U.S. States Investing Most in Manufactured Housing [2024 Edition]

Note: This is the most recent release of our U.S. States Investing Most in Manufactured Housing study. To see data from previous years, please visit the Full Results section below.

After over two years of elevated real estate prices, mortgage rates, and rents, the housing affordability crisis in the U.S. is more apparent than ever. Policymakers, economic experts, and regular U.S. households have been searching for tools to alleviate the pressure of housing costs. Expanding manufactured housing is one possible solution.

The category of manufactured housing includes housing units that are prefabricated in a factory and then transported to their ultimate destinations. Because these units tend to have simple designs and materials that make them efficient to produce, they are often significantly less expensive than site-built homes. A 2023 report from the Manufactured Housing Institute found the average cost per square foot of a manufactured home was $87, roughly half of the $166 cost per square foot of a site-built home.

For lower- and middle-income families, this more affordable option has significant appeal. Currently, 21.2 million Americans live in manufactured homes, and manufactured homes represent around one out of every 10 new homes constructed in the U.S. each year. Further, the quality of manufactured homes has increased as well, with better materials, greater energy efficiency, and improved designs.

Manufactured Housing Shipments Over Time

After reaching a new high in 2022, manufactured housing shipments have dropped significantly

After plummeting during the onset of the pandemic, manufactured home shipments rose to an annual rate of 123,000 in March 2022, more than doubling over the course of a decade. However, the landscape shifted dramatically as elevated mortgage interest rates and persistent inflation took hold, leading to a significant drop in shipments. By March 2023, shipments had fallen by a third compared to the prior year. Although shipments have gradually rebounded as inflation has eased, the annual shipment rate of approximately 104,000 in July 2024 remains approximately 15% below the March 2022 peak.

PROPERTY INSURANCE

While homeowner’s insurance will cover residential buildings like manufactured housing, commercial property insurance covers buildings owned or leased by businesses.

Manufactured vs. Site-Built Housing Costs

While far less expensive, manufactured homes have experienced similar price increases as site-built homes

The average sale price of manufactured homes in 2023 was $124,300. For context, Zillow pegs the median home value in the United States at slightly over $362,000. While manufactured homes remain relatively low-cost, the growing demand for housing has pushed prices higher in recent years. Since 2014, the average sale price of a manufactured home has grown by 83.0%, while the average price across all homes climbed 94.6%. For both manufactured and site-built homes, most of this growth occurred in 2020 and 2021, before plateauing in 2022 amid rising interest rates.

Manufactured Housing Shipments by State

Manufactured housing is most popular in the South

RELATED

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Manufactured housing varies in popularity across the U.S., but the South stands out for its affinity for manufactured homes. Fast-growing, high-population southern states like Texas and Florida rank among the top states for total manufactured home shipments. But as a share of all new single-family homes, top locations include lower-income states like Mississippi, Kentucky, and Louisiana, whose residents may be more drawn to manufactured homes as an affordable option. Alabama stands out for its high ranking in both categories. It ranks third for total manufactured housing shipments and fourth for manufactured housing as a share of all new single-family housing.

Below is a complete breakdown of all 50 states. The report was produced by researchers at Construction Coverage. The researchers analyzed the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau and Zillow. For more information, see the methodology section.

States With the Most New Manufactured Homes

Top States	Total*
1. Texas	15,073
2. Florida	7,364
3. Alabama	5,497
4. North Carolina	5,154
5. South Carolina	4,077
6. Louisiana	3,930
7. Georgia	3,875
8. Michigan	3,300
9. Kentucky	2,994
10. California	2,951
11. Tennessee	2,946
12. Mississippi	2,876
13. Arizona	2,213
14. Oklahoma	2,064
15. Indiana	1,891

Bottom States	Total*
1. Hawaii	0
2. Alaska	13
3. Rhode Island	26
4. Vermont	160
5. Connecticut	190
6. Massachusetts	195
7. Wyoming	214
8. North Dakota	230
9. Nebraska	234
10. Utah	236
11. Maryland	248
12. Montana	327
13. Delaware	344
14. South Dakota	346
15. New Hampshire	350

*Total manufactured home shipments

States With the Highest Percentage of New Manufactured Homes

Top States	Share**
1. Mississippi	28.7%
2. Kentucky	27.7%
3. Louisiana	25.9%
4. Alabama	25.2%
5. West Virginia	21.2%
6. Michigan	18.6%
7. Oklahoma	16.7%
8. New Mexico	15.9%
9. Maine	15.5%
10. Arkansas	14.6%
11. New York	14.0%
12. North Dakota	13.3%
13. Wyoming	13.1%
14. Montana	12.6%
15. Vermont	10.9%

Bottom States	Share**
1. Hawaii	0.0%
2. Utah	1.6%
3. Alaska	2.1%
4. Maryland	2.3%
5. Idaho	2.8%
6. New Jersey	3.0%
7. Colorado	3.3%
8. Nevada	3.4%
9. Rhode Island	3.5%
10. Massachusetts	3.7%
11. Minnesota	4.6%
12. Nebraska	4.8%
13. California	4.8%
14. Virginia	4.9%
15. Florida	5.5%

**Manufactured homes as a share of all new single-family homes

Methodology

The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Manufactured Housing Survey (MHS), the U.S. Census Bureau’s Building Permits Survey, and Zillow’s Home Value Index. To determine the states investing most in manufactured housing, researchers at Construction Coverage calculated the total manufactured home shipments as a share of all new single-family homes in 2023 (the sum of manufactured home shipments and single-family housing units authorized by building permits). In the event of a tie, the state with the greater total manufactured home shipments was ranked higher.

References

U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. (2024, July 24). Average Sales Price of Houses Sold for the United States [Data set]. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/ASPUS.
Freddie Mac. (2024, August 8). 30-Year Fixed Rate Mortgage Average in the United States [Data set]. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/MORTGAGE30US.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2023, August 14). Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Rent of Primary Residence in U.S. City Average [Data set]. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CUUR0000SEHA.
Manufactured Housing Institute. (2024, August 14). About Manufactured Homes. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://www.manufacturedhousing.org/about-manufactured-homes/.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2023). Manufactured Housing Survey [Data set]. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/mhs.html.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2023). Building Permits Survey [Data set]. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://www.census.gov/construction/bps/index.html.
Zillow. (2023). Home Value Index [Data set]. Retrieved on September 11, 2024 from https://www.zillow.com/research/data/.

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