Abstract
Statement of Problem
The research problem explored in this paper is the role manufactured housing has in housing the growing population of America. Many segments of the American population do not have the income or savings to access the mainstream housing market and manufactured housing has the potential to become a solution to increasing homeownership opportunities for Americans.
Methodology and Data
A comparative assessment of historical construction cost and sales price data is performed to evaluate the costs savings and benefits of manufactured housing in relation to site-built housing. The sources of data for the comparative analysis are the U.S. Department of Commerce's Census Bureau and the Manufactured Housing Institute. Following the comparative analysis, a regression analysis identifies factors that influence the demand for manufactured housing in America. The data compiled for the regression analysis is collected from several sources including the Manufactured Housing Institute, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S Department of Commerce, Office of Policy Development and Research, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Lastly, several case studies of new manufactured home communities are presented to highlight the modem use of manufactured housing within existing, urban neighborhoods.
Conclusions Reached
Manufactured housing is a feasible solution for increasing the affordable housing stock of single-family homes in America. Comparative analysis between manufactured housing and site-built housing indicates that manufactured housing offers financial benefits to builder-developers in terms of reduction in cost per square foot and is passed on to consumers in the form of a lower purchase price. However, an outdated industry standard of financing the purchase of manufactured homes with personal property loans elevates monthly housing payments for manufactured homeowners and diminishes the benefits O! a lower purchase price. Regression results identify significant predictors of demand for manufactured housing and reveal the tendency of certain segments of the population, including Asians and people over the age of 70, to negatively influence the number of manufactured housing placements; however, people between the ages of 40 to 69 tend to exert a positive influence. In addition, the regression results indicate the presence of heightened demand for manufactured housing in urbanized areas with warmer climates and a low number of bankruptcy filings. Several case studies confirm the ability of new manufactured housing communities to flourish in high cost, urban-infill locations through providing affordable housing opportunities for area residents.
Manufactured housing largely accounts towards increasing the number of unsubsidized affordable housing units in America and through increased awareness and education about the home construction process of manufactured housing, the dream of homeownership in America may remain attainable for generations to come.