March/April 2023

RETAIL AND EVENT EDITION

EVENT PREVIEW FOR BILOXI, VEGAS

BUILDER, NONPROFIT PARTNER FOR SECOND WHITE PAPER ON VALUE OF MANUFACTURED HOMES

HOW TO WASTE GOOD MONEY ON MARKETING

THE MAGAZINE FOR MANUFACTURED HOUSING PROFESSIONALS

The traditional Tunica Show is in Biloxi, at the IP Casino, Resort and Spa for the second year, and will remain in Biloxi for years to come. The 2022 Show and Expo was filled with networking opportunities and packed with educational sessions and panel discussions.

On the subject of marketing, the legendary department store pioneer John Wanamaker famously lamented, “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.”

VOLUME 6, EDITION 2 | MARCH / APRIL 2023 | MHInsider.com

PUBLISHER Patrick Revere | patrick@mhvillage.com

SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Merit Kathan | merit@mhvillage.com

COVER IMAGE The White Oak from Timber Creek Housing is one of several dozen homes that will be on display this month in Biloxi.

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR George Allen | gfa7156@aol.com

EDITORS Sean Vichinsky | sean@mhvillage.com, Dawn Highhouse | dawn@mhvillage.com

CONTRIBUTORS Kevan Enger | James McCaughan | Darren Krolewski | Ray Leech | Logan Hanes

ADVERTISING SALES (877) 406-0232 advertise@mhvillage.com

EDITORIAL & GENERAL INQUIRIES Patrick Revere | 2600 Five Mile Road NE Grand Rapids, MI, 49525 (616) 888-6994 patrick@mhvillage.com

HAPPENINGS

6 Industry Happenings

INDUSTRY NEWS

10 Builder, Nonprofit Partner for Second White Paper on Value of Manufactured Homes

15 RV/MH Hall of Fame Announces ‘23 Class of Inductees

EVENTS

18 Events & Tradeshows

22 Biloxi Education Schedule & Exhibitors

24 Biloxi Show Map

26 MHI Congress & Expo in Las Vegas COMMUNITY

28 Michigan Community Reimagined, Adds Clubhouse Amenities

RETAILER

32 Q&A with Ky Hebert of Mobilehoma Warehouse

BUILDER

36 Dvele Enters Business Agreement for Transcend Communities

MARKETING

40 NEW ‘National Manufactured Housing Awareness’ Campaign?

LENDING

56 The Vital Need for Chattel Lending

BROKERAGE

60 Do You Even Need a Broker?

ADVOCACY

66 Mississippi Manufactured Housing Association Works With the Capital City

70 New Research Shows Mnaufactured Home Owners Are Very Satisfied

ALLEN LEGACY

74 Manufactured Housing Finance, A 70-Year Retrospective

Although we make every effort to ensure that the information in this issue was correct before publication, MHVillage, Inc. and the publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause. Opinions expressed are those of the author or persons quoted and not necessarily those of MHInsider or the publisher MHVillage, Inc.

Copyright ©2023 MHVillage, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of MHInsider content, MHI or other contributor content, in part or in whole, is prohibited without written authorization from MHVillage, Inc.

Patrick Revere is associate vice president of MHVillage and publisher for the MHInsider magazine and blog for industry professionals. His background is in print news, language, and communication.

from the PUBLISHER

Right Place, Right Time

Provide the Customer with the Home in the Preferred Style and Locale

There is a lot to be said for an industry with a long history of helping to get high-quality homes to the people in the places where they are most needed. In today’s market, there is a lot to consider, and a lot of opportunity.

Consider discussions of the past that continue today about designing and building a home to a price point, for the right customer, in a setting that makes the most sense for that customer. The setting might be rural — perhaps on family land — or closer to town in a manufactured home community.

That in itself is a considerable weight, the proper construction and delivery of HUD Code homes for nearly 50 years now. Yet, our industry has become so much more.

Product diversity is reaching a height we might not have considered even a decade ago.

Those ever-valuable HUD Code homes have increased in shipment numbers again, with 114,321 in 2022, a 9% increase from the previous year, and more than double what the industry was able to move in 2012. All of this is amid the continued efforts toward creating better financing for our homes, educating local governments, working on energy policy at the federal level, and navigating what we can safely call challenging economic conditions.

Sprinkled into those rising shipment numbers are homes that are going in the city, not in communities, but as urban infill, and in developments made of all manufactured homes, or a mix of factory-built and site-built homes.

These entry points into the urban setting provide yet another option, and opportunity, for home builders, developers, and home sellers to provide the right home for the customer in their preferred style and locale. At a price that is attainable.

And we also provide tremendous accessory dwelling units, ADUs, for additional residential infrastructure on existing home parcels in a growing number of municipalities. Add in the support of our builders who provide modular homes that are also designed to local style and built to local code, it’s easy to feel the appreciation for that product diversity. And along the way, the manufactured housing industry is gaining a lot of new fans.

industry HAPPENINGS

Transactions Michigan Operator Purchases Community in Maryland

RHP Properties has acquired Cedarville Park Manufactured Home Community in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Brandywine, Md. It is a 55+ community with 260 homesites and an approved expansion planned, bringing the total to 400 sites. “Prince George’s County continues to see population growth, in part due to a booming hospitality sector and one of the largest technology and aerospace sectors in Maryland, which is great for the economy but can also put a strain on affordable housing options for seniors,” RHP Properties CEO Ross Partrich said. “We are committed to providing homes that are within reach for the 55+ community and cultivating an environment where residents can enjoy all the community has to offer.”

Forrest Street Partners Buys Georgia Community

Forrest Street Partners has purchased Fernwood Park, a community near Fayetteville and about 20 miles south of Atlanta. Originally developed in the 1970s, the community has 106 homesites. “We want to improve Fernwood for the current residents while opening the door to new residents,” partner Brandon Crim, said. “We are looking forward to offering potential residents the option to lease or purchase — an

option not currently available to them. Due to the high cost of entry and current housing demand in Fayette County, we feel confident these new opportunities will be welcomed.” Forrest Street partners has plans to bring in new homes as well as update road infrastructure, park amenities, and landscaping. It also will implement plans to help residents with re-skirting and pressure washing.

UMH Properties Buys Community in N.J.

Oak Tree Estates, a 260-homesite community in Jackson, N.J. has been purchased by UMH Properties for $23 million. The community sits on 42 acres and is 98% occupied. It is located near the company’s central offices in Freehold, and another of its communities, Southward Village. UMH Properties was organized in 1968 as a public equity REIT that now owns and operates 134 manufactured home communities with approximately 25,600 developed homesites. Last year, it completed acquisitions of six communities with about 1,500 homesites for approximately $86.3 million.

Minnesota Community Purchased by Sunrise Capital

Sunrise Capital Investors LLC has acquired Park Estates in St. Paul, Minn., an addition to the investment firm’s Fund 3, which consists of a diversified

portfolio of manufactured home communities and parking facilities. The purchase price was $10 million. “We’re very excited to begin our process of renovating and modernizing Park Estates for the hardworking folks in the Twin Cities area. The property holds plenty of potential for our team to add tremendous value for both the tenancy and our investors,” Sunrise Co-Founder Kevin Bupp said. “At a time when affordable housing is increasingly difficult to find, we’re proud to provide folks in St. Paul with a fantastic option and help our investors benefit from the cash flow this wonderful property will generate.”

Marcus & Millichap Brokers $7.6 Million Portfolio Sale

Marcus & Millichap has negotiated the sale of three manufactured home communities in Hinesville, Ga., for $7.6 million. The communities have 93 homesites, 92 park-owned homes, and 93 residents. The properties are located a mile away from Cherokee Rose Country Club and three miles from downtown Hinesville.

Three Pillar Communities Refinances Communities for $15 Million

JLL Capital Markets has secured refinancing for two of Three Pillar Communities’ West Coast manufactured home communities, including the $9 million refinancing of the 104-homesite Orchard Lane in Happy Valley, Ore., and the $6 million refinancing of the 81-homesite Ukiah Country Manor in Ukiah, Calif. Orchard Lane was built in 1959 and features 104 manufactured homes. Community amenities include on-site management, laundry, boat/RV storage, and a community green space. Ukiah Country Manor was built in 1973 and has 81 manufactured homes and amenities including a swimming pool and community center.

Nonprofit Closes $211 Million Affordable Housing Fund

Cinnaire, a non-profit financial partner that supports affordable housing developments, achieved a record level of funding for the organization in support of efforts in 25 multi-family developments in Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota. “We recognize that safe, affordable housing has never been more meaningful,” Cinnaire President and CEO Mark McDaniel said. “As the need for affordable housing has grown, our team was inspired to reach higher and bring together developers and investors committed to increasing opportunities for affordable housing, the cornerstone of healthy communities.”

Large Community Owner Cuts Deal on High-Speed Internet

Follett USA, a leading owner and operator of manufactured home communities, has contracted with Kwikbit Internet to provide wireless gigabit broadband to eight communities in 2023. “When Follett USA was introduced to this technology last year, I saw an opportunity to provide our residents with far better service at a better price in what is a difficult environment to find value,” Follett CEO Erik Rollain said. Kwikbit Internet’s proprietary 60 GHz wireless solution delivers fiber speeds at a fraction of the cost and time to install fiber, allowing the company to deliver reliable, low-cost, symmetrical 1 Gig service to manufactured housing residents. “Kwikbit’s broadband solution lines up with the manufactured housing industry’s continuous focus on improving the quality of life for their residents, in turn lifting the profile of this critical sector of U.S. housing,” Kwikbit co-founder Lawrence Alioto said. “This most certainly rings true with Follett USA. We’re privileged to be working with them.” »

Personnel

LearnMH Hires New Executive Director

LearnMH, a division of ManufacturedHomes.com, has hired industry sales trainer and management consultant John Ace Underwood as its new executive director. Underwood brings over 35 years of experience in the manufactured housing industry as a trainer, consultant, speaker, and author in marketing, sales, sales management, and leadership development. “The factory-built housing industry doesn’t have a product problem; we have a communication problem,” Underwood said. “We have never built a better quality and more diverse product, and we literally own the words ‘affordable housing.’”

In Memoriam Industry Mourns Passing of Retailer, Advocate

Bradford Glenn Morgan, 83, part owner and finance manager for Midwest Manufactured Homes in Minerva, Ohio, passed away in November, mourned by the many family, friends, and colleagues who were so close to him in Ohio and elsewhere. Mr. Morgan was born in Canton, graduated from Lincoln High School in 1957, and served in the U.S. Navy before going into business. In addition to his interest in manufactured housing, Mr. Morgan was vice president of First National Bank of Canton and vice president of Earl Wagner Chevrolet of Minerva. Services were held in North Canton. MHV

DON’T MISS OUT ON THREE DAYS OF:

• Educational sessions taught by industry experts and leaders in the field

• Networking opportunities with over 1,400 attendees

• 140+ exhibit booths and companies to explore

• Dynamic mainstage speakers

ADVANCE MHI’S ADVOCACY

Proceeds go to the MHI PAC Administrative Fund

Tuesday, April 18

• 5th Annual Hart Kienle Pentecost and Lutz, Bobo & Telfair Clay Shoot

• 17th Annual Oliver Technologies Golf Open

ADDITIONAL CONGRESS & EXPO EVENTS

Wednesday, April 19

• Developing with Manufactured Housing Seminar*

• National Communities Council (NCC) Spring Forum*

BECOME AN EXHIBITOR

• Limited spots remain

• Booths start at $925

Builder, Nonprofit Partner for Second White Paper on Value of Manufactured Homes

Clayton® & Next Step® Highlight Evidence That Off-Site Built Homes Appreciate As Well As Site-Built Homes

Clayton, a national builder of attainable housing, and Next Step, a national nonprofit housing organization, have again combined efforts to release an educational white paper, this one highlighting the wealth-building benefits of off-site built housing.

“Off-Site Built Homes Proven To Appreciate In Value — Providing Equity Building Opportunities & Reshaping Today’s Housing Market” makes an appeal to policymakers and potential homebuyers alike that homes constructed in a production facility continue to be the best option for those navigating the market for an attainable homeownership solution. »

Manufactured homes, including CrossMod® homes and modular homes are constructed inside a climate-controlled facility and finished on-site, allowing for a quicker, more efficient building process. CrossMod homes are uniquely positioned to bridge the affordability gap for entry-level and middle-tier housing and are more affordable for both developers and buyers.

When placed on a property with a permanent foundation, off-site built homes have the ability to build wealth over time like site-built homes.

“Homeownership has been an essential part of the blueprint for wealth building in this country

• A North Carolina family’s Clayton off-site built modular home, increased more than $135,000 in value over seven years ($179,500 to $315,000).

• Median manufactured home values across the nation increased by an average of 34.58% from 2016 to 2021 — nearly the same as the average increase of 35.44% for single-family homes, according to a 2022 study.

• Off-site built housing is generally less expensive than traditional home construction methods because of economies of scale and building efficiencies.

• A 2022 study shows the median value of off-site built homes increased more quickly in over a dozen states than that of traditional site-built homes over the same five-year period. For example, Rhode Island, Nebraska, and Idaho showed median manufactured home values more than doubled, increasing value by an average of 110.82%. In those same states, site-built home values appreciated 57.95% in the same period.

• An analysis of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s MH index by a nonprofit research organization indicates the prices of manufactured homes perform similarly to those of site-built properties.

CrossMod homes, the newest category of off-site built housing, present a new evolution for the offsite built home industry. These homes blend off-site construction and on-site features such as drywall interiors, porches and garages to produce an affordable home that can be financed and appraised alongside site-built homes.

for decades, but current home prices aren’t reflective of what most people can afford,” Next Step President and CEO Stacey Epperson said. “If we want to address the homeownership gap for individuals and families, particularly for those living in historically underserved communities, we need to embrace the efficiency, quality, and affordability offered by off-site built homes.”

The white paper incorporates statistics from a growing body of research showing off-site built homes regularly appreciate similar to site-built homes, including:

“We know many people are getting priced out of today’s housing market. At Clayton, we strive to open doors for more people by bringing homeownership within reach,” Kevin Clayton, CEO of Clayton, said. “Owning a home provides individuals and families with more than a place to live — it’s an opportunity to build wealth over the years while earning more value for money spent.”

Read the full white paper at the Clayton website by searching for Off-Site Built Homes Proven To Appreciate In Value – Providing Equity Building Opportunities & Reshaping Today’s Housing Market. MHV

Wells

We are excited to announce the release of our 17th annual Manufactured Home Community Financing Handbook and Market Update. What started as a niche sector has quickly grown over the years into the tremendous industry we are proud to be a part of today.

To learn more and download your copy, visit wellsfargo.com/mhc

RV/MH Hall of Fame

Announces ‘ 23 Class of Inductees

Each year the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart, Ind., inducts a new class of honorees, typically five professionals from the manufactured housing industry and five from the RV industry. Each candidate for the hall needs to have at least 25 years of experience in the business, having worked hon-

orably in advancing the good of the industry. The new inductees will be celebrated in August during an induction dinner and ceremony that annually draws past inductees and hundreds of supportive colleagues and family members.

Darlene (Dar) Stahla-Gardner Retailer — Nebraska

Henry Stahla Mobile Homes

Dar Stahla-Gardner was only 18 years old when she began her journey towards carrying on the legacy of her father and Henry Stahla Mobile Homes, the business he built during her childhood. A licensed pilot, Stahla-Gardner often would fly customers between sales locations in Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. She became sales manager after a decade with the business, and became president when she acquired the operation in 1990. Stahla-Gardner opened two new locations, one each in Colorado and Nebraska, and has continued to improve Stahla’s North Court, a manufactured home and RV park in Kimball, Neb. A top 10 salesperson for Champion Homes, she has served on the Nebraska Manufactured Housing Association for more than 20 years, including four terms as president of the board.

Donald William Sharp Lender/Retailer — Indiana Retired

In 1974, Don Sharp brought his abilities and superb ethics to the manufactured housing industry. Now retired, he continues to contribute on a volunteer basis with state associations in Kentucky and West Virginia. He worked in lending for some of the top organizations in the industry during more than four decades, including Triad Financial Services and CIS Home Loans. During the middle of his career, Sharp moved to the retail side of the business working with Rainbow Homes, Geoffs Fleetwood Homes, and Holiday Homes. During his nearly 50 years in business, Sharp is recognized for providing the dream of ownership to more than 40,000 homebuyers. »

Marc Lifset Legal/Regulatory — New York McGlinchey Stafford

For the past four decades, Marc Lifset has been involved in every major shift in U.S. housing policy, guiding the manufactured housing industry through critical changes including the Dodd-Frank Act, the SAFE Act, and Duty to Serve. He entered the industry in 1986 and for nearly 20 years has been an instrumental part of McGlinchey Stafford, a prominent firm based in Washington, D.C. In serving the industry, Lift has guided more than a dozen states through titling changes, volunteered his time and energy

to the Manufactured Housing Institute on multiple fronts, and works relentlessly with organizations like the RV/MH Hall of Fame that support the industry.

Paula Reeves Lender —Alabama CIS Financial Services

Paula Reeves has gone far above and beyond her professional obligations, volunteering for dozens of industry organizations and associations. Reeves has helped as much as any manufactured housing professional to build relationships in Washington and state capitals to better communicate the vital importance of manufac-

Discover the Credit Human difference

tured homes. She founded CIS in 1991, has supported thousands of individuals and families in purchasing homes, and along the way has qualified CIS to become a seller and servicer through Fannie Mae, the VA, USDA, FHA Title I and II, and to become an approved Ginnie Mae issuer and a Tier I FHA lender.

Knute Chauncey Supplier — Georgia Tie Down Engineering

Knute Chauncey’s entire 43-year career has been focused on the advancement of the manufactured housing industry, as an advocate, a supplier, and a subject matter expert regarding the secure installation of homes. He has served on the MHI Board of Governors for more than a decade. Chauncey previously worked at Kaufman Supply and Atlantic Service and Supply before taking the reins at Tie Down Engineering as national sales manager more than 20 years ago. He is chairman of the board of the Georgia Manufactured Home Association. He is a leader who takes great pride in his work no matter the task and someone who approaches every situation with a positive attitude. MHV

RV Inductees

Forrest and Jeri Bone

Ron Breymier

Tom Manning

Karen Redfern

Tim Veering

UMH PROPERTIES, INC. A PIONEER IN MANUFACTURED HOUSING

As a publicly traded REIT (NYSE:UMH), we have been providing quality a ordable housing since 1968. Our portfolio provides high pro t margins, recession resistant qualities, reliable income streams and the potential for long-term value appreciation.

• $1.8 billion in total enterprise value

• 134 communities, 25,600 homesites, 2 joint venture communities containing 363 homesites, 11 states

• Housing approximately 21,000 families

• 7,500 total acres, 3,800 acres in Marcellus and Utica Shale regions

UMH Awarded 2021 Manufactured Home Community Operator of the Year and 2021 Retail Sales Center of the Year by the Manufactured Housing Institute For more information, visit www.umh.reit or contact ir@umh.com

Events

& Tradeshows

California Manufactured Housing Institute 2023 Annual Convention

Wednesday, March 22 — Thursday, March 23

Rancho Mirage, Calif. | Omni Rancho Las Palmas

CMHI leadership and members will gather for two days of education, networking, awards announcements, and fun. The “Let’s Groove Tonight” disco-themed welcome reception is the perfect opportunity to see old friends and meet some new ones. There will be a selection of bubbly and entertainment. The general membership meeting begins at 10 a.m. Thursday followed by an awards luncheon and black-tie banquet dinner.

MHI Congress & Expo

Wednesday, April 19 — Friday, April 21

Las Vegas — MGM Grand

Congress and Expo is the national trade show where manufactured housing professionals can obtain the knowledge and resources necessary to excel in today’s housing marketplace. Choose from attending top-quality educational programs with powerful speakers, networking with the industry’s most successful professionals, developing new business strategies, and visiting the exhibit floor to see the latest products and technologies.

2023 MHCA Annual Conference and Golf Tournament

Wednesday, June 7 — Friday, June 9

WeKoPa Casino & Resort

Fort McDowell, Ariz. (North Scottsdale)

MHCA offers a prime locale to meet, exhibit, and shop for the latest industry developments and trends. With awe-inspiring views and a day of great golfing, Manufactured Housing Communities of Arizona invites manufactured housing professionals for a productive three-day outing in the desert. Exhibit and sponsorship opportunities are available!

2023 Florida Manufactured Housing Association Annual Convention

Thursday, June 15 — Friday, June 16

Orlando, Fla. | Hyatt Regency Orlando

The FMHA Annual Convention is the largest gathering of industry members in Florida with exhibitors, social events, networking opportunities, and educational workshops. Get discounted room reservations by calling (402) 593-5048 and referencing the FMHA 2023 Annual Convention. For more information on attending, sponsoring, or exhibiting, contact Beth Loftus at (850) 907-9111.

If you have an event or gathering you would like to have listed with MHInsider, please contact us at:

www.mhvillage.com/pro/manufactured-housing-industry-trade-shows/

Welcome

to Biloxi Show & Expo

by Chris Nicely

The traditional Tunica Show is in Biloxi, at the IP Casino Resort Spa for the second year, and will remain in Biloxi for years to come. The 2022 Show & Expo was filled with networking opportunities and packed with educational sessions and panel discussions. The reviews were stellar for the 2022 show, and everything promises the 2023 Biloxi Show & Expo will surpass anything previously held.

Absent in 2022, this year’s show will include more than 35 model homes from nine manufacturers. The homes on display will include models from Cappaert, Cavco, Champion, Clayton, Deer Valley, Kabco, Legacy, Sunshine, and Timber Creek. Nine single-section homes will accent 26 multi-section homes. A featured 12-foot-wide single-section home is balanced with 11 multi-section homes wider than 30 feet. New floorplans, features, and decor demonstrate the value evolution in HUD Code housing. Customers will love them at first sight.

Lenders and service suppliers populate the exhibit hall with more than 90 booths displaying the latest products and services available. Innovation is not limited to new home features, and there is innovation to be experienced in the “Hall”.

Hit the Links in Biloxi

The first day, Monday, is highlighted with an enjoyable “scramble” format golf outing where competitors can play together and win together! This is the second year at the Davis Love III designed Shell Landing

Golf Course, in Gautier, Miss. It has been ranked as the sixth best course in Mississippi and features a challenging track, with beautiful, award-winning holes. Reports from those playing in this event in 2022 reinforced the good time experienced at this opening event.

This first day is celebrated with a New Orleans-style, Mardi Gras-themed reception with live music, great food, and plenty of time to re-establish old friendships and make new ones.

After a kickoff session by the state executive directors Jennifer Hall (Mississippi), Lance Latham (Alabama), Marla McAfee (Tennessee), Jim Ayotte (Florida), and Steve Duke (Louisiana) on their respective “State of the States” there will activities, events, new products, and features in the model homes and on the exhibit floor.

Biloxi Brings the Experts

Parallel to the model homes and exhibits will be educational sessions with a specific focus on communities and a separate track for retail. John Ace Underwood is a professional trainer and speaker, and the newly appointed executive director of LearnMH. He will lead off with “5 Elements of Effective Sales Management; How to manage a sales team in less time than you think.” Underwood will discuss the critical elements of effective sales management and new ideas on how to be a highly effective manager.

Following this first session targeting retailers Spencer Roane, president of Pentagon Properties, will discuss how to undertake “Manufactured Home Communities’ Infill Efforts with Less Than 1% Defaults”. Roane will share how his company experimented with lease, seller-financing, conventional lending, and the successes and failures with 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom model homes. He also will talk about levels of success when offering new versus used homes, and even the different results with multi-section versus single-section homes. Pentagon has even done an analysis of the impact of higher versus lower down payments.

On Wednesday, Steve Case, owner of At Home Properties, asks “Is The Party Over?”, while reviewing how laser-focused due diligence and creative financing will separate the winners and losers in 2023. Case also will share his “secret sauce” acquisition technique used to minimize risk, and reinforce every property’s investment potential.

Additionally, Scott Stroud, the director of product development with MhCRM, is going to present “6 Universal Mistakes that are Costing You Sales… And How To Correct Them”. In these 60 minutes, Stroud will reveal areas where sales teams miss opportunities and key habits for every successful sales professional.

Every day, The 2023 Biloxi Manufactured Home Show & Expo features a continental breakfast in the exhibit hall and a two-hour networking lunch. Last year, these networking events were described as one of the best features of the meeting. MHV

EDUCATION SCHEDULE

TUESDAY, MARCH 21

Five Elements of Effective Sales Management

Presenter: John Ace Underwood, LearnMH Executive Director

9:30-10:30 a.m. | Third Floor, Ballroom 2

MHC Infill with Less than 1% Defaults

Presenter: Spencer Roane, Pentagon Properties

10:30-11:30 a.m. | Third Floor, Ballroom 2

State of the States

Presenters: State Association Executives

Jim Ayotte (Fla.), Jennifer Hall (Miss.), Lance Latham (Ala.), Marla McAfee (Tenn.), and Steve Duke (La.)

3-4 p.m. | Second Floor, Studio A

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 22

The Party is Over

Presenter: Steve Case, At Home Properties

9:30-10:30 a.m. | Third Floor, Ballroom 2

Six Universal Mistakes That Are Costing You Sales

Presenter: Scott Stroud, MhCRM.com

10:30-11:30 a.m. | Third Floor, Ballroom 2

The Changing Digital Landscape

Presenter: Darren Krolewski, MHVillage/Datacomp

3-4 p.m. | Second Floor, Studio A

SERVICE AND SUPPLY EXHIBITORS

21st Mortgage

AMHA

Baymont Bathware

Blevins

Cascade Financial Services

Cirrus Solutions, Inc.

CIS Home Loans

Common Sense Lending LLC

Cordell Doors

Credit Human Federal Credit Union

Diversified Profits, Inc.

Dynamic Home Repair

ESCO (Elkhart Supply Corp.)

First Bank

Franklin Homes

Gama Sonic USA, Inc.

Heritage Distributing LLC

Hilti

Jamie’s Interiors

Keep It Green Flooring, LLC

Kyocera Senco Industrial Tools, Inc.

Manage America

ManufacturedHomes.com

Metron Sustainable Services

MHVillage/Datacomp

MHWC

Minute Man Anchors Inc

MMHA

N Tech Industries, LLC

Northpoint Commercial Finance

Oliver Technologies

Powell’s Tire and Axle Inc.

Republic State Mortgage

Rustique Enterprises, Inc.

SECO

Shaw Industries

Simpson Strong Tie

StyleCrest

SureTrac of Texas

Tammac

Tie Down Engineering

Tri-State Distributors

Triad Financial Services

Yardi Systems Inc.

GIVEAWAY PROVIDES UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR ATTENDEES

Richard Rawlings from the Gas Monkey Garage will attend The Biloxi Show with his reimagined Polaris Slingshot, a wild-looking ride that manufactured housing professionals can register to win. The Slingshot Giveaway is in partnership with ManufacturedHomes.com. Rawlings also will bring his

cameras and crew through the latest manufactured homes to film for an upcoming episode of the show. Don’t miss this amazing opportunity to be a part of Rawlings’ community of fans, and potentially drive away in a one-of-a-kind, customized ride! The winner will be announced March 21 at 4:30 in the exhibit hall.

Rustique

IP CASINO RESORT SPA STUDIO B

IP CASINO RESORT SPA STUDIO B

IP CASINO RESORT SPA STUDIO B

MHI Congress and Expo in Las Vegas A Homecoming for Manufactured Housing Professionals

Las Vegas can be like a homecoming for industry travelers, especially for manufactured housing professionals who have been coming to MHI’s Congress and Expo annually. From virtual meet-ups to extending the network in New Orleans and Orlando on consecutive years, Congress’ return to Vegas will be an exciting one at the MGM Grand April 19-21. Those who come in early can participate in the 5th Annual Hart Kiel Pentecost and Lutz Bobo & Telfair Clay Shoot and the 17th Annual Oliver Technologies Golf Open. More formal business gets underway Wednesday with a full day of programming at the 2023 MHI National Communities Council Spring Forum and the adjacent seminar on Developing with Manufactured Housing. Each of these elements requires independent registration from Congress and Expo.

Meet, Greet, and Network

A pair of receptions will take place Wednesday afternoon, one for new MHI members and first-time attendees, and a Welcome Reception for all attendees. Thursday begins with a Continental Breakfast followed by an open session and more than a dozen educational sessions through the week on a variety of important industry topics geared toward keeping manufactured housing professionals up-to-date on the latest trends and the best strategies for business development. MHI also will present the Excellence in Manufactured Housing Awards in nine categories, including a pair of new categories, Leadership in Sustainability and Community Impact Project of the Year.

The Congress and Expo will wrap up with a halfday on Friday.

Sponsorship Opportunities Remain Available

2023 Exhibitors

21st Mortgage Corporation

ABT Water Management

AccessParks Broadband

Ace Tire and Axle

Adventure Homes

B.A.C.H. Land Development

Berkadia

Blevins, Inc.

Capita One

Capstone Manufactured Housing

Cascade Financial Services

CAVCO Industries

CBRE

Champion Home Builders, Inc.

Clayton Homes

Colliers International

Conservice

Cooper, Cardinal & Company

Credit Human

Eastern Union

Edge Utilities

Family Homes

Gama Sonic Solar Lighting

Lument

ManageAmerica

ManufacturedHomes.com

Marcus & Millichap

Metron Sustainable Services

MHVillage/Datacomp

MHWC

Minute Man Anchors

MobileHomeParkStore, MobileHome.net, MHBay

Northmarq

Novik

Oliver Technologies Inc.

Onyx Capital Corporation

PFS Corporation d.b.a. PFS

Rent Manager

RHP Properties

ROC USA

Rustique Enterprises, Inc

Shaw Industries

Shorebreak Energy

Simms Machinery Inc.

Sunstone Real Estate Advisors

The MHP Broker

Tie Down

Triad Financial Services, Inc.

Universal Utilities

Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance, Inc.

Wells Fargo

Westland Distributing

Yale Realty & Capital Advisors

Yardi

Zippy MH

MICHIGAN COMMUNITY REIMAGINED, ADDS CLUBHOUSE, AMENITIES

Summerhill Village Community in Mt. Pleasant, Mich., has been redeveloped and reintroduced to the area with the grand opening of a new community clubhouse and amenities center.

The community is owned by Four Leaf Properties, which since 2019, has been dedicated to its redevelopment including new homes, roads, and vital infrastructure. The vision for Summerhill is built around a high-quality, affordable lifestyle experience. With dozens of new residents and 100-plus five-star reviews, the community already is a top choice for young families, singles, and downsizers.

“The new clubhouse and recreational center is the crown jewel of FLP Life, our Four Leaf Properties resident lifestyle experience,” said Michael Callaghan, managing partner at Four Leaf Properties. “Great communities are built around great residents and those relationships grow through shared experiences and fun. We’ve invested and now Summerhill Village is a brand-new community like no other in the area. It’s with great pride that we open these facilities and continue offering new homes.”

Callaghan said the community’s first two phases have sold out, and the team currently is purchasing homes for the third phase.

The focal point of the reopening is a newly constructed 3,500-square-foot clubhouse built for community member events and activities that are free for Summerhill residents. Residents also can host private events at the facility at no charge.

Mt. Pleasant area charities and businesses may also choose to host events that are meaningful to residents, such as an adopt-a-pet event or health and fitness sessions.

Clubhouse and Amenity Center Details:

• Beautiful gathering space with vaulted ceiling and skylights for parties and events

• Flex space for classes (yoga, fitness, art, other)

• Full kitchen

• Coffee bar

• Event lawn and patio area with professional landscaping

• New playground

• Outdoor seating and fire pit

• Dog park

Four Leaf has been an owner, operator, and third-party manager of manufactured home communities since 2009.

Summerhill Village is tucked away and surrounded by trees. It has a country feel but is close to many metro conveniences, minutes from Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort, Central Michigan University, Mid-Michigan College, Pleasant Hills Golf Club, and Indian Hills shopping center. The cities of Alma, Saginaw, Midland, and Edmore are short commutes from Summerhill. MHV

&Q

Awith Ky Hebert of Mobilehoma Warehouse

Mobilehoma Warehouse is a growing manufactured home retailer in Oklahoma. MHInsider reached out with some questions for Ky Hebert, who runs the retail operation in Ardmore, Okla., and he was kind enough to respond.

Please provide our readers with an overview of your business.

Eric Benge, Brian Wheeler, and Geoffery Gruber are the managing partners that made this happen. The Caddo office opened first and the guys knocked it out of the park and decided to open more locations. Kiowa was the second location and in less than two years the third location opened here in Ardmore. I have been blessed to be given the opportunity and responsibility of running the Ardmore location. It has been a pleasure to serve the city of Ardmore and customers far and near. We set ourselves apart from others by putting service and the customer before the sell. Family-first starts with the customer’s family and from there making sure each one is treated like our own family on day one.

Who is your customer?

Our customer is anyone in the market for a home. We have something for everyone. With access to over 280 floor plans we are sure to be able to find what customers are looking for. Our selection includes all types of manufactured homes, from tiny homes to modular homes and everything in between.

Are there new trends you see in regard to how homebuyers want a place laid out, or in some of the furnishings, appliances, finishes, etc.?

It appears that in climate of the economy and interest rates we are seeing a lot of shoppers who hadn’t thought of manufactured homes as an option are starting to realize that they can maximize their dollar and get the most affordable luxury by taking a look at what we have to offer.

What have you been selling most recently?

The year has started off with lots of double wide sales. The city of Ardmore requires multi-section homes if you want to be in city limits and they also give the size the traditional stick built customer is looking for at a better price.

What brands do you carry?

We carry New Vision, Champion, Skyline, Sunshine, Oak Creek, and Legacy.

How do you manage the transport of your homes?

We work with a few transport companies and things have been pretty consistent in that regard.

Share something with other manufactured housing professionals that would surprise them about doing business in Oklahoma.

Not until moving here did I realize how great the people, food, and overall atmosphere is here in South Oklahoma. It is a great place to live and do business.

As a former NFL player, did you have the chance to watch the big game? What are your impressions?

I did watch the big game, it was a great match up of coaches, QBs, and overall two great organizations. The refs are always a fun twist.

How do you see your business/ our industry expanding?

I can envision Mobilehoma Warehouse continuing to grow as the demand for affordable housing continues to rise. MHV

DVELE ENTERS BUSINESS AGREEMENT FOR TRANSCEND COMMUNITIES

The VISION home Transcend Communities will show in 2023 is on a half mile of private river frontage in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Photo courtesy of Transcend Communities.

After several years of searching for the right partner in homebuilding, Green Builder Media has joined forces with Dvele to create Transcend Communities.

The approach will provide configurable options that cater to a buyer’s lifestyle, preferences, climate, lot size, and parcel orientation. Transcend homes will be manufactured, delivered, and installed onsite in under six months.

Green Builder Media is North America’s leading media company focused on green building and sustainable living, affecting positive change by providing inspirational information to over 200,000 progressive building professionals and millions of early-adopter and first-mover consumers who are interested in sustainable living.

“Green Builder Media chose Dvele as its partner for Transcend because of the company’s cutting-edge technology, extreme sustainability, and ability to scale through an automated, precision-engineered manufacturing process,” Green Builder Media CEO Sara Gutterman said. »

Dvele is a prefab home builder based in La Jolla, Calif, that builds smart, healthy, and sustainable modular homes.

The Transcend partnership will launch with a show home in the San Juan mountains of Colorado. The VISION House is modern and sophisticated, reimagining the future of housing, incorporating sustainable design, building science best practices, and innovative technologies to optimize the occupant experience and reduce the home’s carbon footprint.

VISION’s building envelope includes high performance:

• Insulation

• Windows

• Radiant heating and cooling

• Water heating

• Appliances

• Lighting

The home’s innovative systems will achieve net zero energy. Smart controls and a battery storage system will augment demand-side energy management. The home will have enhanced fire resiliency and risk mitigation, built with light gauge recycled steel and exterior materials with high fire ratings.

Transcend’s model home also boasts a whole-home proactive indoor air quality system and radon detector, as well as water-conserving plumbing fixtures, water filtration systems, leak detection, water monitoring systems, and hot water recirculation systems. It will be powered by Dvele’s proprietary intelligent-living platform, DveleIQ, which has been designed with extreme efficiency and comfort in mind.

The demonstration house was to be placed near the end of 2022 and will be open for scheduled tours via video or onsite through 2023.

“The time for prefab has come,” Gutterman said. “Offsite, prefab construction can solve for some of the building industry’s biggest obstacles, including labor challenges, material shortages, construction schedule delays, quality control, performance optimization, and waste management.”

To learn more about Transcend Communities contact Sara Gutterman at sara.gutterman@ greenbuildermedia.com. MHV

NEW ‘National Manufactured Housing Awareness’ Campaign?

by Ken Corbin

For over 30 years, there’s been discussion about some type of national awareness program for manufactured housing. Unfortunately, it’s never materialized.

Last year, a small group representing all facets of our industry began meeting by Zoom to discuss new ways this could be accomplished. The list ideas is growing rapidly, and we’d love to have you join us and contribute.

The group includes retailers, communities, manufacturers, state associations, lenders, suppliers, consultants, marketing, and advertising groups.

Let’s Not Re-Invent The Wheel

One of the first suggestions was to look at other industries that have come together for the benefit of all their members. An example is the RV industry, which years ago began their “GoRVing” campaign.

Like our business, they had the interests of parks (communities), retailers, state associations, and manufacturers to keep in mind. The idea was to develop an awareness campaign to show Americans an alternative to the typical getaway.

Industry Campaign Results

The initial RV promotion led to the industry’s most recent marketing effort, “Take A Real Vacation!” The 2021 results show what an industry can do, by working together, can to accomplish their goals. Ultimately, the single-year results were impressive:

• More than 1 billion digital impressions

• 7 million potential buyers

• 600,000 units sold

• A jump in sales of more than 19%

In today’s marketplace, social media is the primary driver. TV ad costs have increased dramatically while print continues to decline. The RV industry saw this trend and they now use social media for the primary campaign.

By taking this approach, costs have continued to go down while awareness and consumer response has increased. »

Are We That Different?

The simple answers are NO and YES.

NO, we’re not that different. We have the same type of components with our three primary drivers being communities, retailers, and manufacturers.

In addition, the RV business has faced zoning and governmental interference, primarily from local planning and zoning. Sound familiar?

The focus was showing America there is an alternative to the typical vacation. Of course, we offer the alternative to higher cost stick-built and fixer uppers with our affordable housing.

Today, our retailers, communities, and developments offer an affordable lifestyle Americans need and want.

YES, we are different. Our industry is more fragmented with both community and private site residents. And we’re all aware of the financing issues we face on the large chattel portion of our business.

Let’s be honest. Many of our challenges today are because of the way we’ve done business in the past. These issues relate to two specific concerns:

1. Perception of the MH industry – Image versus Reality

2. Large Governmental Interference – Primarily P&Z

Retailers today aren’t dealers, but developers and builders. Many communities still act and run their business like a “T” park, including not adhering to their own rules and regulations.

Until we begin to treat ourselves differently, we’ll commit industry suicide. But you can easily fix this perception if you’re serious about growing your business and changing our image.

The on-going fight you have with government also can be changed by making elected officials, policy makers, and staff aware of today’s manufactured homes.

Many states today are doing a great job in this area. Many officials who prohibited our product and communities just a few years ago are welcoming us today.

What Would A ‘National MH Awareness’ Campaign Look Like?

What do we want to create, what do we have to say? These are among the biggest questions we must ask ourselves! To this point, the consensus

is that most everyone believes “Awareness” is more important than “Image.”

If our potential customers and community residents see what we offer today, we can create that AWE factor. But they need to SEE it, walk it, touch it and know we’re out there!

At the recent Louisville Manufactured Housing Show, a sample survey was passed out asking what attendees felt were the most important components to communicate in a campaign. Here’s the top five results:

1. Affordable Housing

2. Consumer Awareness

3. Local Government Planning & Zoning

4. Home Quality

5. Lead Generation

When Do We Go Now?

What is the logical next step? That’s another BIG concern. Here are just a few items to consider:

· Why wouldn’t you want national awareness on what we offer?

· Who’s best to lead the effort?

· What’s the cost, who’s going to pay for it … and how?

Representatives from Cavco, Clayton, and Skyline-Champion — the three largest manufactured home builders in the country, — have already indicated an interest in being involved. But, like you, everyone needs to focus on the effort. We can’t go another 30 years kicking the can.

What is Your Opinion?

We’d love to have you support, and for you to be part of the effort. More discussion on the topic will be had when we meet in Mississippi.

If you want to let us know your thoughts now, drop me a note so your thoughts, ideas, and interests can be taken into account.

And welcome to Biloxi! MHV

Industry consultant Ken Corbin has worked with over 800 communities, retailers, associations, and manufacturers. He’s also co-facilitator of the MH20 Group. For more information, e-mail: ken@callkencorbin.com.

Get Online Reviews Working For Your Business Instead of Against It.

The new mh.reviews service from MHVillage is the only tool you need to collect, monitor and promote online reviews from happy customers.

Our system helps you tactfully ask and remind people for feedback, guides them through the process, and gives you a chance to reach unhappy customers before they write a negative review online.

Get More Stars and Real Reviews On Sites Like:

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Schedule review performance reports so you can clearly demonstrate the improvement of your reputation to everyone in your business.

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How to Waste Good Money on Marketing

by Darren Krolewski

On the subject of marketing, the legendary department store pioneer John Wanamaker famously lamented, “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.”

Just imagine what it was like to be a marketer in the late 19th century laboring under such adverse conditions. No websites. No Internet. No social media. You could only rely on newspapers, a few catalogs and the occasional holiday parade on which to throw away your marketing dollars. Meanwhile, you’d be forced to toil on with the knowledge that some unknown share of your advertising could actually be working. The horror!

Thankfully, marketing has come a long way since those barbaric times. With the advent of digital marketing, choices in advertising channels for manufactured housing professionals have increased exponentially. Yet despite these advancements, so many communities, retailers and service providers continue to struggle with how to deplete their advertising investment in the fastest and most gratuitous manner possible.

But don’t worry, with a little time and effort you too can increase your company’s marketing expenses and lower results. Here are a few tips to almost guarantee the complete and total failure of any and all marketing initiatives.

1. Don’t Track Your Advertising

Not tracking your advertising is a surefire strategy to ensure the greatest ineffectiveness of your marketing campaigns. If you don’t know what specific channels, »

With a little time and effort you too can increase your company’s marketing expenses and lower results.

EACH COMMERCIAL SOLAR PROJECT IS DESIGNED AND DEVELOPED IN-HOUSE, FROM START TO FINISH, BEGINNING WITH OUR PROPRIETARY SOLAR

THE LEADER IN MOBILE HOME PARK

platforms and creative are generating leads, you’ll never be able to shift your marketing budget into the ones that are the most profitable. One of the best free tools for tracking the effectiveness of online advertising is Google Analytics. Less experienced marketers use this tool to generate a unique tracking code that can be placed in different types of digital ads to help determine which are generating the most clicks. Best to avoid it. Just send all your visitors to your homepage so you have no idea how they got there. After all, knowing how people are finding you, where they are coming from and if your website is doing its job can only lead to better results. And we definitely don’t want that.

2. Don’t Bother Having a Good Website

Studies have shown that this Internet thing will probably end up being a complete waste of time. Centuries from now, future civilizations will ponder our attachment to cat videos, sharing pictures of our meals, and buying products and services without leaving our homes. On the other hand, a terrible website can be a great way to consume a large portion of your advertising budget and erode the effectiveness of your digital campaigns. Remember, when it comes to websites, speed rarely matters. Be sure your website loads as slowly as possible so visitors will get frustrated and leave. Also make sure your website is nearly unusable from a mobile device. Give particular attention to making forms and buttons insidiously difficult to use on a small screen. Focus instead on the proven desktop experience.

3. Don’t Optimize Your Ad Campaigns

Remember those late-night rotisserie grill infomercials that touted “Set it and forget it?” It’s a strategy that works on more than just poultry. Once you come up with some creative advertising, you should never change a good thing. Or a bad thing. Or anything. Just let your ads keep running forever until any response gradually fades away. Changing ads every few weeks to keep them fresh is just a myth perpetuated by unscrupulous graphic designers. Don’t be a sucker. The fewer clicks you get, the higher your cost per click. It’s simple math. Trust your instincts. There’s no point in A/B testing different versions of your ads against

one another to see which headlines and content work best. That would only expose faults in your initial judgment. Some may argue that impressions without clicks indicate a problem with your ad creative. Or clicks without conversions may suggest an issue with your landing page. Then again, some people argue about most everything.

4. Don’t Limit Yourself to a Single Call to Action

It’s been said that variety is the spice of life. What better way to encourage consumer happiness than to give your website visitors lots of choices? Don’t limit the possibilities by suggesting a single, straightforward call to action such as the completion of a lead form or application. No, like an old Choose Your Own Adventure® novel, you should strive to provide as many potential outcomes as possible. Even if some of them lead to dead ends. Be sure to utilize as many different domains and subdomains as possible, including switching over to third-party service providers, to make it as tough as possible on your web developer to keep the tracking straight. When in doubt, share the blame. The same holds true for promotional emails as well. Be sure to incorporate as many calls to action and clicks as you can. Ask the recipient to take a survey, watch a video, click on a button, and click to learn more. People love to feel like they are part of something. Give it to them.

5. Don’t Advertise Consistently

Many marketers believe repeating a message multiple times builds awareness and recall. Many marketers believe repeating a message multiple times builds awareness and recall. See what I did there? Wasn’t it annoying? Part of the fun of marketing is constantly coming up with new advertising ideas and ways to spend your company’s money. That way you can enjoy the creative process again and again. If you maintained a consistent advertising budget over time, you’d be able to establish and maintain momentum much easier than starting from a dead stop. Sure such a radical strategy may purport to be more successful and cost efficient, but where’s the fun in that? Instead, try stopping and starting your advertising every chance you get. Salesperson call in sick? Turn off the ads. Rain in the forecast? Turn off »

the ads. Prospect says they’ll “think about it”? Turn off the ads! You get the idea. Turn off the ads.

6. Don’t Follow Up

According to a study by Brevet, 80% of sales require an average of five follow-ups in order to close the deal. Five follow-ups? Who has time for that!? Everyone knows that if a prospect isn’t ready to make a commitment right away, they’re not a serious buyer. Don’t let them lead you on. It’s difficult to contemplate why so many tire kickers spend their time responding to ads and visiting manufactured home sales centers. The world may never know. As a marketer, you should focus all of your advertising budget on one thing and one thing only: generating a steady flow of new leads. The vast majority of these aren’t going to convert. Learn to accept it. Don’t waste your time on marketing pseudoscience like mapping the customer journey and crafting specific follow-up campaigns for different personas and phases of the buying process. Absolutely not. Try lots of new things. Get your marketing budget

out there. Keep the economy humming. So what do you do with all those bad leads? Put them in a file and never look at them again. Out of sight, out of mind.

So while marketing may have evolved, that doesn’t mean you have to. When sales are cooling off and it’s taking twice as much effort to generate the same results, don’t be afraid to stop. Stop it all. Why even question which half of your advertising is working when you can ensure none of it is? Let your competition carry the load. Those fools. Because if there is one thing we’ve learned about marketing over the last century and a half it’s this: sometimes the best thing you can do is nothing at all. MHV

When not dispensing contrarian marketing advice, Darren Krolewski is co-president and chief business development officer of MHVillage, the top website for manufactured homes, retailers and communities, and leads efforts that generate home transactions of more than $3 billion.

THE VITAL NEED FOR CHATTEL LENDING

Personal Property Loans Are Increasingly Viable, Yet No More Attainable

by Ray Leech

As we begin the spring selling season, the housing market continues to struggle due to higher interest rates and worries about our economy. In addition, the continued lack of affordable housing amid talk of a recession may turn away buyers to a degree that our current housing infrastructure may barely be able to handle.

Still, the manufactured housing industry may be a bright spot in the market.

Affordable housing is a critical issue because the country is millions of units short of demand. This being the case, there is growing consensus that business may expand compared to site-built homes. Currently, the percentage of manufactured homes to site-built housing is about 10%. But there is some thought that percentage could increase this year, one driver being that the interest rates for chattel lending — a personal property loan often used for manufactured homes — is within two points of conventional mortgage rates, making the factory-built homes more competitive in the marketplace. In past years, the spread has been double that, or more. Regarding the supply of manufactured homes, there is also good news. Industry experts say that the previous backlog has been drastically reduced in nearly every market. HUD Code homes can be purchased and delivered in a few months. »

Barriers For More Business

Hurdles remain when it comes to expanding growth for manufactured home units.

Tim Williams, the CEO of 21st Mortgage, said the biggest barrier of all to more manufactured home business is zoning issues. He noted that in Knoxville, Tenn., the home to his firm and Clayton Homes, local zoning laws prevent a manufactured housing unit from being set in the city. But, as Williams notes, it is a complicated issue.

But suppose someone had their home on a 3-acre property and wanted to place a manufactured home on the property for their elderly parents to reside in. This scenario raises issues in the eyes of a lender. First, the home would be considered an investment property, and it is not attached to the real estate. To finance this unit requires a personal property or chattel loan. There are some lenders that may approve this transaction, but not many. And right now, there is no secondary market for chattel loans.

Status of Chattel Financing

There may be changes to the chattel loan situation within a few years. Freddie Mac is exploring purchasing chattel loans as part of the Duty To Serve goals, updated last year. In the plan, Freddie Mac committed to purchasing from 1,500 to 2,500 chattel loans in 2024. They plan to complete a feasibility assessment of the requirements and processes needed to support chattel loan purchase, including underwriting, pricing, consumer protection, valuation and risk management. The big challenges they noted are a lack of lender standardization, no standard underwriting practices, and no consistent approach to assessing property values.

Accessory Dwelling Units and MH

In some areas of the country, especially California where there is a huge shortage of affordable housing, some jurisdictions are permitting accessory dwelling units or ADUs on a property. These are small independent living spaces that can be part of the home structure, for example, a mother-in-law suite over a garage, or independent of the main structure, such a small cottage on the property. Since these are attached to the property, they can be financed through a cash out refinance with funds used to build the unit and tying it to the owner-occupied property.

The good news for MH is that Freddie Mac will purchase a mortgage secured by a 1-, 2- or 3-unit property that has a manufactured home ADU that meets the Guide requirements for both the manufactured home and the ADU. So, in some areas of the country, there may be an opportunity for MH business in these situations.

As noted, 2023 could be a turbulent year in the housing industry. But there are hopeful signs that MH will continue to grow and make progress in addressing the affordable housing crisis in our country. MHV

Berkshire Bank Product Manager Raymond Leech has worked in the mortgage industry for more than 30 years, having developed and managed construction and renovation mortgage products, as well as working on FHFA Duty To Serve efforts involving manufactured housing, rural housing, and affordable housing.

There may be changes to the chattel loan situation within a few years. Freddie Mac is exploring purchasing chattel loans as part of the Duty To Serve goals.

DO YOU EVEN NEED A BROKER?

by James Cook

There’s no question the MH industry has some amazing service providers, but what about brokers? DO YOU NEED A BROKER? It’s a great question that many community owners have whether they will admit it to me or not. Unfortunately, most don’t learn the answer until it’s too late.

Hi, I am James Cook, founder and national director of sales for Yale Advisors, a nationwide sales and financing brokerage specializing in Manufactured Housing and RV Parks. I took my first listing on a mobile home park in 2005, started focusing exclusively on this asset class in 2007, and launched Yale Advisors in 2012. Over the past decade, Yale has grown into one of the top firms in the U.S. specializing in our niche. Most of our client relationships start with an owner that has two common opinions: 1) they don’t trust brokers, and 2) they don’t believe they need one when they decide to sell. »

To the first opinion, I would say they have great instincts. Brokers have earned a level of trust with the public somewhere between an attorney and car salesman. Hard earned distrust to say the least. While it’s unlikely to earn trust from this article alone, I can tell you I didn’t work at the mill shops that train you to “say whatever necessary” to close or lie to either party. Yale was built as the antithesis of a typical brokerage. We believe haste makes waste, and sellers that sell direct are significantly more likely to get jerked around, renegotiated, and end up netting 10-15% less than they would have with proper representation. As for the second opinion, let’s discuss when and why you should or shouldn’t hire a broker.

When to Hire a Broker

So, you own an MHC, and you get calls, mailers, emails, and other forms of solicitations weekly. There are so many groups contacting you and telling you how much they love your property and why you should sell it to them. They tell you they will pay “top dollar” and you won’t even have to pay a pesky broker fee, so of course this seems like a no-brainer. It is so much easier to hear them out than put the property on the market where your employees or residents might find out. As the great Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast, my friend.”

Let’s walk through this from the owner’s point of view. How could it be possible that every buyer can pay top dollar? More than anyone else? Someone must be lying! Maybe I will go back to them all and ask them to submit an offer then sell it to the highest bid!

You take the highest offer, now what? Do you know they are actually the highest offer or best buyer for your property for sure? What other terms are reasonable? What is reasonable in terms of representations and warranties, due diligence items, deposits, timelines? These are all questions that should come to mind and help you arrive at the answer to the question “Do I Need a Broker?”

If you haven’t found the answer, I have a few questions that may help.

Question #1: What percentage of the real buyers actively solicit sellers directly? Answer — roughly 30%. So, when you “go back to them all,” it is less than one-third of the real buyers.

Question #2: Why do buyers have an acquisitions team that contacts you directly? Answer — simply, to get a better price and better terms for themselves. It’s not for you! This is a basic business principle. Why would a buyer ever pay you more than they absolutely have to?

Question #3: How do I know which buyer is the best if I haven’t sold more than 2-3 parks in the last 10 years, or possibly ever? Answer — you don’t!

You may have caught on by now, but there are many benefits to hiring a reputable broker. We are now selling and financing close to 100 parks each year, so if you own your park for another five years before you’re ready to sell, we will have transacted on another 500 parks by then. When you hire a broker, you gain the same level of experience that they have, so choosing the right broker is just as important. You want someone to guide you through all of the questions above and more.

Now, if you are a buyer and you’re wondering why you should buy through a broker, it is simple – better matches, less wasted time, real sellers. As a buyer, you waste so much time trying to find direct deals, instead of focusing on running your properties, hiring the right people, fixing underlying issues with the property, filling spaces, etc. When a seller agrees to be represented, and oftentimes, to a “call for offers process”, you know they are serious and are going to take the best overall offer. It isn’t even always just price, but a combination of price, deposit, inspection period, hard money at signing etc. This process allows you the four to five weeks needed to ask questions and thoroughly review the underwriting, financials, rent rolls etc. and anticipate issues or surprises.

... sellers that want to close the first time they enter contract, with no games or re-trades, will hire an experienced, highly referenced, and honest broker, to run a true arm’s-length process.

Then, you are asked to submit an initial indication of interest, and if you are in the top three or four, you will be invited to a second round where you get even more serious and put all your cards on the table. The bid process takes a little more than a week, and you know if you won or not. Pretty clean, straightforward process, right?

Well, the reality is sellers will continue to think they know better than specialists (and they probably do know more than many brokers) and continue to sell directly at a rate of probably 50-70% of all transactions. Meanwhile, sellers that want to close the first time they enter contract, with no games or re-trades, will hire an experienced, highly refer-

enced, and honest broker, to run a true arm’s-length process. We close dozens of sales every year, without alerting the residents or employees until a winner has been selected and a contract signed. Usually, by the time surveying and environmental reports are being performed you will start having residents or employees get curious and start asking questions, but there is little chance of the deal falling apart at that point if you’ve run the proper process.

The moral of the story for sellers is you could get lucky, but more often than not, you will net less and be tied up for much longer when you sell direct. As the old saying goes “Pioneers take arrows.” I get calls almost every week from sellers that have wasted 60-90 days in

contract with a direct buyer. The buyer has already been granted two extensions to due diligence and has now started asking for price reductions. Usually, they have also pushed for access to the staff and let the word out about sale, so the seller feels compromised and is more likely to take the discounted price. Meanwhile, the issues the buyer is bringing up are things we would have fully disclosed in a proper process and had priced in and acknowledged by every buyer submitting an offer.

So, do you need a broker?

Well, it depends. Hire the wrong broker and you’ll be worse off than having no broker. But hire the right broker and you will sell to the best buyer for your property at the highest price and close in a timely manner. Get the name and number for each of the brokers’ last 10 sales, and choose wisely. MHV James Cook is the national director of brokerage for Yale Realty and Capital Advisors. He entered the manufactured housing and RV property asset class in 2005 as a licensed agent listing homes for a local investor. In 2012, he founded the fully integrated finance and brokerage shop and has accumulated transaction exceeding $1 billion in value. He offers perspective at a national level, providing insight into the niche industry.

Mississippi Manufactured Housing Association Works With the Capital City

by Jennifer Hall

The Mississippi Manufactured Housing Association (MMHA) has been working with local governments over the past several years to change zoning ordinances to allow manufactured homes. One very important city, the state’s capital, Jackson, is doing just that. I was contacted in March of 2022 to meet with a new employee in the planning and zoning department, Chloe Dotson, to discuss the use of manufactured homes in the City of Jackson, which did not allow them at the time. Chloe had moved to Mississippi from Texas and was very educated on our homes and how they have evolved over the past few years. She has a vision for Jackson and knows the need for quality affordable housing in the city.

She asked me to review her proposed ordinance changes to be addressed by the planning and zoning committee and we made a few changes. She was asking the zoning and planning committee to allow manufactured homes in the R-2 zone. Each home would still go through the review process in her department. The committee passed the changes

and then forwarded them to the full council in June. The changes were adopted unanimously at the public hearing with no one speaking against the changes. The council adopted the changes at the next scheduled meeting. Mrs. Dotson did an excellent job of explaining to the council members that she was discussing manufactured homes, not trailers. She discussed the standards by which they are built and all the features that are offered with various floor plans.

MMHA began meeting with the four area retailers closest to the Jackson to discuss floor plans that the city wanted to use. City leaders had requested that the homes have a front porch as this style would be similar to the existing homes in the area. Most of the lots that will be used are narrow and deep lots, therefore the retailers needed to keep this in mind when developing a floor plan with the manufacturers. We have three manufacturers at this time that have submitted four house plans to be used for infill purposes in Jackson. We are trying to keep the selling price around $150,000. MMHA retained Chris Nicely

We have three manufacturers at this time that have submitted four house plans to be used for infill purposes in Jackson. We are trying to keep the selling price around $150,000.

have been no permits requested for homes under $200,000 within the city except by Habitat for Humanity; most Jackson residents cannot afford homes of this price.

Since the beginning of this opportunity, Mrs. Dotson has been promoted to director of the planning department. She has introduced us to non-profit organizations, as well as churches that are already engaged in the rehabilitation of neighborhoods and that are very interested in this new vision of housing in Jackson. MMHA continues to work with the city and these non-profit leaders as we move forward with securing lots for manufactured homes. This has been a huge opportunity to help our capital city and its leaders provide more opportunities of home ownership in the area. While the process is time

the state that need revitalized housing. Manufactured homes can meet the need for infill housing and allow families to work and live in the city. MMHA looks forward to continued work with Jackson, as well as educating other cities on how zoning changes can make way for manufactured homes that meet needs and lifestyles of so many families. MHV Jennifer Hall is the executive director of the Mississippi Manufactured Housing Association. MMHA is a member-funded nonprofit with the mission of advocating for the interests of members and the industry as a whole providing opportunities on legal, governmental, technical, informational, educational, and marketing fronts.

New Research Shows Manufactured Home Owners Are Very Satisfied

Affordability Key Reason to Consider Manufactured Housing

by Lesli Gooch

The Manufactured Housing Institute’s new consumer survey shows satisfaction among manufactured home owners is trending upward, as is an interest in manufactured housing from younger demographics and those considering a home purchase in the next 12 months. The research details the manufactured home features that respondents find important, among them quality, affordability, amenities, and stand-alone homes that offer outdoor

access. Overall, industry innovation is being noted and recognized, and presents an opportunity to continue to manufacture quality homes that are clearly in demand.

Trifecta Research Group’s Senior Vice President, Client Solutions Linda MacKenzie thought 2018’s 78% satisfaction rate reported by residents of manufactured housing who bought new homes would be tough to top. But the 2023 data revealed that 85% of

manufactured homeowners who purchased a new home reported that they are “extremely” or “very” satisfied with their home, a 7-point increase from 2018. A strong majority of manufactured homeowners (72%) said that they are likely to recommend manufactured homes to others.

During MHI’s Winter Meeting, held Feb.6-8, 2023 in Houston, MacKenzie gave an exclusive first look at the new consumer survey research findings to MHI members. This research revisited MHI’s consumer research from 2018, and expanded upon the original study to include not only those who live in manufactured homes and communities, but also those consumers considering purchasing a manufactured home.

Key findings from the presentation include:

• Manufactured home residents have very positive impressions of their experiences. Overall, 81% of manufactured homeowners report a “very positive” or “positive” overall feeling about their home.

• For residents of land-lease communities, 72% of those in 55+ communities are extremely/very satisfied with their community; for all-age communities, satisfaction is 56%.

• 82% of residents living in a 55+ community are extremely/very likely to recommend living in a manufactured home; and 69% of residents in all-age communities are likely to recommend living in a manufactured home.

The demographics of manufactured homes residents shifted slightly from the 2018 survey. Today’s manufactured home residents are younger, more educated and more likely to include children.

People living in manufactured homes are not only very satisfied with their home, 72% of those surveyed said they were likely or extremely likely to recommend manufactured home living to others.

Today’s Communities

The amenities in today’s land-lease communities drove the residents’ overall community satisfaction rate of 59%. Pools, parks and playgrounds are the most common community amenities. In response to the growing appeal of community living to families with children, some communities offer additional

amenities focused on these youngest residents, including play centers and after school programming.

Although the cost of living in a land-lease community has increased since 2018, 53% of residents said the increase was similar than comparable options in their area. More land-lease communities now include utilities such as water/sewage (58%), garbage (46%) and electricity (34%).

The Considerers

The survey also included people planning to buy a home in the next 12 months, who were open to considering buying manufactured homes. These “considerers” were somewhat younger, more likely to be single and had more modest household incomes than current manufactured home residents.

These considerers reported currently living in stand-alone homes and apartment/condos in multiunit buildings. They said they felt positive or very positive (82%) about living in a manufactured home. The top factors they mentioned that drove their consideration were affordability and the ability to own their own home. Four in ten said that manufactured homes have newer features than other types of homes they can afford to buy.

The top five features that attracted considerers to manufactured housing were affordability (70%), energy efficiency (53%), additional space (49%), standalone homes (46%), and outdoor space (45%).

Learn More

MHI plans to release detailed findings from the survey throughout the coming months. MHI members can view the full presentation from MHI’s 2023 Winter Meeting at manufacturedhousing.org/ research-and-data/. MHV

Dr. Lesli Gooch is CEO of the Manufactured Housing Institute. Under her leadership, MHI has elevated the industry in Washington and secured a number of critical policy accomplishments for the industry. She currently serves on both Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s Affordable Housing Advisory committees. In 2022 she was named as one of HousingWire’s Women of Influence. She was a finalist for the Women in Government Relations’ Advocate of the Year Award in 2020.

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MANUFACTURED HOUSING FINANCE, A 70-YEAR RETROSPECTIVE

A Sorry Story That Keeps Repeating Itself–Or is There A Better Way?

by George Allen, CPM Emeritus, MHM-Master

Prolegomena. Much of what follows was initially published during June 2000, in Manufactured Home Merchandiser, as ‘Looking Back at 50 Years of Manufactured Housing Financing’, by Otto Wantuck, former owner of San Diego-based Amcorp Financial Services. And what occurred during two decades post-2000 is shared here for the first time.

Folks new to manufactured housing and land lease community business models oft hold the naive view the industry and realty asset class’ loss of easy access to chattel capital, from independent third party lenders, between the dawn of 21st Century and now, is simply a one time aberration. Not so! We’ve endured similar cycles in years past, hence the value of this column.

Mr. Wantuck’s reason for penning his half century retrospective of MH finance cycles? In his words: “…help us do a better job and avoid the some ‘pitfalls’ in the future.”

Otto. “The year is 1950. It’s summer in Tulsa, OK. and gasoline is selling for 37 cents per gallon. A young couple from Knobnoster, Miss. bought a trailer from Sipes

Trailer Sales, a local Spartan retailer. They are at the factory to pick up their new home, a beautiful, shiny, silver 8X20 Spartan Mansion aluminum trailer.” And they’ll tow it home behind their car.

Continuing, their Spartan Mansion’s “Sale price, including title and tax = $4,200... Down payment paid to dealer = $840... Balance owing = $3,350. Physical damage insurance for three years = $140. Credit life insurance = $60. Amount financed = $3,560. Finance charge (5% add-on) = $534... Total note balance = $4,094.”

“The couple will be making 36 payments of $113.74 to pay off the loan. The true interest rate on the loan is 9.2% in simple interest. The cost of capital to the lender is about 3.5% , resulting in a gross profit, before an administrative cost of almost 60% of the finance charges. A very profitable financing operation indeed.”

Such were these ‘mobile home’ transactions 70 years ago.

Moving ahead ten years, Otto again: “As of the mid1960s, banks and savings & loans were unregulated.

In their race for deposits, they turned to manufactured housing loans for higher yields. However, they lacked the expertise in originating these consumer installment loans. Entrepreneurs, many coming from manufactured housing finance companies, formed ‘service companies’…becoming the loan arm for thousands of federal and state–insured banks and savings & loans.”

Then came the Crash of the 1970s. “By 1973, annual sales volume (i.e.’ new mobile home shipments’) reached 580,000 – an all-time high, not to be seen again. However, there was a flaw in the industry growth. The marriage of service companies, financial institutions, and credit (repossession loss insurance) companies did not incorporate basic checks and balances needed in the world of lending.”

“Competition for loan volume reached a ‘fever pitch’. Prudent lending practices disappeared in the feeding frenzy for profits by service companies. Banks, and especially S&Ls, were screaming for more loan business, since they needed the higher yields »

to support their marketing of high yield deposits for their customers in CDs and savings accounts.”

“The credit insurance companies, at great risk, were generally unaware of their extreme exposure to uncontrolled loss. When they finally realized their mistake, it was too late.”

“The crash came in 1974, as losses skyrocketed. Credit (repossession loss) insurance companies pulled out of the business and annual sales of homes plummeted to 338,000 units. Repossessions were pouring in due to bad credit standards and many lenders withdrew from the business never to return.”

However, two positive events occurred during the late 1970s; again, Otto…

The FHA & VA offered government-insured mobile home loans, and GNMA offered a mortgage-backed securities program that eventually provided “…billions of dollars to fuel the industry’s growth in the 1990s.”

“A national construction standard known as ANSI 119.1 was imposed on the mobile home industry in 1976. (Now the HUD-Code)…greatly increasing the

credibility of the industry with lenders, investors, and the general public.”

Three problematic economic factors of the 1980s & 1990s…

“Loan terms in 1980 were up to 20 years and rose to 30 years by 1995. This resulted in no equity lending on most loans for several years, and down payments dropped from 10 down to 5%; a grave error.”

‘…in 1998 & 1999, delinquency increased from 3.5 to 5% for most lenders, indicating problems. Default losses, including expenses, rose from 30% in the 80s, to 45 – 50% in the late 90s.”

“Pressure increased among lenders to gain or hold on to market share. Loan credit quality deteriorated as competition heated up. Eventually, in the late 90s, many of these lenders withdrew from manufactured housing lending, but the damage was already done.”

Summary observation penned by Otto Wantuck, writing in mid-2000.

“I have seen all these problems before, but I have never seen all of them occur at the same time!” Adding this hopeful note: “The days of great ups and downs in the lending industry are coming to an end.” Alas, more of an ‘end’ than even he realized at the time.

How did manufactured housing industry leaders, post 2000, view these matters? Gub Mix, simultaneous association executive in several western states, and founder of MHI’s annual Manufactured Housing Congress, opined in his widely read column, ‘From My Soapbox’…

“…manufactured housing industry devotes an extraordinary amount of its’ resources to sell homes to people who really aren’t qualified home buyers. Why? Because they allow us to sell the ‘old mobile home way’. It’s easier than attempting to sell to qualified buyers who require a lot more effort. Manufactured housing may be the only industry in America who ignores the customer’s desires in their marketing practices. Unfortunately for us, potential buyers are much more savvy these days, and appear to be abandoning us in droves.”

OUCH! But it had to be said! Consequences of this mindset and actions?

Year 2000 = 250,000 new homes shipped. Down from 372,843 in 1998. »

Year 2007 = 95,769. First time since 1961 that fewer than 100,000 homes shipped!

Year 2009 = 48,789. The nadir (lowest point) of MH shipments ever.

Year 2020 = 94,390. Just ‘maybe’ we’ll exceed 100,000 homes shipped in 2022.

Furthermore, here’s what retired industry chattel finance maven Marty V. Lavin, esquire, opined about the ‘deeply flawed operating model’ of manufactured housing:

“During the early 2000s, it became evident the new home sales downturn was unlikely to end! Our long term industry operating model was deeply flawed. The huge number of home shipments enjoyed during the 1960s & 70s, had only been possible given unsustainable chattel loan losses absorbed by industry lenders throughout the period. Once the severity of said losses was fully recognized by the late 1990s, chattel lending tightened and shipments started a rapid decline, dropping to 50,000 homes shipped per year. Today, only a slight shipment recovery seems possible under

the continuing flawed operating model. Not until the industry finds a way to market our homes to a much better credit tier of buyer, is growth likely to occur again. And one must believe industry growth is also unlikely to occur absent many needed industry model changes.” (Lightly edited. GFA)

Since then, the focus has turned to what might be done to restore reasonable access to chattel capital when selling and financing new and resale manufactured homes, especially on–site in land lease communities throughout the U.S. Hence the series of three Listening Sessions, held throughout the U.S., by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (‘FHFA’), to input Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, as these two GSEs engage in rule-making and Duty to Serve (‘DTS’) program planning.

Yet another succinct historical retrospective on this timely matter was penned, and then subsequently updated, by Dick Ernst, president of FINMARK in Dallas, TX. Writing for the Guidebook for Selling &

Seller-financing New Manufactured Homes in Land Lease Communities (circa 2016 & following)…

“Let’s go back to those ‘go-go days’ of the 1990s, when HUD-Code manufactured housing was enjoying strong growth year after year, and was the darling of Wall Street. Large amounts of capital were chasing public companies (i.e. factory-built housing manufacturers) stock, driving up housing prices, and giving these firms ‘play money’ with which to expand their retail distribution networks. The new buzz within the industry was ‘vertical integration’.”

“Retail (chattel) financing was plentiful and financially attractive, because lenders were paying independent (street) MHRetailers a premium for their loans and were very aggressive with their underwriting practices. While some lenders were portfolio lenders (i.e. keeping chattel loans on their books), the bulk of financing came from active participation in the Asset- Backed Securities Market. Lenders were originating $100s of millions in loans, packaging them, selling them, but retaining servicing. Green Tree Financial was the largest ‘player’ at the time, with more than 30% of market share.”

Aforementioned consultant Marty Lavin, determined as much as one third of the industry’s chattel loans were made to homebuyers having a FICO score of less than 600 points! The soon result was a default frequency of more than 30% of loans originated at the time, and forcing the industry to deal with a glut of repossessed homes over a three year period of reselling. According to MHI, more than 10,000 MHRetailers went out of business after year 2000.

Consequences since then?

Only three ‘home only loan’ providers remained in business: 21st Mortgage Corp, CU Factory-built Lending, and Triad Finance, Inc.

The S.A.F.E. Act (‘’Safe & Fair Enforcement’) of mortgage licensure implemented at state level.

Then the Dodd-Frank Act occurred in 2010, soon birthing the Consumer Finance protection Bureau (‘CFPB’), another regulatory agency to enforce mortgage lending laws.

14% of new HUD-Code homes going into land lease communities, circa year 2000, rose to about 40% by year 2015. And many of these new home sales

were, and continue to be seller- financed, in various fashions, by owners/operators of these communities.

FHFA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac efforts to provide reasonable access to chattel capital, via Duty to Serve programs for financing manufactured homes sited in land lease communities, has yet to reach fruition! So, HUD-Code manufactured housing in land lease communities continues to be an underutilized answer to providing truly affordable housing in the U.S.! MHV

George Allen has owned and fee-managed land-lease communities since 1978. He’s a former MHI Industry Person of the Year and a member of the RV/MH Hall of Fame. He has been designated a Certified Property Manager-Emeritus and a Manufactured Housing Manager-Master. He’s also a senior consultant and staff writer with EducateMHC. Allen can be reached at (317) 346-7156 and gfa7156@aol.com.

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