May 27, 2021

Manufactured Housing Q1 Market Report: Rents and Occupancies Rise, Particularly in High-Growth Regions

Highlights:

The manufactured housing market strengthened at the start of 2021. Occupancies rose and rents continued to push higher. Supply growth has been consistent in recent years, and shipments closely tracked levels from the same period in 2020.
The national occupancy rate ended the first quarter at 93.7 percent, down 10 basis points from one year earlier. The rate rose 30 basis points during the first quarter but declined slightly in 2020 after several years of improvement.
After rising in each quarter in 2020, rents gained ground during the first quarter. Rents reached $571 per month as of the first quarter, up 4 percent year over year.
After investment activity for manufactured housing surged in 2020, sales velocity slowed to start this year. The median price during the first quarter was $35,900 per space, while cap rates averaged approximately 6.5 percent.