Senator launches probe of investment groups buying up trailer parks

A new Senate probe of investment firms heavily invested in mobile home parks.

The top Senate Democrat on the congressional Joint Economic Committee launched a new probe Monday into investment firms that hold large stakes in mobile home parks.

Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire has asked six firms to produce internal documents and materials showing the impact their business practices have had on mobile home residents and the profits their investments have generated.

About 22 million people in the U.S. live in mobile home communities across the country, and in recent years, investment companies and private equity firms have bought up many of the parks.

The firms that received letters include some of the biggest players in the industry: Alden Global Capital, owner of Homes of America; the BoaVida Group; Legacy Communities; Patriot Holdings; Philips International; and Sun Communities.

Hassan has also requested information about lease agreements, rents and fees charged, evictions, maintenance and repair histories, numbers of complaints filed by residents and settlements of lawsuits with residents.