Future of M/H Industry

[wideload]

I would like to see what you could find out about Warren Buffet buying in the M/H Industry and what plans his Corporation has for the industry for the future.

Is he going to be sole owner of it all??

[rmurray]

Interesting question...Mr. Buffets company Berkshire Hathaway is Huge..The Manufactured home and RV sections are nearly insignificant to his overall success..I doubt Mr. Buffet himself gives the industry very much thought...His company basically buys quality management...His first factory home purchase was Clayton Industries which owns Vanderbilt Mortgage, 21st mortgage and all of Clayton Homes..Since Clayton bought the bones of the bankrupt Oakwood Homes and recently Southern Energy Homes..You can find links to Berkshire Holdings here...Most of the companies listed are far larger than Clayton and most times better known http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/subs/sublinks.html

I think the answer to your question lies with Kevin Clayton the CEO of Clayton industies..The financial statements of Berkshire are public....Last 1/4 revenue was in the 38 Billion range..Manufactrured Homes and financial services less than 500 Million..Of course you could buy a share of stock and all public statements will be mailed to you.....The stock closed Friday at $ 109,450 per share up $ 400 for the day...

In todays market there are probably more than a few companies whose investors are hoping for an offer...Fleetwood, Cavalier, Palm Harbor, Champion are just a few whose investors have not done very well in the last few years...

[Sylvia]

As an employee of a Berkshire Hathaway company and a shareholder (B shares), I have great interest in watching what "Uncle Warren" does. His basic philosphy is simple. Buy companies that are undervalued and have great customer service and low operating costs. I'm sure he's more interested in the profile of the Clayton company than of the product it produces which happens to be manufactured homes.

[admin]

Super-investor Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway has been investing in manufactured housing, buying Tennessee-based Clayton Homes, and investing heavily in others sectors of our industry. While Clayton has purchased some of their former competitors most of the acquisitions were companies that probably would have gone out of business or been absorbed by a different competitor. There are many other builders across the country that, while not breaking any records at the moment, have strong incomes, distribution networks and long term business plans.

Industry observer John Grissim tells us "few manufacturers build homes for every sector and price point; rather, they choose a market niche and carefully assemble a formula of construction features and specifications that together yield homes competitively priced for that niche, typically at two or three price points." Grissim's Ratings Guide includes 79 existing U.S. builders and more than 300 brands and series described. I dont see the day coming when Mr. Buffet will want to own all of them.

The current national disenchantment with housing could be a huge opportunity for manufactured home builders. Much of the reason for the current decline in housing sales is not because people have forgotten the American Dream of home ownership. It is because first prices and now interest rates have gone higher and higher, leaving the average buyer unable to afford participation in the great dream.

"THE MANUFACTURED home industry accepts boom and bust cycles, in the same way the people of Southeast Asia accept monsoons and flooding. Both groups maintain a certainty that one day the rains will cease, and they will begin the familiar rituals: burying the dead, cleaning up the mud, and rebuilding." (Matthew Power, BUILDER Magazine May 2004)

Today's Manufactured Housing, with its heavier construction standards and better overall quality control may become the answer that many are searching for. These new standards have given a much needed credibility boost to the industry and will continue to make our homes highly desirable to a greater segment of the home buyers market.

I'm betting with Warren, that the future of this business will show better and better results, in product and profit.