AS U.S. HOME SALES TANK IN NOVEMBER, MANUFACTURED HOME SHIPMENTS INCREASE FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT YEAR

Site built home sales plunged in November as buyers faced rising prices, tight inventories, and new regulations that might have delayed some closings. Additionally, today’s home values are increasing at more than double the pace of wages.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said on Tuesday that sales of existing homes collapsed 10.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.76 million. It was the weakest pace in 19 months.

The national median home sales price was $220,000 in November, a 6.3% increase from a year ago. Sales fell in all major geographic regions, including the Northeast, Midwest, South, and West. According to CoreLogic’s report for November, Southern California sales were the slowest in about a quarter century.

U.S. Home sales tank in November

The new rules introduced by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to inform home buyers about interest rates and fees may have delayed the completion of sales in November. Manufactured home sales are subject to the same set of rules, some of which are even more punitive and without justification, than those for real estate transactions.

Conversely, manufactured homes shipments are on pace to increase for the fifth consecutive year. According to official statistics by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), manufactured home production rose again in October 2015 with a 5.2% increase over October 2014 and a 7.7% increase over HUD Code homes produced over the same period year-to-date in 2014. Manufactured modular homes built to a building code other than the HUD Code have significantly increased in the last two years; however, those statistics are not yet available.

U.S. HOME SALES TANK IN NOVEMBER; MANUFACTURED HOME SHIPMENTS INCREASE FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT YEAR

Manufactured home shipments increase for fifth straight year

The official manufactured home industry statistics below show the top ten shipment states from the beginning of the industry production rebound in August 2011 through October 2015, including cumulative monthly, current year-to-date (2015), and prior year-to-date (2014) figures.

State          Cumulative     Month Oct 2015     2015Jan-Oct     2014Jan-Oct

 

1.Texas          51,792 homes       1,210                    11,439                11,711

2.Louisiana    18,410 homes          433                      3,826                  3,774

3.Florida         14,518 homes          499                      4,067                  3,170

4.N.C.             10,739 homes          284                      2,474                  1,959

5.Alabama      10,537 homes          250                      2,306                  2,074

6.Mississippi    9,900 homes           249                      2,164                  2,191

7.California      9,324 homes           307                      2,459                  2,165

8.Kentucky       9,270 homes           244                      1,926                 1,807

9.Tennessee    7,744 homes           175                      1,760                 1,491

10.Oklahoma     7,326 homes          174                      1,519                1,385

It is important to note that as site built housing prices continue to escalate, and the wages of American workers continue to stagnate, affordable housing is becoming remote to many with dreams of traditional homeownership.

In complete contrast, the price for a new manufactured home has remained static for a number of years. The construction cost of a new manufactured home that is built just as well, and in many cases superior, to a comparably sized and equipped site built home will be about one half the cost, and built to the exacting specifications of the home buyer.

(Infographic provided by Realtor.com)