ORLANDO, Fla. – A new piece of affordable housing legislation aims to push back against investors while helping residents purchase and own their manufactured‑home communities.
U.S. Representative Maxwell Frost, along with other lawmakers, announced the proposal Friday, calling it a step toward restoring stability for working families struggling with rising housing costs.
The congressman says the act could give people “a fair chance” at stable housing — something he believes many Americans need right now.
“We’re here today because one of America’s most accessible and affordable paths of homeownership is slipping away from working families — manufactured home communities,” said Frost.
The proposal, titled “Promoting Residential Ownership of Manufactured Home Communities Act,” is designed to give residents more opportunities to purchase and own the communities where they live.
Frost says mobile homes have long served as a stable and low-cost housing option, but that reality is changing.
“But increasingly these communities are being targeted by both greedy landlords and by Wall Street investors, leading to rising rents, deteriorating conditions, and displacement,” Frost said.
For months, News 6 has highlighted how large companies and investment firms have purchased mobile home parks across Central Florida — often raising lot fees and pricing out longtime residents.
“Year after year, these equity firms are raising the lot price where they are unable to afford it,” said Orange County Commissioner Mayra Uribe.
The legislation aims to help residents build wealth and maintain long-term housing stability in the face of those rising costs.
“We’re in a country where increasingly there are so few that have so much, and so many of our people who have so little,” Frost added.
Still, the proposal faces uncertainty on Capitol Hill. With Democrats currently in the minority, passing the bill could prove challenging.
Frost, however, remains optimistic about bipartisan support.
“My hope is it will be bipartisan. Like I said, this isn’t a Democratic thing — this is a people thing,” he said.
As housing affordability continues to be a growing concern, supporters say the bill represents a potential pathway to keeping residents in their homes — and giving them a stronger stake in their communities.