Nexus Commercial Realty, a Denver, CO-based commercial multi-family investment sales firm, announces it is joining forces with Charlotte, N.C.-based Capstone Companies, the country’s largest privately owned multi-family investment sales brokerage.
Capstone Companies and Nexus Commercial Realty have combined forces to enhance the coverage and services provided by the country’s largest privately-owned multi-family investment sales brokerage.
Charlotte, N.C.-based Capstone operates in eight states, and in 2020 sold more than 21,000 units and opened three new offices, one in Georgia, and a pair in Oklahoma.
“Capstone is always focused on how we can grow and improve our firm for the benefit of our clients and our existing team, and we are certain this partnership is meeting both of those goals,” Capstone Co-Founder & Managing Partner Brian Ford said. “The Nexus team has achieved tremendous success in our industry to date, and we only see upside in our future together.
Founded in Denver in 2017 by Adam Riddle and Jason Koch, Nexus specializes in multi-housing investment sales brokerage and advisory services through the middle and upper plains.
“This expansion will add significant value for our loyal clients, further helping them grow into multiple new markets across the country and extending additional servicing capabilities, such as larger institutional assets, land sales, manufactured housing, and equity solutions,” Riddle said.
Established in 2008, Capstone Companies has completed transactions in 35 states, with over 80,000 units sold. The brokerage provides advisory services for clients across the private, public, institutional, and non-profit sectors with expertise in various types of multi-housing, including conventional apartments, student housing, affordable housing, manufactured housing, multi-housing development sites, and capital placement.
MHInsider is a publication of MHVillage and is the premier source of manufactured housing news with a national audience of manufactured housing professionals dedicated to producing and delivering high quality, affordable, off-site built housing.
Ninety miles southwest of downtown Chicago, Heritage Harbor is anchored by a 32-acre harbor, made from a former shale quarry opened to the Illinois River, protected by a resplendent stone seawall.
Bruce Thompson, URBANEER
For the boaters of the world, this is the first stop on the Great Loop out of Chicago. Boaters can navigate Lake Michigan and access the great Mississippi, the Saint Lawrence Seaway and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, as well as points south to the Gulf of Mexico.
As you approach the resort, the hills of the river valley provide a beautiful backdrop to the homes and commercial structures that surround the marina. Just minutes from Ottawa, a town of 20,000 residents, the resort is adjacent a canal system once responsible for transportation of vital cargo from Chicago south. While the canal is long gone, the tow path remains part of a 60-mile walking trail.
Heritage Harbor is the vision of Tom Heimsoth, a former tech executive who sold his company and chose to develop this special master-planned resort community. His passion is evident in both the scale of the project and the work that he has done in the area to promote tourism.
As a former tech innovator, I appreciate the tangibility of developing the built environment versus software. Lines of code can be overwritten in seconds but moving dirt somewhat resembles permanence.
A Rich Housing Mix at Heritage Harbor
Touring the property, among the initial observations was the indistinguishability between the 130 homes, from site-built to factory-built. Forty-five of the homes were made by one of two modular builders, Homeway and Ritzcraft, and the other 85 were constructed on-site. Tom and the development team, led by Kevin Donovan, understand that building off-site is the future. They are working hard to secure a supply chain that can help complete the additional 550 homes that have been approved by the municipality.
The benefits of producing manufactured and modular homes off site centers on predictability — timing, cost, and quality. As their sales waiting list grows it is important to deliver units that can be quickly occupied by owners, or as part of a growing rental business managed by the resort. Offsite manufacturing also offers an opportunity to pre-engineer interiors to provide a higher level of quality and ultimately a better occupant experience.
Tom and his team have anticipated the changing demographics of potential residents and visitors. Households today represent bookends: One in five households now living solo and one in five are multi-generational. The master plan for Heritage Harbor calls for a mix of units ranging in size from 400 square feet to large custom homesites to accommodate these trends.
The housing types under development will appeal to both boaters and Chicago residents who are looking for a quick escape. In addition, there are plans for an active adult community to be operated by a third-party management team.
Lifestyle Drives Demand at Heritage Harbor
With 10,000 people turning 65 each day in the U.S., Baby Boomer Chicagoans and others are looking to downsize from their large suburban homes. Heritage Harbor’s location provides a destination that is a world away yet still accessible to big city healthcare and other amenities.
Nearby, Ottawa is a year-round community with a great food and brewery scene and local businesses that represent a level of authenticity that is appealing to many visitors. Located just off I-80 it is easy to access, but at the same time feels removed from the hustle of Chicagoland.
As COVID0-19 continues to transform how we live, how we work and play, Heritage Harbor stands to gain more attention, and new residents.
More than 14 million people relocated by mid-2020 due to the increased ability to learn and work remotely, according to USPS data. While some behaviors will revert back, it is evident that new patterns will endure and transform the real estate market.
Heritage Harbor, in its way, is the convergence of the past and future.
The canal system that took 30 years to build operated for 30 more years before rail transportation provided the more efficient way. It is a good reminder that even innovation in the built environment can be fleeting. Today, Heritage Harbor is a node on a new network that supports remote work, learning, and telehealth — a way to both connect and disconnect — with a front seat view for the evolution of construction.
Lawmakers at the California State Capitol overwhelmingly approved of California Senate Bill 91.
If signed and enacted, the recently approved California Senate Bill 91 will route to property owners a planned $2.6 billion in funding to cover missed rent and utility payment in the state during the elongated eviction moratorium related to coronavirus safety measures and business disruptions.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on the same day signed the bill, which won wide support in Sacramento from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
“We continue to have concerns about how repayment to property owners will be administered, but the passage of SB 91 enacts a reasonable stop-gap to protect both tenants and property owners affected by the COVID-19 crisis,” Western Manufactured Housing Industry Association Executive Director Sheila Dey said is a prepared statement. “We look forward to working with the Legislature and the Administration to ensure manufactured housing communities remain a viable option for hundreds of thousands of California families.”
California Senate Bill 91
The Tenancy: Federal Rental Assistance Bill passed 72-1 on the state assembly floor Jan. 28, 2021.
“We are extending the eviction moratorium to June 30 and distributing the federal stimulus funds quickly and equitably across the state,” Senate President Pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins, D-San Diego. “We are also providing additional safeguards to protect Californians from landlords and creditors acting in bad faith. This agreement, which is the strongest in the nation, works within the framework required by federal law regarding eligibility, prioritizing rent payments past due, and providing a timeframe in which the funds must be used.
“Today’s actions to protect tenants and small landlords does not mean our work is over,” she said. “We are actively pursuing early budget actions that will address the most pressing needs caused by the pandemic, and the decisions we make are being viewed through the lens of how they can make life better for those among us struggling the most.”
Congress & Expo 2021 Moved from Spring, MHI Works on Potential Summer Dates
The Manufactured Housing Institute sent out an advisory stating it will postpone the 2021 Congress & Expo beyond the month of April.
“After ongoing discussions with our event partners in Las Vegas and at the MGM Grand, MHI has determined that the 2021 Congress & Expo will not take place in April. We are working toward holding the event in person later in 2021 and appreciate your patience as we continue these discussions,” the advisory stated.
Skyline Homes and other Skyline Champion Corporation brands topped the list of America’s most trusted manufactured home builders, according to recent consumer research from Lifestory Research.
The 2021 America’s Most Trusted® Manufactured Home Builder Brand Study surveys consumers actively in the market for a new manufactured home. Factory-built home buyers selected Skyline as the brand that earned the highest confidence. The report also shows that Skyline Champion’s brands – Skyline Homes, Genesis Homes, and Champion Homes – captured the top 3 spots in the national trust rankings.
“At Skyline, we don’t just stop at creating premier living spaces — we always aim higher,” said Mark Yost, President and CEO of Skyline Champion Corporation. “We’re incredibly honored by both the faith our valued customers have placed in our Skyline brand and this recognition. We look forward to many more years of delivering the very best homes and home-buying experiences.”
The study ranked the market’s top home builders by surveying 24,377 people looking for manufactured homes during 2020. It was conducted in 35 leading manufactured housing markets in the United States.
Lifestory Net Quotient Score is an independent ranking of the brands that most successfully put their customers first and gain trust, the company states. Skyline earned a Net Trust Quotient Score of 103.5 and the 5 Star Trust Rating among survey respondents, placing it at the top of the list.
Skyline Champion credits its innovative team of designers and engineers, skilled homebuilders, and committed service technicians who take care of the customer for the continued legacy of trust in the manufactured home marketplace.
Datacomp, publisher of JLT Market Reports and the nation’s #1 provider of market data for the manufactured housing industry, announces the publication of its January 2021 mobile home rent comps, occupancy, and other vital data on manufactured home communities from 14 markets in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Utah.
Recognized as the industry standard for manufactured home community market analysis for more than 20 years, JLT Market Reports provide detailed research and information on manufactured home communities located in more 186 primary housing markets throughout the United States. This includes the latest rent trends and statistics, marketing programs and a variety of other useful management insights.
Datacomp’s manufactured housing market data published in the January 2021 JLT Market Reports includes information on investment-grade “all ages” and “55+” manufactured home communities.. Altogether, the reports include data representations for 92,578 homesites.
Regional Trends in Manufactured Housing Community Rent, Occupancy
South region manufactured home communities show a year-over-year 4.5% increase in rent and a 0.8% increase in occupancy.
West region manufactured home communities show a year-over-year 4.2% increase in rent and a 0.7% increase in occupancy
“Average adjusted rent increased in each market represented in the January 2021 JLT Market Report publications on manufactured home communities,” Datacomp Co-President and Chief Business Development Officer Darren Krolewski said. “Only a pair of markets showed a decrease in occupancy, one among all-ages communities, and another among 55+ properties.”
What’s in JLT Market Reports?
Each JLT manufactured home community rent and occupancy report from Datacomp has detailed information about investment grade communities in the major markets. The detailed information includes:
Number of homesites
Occupancy rates
Average community rents, and increases
Community amenities
Vacant lots
Repossessed and inventory homes, and much more
Established reports show trends in each market with a comparison of January 2021 rents and occupancy rates to January 2020. In addition, JLT Markt Reports include a historical recap of rents and occupancy from 1996 to present date in most markets.
The January 2021 JLT Market Reports for 14 markets in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina and Utah are available for purchase and immediate download online at the Datacomp JLT Market Report, or they may be ordered by phone in electronic or printed editions at (800) 588-5426.
Each fully updated report for mobile home communities is a comprehensive look at investment grade properties within a market, enabling owners and managers, lenders, appraisers, brokers and other organizations to effectively benchmark those communities and make informed decisions.
Editor’s Note: Manufactured housing professionals this week learned the news that a valued member of the industry has passed away. Bruce Savage, industry communications professional, former MHI executive, is honored by Suzanne Felber, who was fortunate enough to call Mr. Savage a friend.
“[…]the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes “Awww!”
-Jack Kerouac, On The Road
This Kerouac quote has always been one of my favorite, and it describes Bruce Savage perfectly. Bruce was one of those people where time stopped the moment you met him, and you never forgot that moment.
Homebuilding has always been part of my life, and I was very active in the National Association of HomeBuilders including being on some of their boards. When I attended the International Builders Show in the late 90’s Champion Homes had a two-story Genesis home complete with a garage that they had built on the show floor. I think that I visited at least four or five times during the show, and when I asked for more information about the industry, they directed me to a booth that the Manufactured Housing Institute had nearby. Kismet stepped in, and there was Bruce Savage manning the booth. As communications director for MHI he was exactly who I wanted to talk to, and he got me excited about the possibilities of factory-built housing. I knew right then and there this was the future of housing, and I wanted to be a part of it. Bruce said that I was welcome to come to DC anytime to learn more, and I was at his doorstep two weeks later.
We got to be friends as well as business associates, and one day I got a call from him about a home that was being donated to a veteran in Houston. MHI was involved, and Patriot Homes had donated the house. Their goal was to turn the home over to the family fully furnished. We helped pull together donations, and in the typical sweltering Texas heat, Heather French, who was at that time Miss America, Bruce, and a lot of other dignitaries, came to the home to turn the keys over to the family. My favorite memory was when Heather gave her crown to the girls to try on for size, and when they were all jumping on the bed they broke the box frame! It was an amazing opportunity for our industry, and by the end, Miss America, who was married to the Lt. Governor of Kentucky, was sold on factory-built housing and the lifestyle we could offer.
Bruce Savage, the Friend
Bruce asked me one year to speak at the MHI Congress and Expo. At that time Bruce was the only person I really knew in the industry, but I couldn’t wait to share what I knew about marketing and design and to learn from others attending. It was at Caesars Palace, and MHI took care of getting me a room. Imagine my surprise when I was given the keys to a suite, complete with dark flocked wallpaper, a Jacuzzi tub for 8-plus friends I didn’t have, and a smoked glass mirror above the bed!
Bruce had a wicked sense of humor, and we laughed about that story together many times.
After Hurricane Katrina, Bruce immediately started positioning our industry to be able to help get people quickly into affordable, well-built homes. The Gulf Coast Housing Initiative gave us the opportunity to show what we could do, and Bruce was right there behind the scenes, setting up national media and getting people inside our homes.
Bruce Savage works with media in the introduction of a new home. Photos courtesy of Lisa Stewart, Lisa Stewart Photography.
Bruce also was the publisher for MHI’s Modern Homes Magazine. It was the first publication in our industry that looked and read like a consumer publication. The articles were not only targeted to members of our industry, but to consumers as well, with beautiful photography of our homes. The message was always positive – something that Bruce insisted upon.
It’s hard to find photos of Bruce because he was a true professional. He knew his job was to give the limelight and photo opportunities to others, so the photos I have of him were mostly sneaky ones taken when he wasn’t looking. I feel so fortunate that he shared so much of his life with me that most people never knew about… It was almost like being there, hearing about his years living in New York, part of the art world and having serious conversations with Andy Warhol, David Hockney, Keith Haring, and others, as well as owning some of this art. Being backstage at concerts with the greats, and having carte blanche at the finest restaurants and entertainment venues everywhere he went was the life Bruce lived before moving to D.C. to work for MHI.
After I became the Lifestylist® for Patriot Homes, we got to spend more time on the road, and after his official duties for the day were over we would sneak away, and he would whisk me off to a tiny, hidden restaurant that maybe had five tables. Or the one year at Tunica he told me to get in the car and he just started driving. We ended up at a Rolling Stones concert with VIP passes, enjoyed the concert, and got back before the show opened the next day. No one knew – it was our special time.
Keeping the Passion
After Bruce “retired” to spend more time at the beach, we would talk a lot about the negativity that had crept into the inner circles of our industry, that was leaking out to consumers. We decided to be proactive, and started American Housing Advocates as a way for him to stay active in the industry, and for us to share the positive news about factory-built housing. There were so many good things happening, it didn’t make sense to focus on anything else.
The past year, Bruce has been living at a retirement community recuperating from falling down a flight of stairs at his beach house and breaking his hip, and many other bones. When he was at the hospital someone stole his phone that had all of his phone numbers in it, and his wedding ring. When I was finally able to find him we caught up, and as always we didn’t talk about how much pain he was in, he insisted on sharing stories about the ladies in the community who were trying to “court” him, and we chatted about new films that were coming out, and what art exhibits I had been to.
Bruce was so ahead of his time in how he approached the industry, and how he was able to make others understand that vision. The Urban Infill Project, Homes for Homeless Veterans, and the Mills of Carthage are just a few of the ways he was able to see the future of factory-built housing before most of us did.
MHI events will never be the same without him there, but I know when we are able to all attend another manufactured housing industry event, I’ll be thinking about him being the puppet master behind the curtains, writing beautifully worded speeches, and making all of us all smile just one more time.
Bluegrass Meadows manufactured home community, Russellville, Ky. Photo courtesy of Oz Impact Funds.
OZ Impact Funds has acquired 21 manufactured housing communities from Strive Communities, which includes 2,740 manufactured housing pads across five Midwestern states. The $100 million acquisition adds to OZ’s growing portfolio of 11,400 communities acquired in just two years, increasing its portfolio by 30 percent.
“As we bring these communities into our growing platform, we understand our responsibility as community stewards for our tenants,” said Jeff Bennett, managing partner at OZ Impact Funds. “We appreciate working with the Strive team on this transaction and look forward to more acquisitions like this in 2021 and beyond.”
“Our aggressive plan to continue to increase affordable housing units could not come at a better time,” said Bennett. “Acquiring mismanaged and under-capitalized manufactured housing communities to implement a hands-on, value-added approach brings benefits to both residents and investors.”
Oz aims to own and operate 20,000 homesites by 2022, and with the recent acquisition has expanded its manufactured housing community presence in Wisconsin, Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky.
“With every acquisition, we improve communities for American families,” he said. “Adding these 21 communities to our expanding portfolio of MHCs is the perfect fit.”
“Simply put, our mission is to revitalize dilapidated communities across the United States and provide affordable, safe and clean housing to American families by acquiring, investing in and operating MHCs,” OZ managing partner Greg Nelson said. “Identifying such opportunities in areas with strong fundamentals presents an attractive, risk-adjusted return while simultaneously improving the communities in which we invest.
“We believe MHCs are under-utilized in solving America’s housing crisis, and we can offer a meaningful affordable housing option to families looking for alternatives.”
Moving Trends in 2020 Heavily Influenced by COVID-19
Each year, United Van Lines surveys its customers on how its trucks and vans are used for relocation. In 2020, trends regarding Americans on the move mirrored recent years with a clear uptick in relocation from city life associated with COVID-19.
The company’s 44th Annual National Migration Study, reveals in 2020 that Americans continued to move westbound and southbound, and toward rural areas and more open spaces.
Idaho proved to be the state with the highest percentage of inbound migration among states experiencing more than 250 moves with United Van Lines, topping the list now in consecutive years. Topping the list of outbound locations was New Jersey, which has held the spot for three years.
Top 10 States Experiencing Highest Rate of Move-in During 2020
Idaho
South Carolina
Oregon
South Dakota
Arizona
North Carolina
Tennessee
Alabama
Florida
Arkansas
New to the top inbound list for 2020 are Tennessee, Alabama, and Arkansas.
Top 10 States Experiencing Highest Rate of Move-out During 2020
New Jersey
New York
Illinois
Connecticut
California
Kansas
North Dakota
Massachusetts
Ohio
Maryland
The balanced states for even or near-even numbers of move-ins and move-outs were New Hampshire and Montana, according to the study.
“United Van Lines’ data makes it clear that migration to western and southern states, a prevalent pattern for the past several years, persisted in 2020,” UCLA Economist Michael A. Stoll said. “However, we’re seeing that the COVID-19 pandemic has without a doubt accelerated broader moving trends, including retirement driving top inbound regions as the Baby Boomer generation continues to reach that next phase of life.”
Olga Perez and her family enter their new home for the first time. Photos courtesy of Pentagon Properties.
Organizers from Agape and Peachtree assembled to present the new home to Olga Perez and family.
Residents atCentral Mobile Home Village in Georgia were provided a new manufactured home just in time for the holidays, the result of a partnership between the community owner, a local church, and an Atlanta-based nonprofit that focuses on helping youth and families.
Olga Perez and her family have lived in the Atlanta community for 20 years. In the last year she has been enduring the sudden accidental death of her husband.
“She has four kids and the youngest is under 11,” Maryuri Barberan, from the community ownership group Pentagon Properties, said. “Two organizations around our community helped to get her a new home,Agape and Peachtree Road United Methodist Church.
Agape has done other work with youth and family at Central Mobile Home Village in recent years, documented during the annual SECO Conference of Community Owners, an event and nonprofit organization co-founded by Pentagon Properties President Spencer Roane.
“Over six months ago they got approval to get this home for the family,” Barberan said of Agape and the church. The organizations, as well as a few other community residents, gathered in mid-December to present the home to Perez and her children.
The new home received in time for the holidays replaced an old home that was beyond repair.
“It was a nice small event,” Barberan said.
The home the family had been living in required an abundance of repairs, and it was agreed that the family
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