Reconsidering the Trailer Park

A new study finds that manufactured housing (also known as mobile homes), despite their reputation, offer important advantages for low-income households.

1 minute read

October 3, 2008, 12:00 PM PDT

By Tim Halbur


"In terms of developing a housing policy that would improve the quality of housing for lower income households, it seems appropriate to explore the merits of an often-ignored alternative, namely manufactured owned housing. This article employs data from the American Housing Survey (AHS) collected between 1993 and 2001 to compare manufactured owned housing with rented housing and traditional owned housing as a tenure alternative for low-income households. Our results contradict several preconceived notions regarding manufactured owned housing. For example, manufactured owned housing is found to be a low-cost housing alternative. Importantly, it is observed to have higher average quality rankings across both the neighborhood and structural dimensions of housing services than rented housing does (even when the sample is stratified by metropolitan and nonmetropolitan location). Furthermore, those factors that contribute to lower structural quality or lower neighborhood quality, as well as changes in those quality measures over time, are similar between manufactured owned housing and traditional owned housing."

Thanks to Jon Cecil, AICP

Wednesday, October 1, 2008 in HUD User

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 30, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Close-up on Canadian flag with Canada Parliament building blurred in background.

Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?

As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?

April 28, 2025 - Benjamin Schneider

Hot air balloons rise over Downtown Boise with the State Capitol building visible amidst the high rises.

The Five Most-Changed American Cities

A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

April 23, 2025 - GoodMigrations

People biking along beach path with moored ship in San Diego, California.

San Diego Adopts First Mobility Master Plan

The plan provides a comprehensive framework for making San Diego’s transportation network more multimodal, accessible, and sustainable.

May 2 - SD News

Sleeping in Public

Housing, Supportive Service Providers Brace for Federal Cuts

Organizations that provide housing assistance are tightening their purse strings and making plans for maintaining operations if federal funding dries up.

May 2 - KSL

Conductor walks down platform next to Amtrak train at station in San Jose, California.

Op-Ed: Why an Effective Passenger Rail Network Needs Government Involvement

An outdated rail network that privileges freight won’t be fixed by privatizing Amtrak.

May 2 - Streetsblog USA

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Senior Manager Operations, Urban Planning

New York City School Construction Authority

Building Inspector

Village of Glen Ellyn

Manager of Model Development

Central Transportation Planning Staff/Boston Region MPO