I'm HOME 2026 Conference (Detroit, MI) -- Key Takeaways

I’m HOME 2026 Conference in Detroit, Michigan, September 16-17, 2026, brought together industry professionals, researchers, policymakers, advocates, philanthropists, consultants, and owners and residents in an inspiring convening covering many angles and advancements of factory-built housing as infill development.

Modular Home Development at North Corktown neighborhood in Detroit, MI

Market & Finance

Factory-built housing (manufactured and modular) is growing across single- and multi-family segments, however, number of challenges remain. Rachel Siegel, Pew Charitable Trusts; Grant Beck, Next Step Network; Laura Abernathy and David Sanchez, ROC USA; authors of the State Policy Playbook for Manufactured Homes, opened the conference with their strategies for increasing the supply, financing, and preservation of manufactured housing within the context of the  21^st Century ROAD to Housing Act. Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream, aka “ROAD”, offers more opportunities for growth for manufactured and modular housing, though implementation is contingent on federal rulemaking, state/local policy changes, and significant appropriations. Capital remains a limiting factor. According to Detroit’s own very successful developer and modular factory owner, Amin Irving, CEO of Ginosko, developers still need creative capital stacking for multi-family deals. Many industry experts highlighted their partnerships with state housing finance agencies (HFAs) and local governments, who play a supportive but underfunded role in helping factory-built housing projects pencil out.

Cost & Production Realities

Modular delivers more modest savings than manufactured housing, though both typically undercut site-built costs — savings that can erode quickly with customization (“extras” like basements, garages, and solar). The modular factory pipeline itself carries real risk. It is hard to scale the industry without stable factories and stable pipelines. Site prep and infrastructure costs can be substantial. Infill sites are heterogeneous and their complexity can be challenging. As Tyler Pullen, Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkely, phrased it: "Every project is a pilot," so projects may fail to deliver on-schedule or cost, but the engineering and materials do not fail.

Regulatory Bottleneck

The core scaling barrier is local, not technological: local building code variations, site and project variations, building codes lagging technical advances, understaffed building departments, costly permits, and lengthy permit delays — including redundant permitting for already-approved plan-book homes. As Chris Nicely, Lane Associates Founder, asked a rapt audience in the “CrossMod® & Attainable Homeownership” breakout session, “Who is not here?” Aside from Detroit City Council Member Scott Benson, District 3; Michigan State Housing Development Authority's (MSHDA) Chief Housing Investment Officer, Tony Lentych; Michigan State Senator John D. Cherry; and Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, Deputy Director of Building and Fire Regulation, Jeff Brown; local government officials and industry association staff were not in attendance.

Workforce & Delivery Model

Jeremy Potter, True Footage & Next Belt Strategies Founder aptly stated that  factory-built housing is “trying to turn a fragmented housing system into one system.” Per Prof. Philip Agee (Virginia Tech), factory-built housing is shifting an entire work system from one that is craft-based to one that is engineering-based, requiring different skillsets and mindsets. Factory-built housing workforce development programs need to include workforce supports (childcare, laundry, etc.) to maintain worker pipelines. Early outreach to 5th graders will inspire future generations of skilled workers. How about modular and manufactured housing LEGO® projects to create a new generation of factory-built housing builders and developers?

People & Perception Matter

Off-site construction housing projects need resident input for manufactured or modular housing type, design charettes, and neighborhood buy-in. Jenna Louie from Villa Homes, a CA factory-built housing developer, spoke of the power of "Magic bus" tours where local government officials and council members can tour factories, see manufactured and modular housing in person, and form relationships with developers and manufacturers help build buy-in at the local level. CrossMod® homes by Clayton provide the curb appeal desired by many homebuyers and communities, with higher roof pitches, attached garages, and covered porches that help homes match the designs and characters of rural or more upscale neighborhoods.

Manufactured home community (MHC) residents deserve dignity, protection from predatory land-use/park fees, and pro-bono legal support so they don’t get evicted from homes that they own. Photographer Kathleen Tunnell Handel has been documenting the humanity of MHC residents and their home personalization through her moving photography exhibit “Where the heart is.”  Combating stigma with positive case evidence and leveraging positive experiences will help the industry overall.

Bottom line: The technology and cost case for factory-built housing is increasingly proven; the growth ceiling is now set by financing gaps, fragmented local regulation, and the pace of workforce/cultural adaptation — not by engineering. Many thanks to Arica Young, Innovations in Manufactured Homes (I’m HOME) Network, and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy for hosting such an informative and inspiring conference, and personal thanks to Stacey Epperson and the Next Step Network for inviting me to join their vision of and dedication to Manufactured Housing Done Right®.