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Abstract
Mobile homes have become an important source of housing throughout the United States. From 1950 to 1970, their number increased from 315,000 to 2,073,000. By 1979, 4 million households lived in mobile homes, despite setbacks in construction due to the economic downturn of the early seventies. Though the supply of other types of housing has also increased, mobile homes now account for 5 percent of all occupied housing, compared with less than 1 percent in 1950. Mobile home occupancy continues to be more prevalent in rural than in urban areas. Currently, 9 percent of all nonmetro housing is mobile homes, well above the 3 percent in metro areas. But who lives in mobile homes? Where are they located? And, what accounts for their growth in popularity?