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

Blog Posting # 782, Copyright 1 March 2024. EducateMHC

Know this! HUD-Code manufactured housing (‘MH’) is federally-regulated, performance-based, affordable & attainable factory-built housing! And land lease communities (a.k.a. manufactured home communities & ‘mobile home parks’) comprise the commercial real estate (‘CRE’) component of MH! And EducateMHC is the online advocate, official historian, trend tracker, and information resource for both business models. Access EducateMHC via (317) 881-3815; email: gfa7156@aol.com, & visit www.educatemhc.com to order Community Management in the Manufactured Housing Industry. This is the sole MH-focused professional property management text in print today! And SWAN SONG is a history of land lease communities & official record of annual MH production totals since 1955; and my autobiography, From SmittyAlpha6 to MHMaven – describes personal combat adventures in Vietnam as a USMC lieutenant, a 45 year entrepreneur business career in MH & community ownership, as well as author and freelance consultant.

George Allen, CPM®Emeritus, MHM®Master, is the only emeritus member of the Manufactured Housing Institute (‘MHI’), a founding board member of MHI’s National Communities Council (‘NCC’) division, an RV/MH Hall of Fame enshrinee, MHInsider editor at large & Allen Legacy columnist, Vietnam combat veteran & retired lieutenant colonel of U.S. Marines, as well as author/editor of 20 nonfiction books & chapbooks re MH, communities, business management & prayer.

Oop$!

Did you notice? I started a new topic in last week’s blog posting (‘On a Related but Different Matter: $’) but never finished it. Here’s how that paragraph went…

“Previous paragraphs described a whole new type of housing (@400 square feet) apparently intended to compete with HUD-code manufactured housing – by size and cost per unit. However, what was not covered in those same paragraphs was the continuing scarcity of personal property financing (a.k.a. chattel capital) for ‘home only’ mortgages on new manufactured homes sited in land lease communities nationwide.” And here’s how it should have continued….

My unrealized intent was to describe recent efforts of the Land Institute-sponsored Underserved Mortgage Marketing Coalition (‘UMMC’), to advance financing plans among the GSEs relative to underserved markets (i.e. manufactured housing). Well frankly, where the UMMC is concerned, that is not what happened. The following paragraph is one I emailed to dozens of MH industry and land lease community portfolio owners/operators about what I view as a ‘bait & switch’ move by said coalition.

“I found this edition of Land Lines (magazine) to be particularly interesting – up to a point. Impressed to see 32 affordable housing organizations working together to ‘bring housing finance opportunities to American families not traditionally served by the private market’. Appears most of the efforts of the Underserved Mortgage Marketing Coalition are focused on shared equity loans (i.e. those loans used to finance ‘resident-owned community’ transactions) – and nothing that I saw having to do with improving land lease community homeowners/site lessees’ access to chattel capital (i.e. personal property finance). Why is this? HUD-Code manufactured housing and land lease communities (a.k.a. manufactured home communities & ‘mobile home parks’) are indeed represented within the UMMC by dint of membership by ROC USA and Next Step. And I did find it strange that neither MHI nor MHARR are named as members (of the UMMC). I suspect this has something to do with the primary focus of the group.”

Point? Appears, to me anyway, that affordable housing activists have united under the                                                                             auspices of the UMMC to garner funds for shared equity CRE transactions, but not (at this point) what would be manufactured home buyers/site lessees really need: ‘home only’ loans in the form of chattel capital or personal property mortgages. So, once again – if I’m reading this right, our industry and realty asset class is left ‘out in the cold’ where Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac are concerned. Someone want to show me if I’ve got this wrong? Do so via gfa7156@aol.com

And there’s more! Manufactured housing, over past decades, has been referred to as the ‘Rodney Dangerfield of housing’ in general, factory-built housing in particular. Well – guess what – there’s now yet another ‘not so new game in town’ – offsite-built homes! Yep; modular & panelized homes.*1 Next week I’ll introduce you to this NAHB interloper.*2

End Note.

1. Rodney Dangerfield. American stand-up comedian
2. National Association of Home Builders

Review of 1968,

‘A Primer For Understanding Baby Boomers’, by Rick Robinson.

A more apt subtitle, in my opinion, would have been ‘A Primer for Understanding Northern Kentucky Baby Boomers’. Until I read this book I had no idea KY life was so rife with local politics, organized crime, and “…drinking small-batch bourbon and smoking cigars.” P.157.

Most humorous part of 1968, for me anyway, was Rick’s description of comedian Pat Paulsen’s campaign for president as candidate of the Straight-Talking America Government party or STAG party. His slogan? “We’ve upped Our Standards, Now, Up Yours.” Paulsen believed marijuana should be kept away from college students as it was too good for them, and the government should give everyone a gun, but confiscate all the bullets. P.103

Robinson’s description of Vietnam era individuals who “…spent a great deal of time devising ways to avoid service.” P.151, struck a responsive chord with me, my annoyance at healthy individuals who did not serve – resulting in unnecessary battlefield casualties when units fought understrength. And in my later years, silently denigrating those same dodgers when they became family members through marriage and otherwise.

As a history writer I was particularly struck by this quote: “…news stories about success are put into scrapbooks. News stories about bad things make their way into history books.” P.146. So true. Carolyn and I have 40 albums of family photographs stretching back 70 years. And here I sit with my unpublished story: ‘The Bad Boys of Manufactured Housing’, describing bag men, murderers, slum landlords, and other rascals active in manufactured housing and communities.

Did I enjoy 1968 as a casual read? Sure did; once I accepted the fact the scope of the book is restricted to the pivotal year 1968, and geographically specific to Northern Kentucky. This new release joins Rick’s seven political thrillers, two literary fiction tomes, and three other non-fiction titles. I particularly recommend Opposition Research.

By the way, if interested in reading ‘The Bad Boys of Manufactured Housing’, let me know via gfa7156@aol.com and I’ll write it into an upcoming blog posting. GFA

George Allen, CPM, MHM

Blog Posting # 781, Copyright 23 February 2024. EducateMHC

Know This! HUD-Code manufactured housing (‘MH’) is federally-regulated, performance-based, affordable, attainable factory-built housing! And land lease communities (a.k.a. manufactured home communities & ‘mobile home parks’) comprise the commercial real estate (‘CRE’) component of MH! And EducateMHC is the online advocate, historian, trend tracker, and information resource for these two business models. Access EducateMHC via (317) 881-3815; email: gfa7156@aol.com, & visit www.educatemhc.com to order Community Management in the Manufactured Housing Industry. This is the sole MH-focused professional property management text in print today! And SWAN SONG is a history of land lease communities & official record of annual MH production totals since 1955; and my autobiography, From SmittyAlpha6 to MHMaven – describes personal combat adventures in Vietnam as a USMC lieutenant, a 45 year entrepreneur business career in MH & community ownership & management, and as an author & freelance consultant.

George Allen, CPM®Emeritus, MHM®Master, is the only emeritus member of the Manufactured Housing Institute (’MHI’), a founding board member of MHI’s National Communities Council (NCC’) division, an RV/MH Hall of Fam enshrinee, MHInsider editor at large & columnist, Vietnam combat veteran & retired lieutenant colonel of U.S. Marines, as well as author/editor of 20 nonfiction books & chapbooks re MH, communities, business management & prayer.

Here’s the 400-Square-Foot Subdivision House

This past Sunday (18 February 2024) the New York Times, in its’ Sunday Business section, featured a lead article titled ‘The Great Compression’, subtitled: ‘Thanks to soaring housing prices, the era of the 400-square-foot subdivision house is upon us’, penned by Connor Dougherty.

My first thought, before even reading the lengthy article, was: ‘400 square feet? Why that’s HUD-Code manufactured housing territory! How is this a new concept (i.e. 400 square feet subdivision house), let alone different from and or similar to our type factory-built housing already in place?’ Well, here’s some of what I learned from that New York Times feature.

“Several colliding trends – economic, demographic and regulatory – have made smaller units…the future of American housing, or at least a more significant part of it. Over the past decade, as the cost of housing exploded, home builders have methodically nipped their dwellings to keep prices in reach of buyers. The downsizing accelerated last year, when the interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage reached a two-decade high, just shy of 8 percent.”

“The shift is a response to conditions that are found in cities across America: Neighborhoods that used to be affordable are being gentrified, while new condominiums and subdivisions mostly target the upper end of the market, endangering the supply of ‘starter homes’ in reach of first-time buyers.”

So, what are housing designers and builders doing to ensure this ‘400-square-foot subdivision house’ concept continues to materialize? Some are designed and built as two-story homes. And “Builders are substituting side yards for backyards, kitchen bars for dining rooms, even shared yards.”

So, where did the writer of this article find ‘400-square-foot subdivision homes’? In Redmond, OR, and Elm Trails in San Antonio, TX. There was no mention of Tiny Houses until the final paragraph of this feature.

All this got me to thinking.

The model post-WWII suburb in Levittown, NY, featured 750 square foot houses. Today, that size has increased to 2200 square feet – to accommodate families with three children. And now, moving further into the 21^st Century, we’re reading, seeing and hearing of 400 – 900 square foot homes, for empty nesters, divorcees, and couples without children. Interestingly, these ‘small footprint’ homes are oft two stories with one car driveways out front. Oh, and get this, in many instances these 20’ X 20’ houses feature 20’ X 20’ attached garages – which double as ‘family rooms’ and gathering places for one’s neighbors.

Where is the HUD-Code manufactured home, especially the CrossMod design in this discussion? It’s simply not present. Why? IMHO, this is what our industry and realty asset class leaders should be discussing – at their meeting earlier this week in Amelia Island, FL. Was that the case? Not that I’ve heard. Someone want to tell me differently? Do so via gfa7156@aol.com

On a Related but Different Matter: $

Previous paragraphs described a whole new type of housing (@ 400 square feet) apparently intended to compete with HUD-Code manufactured housing – by size and cost per unit. However, what was not covered in those same paragraphs was the continuing scarcity of personal property financing (a.k.a. chattel capital) for ‘home only’ mortgages on new manufactured homes sited in land lease communities nationwide.

ANNOUNCEMENT

The RV/MH Hall of Fame Class of 2024 will be inducted at RV/MH Foundation’s annual banquet on Monday evening, 19 August 2024, in Elkhart, IN. Will you be present? I will! Sure hope you decide to be among the crème de la crème of the manufactured housing and recreational vehicle industries that day and night! For more information, visit their website or phone (574) 293-2344.

If you haven’t been to the RV/MH Hall of Fame facility during the past few years, you need to go. Why? Because now, besides the popular RV exhibit hall, the MH exhibit hall is now open to visitors – and it’s well worth touring!

Blog Posting # 780, Copyright 16 February 2024. EducateMHC

Parallel Perspectives. HUD-Code manufactured housing (‘MH’) is federally-regulated, performance-based, affordable, attainable factory-built housing! And land lease communities (a.k.a. manufactured home communities & ‘mobile home parks’) comprise the commercial real estate (‘CRE’) component of MH! EducateMHC is the online advocate, historian, trend tracker, and text resource for these two business models. Access EduateMHC via (317) 881-3815; email: gfa7156@aol.com, or visit www.educatemhc.com to order Community Management in the Manufactured Housing Industry. This is the sole MH-focused professional property management text in print today! SWAN SONG is a history of land lease communities & official record of annual MH production totals since 1955; and my autobiography, From SmittyAlpha6 to MHMaven – describes personal combat adventures in Vietnam as a USMC lieutenant, a 45 year entrepreneur business career in MH & community ownership/management, and as an author & freelance consultant.

George Allen, CPM®Emeritus, MHM®Master, is the only emeritus member of the Manufactured Housing Institute (‘MHI’), a founding board member of MHI’s National Communities Council (‘NCC’) division, an RV/MH Hall of Fame enshrine, MHInsider editor & columnist, Vietnam combat veteran & retired lieutenant colonel of U.S. Marines, as well as author/editor of 20 books & chapbooks re MH, communities, business management & prayer.

Yes, Some Did Have a Good Year in 2023!

Remember this blog heading from a few weeks ago? ‘Year 2023. A Lousy Year for You too?’

Well, one land lease community portfolio owner/operator reached out to me with this encouraging report:

“Last year (2023) was a VERY good year for my firm. We sold more than 30 new manufactured homes, compared to 20 in previous years. That’s a lot of new residents, and we upgraded our communities. Did so without reducing our requirements for new residents and lease-option home buyers. Our site rental operation was reasonably profitable because increases were moderate. Our portfolio of lease-option homebuyers continues to perform very well as a result of reasonable profit on home sales, attractive communities, and motivated, qualified new buyers. In fact, we’re so optimistic about the industry, and what we’re doing to upgrade and  fill vacant rental sites, we’re now planning two new raw land community developments in states where we have properties.” (Lightly edited. GFA)

How ‘bout you? Care to share your good news – or otherwise, with our blog readers? Let us know via gfa7156@aol.com

Now, the CPA ‘Dumps’ on Us!

Last week I warned our industry and realty asset class of negative publicity, and continued image challenges, when we leave ourselves open to national class action lawsuits alleging widespread predatory rental home-site rates, and honor firms who garner negative reputations in local housing markets, from marketplace trust organizations – due to firm’s poor-to-marginal performance ratings.*1

Well, this week I learned of a new book release titled ‘Trailer Park America’, subtitled, ‘Reimagining Working Class Communities’. And if that trade terminology gaffe and implied suggestion wasn’t bad enough, here’s what the CPA website has to say about the book as it describes an emerging trend: ‘Highlights crimes of capitalist housing’.*2

What’s this book about? “Sociologist (& author) Leontina Hormel’s ‘Trailer Park America’ is a granular examination of an ill-fated rural, working class community in a mobile home park located a few miles outside the small town of Moscow, Idaho.” Developed in 1966, it was a popular affordable housing alternative until infrastructure issues (i.e. water & sewer) made the homeowner/site lessee residents ill. The property has since closed.

I’ve declined to purchase and read the book at this time, as the paperback edition is priced at $37.95 and case bound edition at $72.95. If you buy and read it, let me know what you think via gfa7156@aol.com. And when you’re done with it, donate it to the RV/MH Heritage Foundation’s Hall of Fame library in Elkhart, IN. Why? Because this library houses the largest collection of manufactured housing, recreational vehicle, and land lease community books and resources in the world!

Yes, our industry and realty asset class are surely under scrutiny and attack these days. What are we doing to mitigate the three legal, media and text measures cited above and in last week’s blog posting? Not much that I see or hear of on the national level! Guess our leaders are hoping all this just ‘goes away’. Not!

As a concluding aside, ‘Trailer Park America’, in my experience, is maybe the third or fourth book authored by female university sociologists. To a person, they seem to have come to the conclusion – and perhaps rightly so – that land lease communities (a.k.a. trailer parks, manufactured home communities, ‘mobile home parks’) are fertile soil for sociological-oriented studies of middle and lower class citizenry. And as an industry, IMHO, we continue to encourage this unwanted attention by the way we mismanage some communities and mistreat others. What will it take to sound a Wake Up call to our industry and realty asset class?

End Notes.

1. Manufactured housing industry & land lease community real estate asset class; marketplace trust organization = Better Business Bureau.

• CPA = Communist Party of America

Now for Some Potentially Good News!

Have you heard or read about the Bonus Depreciation provision in the ‘Tax Relief for American Families & Workers Act of 2024’ working its’ way through Congress during the past few months? This Bonus Depreciation (i.e.Restoring bonus depreciation to 100%; presently at 80% in 2023 & 60% @ 2024) measure is potentially huge for land lease community owners/operators purchasing and selling or renting new manufactured homes on-site. How so?

To begin with, the Bonus Depreciation provision applies ONLY to community owners who rent or market new homes via lease-option. Independent (street) MHRetailers are not eligible for this. Bottom line? Who would not want to benefit from 100% depreciation the year new homes are purchased for on-site renting or selling?

Let your Congressman know of your enthusiastic support for this pending legislation!

Quotation of the Week

Are you a fan or critic of DEI? That’s short for diversity, equity & inclusion. We’ve certainly

heard much about it in the national news these past several months, especially with the

university ideology scandal perpetrated by the Israeli War. The following is quoted from the

February issue of ‘Newsmax’ magazine.

“The mantra of diversity, equity, and inclusion (‘DEI’) has been denounced… (and now) call it

divisive, exclusionary, and indoctrination.”

I give this quote space here, because I’ve heard DEI  ‘preached’ at MH seminars during

year 2023. And I’ve heard entrepreneur business owners/operators decry the ideology, as it has

caused problems within their business enterprises. And finally, who hasn’t seen the mock

tombstone photos on Facebook bearing the message: ‘White Couples on TV – 2000 – 2015: RIP’

George Allen, CPM, MHM

Blog Posting # 779, Copyright 9 February 2024. EducateMHC

Parallel Perspectives. HUD-Code manufactured housing (‘MH’) is federally-regulated performance-based, affordable, attainable factory-built housing! And land lease communities (a.k.a. manufactured home communities & ‘mobile home parks’) comprise the commercial real estate (‘CRE’) component of MH! Educate MHC is the online advocate, historian, trend tracker, and text resource for these two business models. Access EducateMHC via (317) 881-3815; email: gfa7156@aol.com, or visit www.educatemhc.com, to order Community Management in the Manufactured Housing Industry. This is the sole MH-focused professional property management text in print today! SWAN SONG is a history of land lease communities & official record of annual MH production totals since 1955; and my autobiography, From SmittyAlpha6 to MHMaven – describes personal combat adventures in Vietnam as a USMC lieutenant, a 45 year entrepreneur business career in MH & community ownership/management, and as an author & freelance consultant.

George Allen, CPM®Emeritus, MHM®Master, is the only emeritus member of the Manufactured Housing Institute (’MHI’), a founding board member of MHI’s National Communities Council (‘NCC”) division, an RV/MH Hall of Fame enshrinee, MHInsider editor &INFLUENCER, Vietnam combat veteran & retired lieutenant colonel of U.S. Marines, as well as author/editor of 20 books & chapbooks re MH, communities, business management & prayer.

OUCH!

The results are in. Year 2023 was NOT a good year for HUD-Code manufactured housing production! We knew we were sliding, but how badly? Well, during the past few months, Institute for Building Technology & Safety (‘IBTS’) reports showed we were 20+ percent off our year 2022 stride when we produced 112,886 new HUD-Code homes.*1

Final MH production figure for year 2023? Only 89,169 units; that’s 23,717 fewer new HUD-Code homes than produced during year 2022; and, 861 fewer new homes than EducateMHC predicted a month ago. Estimated total production VALUE of 89,169 new HUD-Code home produced during year 2023? $3.86 billion dollars! How many in government realize that?

By the way, how do these 89,169 new HUD-Code manufactured homes produced, compare with the total number of new recreational vehicles (‘RVs’) produced during the same period of time (2023)? Well, 313,000 new RVs produced during 2023 represents a 36.5 percent DROP in production compared to year 2022! Guess you could say, ‘MH misery loves company!’

Reasons for this lackluster MH production performance? Rather than regurgitate those reasons here, suggest you scroll back to blog posting # 774 and re-read the expose’ titled: ‘MH Headed to the Bottom Production-wise? Ah, But to the Top, Price-wise!’ That’ll tell you just about everything you need to know about the inner workings of the HUD-Code manufactured housing industry. IMHO, I don’t think our manufacturers want to produce more new MHs!*2

End Note.

1. Institute for Building Technology & Safety (‘IBTS’) is HUD’s official scorekeeper where the HUD-Code manufactured housing industry is concerned. IBTS data is routinely quoted by HUD, MHARR, MHI, & EducateMHC.

• IMHO = ‘In my humble opinion’

‘When It Rains, It Sometimes Pours!’

I believe that idiom, but how ‘bout now, when maybe it should be raining, even pouring, but is not?*1 As an industry, we might soon be faced with the reality of that idiom; but first, another salient observation, from radio talk show host Chris Plante (105.9 in Washington, DC): “The mainstream media’s greatest power is the power to ignore.”*2 So true, especially in today’s world. But what do those two truisms have to do with manufactured housing and land lease communities? Right now, only a little; but in the near future? Here goes….

Major law firms have filed antitrust class lawsuit(s) in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinoi, “…on behalf of mobile home owners impacted nationwide, against nine manufactured home community management companies and one manufactured home market data provider” alleging “they suffered substantial financial losses due to their landlords’ conspiracy to fix, raise, and systematically inflate manufactured home lot rental prices at more than 150 locations across the United States.” We all knew this was going to happen someday.

However, to date there’s been little to no mention of this in mainstream media and trade press.

And it’s alleged, one or more national advocacy and or legacy bodies, related to manufactured housing and land lease communities, recognizes – in a positive and awarding fashion, firms who’ve maybe have had bad ratings with Better Business Bureaus (‘BBBs’) in local housing markets where they do business. Isn’t this counterproductive to our image-improving efforts?

Here too, little to no mention of this peccadillo (?) in the mainstream media or trade press.*3

Given the HUD-Code manufactured housing industry’s perennial poor reputation and public image of the past, we hardly need additional fuel thrown one either of those two smoldering fires.

So, for now, and in general terms, negative media publicity is not raining down, let alone pouring down on us; however, if we, as an industry and realty asset class, continue to press our luck, so to speak, in either or both nefarious matters just described, we can expect not only rain pouring down on us, but more mainstream media attention than we need or want.

Anyone listening out there? Your reactions and suggestions welcome via gfa7156@aol.com

End Notes.

1. ‘When it rains, it pours’ is an idiom that ‘captures the experience when events, usually unfortunate, occur simultaneously or in rapid succession.’ An online definition. 

• It’s why today conservative print and broadcast media (e.g. New York Post & The Epoch Times & Fox News), in my opinion,outperform news reporting at the New York Times, Washington Post & MSNBC & CNN).

• Pecadillo. ‘a trifling offence’ – or worse?

NAHB, Freddie Mac, & NAR at Odds!

These three well known housing-related NGOs & a GSE are seriously at odds with one another when it comes to estimating the size of the nationwide housing shortfall these days!*1 Here are their respective estimates:

NAHB, in year 2021, publicized an estimated housing shortfall of 1.5 million housing units

Freddie Mac, in 2020, publicized an estimated housing shortfall of 3.8 million housing units

NAR, in 2021, publicized an estimated housing shortfall of 5.5 million units

Why the 4,000,000 difference in estimates between lowest and highest of these three estimates? In a word, ‘methodologies’. Here quoting from a Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies press release, on this subject, dated 29 January 2024:

NAR “calculates the difference between the current number of vacant units for-rent or sale, and the total that would exist under ‘normal’ vacancy rates for each metro in the country, defined as the long-term average rates. The NAHB estimate is a sum of all U.S. metropolitan areas….” (Does not include non-metro areas, hence possibly why the lower estimate)

Freddie Mac’s estimate “…is also based on how much lower the current vacancy rate is than ‘normal’. However, there are notable differences in the two calculations. Freddie Mac’s estimate covers the entire US, not just metro areas. Second…Freddie Mac’s estimate includes an additional 0.4 million units for ‘missing’ households that did not form because of the shortage of housing units.”

NAR “…estimate does not compare vacancy rates. Instead, NAR based the estimate on the impact of the net slowdown in the rate of housing construction since 2000. Specifically, NAR compared the number of new homes added in 2001-2020 (being 1.225 million/year) to the number of homes that would have been produced if the previous historical annual average construction rate for 1968-2000 (i.e. 1.5 million/year) had held.”

There is an additional data point to consider. The National Low Income Housing Coalition (‘NLIHC’) estimate holds “…there is a shortage of 7.3 million units of housing affordable to the nation’s 11 million renters with extremely low incomes, defined as those who earn up to 30 percent of the median income for their area….” Wow! A 5.8 million difference between NAHB & NLIHC. No wonder folk are confused when they read reports from these four entities.

BOTTOM LINE to all this? “…affordability challenges faced by millions will require a concerted effort to not just add more units, but also more units affordable to the most economically vulnerable households.” And here, once again, HUD-Code manufactured housing and land lease communities nationwide hold the ‘affordability’ answer to this challenge! But will HUD finally get behind a major effort to not only identify, but promote, our brand of factory-built housing and lifestyle to the American home-buying public? Again, IMHO, ‘No’! Why? Political football!

So, what are we to do as an industry? Well, I’ve been saying and penning this for years, but here goes once again: Schedule national and regional strategic planning meetings to be attended by businessmen and women ‘with skin in the game’ (i.e. owning factories and communities) willing to invest a day or two of their time to address this national challenge! It’s been done before, in the land lease community segment of MH. In 1993-96 leading to the birth of MHI’s NCC division; in 2010 at meetings held in Tampa, FL., & Elkhart, IN., to move our industry off its’ nadir (lowest production point in history), using Community Series Homes (‘CSH’); and finally, in 2016, at the RV/MH Hall of Fame when community owners/operators were taught how to spec and buy new HUD-Code homes from factories, to market and sell on-site at their properties. We can do this again! We just need national leaders with vision, purpose and chutzpa (‘effrontery & gall’) to get it done! Are you one of those leaders?!

Again; your thoughts on these timely and critical matters? GFA 7156@aol.com

End Note.

1. NGO = non-government organization, e.g. NAHB & NAR. GSE = Freddie Mac. Specifically, National Association of Home Builders & National Association of Realtors.