Zoned Out? North Carolina Manufactured Housing Park Lot Rents

Abstract

This paper explores determinants of manufactured housing park (MHP) plot rents in North Carolina, with particular focus on the distinction among urban, rural, and periurban and small town parks, and on the possible role played by zoning restrictiveness. Little is known about how MHP rents are determined, even though it is estimated that more than 10 million Americans live in MHPs. We find that, contrary to our expectations, zoning appears to be an unimportant factor in determining park rents, while location, adjacent home prices, and nearby HUD “fair market rent” values are all important – though not uniformly so.