Blog # 385 Copyright 2016 COBA7® @ 14 January 2016; community-investor.com
Perspective. ‘Land-lease-lifestyle Communities, a.k.a. manufactured home communities and ‘mobile home parks’, comprise the real estate component of manufactured housing.’
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INTRODUCTION. Thank You for your patience! I needed ‘a week off’ from preparing this specialty blog; so, spent time driving from Indianapolis thru PA to Cape May, NJ, then onto Washington, DC, for MHI’s Winter meeting. More about that in a minute. First, here’s today’s blog preview:
• MHI’s estimation of annual new HUD-Code home shipments ‘unfortunately’ at odds with its’ data source IBTS, plus HUD, MHARR, COBA7®, & VAMMHA!
• Just how representative of the manufactured housing industry, are attendees at MHI’s Winter meeting? You might be surprised at who’s least represented.
• Timely and helpful information describing ‘What Millennials Value’, relative to housing now and in the near future.
I.
IBTS, HUD, MHARR, COBA7® & VAMMHA Cite 70,535 New HUD-Code Homes Shipped During 2015!
The Institute of Building Technology & Safety (the actual source of MH shipment data), U.S. Department of HUD, the MHARR, COBA7®, & state association VAMMHA all agree: 70,535 new HUD-Code homes were shipped during year 2015.
However, the Manufactured Housing Institute, in its’ Monthly Economic Report, dated 10 February 2016, goes on record as stating ‘their total’ is only 70,519 homes, or 16 fewer homes than cited by the very source they subscribe to for this information! Why the unfortunate and misleading difference? Ask MHI; or, read the expose’ (‘MHIndustry Mystery Solved!’), in the July 2015 issue of the Allen Letter professional journal.
Have been waiting six months to pen this challenge to MHI leaders: “Why not turn over a new leaf, figuratively-speaking, during 2016, and start reporting monthly new HUD-Code home shipments in the same manner as your data source, IBTS, as well as HUD, MHARR, COBA7®, and VAMMHA?” GFA
To NOT do so, forces those who ‘keep score’ within the MHIndustry, to continue reporting how our two national advocacy bodies continue to be unable to play by the same rules; specifically, report the same number of new HUD-Code homes shipped each month! Does this ongoing difference reflect well on our business model? NO!
II.
MHI’s Winter Meeting in Washington, DC.
Have you ever been to a national meeting planned and hosted by the Manufactured Housing Institute? They generally occur three times annually, not counting their annual soirée, the Manufactured Housing Congress, always in Las Vegas, NV. This year it’ll be 3 – 5 May, 2016.
Well, the first thing you learn is, said meetings rarely attract more than 100 registrants. One meeting during year 2015 actually pulled in 120+/-. But this one, just concluded, in downtown Washington, DC. according to distributed registration list, attracted 100 businessmen and women. That’s roughly one third of MHI’s 302+/- Company Members, plus 48 state-appointed certified representatives, as of 12/18/2015
It’s also an interesting exercise, to figure out from which segment of the industry, and otherwise, these individuals hail. As far as we could tell, this is how MHI’s Winter meeting attendance ‘penciled out’:
State MHAssociations were the most heavily represented segment of the industry, with 19 execs present. Oh, and at the MHI meeting, while still adjusting to Ross Kinzler no longer being present (He retired at the first of this year, handing over responsibility of the Wisconsin Housing Alliance to Amy Bliss), we learned from Michigan sources, their executive director Tim DeWitt, will be retiring in July of this year.
Second highest representation comes from the land-lease-lifestyle community side of the house, or National Communities Council division. In this instance, 11 different firms were represented; comprised of eight property portfolio firms and three single property owner/operators. There were three representatives from UMH Properties alone.
Appeared there were a dozen representatives from various finance firms, e.g. independent third party chattel capital resources, commercial real estate mortgage originators, even a secondary market representative.
And finally, something that always strikes one as being strange, where this home manufacturing – dominated institute is concerned, is how there were only eight firms represented, with a few instances of multiple reps from the same company.
Of course, there was also the usual smattering of attorneys, government officials and regulators, as well as a few independent (street) MHRetailers.
III.
Millennials & Housing
“The CONSUMER REPORTS National Research Center surveyed 1,573 millennials nationwide, to better understand their attitudes toward housing. Overall, they believe firmly in ownership. Though just 26 percent currently own a home, 71 percent aspire to do so. Their top reasons include a desire for more privacy, the ability to make a space their own, and the wealth-building benefits of homeownership.”
“More than one-third of millennials who responded to our survey say the top reason for not owning a home is that they haven’t saved enough for a down payment. And it’s easy to see why. A 2015 report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University shows the financial pressure on those in the 25 – to – 34 age group who rent. Forty-one percent still owe, on average, $30,700 in college debt, and almost a quarter pay more than 50 percent of their income for housing.”
“So, what are millennials looking for in their next place to live? According to our survey, proximity to family and friends topped the list of features, though short commutes and walkability also popped up.”
The previous paragraphs quoted from the March 2016 issue of CONSUMER REPORTS.