Maine’s manufactured-home communities are facing a crisis that municipalities can no longer afford to ignore. These parks represent our state’s last remaining “naturally affordable” housing, yet residents are being squeezed by steep, unregulated rent hikes and predatory utility fees.

When towns fail to adopt basic protections, like rent stabilization, the consequences fall directly on taxpayers. As housing costs outpace wages, more households are forced to rely on General Assistance.

We are essentially using local tax dollars to subsidize the profits of out-of-state equity firms. The issue is “economic leakage.”

In Saco, for example, Blue Haven is majority-owned by a California-based nonprofit. Profits generated by Maine residents are extracted to the West Coast rather than circulating back into our local economy or infrastructure. When these firms refuse to reinvest in the parks they own, the burden of deferred maintenance and social instability eventually shifts to the municipal budget.

This is more than a housing crisis; it is an economic drain. Maine towns have a choice: implement reasonable guardrails now or continue absorbing the financial fallout of inaction. Our neighbors are already feeling the strain. If we don’t act, our municipal budgets will be next. It is time for local leaders to prioritize community stability over out-of-state profit extraction.

Kathryn Dobbins
President, Blue Haven Resident Committee
Saco