3,513 New HUD-Code Homes Shipped in
December 2012 – Down 8.5 Percent from December 2011

MHI’s Monthly Economic Report© for December 2012 is now available.

In December 2012, 3,513 new manufactured homes were shipped, down 8.5 percent from December 2011. Decreases were across the board with both single section and multi-section home shipments down compared with the same month last year.

In comparison with the previous year, 2012 recorded shipment increases every month from January through August. September marked the first month of a decline in shipments with the downward trend continuing for the remainder of the year (see note below). Industry shipments for 2012 were 54,891 homes compared with 51,606 homes in the previous year, a net increase of 6.4 percent. A total of 5,462 floors were shipped in December, a decrease of 7.2 percent compared with December 2011.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of shipments was 53,430 in December 2012, down 3.4 percent from the November 2012 pace of 55,289 homes. The SAAR corrects for normal seasonal variations in shipments and projects annual shipments based on the current monthly total.

The number of plants reporting production in December was 123 and the number of active corporations was 45, both unchanged from the prior month.

Note: The purchase of approximately 1,735 manufactured homes by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2011 contributed to the relative reduction in industry shipments and production figures for the current month. The dip in activity is particularly pronounced in states that had significant sales of homes to FEMA in December of last year. Excluding the FEMA purchases, the industry shipped 49,871 homes in 2011. Therefore, the 2012 shipment total of 54,891 represents a 5,020 home or 10% year-over-year increase.