Blog # 394 Copyright 2016 COBA7® @ 1 May 2016; community-investor.com web site
Perspective: ‘Land-lease-lifestyle Communities, a.k.a. manufactured home communities and ‘mobile home parks’, comprise the real estate component of manufactured housing.’
This blog posting is the sole national advocacy voice, official ombudsman & historian, research reporter & online communication media, for North American LLLCommunities!
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INTRODUCTION. I suppose if you were to talk to everyone at the recent FHFA Manufactured Housing Roundtable, you’d get a different tale and perspective. Well, what follows in Part I, is that of the only LLLCommunity owner/operator present at the meeting. Part II corrects a telephone number error in last week’s blog posting. And Part III? Well frankly; anyone contemplating selling new – even resale, manufactured homes on-site, should be present 5/25 & 26, at the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart, IN., to participate in ‘Two Days of Plant Tours & Home Sales Seminars’ – the latter taught by LLLCommunity owners already successfully selling and seller-financing homes in their own properties! No state or national MHAdvocacy body is offering this sort of heady Tour/Seminar combination during the balance of 2016. So, don’t miss this opportunity!
I.
What No One Else Will Tell You!
Manufactured Housing Roundtable & ‘Duty to Serve’ Proposed Rule(s)
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (‘FHFA’) meeting, regarding Duty to Serve (‘DTS’) rulemaking, has come & gone. What was discussed? What was accomplished?
This blog posting lists meeting agenda items articulated by FHFA staff. When their summary is posted online, we’ll share it here with you. It won’t be soon though, as FHFA staff has no fewer than 1,561 comment letters on Duty to Serve, to read and absorb.
There were at least 20 manufactured housing, land-lease-lifestyle community, and finance-related businessmen & women, national & state trade advocates, and freelance consultants in the 26 April 2016 meeting. A list of their names has been circulated to COBA7® affiliates. This was the first national roundtable, organized and hosted by a federal agency, that requested Community Owners Business Alliance® involvement setting the agenda, as well as having a ‘seat at the table’ with two national advocacy entities representing HUD-Code manufactured housing.
Following Michael Price’s Welcome, & Introduction of all attendees, we discussed:
1. ‘Manufactured Housing Units Titled as Real Estate’. Surprisingly, to this observer, little was said in support of this still-emerging, albeit controversial concept, beyond identifying supposed challenges where housing valuation (i.e. appraisal) is concerned, and disposition of abandoned homes. Furthermore, the case was made for renting (housing and underlying improved realty) being more affordable than a change to ‘real estate-like’ ownership (e.g. Where likely transfer of payment of ad valorem taxes from ‘community’ to ‘homeowner’ is concerned). FHFA should research how well or poorly this type shift has fared among manufactured homes and communities in New Hampshire. Following here, is ‘how’ the actual agenda item was described: ‘Participants’ views on whether Enterprise support for manufactured housing units titled as real estate could be modified to expand support for very low, low, and moderate-income families, consistent with Enterprise safety and soundness.’
2. ‘Manufactured Housing Community Tenant Protections’. This time we begin with the actual agenda item description: ‘Participants’ views on the feasibility and impact of the proposed pad lease protections for tenants in manufactured housing communities, how the protections might be overseen, and whether any additional pad lease protections should be required for the Enterprises to receive Duty to Serve credit.’ As a longtime LLLCommunity owner, this was the only time I felt outgunned on principle and practicality (i.e. I’m against most forms of landlord-tenant legislation); however, later acquiesced to: ‘If this (i.e. tenant protections) is what it takes to get chattel capital flowing again, let’s do it!’ So, what happened? FMHA & MHC of AZ executive directors made respective cases for Chapter 723 in Florida (“This is rent regulation, not rent control” JA) and similar codifications in Arizona. For me, it was ‘telling’ how the agenda item was framed using archaic (‘pad lease’ vs. rental homesite lease), even inaccurate trade lingo (‘manufactured ‘housing’ communities vs. manufactured ‘home’ communities, or land-lease-lifestyle communities), thus demonstrating lack of familiarity with the intimate intricacies of LLLCommunity investment and operations. But be all that as it was, if ‘tenant protections’, as already evident in a few (Sunbelt) states, is what it’s going to take to restore overall manufactured housing shipments and sales to prosperity, we should at least take a long, hard look at this aspect of rulemaking.
3. Chattel Loans. ‘Participants’ views on 1) the performance of recent-vintage chattel loans and their acceptability for purchase by the Enterprises; 2) investor demand for chattel loans; and, 3) mitigates for risks in chattel lending identified in the proposed rule.’ And yes, this agenda item took the lion’s share of time during this two hour meeting. The good and the bad, re part # 1: At least FHFA is willing to look at ‘recent-vintage chattel loans’, especially those performing in stellar fashion; however, such data tied to mortgagors (by name) does not exist! And, more bad news, in this observer’s opinion, is the complete lack of knowledge of what is presently happening among 500+/- property portfolio owners/operators throughout the U.S. These businesses widely and routinely buy and seller-finance new HUD-Code homes on-site! Part # 2? Alleged ‘high demand for seasoned chattel mortgages’, under certain conditions. And part # 3. A list of mitigating measures was presented and discussed at some length. Bottom line? Well, that’s one reason we await FHFA’s summary of this meeting….
4. Underserved Markets Plans and Evaluations. To be honest with you, other than acknowledging the agenda item, I really don’t recall any substantive discussion near the end of the meeting.
Well, there you have it; what one LLLCommunity owner/operator got out of this historic meeting, where a federal agency has reached out to the very folk involved, and requested and respected their input. Now we have to wait to see what might happen out of this situation.
One of the handouts distributed during the FHFA meeting contained salient passages quoted from Al Schrader’s recently-published autobiography, ‘No Respect At All…’ A PATH TO MILLION$. Why? Because this veteran owner of multiple communities and independent (street) MHRetail salescenters, has much to offer relative to the present day state of the MHIndustry, especially where chattel capital is concerned. And he describes in detail, his firm’s evolution from seller-financing ‘contract sales’, to a look at ‘captive finance’, to reliance now, on a national independent source of chattel finance for mortgaging new homes sold on-site. If you’d like a copy of this 260 page case bound text, simply phone the Official MHIndustry HOTLINE: (877) MFD-HSNG or 633-4764. Only $25.00 postpaid – and $20.00 of that, Al donates to the RV/MH Hall of Fame in Elkhart, IN. It is an engaging ‘read’!
II.
ERRATA, ERRATA, ERRATA
Recall your introduction to REvive! ($) last week? Cavco Industries’ Community Rental Program? Well we inadvertently published the wrong phone number. Here’s the correct one: (800) 228-1828. So, if interested in this bold new $ program, give CountryPlace a call – and ask for REvive Specialist, Thomas Servage. Tell him ‘George sent me!’ Seriously.
III.
Don’t Let This Unique Tour/Seminar Opportunity Pass By
Wasn’t expecting property portfolio folk to sign-up, figuring they already know how to effectively buy, sell & seller-finance new HUD-Code homes; but they’re registering!
Really wasn’t expecting anyone outside the Midwest to trek to this venue in Elkhart, IN, but so far they’re coming from Colorado, California, and several East coast states.
Most difficult marketing target, so far, has been ‘as expected’, the small to mid-sized single or two property owners/operators who, for decades, relied on independent (street) MHRetailers, to fill vacant rental home sites – and who aren’t around much anymore. So far, more than 1,000 pieces of direct mail, resulting in a few dozen sign-ups.
Bottom line? Good progress so far; but if you’re considering participating in the ‘Two Days of Plant Tours & Home Sales Seminars’, don’t wait any longer to register. Why? Because on 18 May, the purposely low registration of only $195.00 goes up to $295.00!
If you need a brochure, for information and or to register, simply phone (317) 346-7156 and request it.
To the best of our knowledge, this is the only time this year, where five different HUD-Code home manufacturers (Clayton, Cavco, Champion, Commodore, & Adventure) are offering FREE plant tours in conjunction with four 1 ½ hour seminars, teaching how to:
GETTING READY! BUYING HOMES! SELLING HOMES! & FINANCING HOMES!
How can you not want to avail yourself of this unique, first time ever offered, opportunity?
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