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In this Issue
 Manufactured Homes
a 'Critical Source' of Affordable Housing
The Business Case
for Green
NMHC Survey Sees
Stability Despite Financial Turmoil
Manufactured Homes a 'Critical Source' of
Affordable Housing
By
Felipe Rael
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Felipe Rael
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Affordable housing was brought to the forefront in
late summer 2005 when Hurricanes Rita and Katrina tore through the Gulf Coast region. However, most
of the images reinforced a negative stereotype of an abundance of
trailer units appearing almost overnight at the edge of some locale.
Contrary to these downbeat images, manufactured housing has been an
innovator in solving the country's low-income housing problem.
According to Dennis Corrigan of the Partnership Office for Fannie
Mae, "[Manufactured Housing] is a critical source of
affordable housing, evidenced by the fact that 70 percent of people
living in manufactured housing are at or below the HUD median
income, [comprising] 34 percent of the affordable housing stock in
the nation."
Since 1976, the manufactured housing industry made
a conscious effort to cure the ills plaguing the sector - including
substandard product, predatory lending and overbuilt supply of new
homes. These have been remedied through better enforcement and a
conscious decision by the manufactured home builders to provide a
safe permanent location to place the home.
In response, Fannie Mae made Manufactured Housing
Community loans eligible under all market conditions through its
approved network of DUS lenders. Like Arbor's multifamily
offerings, MHC financing offers competitive pricing, supplemental
mortgages and the ability to structure longer amortization terms.
Similar to multifamily underwriting, the value is attributed to the
rent paid by the tenant for use of the mobile home site. In order
for the land/lease site to be eligible for Fannie Mae financing,
the basic requirements must be met:
- Minimum 50 sites -
50 percent of which should accommodate multi-section homes
- Paved roads with
street lighting and rolled curbs
- Homes must be
professionally skirted and all hitch posts concealed
- All homes must have
concrete patios or commercial grade raised porches
- Public underground
utilities must be provided
- Density maximum of
7-10 sites per acre and allow for a minimum of two off-street
parking spaces per site
Click
to read more
Felipe Rael
is a Director in Arbor's full-service Albuquerque, NM office. He
can be reached at 505-798-2518 or at frael@arbor.com.
The Business Case for Green
By
Patrick Lord
"As a fiduciary, you cannot ignore
sustainability," said Victoria Kahn, Managing Director at ING
Clarion in a recent panel discussion, The Business Case for Green, held by Globe
St.com on March 24, 2008.
"Increasingly, the data is showing that there
is not a cost premium," commented Brenna Walraven,
President of BOMA International & Executive Managing Director,
National Property Management USA. "The fundamental fact is
that sooner rather than later, building codes will be at a high
efficiency level."
Indeed, New York, California and Massachusetts have energy codes
and regulatory environments that are moving like "freight
trains in that direction." Furthermore, some 600 mayors signed
onto the Kyoto Protocol with implications on local governments to
address energy efficiency, says Walraven.
Norfolk
County has
implemented an energy efficiency reirement
for all new single-family beginning 2009.
Click
to read more
Patrick Lord
is an Asset Management Senior Analyst in Arbor's full-service
Uniondale, NY office. He can be reached at 516-506-4288 or at plord@arbor.com.
NMHC Survey Sees Stability Despite
Financial Turmoil
The National Multi Housing Council has found that
the challenging economic times and financial market disruptions are
having little impact on the apartment industry's biggest firms.
The Council's 19th annual ranking of the 50
largest U.S.
apartment owners and the 50 largest U.S. apartment managers
has seen few changes in the top of the NMHC 50, proving the
sector's strong fundamentals and positive long-term demand outlook.
In fact, for the first time in the survey's
history, the top 10 firms on last year's NMHC 50 owners and NMHC 50
managers lists made the top 10 again this
year, albeit with some small shifts in the order.
Behind this stability was a continued trend of declining portfolio
size among the largest owners and growing concentration among the apartment
management firms.
Denver,
CO-based Apartment Investment and Management Company (AIMCO) remains the nation's largest apartment owner for
the third year in a row even after a net reduction of more than
14,000 units. For the first time since 1988, AIMCO now owns
fewer than 200,000 units, down from its 2004 peak of 278,000
units. Industry giant Equity Residential was also a net
seller, shedding 11,500 units in 2007. This follows a
30,000-unit reduction in 2006; the firm is now the No. 4
owner.
Click
to read more
Source:
The National Multi Housing Council, www.NMHC.org
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