George Allen / EducateMHC Blog Mobile Home & Land Lease Community Advocate & Expert

January 27, 2013

Highlights from 24th annual ALLEN REPORT & more…

Filed under: Uncategorized — George Allen @ 5:12 am

Blog # 230 Copyright 2013 27 January 2013

Perspective. ‘Land lease lifestyle communities, a.k.a. manufactured home communities, & earlier, ‘mobile home parks’, are the real estate component of manufactured housing.’

I.

Highlights from the 24th annual ALLEN REPORT
II.

More About MHI’s NCC Division’s Non – Meeting Plans

III.

POWER Networking Luncheon Attracts 70+ Attendees!

***

I.

Highlights from the 24th annual ALLEN REPORT,
a.k.a.
‘Who’s Who Among Land Lease Lifestyle Community
Owners/Operators Throughout North America!’

Well, it’s ‘out and about now’, having been distributed as a lagniappe in the January 2013 issue of the Allen Letter professional journal. The ALLEN REPORT is a 12 page Signature Series Resource Document, one of a dozen similar monthly SSRD research reports and directories prepared by PMN Publishing, for land lease lifestyle community owners/operators nationwide, and in Canada.

Here are highlights from the 24th annual edition of the ALLEN REPORT:

• The only chattel finance ‘light at the end of this decade long tunnel’, during 2012, was 21st Mortgage Corporation’s C.A.S.H. Program for LLLCommunities.

• MHI has new president & CEO (Dick Jennison) & NCC a new VP (Jenny Hodge)

• 6 reasons: ‘land lease lifestyle community’, not manufactured home community

• New: Book of Formulae, Rules of thumb & Helpful Measures @ MHIndustry

• Finally; increased concern regarding ‘home finance & site rent value proposition’

• Community Series Homes now a ‘fact of life’ but still resisted by MH factories

• Inspire Communities. Merger of Follett Investment Properties & Bertakis Dev.

• Unintended consequence of 30+ years of property consolidation: less RE brokers

• Birth of Manufactured Home Communities Owners Association of N. America

• 110 of 500+/- LLLCommunity portfolio owners/operators respond to AR survey

• Top 10 portfolio owners/operators control 55% of rental homesites in AR survey

• LLLCommunity portfolio owners/operators from 30 states respond to AR survey

• Average national physical occupancy percentage is down from last year’s figure

• Average national Operating Expense Ratio (‘OER’) higher than last year’s figure

• Self – finance dollar volume, ‘paper carried by LLLCommunity owners’, is down

• LLLCommunity portfolio owners/operators continue to acquire RV parks & sites

• Little to no construction of new rental homesites anywhere in the U.S. & CN.

• Professional property management on the decline among LLLCommunities

• Pride of Young Lions features GCP/ALL, RHP, UMH, & Inspire Communities

• Half of original Daring Dozen investors are still, after eight years, going strong

• MHIndustry unity & national leadership at a tipping point? Maybe. You decide

• 25 Most Influential People in the MHIndustry Today! All named by their peers

• And much much more, for MHIndustry & LLLCommunity aficionados alike…

To order the 24th annual ALLEN REPORT; know that it is FREE to Allen Letter professional journal subscribers (i.e. Only $134.95/year for 12 monthly issues), OR for $500.00 per copy. To order, phone the MHIndustry HOTLINE: (877)MFD-HSNG or 633-4764.

***

II.

More About MHI’s NCC Division’s Non – Meeting Plans

The Good News is, National Community Council’s elected chairman responded by email, to my inquiry and criticism regarding his summarily canceling the regularly scheduled biannual membership meeting of said MHI division, in Arlington, VA., during late February 2013. The Not – So – Good News, in my opinion? Well, here’s a key paragraph from said correspondence to yours truly. Read and decide for yourself, especially if you’re presently a direct, dues – paying member of MHI and or its’ National Communities Council division:

“The Executive Committee planning session will be closed other than for the Executive Committee and any invited guests. We don’t anticipate your participation. Similarly, while we expect to seek suggestions from a variety of constituents of all shapes and sizes either before, during or after the upcoming planning session, we don’t anticipate requiring your involvement. For the time being, this initial planning for the future of the NCC will, in fact, be placed in the hands of the Executive Committee and our work will be shared with the membership at the appropriate time. I’m sure you’re aware that most other large organizations plan effectively for the future in exactly the same manner.”

Yes, that’s how the paragraph was penned, including the redundancy, lack of punctuation, and obvious pompous tone.

Some observations. This is the first indication there’ll be individuals, other than the Executive Committee per se, who’ll be invited guests. That may be a good thing, maybe not, depending on who they invite. Wonder if we’ll (NCC members) ever know?

OK, OK, I get the message! “We don’t anticipate your participation.” & “…we don’t anticipate requiring your involvement.” It’s clear, this duly elected NCC board member is unwelcome to participate in the Executive Committee’s ‘closed planning workshop’. Be that as it may, “I plan to be in attendance at the MHI Legislative Conference.” Hmm. Wonder if I should plan an alternate educational activity for NCC members who, out of loyalty to MHI/NCC, plan to attend the February meeting? I can think of two ‘most appropriate alternative topics’ already. Let me know of your interest via MHIndustry HOTLINE: (877) MFD-HSNG or 633-4764. This could be fun….

And that last sentence. Sure, Executive Committee discussion, during retreats and other venues, is certainly one way to ‘plan for the future of the NCC’; but interestingly, for a national Advocacy body birthed by MHI on 1/1/1996, this is the FIRST & ONLY TIME, in my recollection, where duly elected (and appointed) officers have purposely cut themselves off from direct, dues – paying members and their input, regarding ideas, preferences, and suggestions regarding the present and future of the NCC council. So, if nothing else, the Executive Committee is ‘making history’ of themselves.

Frankly, I and others believe, this ‘closed planning workshop’, in lieu of the regularly scheduled biannual NCC meeting, is simply a subterfuge. And those council and audience members present at the NCC meeting on 8 October 2012, in San Antonio, TX., likely understand why. The cowardly public verbal ambush of two NCC members, for alleged offences not documented to this day, and who were not given opportunity to defend or rebut said charges, remains unresolved! So, a ‘closed planning workshop’, again – in lieu of a regularly scheduled membership meeting, is just one way to – like the U.S. Congress – ‘kick the can down the road’, settling nothing.

III.

POWER Networking Luncheon Attracts 70+ Attendees!

…and fully half of them, by a show of hands during lunch, and from responses penned on Event Evaluation Forms turned in following the luncheon, indicated they were either 1) attending their first Louisville MHShow, or 2) deciding to participate in the POWER Networking Luncheon opportunity, convinced them to travel to the KY Fair Grounds for the event this January!

‘LOL’ A humorous sidebar to this event, was the presence of a couple 2’WX3’H bright yellow signs near the MHShow registration area, warning readers, ‘George Allen’s POWER Networking Luncheon is not part of the official MHShow program’. Well guess what? As we were seating an already capacity crowd of 60 registrants at the luncheon, another ten individuals showed up, half indicating they’d read the (above) signs and decided the POWER Networking Luncheon was where they really wanted to be! So a ‘Thanks’, of sorts to the lone show vendor who spent good money to negatively promote this ‘more than sold out’ event. Lessons Learned? ‘Bad publicity is better than no publicity at all!’ & ‘Turn a lemon (yellow sign) into lemonade (luncheon fees)!’ ‘LOL’

Bottom line? There’re several! First; as event organizers, we accomplished our twofold goal: Attract new faces (i.e. land lease lifestyle community owners/operators) to the Louisville MHShow, AND provide a quality educational and networking opportunity:

• Ken & Donna Rishel, the manufactured housing industry’s Power Couple, held the rapt attention of their two Open Discussion Groups, as they walked them through the morass of increasing Federal and state finance regulations. Want more information about their $ workshops and freelance consulting services? Phone (217) 971-3968.

• Spencer Roane, MHM®, widely known, in land lease lifestyle community owner/operator circles, as the ‘lease – option guru’, shared a dynamite, multi paged handout titled: ’10 Critical Steps in MH Seller Financing!’ Everyone should want a copy! Reach him via spencer@roane.com

• Michael Power, flew up from Florida, to once again hold forth on his popular ‘How to Collect 100% of Your Site Rent 100% of the Time!’ methodology. To request a copy of Michael’s handout, phone (305) 879-3776 & ask about his freelance consulting services for land lease lifestyle community owners/operators.

Another ‘bottom line’ had to do with the Surprise Special Speaker on the Program. It was ‘yours truly’. And the POWER Networking Luncheon achieved its’ ‘historical significance’ as the first public venue at which the birthing of a new, national, not for profit entity, to serve the ‘statistical Research & ongoing Resource servicing’ of land lease lifestyle community owners/operators, coast to coast, and maybe Canada, was announced! Still tentatively known as the Manufactured Home Community Owners Association of North America, or MHCOA in short, the entire presentation will be shared, first with subscribers to the Allen CONFIDENTIAL! business newsletter, then in the Allen Letter professional journal. Already, in excess of 100 businessmen and women have committed to join the new Research & Resources entity; have you? If seriously interested, simply phone the above referenced MHIndustry HOTLINE or via gfa7156@aol.com Details to follow. Pivotal date = likely 2/27/2013. Are YOU on board?

There’s yet another ‘bottom line’ to this superbly successful POWER Networking Luncheon. And it has to do with state manufactured housing associations throughout the U.S.. If you’d like to bring this tripartite, half day program to your state (Either morning or afternoon, including breakfast or a luncheon), know all four presenters are willing to address your members, given scheduling compatibility, for reimbursement of travel – related expenses! Three of the presentation topics are listed in the previous paragraph. What’s the fourth? That’s up to you and what your members need, e.g. ‘State of the MHIndustry & LLLCommunity Asset Class’; ‘How to Calculate Affordable & Risky Price Points for New & Resale Homes Going into LLLCommunities or onto Private Property Conveyed Fee Simple’; or, ‘How to Sell More Homes into Land Lease Lifestyle Communities!’ – latter message addressed primarily to HUD – Code home manufacturers and independent ‘street’ MHRetailers and ‘company stores’. If interested, phone the MHIndustry HOTLINE: (877) MFD-HSNG or 633-4764. This could be the very best program you offer your members all year long! Think about it – and call….

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George Allen, CPM®Emeritus, MHM®Master
Consultant to the Factory – built Housing Industry,
The Land Lease Lifestyle Community Asset Class &
Affordable Housing Purists & Enthusiasts Nationwide
Box # 47024, Indpls, IN. 46247 (317) 346-7156

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