Michigan has the second-most manufactured home parks owned by private equity in the nation, according to research from the Private Equity Stakeholder Project and Manufactured Housing Action. The state has 192 parks, accounting for 50,626 home sites, owned by private equity firms and hedge funds. Only Florida has a higher share, with 269 parks made up of 64,354 home sites. Texas trails Michigan, with 148 parks with 31,265 home sites. The research shows a disproportionate share of private equity-owned manufactured housing, with firms owning more than one in every four manufactured homes in the state. This marks a slight increase from 2020 and 2021, when private equity firms accounted for 23% of manufactured home purchases. But it’s a significant increase from 2017 through 2019, when they accounted for only 13%. Three of the ten private equity firms that own the most lots have significant holdings in Michigan. The largest private equity firm the researchers tracked – Stockbridge Capital Partners – owns 266 parks made up of 74,761 lots, more than a quarter of which are in Michigan. The seventh biggest – Havenpark Capital Partners, accounting for 63 communities with 18,512 lots – has 29% of their lots in Michigan, while the tenth largest – Alden Global Capital – has 17% of their 11,204 lots across 141 parks located in Michigan. The firm with the highest portion of its portfolio based in Michigan is Silver Creek Capital Management, with 82% of its 10,637 lots across 44 parks being located in Michigan. They are the eleventh largest firm tracked in the report. The Private Equity Stakeholder Project suggests in their report that the business model is to buy a park, increase the lot rent to increase the park’s value, then sell it at a profit within a few years. They point to Swartz Creek Estates as an example. After being acquired by Havenpark in 2018, the park’s lot rent was hiked and new fees were introduced, increasing the cost to residents by 40%. Due to many manufactured home owners having limited mobility, the Private Equity Stakeholder Project says many residents are effectively trapped in increasingly untenable situations. The group proposed a number of new laws to increase protections for mobile home residents. They include, among other provisions, good cause eviction requirements laying out allowable reasons for evicting a resident, requiring residents to be offered a renewal lease when the existing lease expires, and requiring homeowners to receive fair market value for their home if they are priced out or evicted and the park owner takes the title to the home. Just this year, residents of Kristana Estates in Dewitt Township were notified by owner TIR Equities that they had just four days to move out, with the park’s water subsequently being shut off the day after the deadline even while some residents were still living there. \"Private equity firms are out there to line their pockets and destroy affordable housing,\" said Jason Elridge, a resident of Kristana Estates. \"People need to have a community that can prosper and a place where they can feel secure. I don’t think private equity can provide that.\"

Michigan among highest rates of private equity-owned mobile home parks in nation, research finds

Research by the Private Equity Stakeholder Project and Manufactured Housing Action reveals Michigan ranks second in the U.S. for private equity-owned mobile home parks, with 192 parks accounting for 50,626 home sites. Florida leads with 269 parks, while Texas trails with 148. Private equity firms own over 25% of manufactured homes in Michigan, up from 23% in 2020-2021 and a significant jump from 13% in 2017-2019. The research highlights a business model of buying parks, raising rents, and reselling for profit, with examples like Swartz Creek Estates, where rents increased by 40% after acquisition. The report also notes challenges for residents, including evictions and housing insecurity, and proposes legal protections for mobile home residents.