Hurricanes Irma and Harvey damaged almost 1.8 million homes, aggravating the mobile home market's tight inventory.
Sales of new units are growing 15 percent annually as buyer demand increases in retirement communities, the suburbs, and rural areas. The industry accounts for 80 percent of new homes listed for less than $150,000, and was already struggling to fulfill demand prior to the hurricanes, per Bloomberg. Dealerships like LeeCorp in Southwest Florida have up to a six month backlog.
Financing and insuring units can be expensive, especially for decades-old trailers that are depreciating and set up on rented land, and for borrowers with poor credit. Last year, 64 percent were purchased with high-rate loans, compared with just 7.2 percent for traditional single-family homes, according to the Housing Assistance Council.
