the country, and I travel almost every week, that I’ve seen something like this that is that affordable,” HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge said in an interview with MHI.

“It is going to be a major part of the solution,” Fudge said of manufactured homes.

Lesli Gooch is CEO of MHI.

“Our industry came together to ensure that federal lawmakers, policymakers, and the public could see first-hand how manufactured homes are delivering on the American dream of homeownership,” she said. “Thousands of people toured our homes on the National Mall during the Innovative Housing Showcase and we appreciate HUD Secretary Fudge

and her team for recognizing that our homes are making attainable homeownership a reality and for helping us share what we do with the nation.

“Manufactured homes are energy-efficient, designed with today’s families in mind, and at a price point that is attainable for millions of Americans who would otherwise be struggling to find a place to call home,” Gooch added. “The three homes will now head to their final destination, making three families’ American dreams come true. This has been a perfect way to recognize the 20th Anniversary of National Homeownership Month.”

More from the Capitol

In addition to HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge, members of Congress and administration leaders from across the federal government were impressed by the quality, design, and attainable price point of the homes.

In her opening remarks kicking off HUD’s Innovative Showcase, Secretary Fudge said “today is the beginning of solving the country’s affordable housing challenge" and recommitted her agency to utilizing innovative housing solutions to address the problem, including manufactured housing as part of the solution.

As part of this event, MHI members from across the country blanketed Capitol Hill to meet with their Senators and Representatives to advance the industry’s policy priorities and ensure manufactured housing remains an affordable homeownership option.

Manufactured housing professionals met with Congressional offices to talk about the need to update FHA’s Title I and Title II programs, to ensure DOE’s energy standards do not become effective until they are revised and adopted as part of the HUD Code, and to urge federal efforts to preserve and develop manufactured housing communities. MHV

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