The southern New Mexico congressman said his proposal would target large investors accused of raising rents and neglecting utilities in manufactured housing communities

Organ Mountain News report

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez is urging congressional leaders to include new protections for mobile home residents in a bipartisan housing affordability package moving through Congress.

Vasquez announced Monday that he sent a letter to House leaders and members of the House Financial Services Committee requesting inclusion of his proposed “Keep Mobile Homes Affordable Act” in the broader 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.

The proposal would direct the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to automatically review investors who purchase more than 2,500 mobile homes or mobile home pads to determine whether they are engaging in price gouging or failing to provide basic utilities and services.

“One in six homes in New Mexico is a mobile home,” the release states.

Vasquez argued current housing legislation does not adequately address the role of large institutional investors in manufactured housing communities.

“There is bipartisan agreement from the White House and Congress that American families should own homes, not Wall Street investors,” Vasquez wrote in the letter.

He said residents in communities including Alamogordo and Albuquerque have reported sharp increases in pad rents, unexplained fees and neglected utility services.

According to the release, Vasquez’s proposal comes as House and Senate negotiators work toward a final version of the housing package.

The congressman also highlighted other housing-related legislation and initiatives he has supported, including bills aimed at limiting corporate landlord practices, lowering manufactured housing costs and expanding affordable housing access.