The U.S. Mobile Home Market, State by State

Oregon

Oregon is not one of the largest manufactured-home states by sheer volume, but it is one of the most interesting markets from a legal and seller-value standpoint. The state received about 1,244 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, which is much smaller than powerhouse states like Texas or Florida, but still meaningful for a state with tight land-use controls and severe housing affordability issues. Oregon has roughly 140,000 manufactured homes statewide, representing around 8% of the total housing stock, making manufactured housing one of the state's most important sources of unsubsidized affordable housing. The average manufactured-home owner nationally has a median household income of about $41,500, and Oregon's mobile home market often serves retirees, working-class buyers, rural landowners, and buyers priced out of site-built homes.

Cultural acceptance is mixed: manufactured homes are common in parks and rural areas, but cities and suburbs can still carry stigma and land-use resistance. Oregon's biggest distinguishing feature is its regulatory framework, especially ORS 197.478, which limits local governments from treating manufactured homes differently than site-built homes on residential land inside urban growth boundaries when certain standards are met. The ecosystem is solid but more regional than massive, with active dealers, transporters, park buyers, lenders, and investor capital concentrated around the Willamette Valley, Southern Oregon, and the Portland metro fringe.

Washington

Washington is similar to Oregon in that manufactured housing is important to affordability, but the state is not a top-tier shipment market by Southern-state standards. Washington received about 1,342 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, putting it below the major Sunbelt markets but still ahead of many smaller states. Similar to Oregon, manufactured homes represent about 8% of Washington's housing stock, which is significant in a state facing extreme affordability pressure, especially around Seattle, Tacoma, Vancouver, Spokane, and fast-growing rural counties.

Cultural acceptance is stronger in rural areas than in dense urban markets, but the affordability crisis is making manufactured housing harder for policymakers to ignore. Washington's ecosystem includes manufacturers, dealers, communities, lenders, and a visible state trade association, but the resale market can be complicated by land-lease community rules, park preservation issues, and local zoning differences.

Texas

Texas is arguably the most important manufactured-home state in the country because it combines massive shipment volume, large existing inventory, land availability, and a deep buyer/dealer/lender ecosystem. Texas received about 18,343 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, the highest total in the nation. The state has roughly 776,200 manufactured homes, representing about 6.2% of its housing stock, which is a huge absolute number even though the percentage is lower than some smaller Southern states.

Cultural acceptance is strong in many rural and suburban areas, and manufactured homes are a normal part of the housing landscape across much of the state. The key market distinction is that Texas has huge demand and relatively favorable land conditions, but deed restrictions, local ordinances, utility access, and city zoning still determine whether a specific home can stay, move, or be placed on private land.

Florida

Florida is one of the best states for mobile home sales, resale, park sales, retirement communities, and investor networking. The state received about 7,405 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, second nationally behind Texas. Florida has about 824,400 manufactured homes, the largest estimated inventory in the country, representing roughly 7.8% of its total housing stock.

Using the national manufactured-home-owner median income baseline of about $41,500, Florida's manufactured-home market includes retirees on fixed incomes, seasonal residents, park residents, cash buyers, and people looking for a lower-cost path to ownership in a high-demand state. Cultural acceptance is very high in many parts of Florida because manufactured-home parks, 55+ communities, and land-lease living are deeply established. The ecosystem is extremely strong, with a large network of dealers, park operators, lenders, insurance providers, transporters, installers, and cash buyers. The biggest market-specific issues are hurricane/wind-zone standards, insurance availability, flood zones, lot rent and management fees, 55+ community restrictions, and whether the home is in a co-op, resident-owned community, or private land-lease park.

North Carolina

North Carolina is one of the strongest manufactured-home markets in the country because it combines high shipment volume, high existing inventory, and broad rural acceptance. The state received about 6,768 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, making it the third-largest shipment state that year. North Carolina has about 525,500 manufactured homes, representing about 10.4% of the state's housing stock, which is one of the highest major-state concentrations in the country.

Cultural acceptance is strong, especially outside the largest metros, because manufactured homes are a normal and longstanding part of the rural and small-town housing market. The ecosystem is strong, with dealers, manufacturers, movers, lenders, installers, and local buyers who understand both park-owned homes and homes on private land. The biggest state-specific angles are rural land placement, zoning reform, title and real-property classification, storm/wind-zone considerations in coastal areas, and the difference between selling a home in a park versus selling one already attached to land.

South Carolina

South Carolina is a high-density manufactured-home state with strong cultural acceptance and a large affordability-driven buyer pool. The state received about 5,397 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, putting it among the top five shipment states nationally. Manufactured housing accounts for roughly 12% to 13% of South Carolina's housing stock, making it one of the most manufactured-home-concentrated states in the country.

Using the national manufactured-home-owner median income baseline of about $41,500, the market is heavily driven by affordability, rural land use, family land, and buyers who want affordable living without site-built-home pricing. Cultural acceptance is high in many rural and small-town areas, although some municipalities and subdivisions still use zoning, design standards, or deed restrictions to limit placement. The ecosystem is strong for a state its size, with active dealers, retailers, movers, lenders, installers, and professional buyers serving both park homes and homes on land.

Alabama

Alabama is one of the country's most important manufactured-home states because it is both a major shipment destination and a major production state. Alabama received about 5,744 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, ranking fourth nationally for shipments. Manufactured housing represents roughly 12% to 13% of Alabama's housing stock, giving the state one of the highest manufactured-home shares in the country.

Cultural acceptance is high, especially in rural counties where manufactured homes are common and not viewed as unusual. The ecosystem is very strong because Alabama has manufacturers, retailers, installers, state-level regulation, transporters, lenders, and a large base of buyers familiar with the product.

New Jersey

New Jersey is not a high-volume manufactured-home state, but it is a valuable market because it shows how manufactured housing functions in a dense, expensive, land-constrained state. New Jersey received only about 299 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, making it one of the lowest-shipment states in the country, and manufactured homes represented only about 2.0% of new single-family housing activity that year. The state has roughly 33,600 manufactured homes, representing slightly less than 1% of New Jersey's total housing stock, so inventory is scarce compared with states like Florida, Texas, North Carolina, or California.

Using the national manufactured-home-owner median income baseline of about $41,500, New Jersey manufactured-home ownership is especially important because it may be one of the few remaining lower-cost ownership options in a state with very high site-built housing prices. Cultural acceptance is mixed: manufactured homes are not common statewide, but New Jersey does have an established manufactured-home community market, especially in coastal and southern counties like Atlantic, Ocean, Monmouth, Cape May, Burlington, Cumberland, and Warren. The ecosystem is smaller and more specialized than in the Sunbelt, with fewer dealers and lower shipment volume, but demand inside existing communities appears tight; a Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia report found only 8 of 268 New Jersey manufactured-housing communities had high lot vacancy, suggesting very few communities experience severely depressed demand. The key New Jersey issues are land scarcity, local zoning, park rules, coastal/seasonal communities, age-restricted communities, lot rent, title and leasehold issues, and whether a manufactured home is being sold in place inside a community rather than moved to private land.

Arizona

Arizona is one of the most important manufactured-home states from a park, retirement, and city-level inventory standpoint, even though its statewide shipment volume is smaller than the Southeast giants. Arizona received about 2,192 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, and the state is especially notable because Mesa, Phoenix, and Tucson are among the strongest city-level manufactured-home markets in the country. Mesa alone has about 29,300 manufactured homes, making it one of the largest manufactured-home cities in the United States.

Using the national manufactured-home-owner median income baseline of about $41,500, Arizona's market is heavily influenced by retirees, fixed-income buyers, snowbirds, and working households priced out of conventional homes in fast-growing desert metros. Cultural acceptance is strong in many designated manufactured-home communities, especially in retirement-oriented areas, but placement is still controlled by zoning districts, park rules, and utility/site conditions. The ecosystem is strong around Phoenix, Mesa, Tucson, and retirement corridors, with dealers, park buyers, lenders, movers, installers, and community operators familiar with both older mobile homes and newer HUD-code manufactured homes.

California

California is not the easiest manufactured-home market, but it is one of the most valuable to cover because the affordability gap is massive. California received about 2,813 new manufactured-home shipments in 2024, which is modest relative to its population but still a meaningful number of new units. The state has about 507,800 manufactured homes, representing about 3.4% of its housing stock, so the percentage is low but the absolute inventory is huge.

With the national manufactured-home-owner median income baseline of about $41,500, California manufactured housing serves buyers who are often completely priced out of site-built ownership, especially in coastal and metro-adjacent markets. Cultural acceptance is mixed: manufactured-home parks are a critical affordability resource, but zoning resistance, land scarcity, park closures, rent control, and local politics make the market complicated. The ecosystem is large but highly regulated, with specialized dealers, park brokers, lenders, community operators, transporters, installers, attorneys, and resident-advocacy groups.

Thinking About Selling a Mobile Home?

Wherever your home sits in the mobile home market, selling one isn't always as simple as a normal real estate sale. Title questions, park approvals, back lot rent, foreclosure pressure, financing complications, or an inherited home sitting on private land can all slow a sale down. Inked Real Estate is a direct buyer that keeps the buying process simple: a fair cash offer, no agent commissions, and removal and home installation logistics handled for homes on private land. If you're weighing your options in the Portland metro or Southwest Washington — whatever your home's age, condition, or price range — reach out and we'll walk you through what a sale could look like.