Latest news with #Niskanen
Business Insider
08-08-2025
- Automotive
- Business Insider
Look out for a boom in the 'Toyota Camry of housing' that could make starter homes cheaper
Homeownership feels like an ever more distant dream these days. But if a bipartisan group of senators has its way, a key type of affordable housing could become cheaper and more abundant. In late July, all 24 members of the Senate Banking Committee voted for the biggest federal housing policy reform package in a decade. Housing policy wonks are particularly excited about one long-sought provision that would end a burdensome and outdated requirement that manufactured homes have a permanent steel trailer frame, called a chassis. That requirement adds cost, limits functionality, and isn't necessary for the transportation of these mostly non-mobile homes that have evolved from trailers. As much of the country suffers from a steep housing shortage and affordability crisis, manufactured homes offer some of the most affordable options on the market, particularly in rural and exurban contexts. They're often starter homes for young families and accessible housing for older people, and they're increasingly a lucrative, appreciating investment. Reforming the 50-year-old rule would cut costs and save homebuyers money, make it easier to build multi-story manufactured homes, and expand where the homes can be built, industry leaders and researchers say. "On day one, chassis reform cuts $10,000 off a type of home that is already sold in the market in the hundreds of thousands," Alex Armlovich, a housing policy analyst at the libertarian think tank Niskanen, said. "There's not a lot else that Congress can do in one fell swoop to cut 10% off the price of any home." The full Senate is poised to pass the bipartisan package, so it's just a matter of the House getting on board to bring it into effect, Armlovich said. Ending the chassis requirement would mean "there's a little bit more room for innovation in what could be built, and less wasted steel, and lower cost, ultimately, to build the things," said Sean Roberts, CEO of Villa Homes, which builds manufactured housing in California and Colorado. "It's arguably better for the environment, as well, because you're using timber frame construction rather than steel." Roberts calls his manufactured homes the "Toyota Camry of housing" — affordable, "high-performance," and "very good quality." And, he joked, they're probably not going to win any design awards. Clayton, one of the country's biggest producers of manufactured homes, also celebrated the move. "Enabling the option of building homes without a permanent chassis drives innovative design and leverages efficiencies which can lower costs for home buyers," the company said in a statement. Factory-made housing is a small but important part of the solution Since 1974, the federal government has regulated manufactured homes under a set of rules known as the HUD code, which overrides state and local building codes. The idea was to modernize and standardize trailers and mobile homes across the country. The permanent chassis, which is part of the HUD code, has dramatically shrunk the manufactured housing industry since the 1970s. There's evidence the chassis requirement was pushed by traditional homebuilders to suppress the booming manufactured housing industry, as Vox's Rachel Cohen recently reported. Today, about 100,000 manufactured homes are produced a year — down from a peak of nearly 580,000 in 1973 — and make up less than 10% of all new construction each year. While we build cars, planes, and boats much more efficiently than ever before, American home-building productivity has stagnated. That's in part because the industry still does so much on-site, custom construction, forgoing the benefits of standardization, climate control, and speed that factories offer. Pre-fabricated buildings — or parts of them — can be produced more cheaply and efficiently. While workers prepare the foundation, the home can simultaneously be constructed indoors without weather and other interruptions slowing down the process. A bipartisan consensus around deregulating HUD-code housing has been building for years. In a major change to the regulations, the Biden administration last year reformed the code to allow up to four dwelling units per manufactured structure. Still, it will take more than just federal deregulation to fully unleash the industry and disrupt traditional homebuilding. Manufactured housing faces other challenges, including a lack of consistent demand and investment, high costs of transporting a finished product to the building site, the decentralized nature of construction, and insufficient financing, according to Mark Erlich, a former officer of the New England Regional Council of Carpenters and the author of " The Way We Build: Restoring Dignity to Construction Work." Manufactured housing has also long been dogged by stigma. There's a widespread perception that single-wides and double-wides are inferior to traditional so-called "stick-built" housing that's constructed piece by piece on the site. The design, functionality, marketing, and perception of manufactured homes would need to improve before they become more popular, Erlich said. While chassis reform is a big deal for the world of manufactured housing, that sector is still a small part of the broader housing landscape. "We've got a housing crisis in this country, and this feels sort of like nibbling at the edges," Erlich said.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Exeter's Niskanen available for Charlton game
Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell has confirmed Ilmari Niskanen is available for Saturday's game against Charlton Athletic this weekend following his charge of drink driving. In a statement published on Thursday on the club website, Exeter revealed Niskanen was charged with the alleged offence on the A30 near Honiton on 6 February by Devon and Cornwall Police. When asked by BBC Radio Devon whether the 27-year-old Finnish forward could feature for the Grecians at The Valley, Caldwell simply replied, "Yes." Niskanen has been bailed to appear before Exeter Magistrates' Court on 24 February and the club said it is treating the matter "with the utmost gravity". Exeter move a 'no-brainer' - MacDonald Exeter City footballer charged with drink driving Cambridge United 0-1 Exeter City Since the 1-0 win at Cambridge last Saturday, Exeter have been able to enjoy a full week's rest before their trip to Charlton. The game against the U's was their seventh in 28 days and Caldwell said the increased training the Grecians have been able to do has been welcome. "It's been probably needed. We've got a couple of weeks now where we can do some work on the training pitch," the 42-year-old said. "We had it before the (Nottingham) Forest game where we saw the impact that it has when we have time to work with the players for different aspects of our game. "It was more of the same this week. A four-day build-up and a really difficult match at Charlton." No fresh injuries from last weekend is another boost for the former Celtic and Scotland defender, who has 29 players available for the game at Charlton. Caldwell also revealed defender Pierce Sweeney is "two or three" weeks away from returning to selection after recovering from a calf injury. "Our squad's actually quite big at the moment. We're having to make big decisions not just in team selection but in squad as well for people to make the bench," he said. "It's a really good thing for me but a really difficult thing for us to try and pick. "The training becomes more competitive, the competition for places is really good. Exeter are currently 17th in the League One table on 35 points, while play-off chasing Charlton are seventh on 50.
BBC News
21-02-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Exeter's Niskanen available for Charlton game
Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell has confirmed Ilmari Niskanen is available for Saturday's game against Charlton Athletic this weekend following his charge of drink a statement published on Thursday on the club website,, external Exeter revealed Niskanen was charged with the alleged offence on the A30 near Honiton on 6 February by Devon and Cornwall asked by BBC Radio Devon whether the 27-year-old Finnish forward could feature for the Grecians at The Valley, Caldwell simply replied, "Yes."Niskanen has been bailed to appear before Exeter Magistrates' Court on 24 February and the club said it is treating the matter "with the utmost gravity". No midweek games 'needed' for Exeter - Caldwell Since the 1-0 win at Cambridge last Saturday, Exeter have been able to enjoy a full week's rest before their trip to Charlton. The game against the U's was their seventh in 28 days and Caldwell said the increased training the Grecians have been able to do has been welcome."It's been probably needed. We've got a couple of weeks now where we can do some work on the training pitch," the 42-year-old said."We had it before the (Nottingham) Forest game where we saw the impact that it has when we have time to work with the players for different aspects of our game."It was more of the same this week. A four-day build-up and a really difficult match at Charlton."No fresh injuries from last weekend is another boost for the former Celtic and Scotland defender, who has 29 players available for the game at also revealed defender Pierce Sweeney is "two or three" weeks away from returning to selection after recovering from a calf injury."Our squad's actually quite big at the moment. We're having to make big decisions not just in team selection but in squad as well for people to make the bench," he said."It's a really good thing for me but a really difficult thing for us to try and pick."The training becomes more competitive, the competition for places is really are currently 17th in the League One table on 35 points, while play-off chasing Charlton are seventh on 50.
