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KRCR: Antelope Homewood mobile home park has been a problem for years, TCSO says

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TEHAMA COUNTY, Calif. — The Tehama County Sheriff's Office (TCSO) have continued to patrol the Antelope Homewood mobile home park off of Belle-Mill Road after several people were arrested at the park this week.

KRCR spoke with TCSO Captain Derek Sherrill who said that it's been a problem area for them for several years.

"We've been having a long-time issue with high crime rates in that particular area, so to help thwart that we have been initiating daily patrols in the area with enforcement action with those that we find in violation of the law," said Sherrill.

KRCR's Tyler Van Dyke had a chance to see, firsthand, the atrocious conditions...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Sure, this park appears to be a mess, but all that trash, furniture and debris is NOT coming from the owner. How come there is not one mention of accountability of the residents for these living conditions in the entire article. Sure, the rules were not enforced, but that’s a two way street and the owner was probably too good natured to enforce the rules and things got out of hand over the years. If the media wants the park to be torn down and the residents displaced, then just keep doing what you’re doing. A better solution would be for the city to go to the elderly owner and work with them – providing grant money if needed – to bring the park back to life.

MIssoulian: Frenchtown lawmaker offers mobile home tenant 'bill of rights'

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Cindy Newman, a trailer court resident from Great Falls, told a Legislative committee in Helena on Thursday that most of the residents where she lives are elderly and on fixed incomes and can’t afford the drastic lot rent increases that have been happening in recent years.

“We are here today because our communities are under threat,” she said. “Real estate investors have seized on the vulnerability of homeowners who own homes but rent the land. They have built a highly profitable business model that relies on our limited mobility to squeeze large profits out of moderate-income residents."

Newman was speaking as a proponent of House...

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Our thoughts on this story:

When someone coins their proposed law as a “Bill of Rights” you know it’s just a P.R. stunt trying to pander to voters who don’t know any better. Behind the fancy title, all you have is a bill that will help deadbeats stay on property without paying and the very rules violators who ruin life for the entire community to continue with their antics without any accountability. Hopefully there are enough smart people in Montana’s state house to realize this is a terrible idea.

Action News Now: Crime crackdown: Antelope Homewood Mobile Park gets its own crime task force

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RED BLUFF, Calif. - The Antelope Mobile Home Park is getting its own crime task force.  

Several people living at Antelope Homewood Mobile Home Park say trash, fire and crime have become all too common at the mobile home park. 

Some people said they've seen increased drugs and theft, and police answer calls here regularly.

"I've noticed a lot of the drug traffic that has increased here," one person said. "A lot of the kids aren't able to come out and play here anymore like they used to because they don't feel safe."

"It just doesn't feel like a park should," another resident said. "You should feel safe enough to let your kids and...

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Our thoughts on this story:

I’m not sure that any private property owner in California has the ability to correct the endless crime issues. A HUD study on mobile home park crime found that it mirrors nearby subdivisions. Bet if I got in my car and went to this property it would not look anyone worse than the surrounding neighborhood.

Coldwater Daily Reporter: Trail Tree Village expansion approved in Coldwater

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COLDWATER — After listening to residents of for nearly an hour Monday, the Coldwater Planning Commission unanimously voted to approve a special land use permit to expand Trail Tree Village manufactured housing development to the west by between 76 to 78 lots.

Concerns prompted the developer to propose and the commission to require four conditions and changes to the site plan before work on the undeveloped 17.86 acres can begin. 

Kim Scott, the representative of owner Cambio Communities of Southfield, agreed to make four changes in the site plan after hearing concerns:

  • A buffer of two rows of pine trees between the project and Thompson...
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Our thoughts on this story:

NOW THIS IS HOW YOU GET AN EXPANSION DONE! Here’s what the park owner offered in trade for the right to expand:

  • A buffer of two rows of pine trees between the project and Thompson Boulevard homes to the west.
  • Relocate the entrance on Seeley Street away from Thompson to the east side of the property. 
  • Move a dumpster away from Thompson Boulevard.
  • Construct a sidewalk along the south side of Seeley to the east along the developer's property as part of the city’s efforts to make the community more walkable.  

In other words, they offered to block the park from the view of all the neighbors if they would agree to let more trailers move in. Good job.

Sandusky Register: Huron to acquire mobile home park

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HURON — Driven to remedy several issues at an unsightly RV/mobile home park, which poses many safety concerns and health hazards, Huron officials took some decisive action.

During Tuesday’s city council meeting, staff members announced they’ll commit $900,000 to purchase what’s known as Oster’s mobile home park at Cleveland and Rye Beach (U.S. 6) roads beside LEMmy’s. The site totals about 2.5 acres. The actual owners are several trustees.

After each resident moves out, likely taking place throughout 2023, officials plan on clearing this site.

For years, problems presented issues for all who lived in or nearby this area.

“Oster’s mobile...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Boy, the City of Huron sure taught this park owner a lesson! They gave him $900,000 for 2.5 acres of land and 35 dilapidated RVs they are going to demolish as part of the purchase. And the city is left with the burden of displacing all of these people and with hiring Hallmark Greeting Cards (or so it would appear) to write P.R. releases on the deal like this one: “We will come up with a vision and plan for how to best utilize this space,” Lasko said. “I truly mean it when the city says, ‘We don’t have in mind what the use should be.’ We want it to be community-driven and supported by the residents that live adjacent to it.”

KXLY: Local program could help Cheney mobile home park neighbors keep their homes

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CHENEY, Wash. -- A plan under consideration right now could allow neighbors of a Cheney mobile home park to keep their homes.

4 News Now has been covering a redevelopment plan for the North Cheney Mobile Home Park, which many neighbors disagreed with, saying they don't want to be relocated or kicked out.

Now, the Northwest Cooperative Development Center is talking with the land owners, discussing a program called "ROC Northwest" that would help residents stay right where they are.

"We work with owners and sellers from manufactured communities under contract. We go through a standard purchase process, and at the end of day,...

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Our thoughts on this story:

It’s a huge undertaking for the residents to buy the park they live in. We’ve sold several properties to the tenants and while no park owner is opposed to the concept many are simply not patient enough to provide the months and months of time required from start to finish.

KSUT: Far-reaching housing proposal would impact Colorado communities big and small

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Gov. Jared Polis and Democratic state lawmakers unveiled the most significant land-use reform in decades last week. The sweeping new efforts to address Colorado’s housing crisis are focused on increasing residential density in the state’s cities and towns.

“This is how we will make more housing options for every Colorado budget in every community, drive down costs that are pricing Coloradans out of our homes and out of our neighborhoods,” Polis said.

The Common Sense Institute found Colorado had a housing shortage of 225,000 units in 2021, and the affordability of purchasing a home was the lowest in 33 years. According to the Bell Policy...

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Our thoughts on this story:

This bill only covers “duplexes, triplexes and multiplexes” – but not one mention of mobile home parks. As always, mobile home parks get zero respect. But, of course, that’s what keeps values high as nobody ever allows new ones to be built.

ABC 15 Arizona: Governor signs bill offering more money to displaced mobile home park tenants

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Residents of multiple mobile home parks have been left to figure out how to move out of their current homes due to redevelopment efforts in the surrounding communities.

"Before this news about us having to leave, I lived a good life here,” said Las Casitas resident Freddy Ortiz.

Ortiz has lived in the Las Casitas mobile home park with his mom, dad and brother for 15 years. He says his stress levels have been rising since learning all residents will need to leave by May 1, 2023.

"It was just so crazy because everything is so expensive now and to find a house is not easy,” added Ortiz.

The Ortiz family plans to pack up and leave the mobile...

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Our thoughts on this story:

First they offered them $10,000. Then they offered them $20,000. But “many residents say that doesn’t go far enough”. Kind of a strange negotiation when the state is burning money that probably no voter ever agreed to, and seems to not know anything about the value of a dollar.

Record-Journal: Tiny house development takes shape in Meriden

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MERIDEN — The initial stages of development are underway for a tiny home subdivision on North Broad Street.

Foundations for 12 tiny homes at the former site of Smitty's Snack Bar and an adjacent trailer park are being constructed by Salvatore Carabetta, doing business as North Broad Park LLC.

They received a special exception from the Zoning Board of Appeals to change the use at 1173 and 1187 N. Broad St. from a mixed-use, 12-unit mobile home park with restaurant to a 12-unit detached multi-family development with no restaurant. The homes would be leased.

The Zoning Board of Appeals granted the request with conditions this past summer....

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Our thoughts on this story:

OK, here’s the funniest quote this week: "[the developer] stated that the biggest benefit of the project is that it will have a positive impact on the value of the properties in the neighborhood". Yes, of course, what neighbor would not want a 12’ x 40’ tiny home jammed into the lot next to them? Not sure if anyone has ever bothered to look at Zillow regarding the value of single-family homes next to mobile home parks as compared to those that are not next to mobile home parks. It’s not pretty.

AXIOS Cleveland: Euclid Beach mobile home residents not giving up their fight

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The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless and the United Residents of Euclid Beach are not giving up a fight to protect the mobile home park in Collinwood.

Driving the news: The groups unveiled a painted trailer emblazoned with messages — "Residents demand to stay!" and "Let E.B. residents stay" — during a demonstration yesterday outside the downtown offices of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy.

  • Representatives from the groups also delivered nearly 5,000 signatures from an online petition to save the community.

Catch up quick: The conservancy announced in February its plans to convert the site to greenspace, which would displace...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Now why would a non-profit like the Western Reserve Land Conservancy want to shut down a wonderful community of model citizens to simply allow for more “green space”? Take a look at the RV they painted and parked in front of the park owner’s offices and I think you might figure it all out.

16 News Now WNDU: Property owners promise improvements to residents of River Grove Mobile Home Park

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BERRIEN SPRINGS, Mich. (WNDU) - Homes of America, the property owners of River Grove Mobile Home Park in Berrien Springs, held a meeting on Friday to hear residents’ concerns.

Even though the meeting was held from 2 p.m., to 4 p.m., at the Berrien Springs Public Library, a public location, 16 News Now was told that press was not allowed inside.

After the meeting, residents shared that they were able to voice their concerns about abandoned trailers, and issues with water pipes and sewage.

According to residents of River Grove Mobile Home Park, many of the issues they have aren’t new and have been problems for years.

Homes of America is the...

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Our thoughts on this story:

You’ve got to love it when the media and residents consider the park owner merely a punching bag. Well, when you punch the park owner repeatedly they tend to hit back with either redeveloping the park into another use or raising the rent to market levels to pay for all of the items residents are complaining about. Not sure that the residents have thought through this very carefully. Homes of America is the new owner with the goal of bringing this old, failing property back to life. They have risked their capital buying it and arranged for financing to make it possible. Instead of complaining and threatening, the residents should be asking the new owner “what more can we do to help in this process?” That’s the smart approach that’s a win/win for all involved.

Loveland Reporter-Herald: Mobile home park in Fort Collins changes hands for $57M

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An Orem, Utah-based company that invests in mobile home and manufactured home sites across the country has purchased the Cloverleaf Community in Fort Collins for $57 million. A related property was also purchased for $3 million.

The transactions, dated March 14, were between buyer Cloverleaf Colorado II LLC and seller Royce Cloverleaf LLC based in Phoenix, Arizona. The buyer listed an address of 51 W. Center St. in Orem, which is the same address as Havenpark Communities, which owns about 25 mobile home parks across the country.

Cloverleaf Community is located at 412 E. Mulberry in Fort Collins. It contains 391 home sites.

Royce...

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Our thoughts on this story:

It’s still nowhere close to the record for a single mobile home park, with the one near Silicon Valley selling for over $200 million a few years ago. But a nice try anyway.

The Islander: Negotiations continue in bayfront trailer park sale

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Negotiations between the land owner and homeowners continue for the sale of the Pines Trailer Park in Bradenton Beach.

Bill Gorman, president at Lifestyle Choice Realty Inc. of Casselberry, representing the homeowner’s association, confirmed March 30, that negotiations are ongoing but declined to disclose other details related to the potential sale of the park at 103 Church Ave.

The Pines’ HOA retained Gorman to represent the homeowners’ interests in the sale of the park land, a process that got underway in late January.

The owners, Jackson Partnership of Bradenton, with Richard and William Jackson as its officers, listed the park for...

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Our thoughts on this story:

The residents of this park hope to buy it for $16.25 million and are trying to raise the money for the downpayment. So they set up a GoFundMe account and “as of April 3, the campaign had raised $500 of its $1 million goal with 14 donors”. I think it’s pretty clear this is another “first option” failure, and states that require a tenant “first option to purchase” requirement are doing nothing but giving people false hope and slowing down the rights of park owners to sell on the open market at the best price they can obtain.

If the residents did buy it – which is clearly not going to happen – how would they possibly afford to pay the regular cap-x issues that pop up? Another GoFundMe pitch?

Contrary to what woke journalists and advocates care to accept, owning real estate is capital intensive and you simply can’t participate if you are underfunded like this.

12 News: Last-minute break lets residents avoid eviction from Phoenix mobile home park

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PHOENIX — Dozens of residents facing eviction Saturday from a Phoenix mobile home park got a last-minute break from the park owner: they can stay on for three more months.

But the future remains uncertain for people who live at the Weldon Court park, near 16th Street and Osborn Road, and at two other Phoenix sites, where evictions are scheduled through May.

"There's 65 families here," said Robert Cooper, a Weldon Court resident for 10 years. He fears many residents will become homeless.

"There's a lot of children and grandparents and school kids. A lot of them are going to fall through the cracks."

Mobile home park residents...

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Our thoughts on this story:

It seems the media only likes mobile home parks when they are being demolished, stating “now property owners, many of them large investors, are seeking higher returns on the land as rents and housing values rise. That’s squeezing out mobile home park residents across the country. Here in Phoenix, new housing for the residents could cost double or triple what they’re paying for their mobile home”. Of course, if it was not being demolished, the media would complain that “out of town owners raising rents and ruining lives”. Can’t have it both ways.

The Daily World: Mobile home tenants fight rent increases

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In 2008, Caroline Hardy and her husband, Bill, downsized into a mobile home park in South Aberdeen. They both retired a few years later — Caroline from 15 years at Stafford Creek Corrections Center, and then 30 years at Lamb Grays Harbor, which supplied timber mills with machinery; Bill from 38 years at Marshall’s Garden and Pet Store — and started collecting social security checks.

There, they were “real happy,” and “the neighbors are wonderful and everyone gets along,” Caroline said. This would be their “forever home,” they thought.

Now they aren’t so sure.

Last June, the couple — and their many neighbors at the park — pulled a letter...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Leisure Manor is located in Auburn, Washington, where the average single-family home price is $568,50 and the average three-bedroom apartment rent is over $2,600 per month. The park owner raised the rent from $485 per month to $635 per month. At the new “high” rent that’s $2,000 per month less than the apartments in town. These type of article infuriate me. Keep on bashing the owner and I guarantee they’ll wind up tearing the park down and building apartments.

This is Reno: Mobile home park residents urge lawmakers to stabilize rents: ‘We are in dire need’

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For the last decade, Jeanneil Marzan paid $645 a month to rent a space for her manufactured home at Sierra Royal Mobile Park. 

When the first rent increase of $40 came in September 2022, the Sparks resident found it reasonable even living on a fixed income. 

Everything changed in December after a multi-billion dollar global private equity investor, Carlyle Group, bought the park and notified its residents of the 151-home community that rent would be increasing to $1,010 per month.

Marzan, along with residents of her community, pleaded with state lawmakers Monday to consider rent stabilization legislation for mobile home parks to regulate...

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Our thoughts on this story:

A recent poll showed that 70% of Millennials would vote for a socialist presidential candidate. And it’s apparent in this story as Nevada’s “Senate Bill 275, brought forth by Democratic state Sen. Skip Daly, would prevent landlords of manufactured home parks from raising rents higher than the maximum annual rent increase percentage calculated by the (Nevada) Housing Division.” After that they should set a commission to control pricing of all products – from cars to milk – and then all you need is a commission to set how much of each product should be produced. Here’s the Wikipedia definition of socialism “a political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole”. Am I missing something here, comrade?

Phoenix New Times: ‘I'm Being Displaced’: Phoenix City Council Fails to Stop Evictions at Three Trailer Parks

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A young girl approached the podium on March 22 and looked up at the members of the Phoenix City Council seated before her. "My name is Michelle," she said in Spanish. "I'm being displaced."

Last April, Michelle's family was one of the dozens living in the Periwinkle Mobile Home Park that received an unexpected eviction notice from Grand Canyon University. According to the notice, residents had just six months to leave their longtime homes.

In the months since, Periwinkle residents have joined forces with two other Phoenix mobile home parks whose inhabitants are also facing eviction. The other parks are Las Casitas — which is located at 18th...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Thank havens that the city council has not gone insane and, when attempted to be bullied into breaking the law and vote to block a piece of land from being developed simply because the residents didn’t like it, instead voted in favor of the redevelopment stating “most councilmembers who opposed the zoning overlay and moratorium said they voted against it over concerns about whether the policy was legal.” When you ignore property laws you usher in the end of private property ownership and you are on a crash-course with the same socialism reflected in the article above.

FOX13 Salt Lake City: Mobile home park manager who feeds community honored with dream team surprise

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DAVIS COUNTY, Utah — Pat Blake is the manager of two mobile home parks in Davis County, whose selfless and kind-hearted nature knows no bounds.

“She doesn't buy herself clothing. She rather take that money and help people here.” said Pat’s daughter and Dream Team nominator, Anita York.

She regularly arranges for a Bountiful Food Pantry bus to visit each park twice a month, providing tenants with all the groceries they could ever need.

She also uses money from her own pocket to help children with school supplies and holiday gifts.

“Because that's what we're here for is to help other people. They need help. And that's what I'm here for,"...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Very nice article that is well written. If only giant non-profits could learn from people like this.

Cal Matters: A California program to fix mobile home parks approved 1 application in 10 years. Will a rebrand work?

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Mobile home residents in California face an outsize risk of failing utility systems, flooding and fires as a result of infrastructure that frequently hasn’t been updated or repaired in decades. 

In 1984, California passed a law to help remedy this: a loan program, paid into by the residents themselves, to buy and in later iterations, fix their parks.

But that solution, for the last 10 years, has helped only one of California’s 4,500 mobile home parks.

State administrators approved a single loan application, in 2021, from a fund now worth $33.5 million, the state’s Housing and Community Development Department confirmed to CalMatters. The...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Wow is this article stupid. First it makes the admission: “in 1984, California passed a law to help remedy this: a loan program, paid into by the residents themselves, to buy and in later iterations, fix their parks. But that solution, for the last 10 years, has helped only one of California’s 4,500 mobile home parks.” OK, that seems pretty bad. But then the reason given for the program’s failure was the “lack of demand”. Then the author explains that resident-owned mobile home parks are the solution to the condition of dilapidated properties because the residents care more about making repairs than third-party owners. What’s missing? That’s right THE CAPITAL TO MAKE THE REPAIRS. You can’t fix water, sewer and street systems with a happy attitude – it takes cold hard cash. And a lot of it. The very things that residents don’t have. So if the guy who wrote this would simply read his own article he’d realize that tenants buying parks is not going to happen because even the State of California won’t co-sign a guaranteed failing loan (only one deal has ever been approved) and only third-party owners have the capital and desire needed to bring old parks back to life. The solution? Obviously, GIVE THE $100 MILLION IN THE ACCOUNT ALREADY TO THE THIRD-PARTY OWNERS IN THE FORM OF GRANTS TO FOSTER MORE PARKS FROM BEING TORN DOWN. But, of course, they can’t take that obvious step because it ruins the narrative that all landlords are evil.

The Times Record: Harpswell state rep. introduces bill to support weatherizing manufactured homes

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Rep. Cheryl Golek, D-Harpswell, presented L.D. 815, “An Act to Provide Energy Efficiency Program Outreach and Assistance to Manufactured Housing Residents,” before the Legislature’s Labor and Housing Committee on Tuesday.

The bill would require Efficiency Maine and the Maine State Housing Authority to develop an education program and conduct outreach to residents of manufactured housing to increase the awareness of the energy efficiency programs available to residents. Additionally, the proposal would establish a program to provide financial assistance to qualifying individuals to purchase and install high-efficiency heat pump systems and...

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Our thoughts on this story:

This is a great idea and we have been trying to educate our own residents on cheap ways to make a big impact on energy efficiency – things as simple as weatherstripping doors and installing thermal switch plates. If you look at the net impact of programs like this as far as dollars saved by residents as well as the number of those helped, this is exactly what states need to be working on instead of spending millions in grants for a few tenant groups to buy their parks.

Forbes: 3D-Printed, Factory-Built Homes Coming To A Community Near You

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California-based 3D-printing construction tech company Mighty Buildings says it’s on a new and ambitious growth trajectory. From Hawaii to Saudi Arabia, it plans to build communities of sustainable, net-zero, 3D-printed houses fabricated in microfactories that can be spun up virtually anywhere in a matter of months.

“The scale economics of our microfactories makes it feasible to build anywhere,” says Scott Gebicke, Mighty Buildings’ CEO. “This microfactory approach is one of the main reasons I joined the company because the scalability is really impressive.”

Gebicke has been at the helm of Mighty Buildings for just three months, following...

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Our thoughts on this story:

This is like watching the advent of the big screen TV. The technology blows you away, but doesn’t take root until the price goes down 80% and becomes a mass-market product. These 3-D printed houses look much better than any mobile home ever will, but the price is only 20% less than a regular house. That’s not nearly enough to get people to embrace a new technology. Once this gets down to 50% off or so, then things might happen. But you still have to navigate a permit process that won’t allow these in a mobile home park without a HUD seal, or a subdivision without meeting the UBC. But it's going to happen some day (although it may be 10 or 20 years out).

Washington Post: Even small tornadoes can toss mobile homes. What about a massive one?

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ROLLING FORK, Miss. — Carolyn Washington was watching the news in her trailer Friday when a cousin called with a warning that wasn’t on TV: A tornado was about to touch down.

She raced up the street to Chuck’s Dairy Bar and sprinted to the bathroom, screaming, “Tornado!”

When the winds calmed down, she looked up: The restaurant’s roof was gone, and the tail end of a pickup truck was hanging over her head. Her home, where she normally shelters during tornado warnings, was on top of a nearby carwash.

“If I had been in there, I wouldn’t be talking to you,” she told a reporter.

Unlike her, other mobile home residents in this town of...

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Our thoughts on this story:

This article states that “there are steps that mobile home communities can take to better withstand storms. Researchers recommend having concrete foundations, anchor bolts and hurricane ties to secure structures, and adding tornado shelters or safe rooms.” Nobody can argue with the fact that mobile homes have a lower survival rate than brick houses when a 170 mph tornado comes through, but let’s get realistic here. These suggestions cost about $10,000 each per home. Who is going to pay for that? The tenants? It’s their home and that bill will fall on them. Mandate these type of items (like the government is already discussing on mobile home energy efficiency) and you will end up with more homeless people.

Multi-Housing News: How Havenpark Is Enhancing the MHC Resident Experience

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The manufactured housing sector has gained prominence in the past few years due to its resiliency and stability, particularly when economic conditions deteriorate and demand for affordable housing reaches new highs. While it is true that the sector is still experiencing decades-old stigma, some owners and operators are stubbornly determined to show that well-managed manufactured homes can be a palpable solution to the nationwide affordable housing crisis.

“We are in a unique position to contribute to the national conversation about the benefits offered by manufactured homes, including their affordability, contributions to increasing the...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Havenpark is a great owner/operator and this is a great article that more politicians need to read.

Denver 7 ABC: Colorado Democrats unveil a massive housing policy bill that would significantly rewrite land use policies

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DENVER — A broad coalition of lawmakers, cities, counties, climate advocates and even the business community came together on the west steps of the Colorado State Capitol on Wednesday to unveil a massive bill that’s aimed at addressing the housing crisis in the state.

Senate Bill 23-213 is 105-pages long and is the result of many months of work and 125 meetings with stakeholders around the state.

“Housing and the cost of housing and high cost of living Colorado is an issue that we know we need to take action to do something about for the state,” Gov. Jared Polis said during a news conference Wednesday.

Last year, Colorado lawmakers passed...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Have you ever been to Houston, Texas? Houston didn’t have zoning until recent times. The concept was that zoning was evil and you should build anything anywhere you want. There are topless bars next door to mansions and gas stations next to churches. Everyone hates it. And now Colorado wants to follow in Houston’s foot steps?

At least this person gets it: “I think they're going to hear very overwhelmingly, that this is a massive overreach by the state, and one that's completely unnecessary and a terrible precedent. You know, if the state can start legislating away, you know, local authority to ensure livability of neighborhoods and communities... where does it stop?”

The Ellsworth American: The affordable housing mirage

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In all of the hand-wringing over the lack of “affordable housing” in not only Hancock County, but the state of Maine and the nation as a whole, there is never any discussion of why housing costs have increased so dramatically and become increasingly unaffordable for large segments of society.

It starts with dirt.

Land prices have sharply escalated as our population continues to expand. Yet, to turn the first spade, or backhoe, of dirt for any housing construction we must understand how the basic costs have magnified.

First you need a permit, and more often than not, lots of permits. They cost money (and time) for you, or your...

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Our thoughts on this story:

Best article of the week. A must read.