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Senator targets corporate owners as complaints surge

• Senator seeks answers from six major investment firms amid rising lot rents and complaints of deteriorating living conditions
• Letters cite growing corporate consolidation in manufactured housing and heightened risks for residents with limited mobility
• Inquiry follows reports of sharp rent increases, alleged retaliation and maintenance failures in communities across New England

U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH), the ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee, is demanding answers from six corporate owners of manufactured housing communities amid mounting concerns about affordability and living conditions for millions of residents.

Hassan sent letters to Alden Global Capital (parent of Homes of America), Patriot Holdings, Philips International, Legacy Communities, the BoaVida Group and Sun Communities, asking each to explain how their business practices are affecting manufactured housing communities in New England. Roughly 22 million Americans live in manufactured homes, commonly located in land-lease communities where residents own their homes but rent the ground beneath them.

Corporate consolidation raises affordability concerns

Hassans letter notes that investment firms have rapidly expanded their ownership of mobile-home parks in recent years, with acquisitions reaching an estimated $9.4 billion in 2021. Between 2019 and 2021, such firms accounted for 23% of manufactured housing community purchases, including properties acquired by Alden Global Capital.

The senator warned that residentswho include significant numbers of seniors, people with disabilities, low-income families, and rural householdshave limited ability to move because manufactured homes are expensive to relocate and often hard to sell. As a result, she said, residents have few if any options when confronted with steep rent hikes, lease changes or other decisions by corporate owners.

Rent hikes far outpace traditional housing

Hassan cited reports showing that rents in manufactured housing communities rose more than five times faster than apartment rents between 2023 and 2024. In Maine, communities owned by the BoaVida Group and Philips International reportedly saw rent increases exceeding 50% since 2021.

Some companies explicitly highlight rent growth as part of their investment strategy. Patriot Holdings, which owns several communities in New England, promotes expected rent increases in line with market demand, which it describes as booming.

The senator also noted recent legal scrutiny: in 2024, Homes of America agreed to repay residents in West Virginia after settling claims over an allegedly unlawful rent increase that plaintiffs called unconscionable.

Allegations of collusion and deteriorating conditions

Beyond rent hikes, Hassan pointed to broader allegations of anticompetitive behavior. A 2023 federal complaint in Illinois accused Sun Communities and others of sharing sensitive, non-public data through a third-party analytics provider to systematically and unlawfully raise lot rents above inflation and historical norms. Attorneys general in Connecticut and Minnesota have launched similar inquiries into investor-owned properties.

Residents have also reported worsening living conditions under some corporate owners. Complaints include insufficient maintenance, staffing cuts, decaying infrastructure, pest infestations, poor water quality and health hazards such as respiratory illness. In New Mexico, residents said Legacy Communities raised rents while allowing property conditions to deteriorate. Similar concerns have been raised at BoaVida and Philips International properties in New England and at Homes of America communities nationwide.

Reports of retaliation and barriers to legal action

Hassan additionally highlighted claims that some firms have sought to intimidate or legally pressure residents who challenge business practices. Residents in West Virginia alleged that Homes of America threatened substantial rent increases unless they waived rights under state law. In another case, the same company reportedly sued a resident for interfering with its contractual relationships after she organized rights-education clinics.

Meanwhile, complex ownership structures and arbitration provisions may hinder residents ability to pursue claims. A study cited by Hassan found that some firms use onerous arbitration clauses that raise costs and reduce procedural protections, while multiple shell companies often obscure who actually owns a community. The Government Accountability Office has similarly warned that ownership information for manufactured housing communities is often limited or opaque.

Inquiry aims to inform congressional oversight

Hassan said the requested information will help Congress better understand how corporate consolidation is affecting affordability and safety in a critical segment of the nations housing stock. Given this impact on our economy and the pressing need to increase access to safe, reliable housing that people can afford, I seek more information on your business practices, she wrote.

The six companies have been asked to respond to the committee with detailed information about their rent-setting practices, ownership structures, maintenance policies and procedures for addressing resident complaints.

Climate deception alleged as insurance costs spike

Washington homeowners file first lawsuit linking climate deception to rising insurance premiums
Class action seeks to hold major oil companies liable for climate-driven insurance costs
Case claims decades of misinformation fueled a crisis now hitting consumers wallets

Two Washington state homeowners who have watched their insurance premiums surge in recent years have filed a groundbreaking federal lawsuit aimed at holding major oil companies responsible for climate-driven increases in home insurance costs.

The caseKennedy v. Exxon et al., filed last week in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washingtonargues that decades of deception by fossil fuel companies about the dangers of burning oil and gas have accelerated climate change. That, in turn, the suit says, has helped create a home-insurance crisis marked by skyrocketing rates and shrinking availability in high-risk areas.

Washington homeowners have seen rates rise 51% in six years. For plaintiff Richard Kennedy of Normandy Park, premiums have more than doubled since 2017, climbing from $1,012 to $2,149. Co-plaintiff Margaret Hazard of Carson has seen a similar jump. Their suit seeks class-action status for all homeowners who have purchased insurance after 2017 in Washingtonand potentially nationwide.

Extreme weather drives insurers to retreat

Federal data suggests the trend is broad and accelerating. A January report from the Treasury Departments Federal Insurance Office found that average home insurance premiums grew nearly 9% faster than inflation from 2018 to 2022 as storms, floods and wildfires intensified.

As climate-related disasters multiply, insurers are absorbing higher losses and pricing the added risk into their ratesor pulling back from high-risk markets altogether. Insurance really is the bleeding edge right now of the climate crisis, said Aaron Regunberg of Public Citizens climate accountability project.

Suit claims oil companies ran Big Tobacco playbook

The lawsuit accuses ExxonMobil, BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Shell and its subsidiary Equilon Enterprises, along with the American Petroleum Institute (API), of engaging in a coordinated, decades-long campaign to sow doubt about climate science, obstruct climate policies and mislead the public about the oil industrys role in warming the planet.

The companies have collectively generated $2.4 trillion in profits since 1990, according to the complaint. Plaintiffs argue those profits were protected by delaying the transition to clean energy while consumers now shoulder the economic fallout.

The complaint cites federal claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, as well as state claims including fraudulent misrepresentation, civil conspiracy, unjust enrichment, nuisance and violations of the Washington Consumer Protection Act.

Steve Berman of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLPlead counsel for the plaintiffs and a veteran of major tobacco litigationsaid the fossil fuel industry took its playbook directly from Big Tobacco and forced homeowners to pay for climate damages the companies helped cause.

Industry dismisses allegations as baseless

API senior vice president and general counsel Ryan Meyers called the case baseless and part of a coordinated campaign against an industry that powers everyday life. Meyers said climate policy belongs in Congress, not in a patchwork of courtrooms. Major oil companies contacted by Inside Climate News did not respond.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), a frequent critic of the industrys climate record, said higher premiums are a direct result of the fossil fuel sectors decades-long campaign of disinformation. He warned of a looming Great Climate Insurance Collapse that could trigger widespread declines in property values.

A new legal front with national implications

Legal scholars say the suit opens another significant front in the growing wave of climate accountability litigation brought by states, cities, tribes and now individuals. Michael Gerrard of Columbia University noted it may be difficult to quantify exactly how deception worsened climate impacts, but said the link between climate change and higher insurance premiums is clear.

The Washington case follows a series of recent filings, including a first-of-its-kind wrongful death claim in Washington last spring tied to the 2021 heat dome. It also comes after a federal court in Puerto Rico dismissed a similar racketeering-based climate case on procedural groundsan issue Berman says his case avoids because the harm is newly caused.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court is considering whether to take up a petition from oil companies seeking to halt a climate deception case out of Boulder, Coloradoa move that could reshape more than two dozen related cases nationwide. The justices are expected to discuss the petition on Dec. 12.

Rising risks, rising stakes

Experts warn that climate-driven insurance instability poses broad financial dangers that extend beyond homeowners. Pat Parenteau, an emeritus professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School, likened the situation to the run-up to the 2007-08 financial crisis. Without insurance, he noted, buyers cannot obtain mortgages, property values fall and defaults multiply.

Climate breakdown is causing a cascade of disasters, including an insurance crisis that threatens another financial meltdown, Parenteau said. The damages are real and provable.

As the climate warms and the insurance market strains, the Washington lawsuit may become a key test of whether courts will hold fossil fuel companies financially accountable for climate-related consumer harmsa question with stakes running far beyond the plaintiffs premium bills.

Its a follow-up to the Thanksgiving weekend civility push

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• $1 billion initiative aims to make airports easier and healthier for families

• Federal officials highlight need for kid-friendly spaces, nursing rooms, and better screening options

• Effort builds on Secretary Duffys Thanksgiving push for more civil, compassionate air travel

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy has introduced a new initiative designed to make American airports friendlier for families, expanding on the Make Travel Family Friendly Again campaign he previewed during his Thanksgiving weekend call for more civil air travel.

The announcement comes as airports prepare for one of the busiest travel seasons of the year and as public frustration over the difficulties of traveling with children continues to grow.

At the center of the effort is a $1 billion federal investment to incentivize airports to create more family-centric spaces and services. The funding can be used for a wide range of improvements, including childrens play zones, exercise areas, dedicated family screening lanes, mothers rooms or nursing pods, and sensory rooms designed to support children with special needs.

Duffy emphasized that airports will have flexibility to propose creative terminal projects that meaningfully improve the travel experience for parents and kids alike.

Public-private effort

The campaign launch brought together federal leaders and private-sector partners, including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nutrition specialist Dr. Paul Saladino, content creator and young mother Isabel Brown, and Farmers Fridge founder Luke Saunders. Their presence underscored the administrations broader goal: pairing infrastructure upgrades with expanded access to healthy, convenient food options in terminals nationwide.

Bringing about a Golden Age in travel has to involve making the family travel experience happier and healthier, Duffy said.

Kennedy echoed that message, arguing that fresh, whole foods should be as accessible during a long layover as they are at home.

Healthy eating is part of daily life

Secretary Duffy and I are working to ensure our airports set the standard for a future where healthy eating is part of daily lifetravel days included, Kennedy said.

The agencies pointed to the rising popularity of grab-and-go healthy vending options, such as Farmers Fridge, as evidence that travelers are eager for better food choices. They urged airport operators to seize the moment by expanding partnerships and rethinking outdated concession models.

The initiative builds on Duffys recent holiday-travel messaging, in which he urged airlines, airports, and passengers to take steps toward making air travel more courteous and humane.

In a rural area, it can take a long time

By Mark Huffman of ConsumerAffairs

• Most pet owners can book vet appointments fairly quickly, a new study shows.

• But rural pet owners face longer waits and farther drives for basic veterinary care.

• Researchers say boosting the veterinary workforce could help close the gap.

A new multi-state study suggests that while most dog owners can get timely veterinary appointments, access to care drops sharply in rural communities, revealing a growing concern for pet health, owners well-being, and even public health.

Access to veterinary care appears to be generally pretty good and the wait times arent too long, particularly if you compare it to how long people often have to wait to establish primary care, said Simon Haeder, lead author and associate professor at Ohio States College of Public Health. But theres clearly room for improvement in less populated areas. The findings were published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Secret shoppers reveal uneven access

To measure real-world availability, researchers posed as dog owners and called more than 5,000 randomly selected veterinary practices across California, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington in early 2025.

Overall, callers were able to secure an appointment 67% of the time. When unsuccessful, it was usually because no one answered or callers were left on hold for more than five minutes, long enough to count as a failed attempt in the study. In nearly 4% of cases, clinics reported they were not accepting new patients.

Among successful appointments, wait times averaged 6.4 days, and the typical travel distance was also 6.4 miles, suggesting most pet owners dont have to go far or wait long for routine care.

Rural pet owners face steeper challenges

The picture changed dramatically in rural communities:

• Appointment success rate dropped to less than 62%

• Average wait time increased to 8.6 days

• Average travel distance more than doubled to 13 miles

These barriers could leave pets without timely preventive care or treatmentissues that can snowball into more serious health problems for animals and financial or emotional strain for their owners.

Haeder notes that after cost, access is the most common concern among pet owners. Delayed or inconsistent care doesnt only affect petsit can have wider public health implications, especially when it comes to vaccine-preventable diseases like rabies.

When pets dont receive prompt preventive care, diagnoses and treatment, both the pets and their owners suffer, Haeder said. And gaps in access can pose broader public health threats.

Potential solutions on the horizon

Efforts to expand the veterinary workforce may help narrow the rural gap. Ohio States College of Veterinary Medicine is part of a new statewide initiative, Protect One Health in Ohio, aimed at strengthening the veterinary workforce, safeguarding public health, and supporting the agricultural economy.

In a recent companion paper, college leaders outlined plans to train more veterinarians specifically to serve rural areas, where shortages are most pronounced.

As pet ownership continues to rise and rural communities struggle to attract veterinary professionals, the researchers suggest that expanding training programs could play a major role in ensuring all pets whether in cities or quiet farm towns receive the care they need.