Mobile Homes During Tough Times?

With everything happening in the world, it is human nature to feel nervous and motivated to do something. But this is really when I fight the instincts that are screaming, “Do something today, the Markets are crashing.”

This letter is about taking the time to analyze situations and investments to, in most cases, do nothing.

Whatever plan you had before the current wars, oil prices, gold prices and stock market declines should continue. In my case, it’s about finding great investments.

Here is my current investment mix that let’s me sleep at night:

Cash, Gold, Land, Real Estate Rentals, Selected Publicly Traded Stocks, Small Businesses, Solar, Private Debt and an Angle Investment Fund I started some 7 years ago. I am not a financial advisor, so make sure you talk to your advisor before you make any changes or investment decisions. 

You will notice that when you use the app, you can now copy and save a summary of the analysis. It is dated, so you can keep it for your records and compare later. When you download three years of financials and analyze a company, it’s great to be able to save that work.

You are given a summary option for all analyses. Here is my analysis of the 3 stocks for this month.

One of my deep dives focuses on Flagship Communities, a Canadian REIT that owns mobile home parks and land in the United States.

I first started looking at it a few years ago but was turned off by the fact that management had a number of close personal relationships with some of their trades, at the time, trailer sales companies. The leadership also had some private companies doing work for the REIT.

It was a new public listing, so those not in arm's-length relationships are not unusual, I was told. A bit like owning a building and having your brother do the landscaping. Doesn’t matter when it’s your own private real estate investment company, but once you go public, you have an obligation to shareholders to get the best service and price possible from your landscaping contractor. Are you going to negotiate tough with your brother? It’s wrong on many levels, in my opinion, and screams more problems ahead.

Here is what I pulled from a recent annual financial report:

“For the three and six months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, the REIT was billed for services provided by related parties that included HVAC, paving/concrete repair and landscape services. These amounts are capitalized to investment property on the consolidated statements of financial position or expensed to the appropriate expense account, including property operating expense, general and administrative expense, or finance costs from operations, on the consolidated statements of net income and comprehensive income. As at June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, the REIT had total accounts payable and accrued liabilities due to related parties of $396 and $493, respectively.

The following table breaks out billings for each related party.

1 Entity is 50% owned by the REIT’s Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and Chief Investment Officer (“CIO”). The managing member is a non-related party. The entity provides HVAC services to various properties, including the installation of new air conditioning units and the maintenance of existing systems

2 Entity is 100% owned by the brother of the REIT’s CEO. It provides landscaping and construction services to various properties.

3 Entity is wholly owned by the REIT’s CEO and CIO. It acquires and develops MHCs that do not meet the REIT’s investment criteria, sells manufactured homes located on the REIT’s investment properties, and conducts home sales to the REIT for use in its rental fleet. The REIT has agreed to pay floor plan interest on homes located on its investment properties and reimburse Empower for any losses incurred from home sales within those properties.

I worked on the AskHank.money application, so it was better at pulling out the smell of not-at-arms-length relationships for you. For me, it is not only an issue of profits being sucked out, but also of integrity. I will never invest if I feel that someone running a public company is greasing their own pockets at my expense. I don’t think you should either. So, in the reports in the Appendix, you will see an expanded version of that stink test. Flagship fails.

The other issue you will see below is the share dilution. Going down into the basement to print some more shares also bothers me. I can’t even put this one on my follow list. You are the judge. (See Appendix 1 for full askhank.money analysis).

Recently, the Ontario Government announced it would again seek software to link all healthcare services in the province. Governments and humans in general seem to have a short memory on failure. In 2009, the Ontario government wasted $1 billion to develop an e-health software network. From 2023 to 2024, extortion of medical records was used to target hospitals and other Ontario healthcare facilities. Some $480 million was reported lost due to those ransomware attacks and to government software with inadequate security. So, with their announcement the other day, the government is starting to open conversations with companies that could “help”.

Well Health Technologies is one of those companies. I put them through the Ask Hank method, and they aren’t a company I’d invest in. They are also starting to stink. You’ll see the analysis in Appendix 2.

A company I started accumulating is Enghouse Systems Limited. You will see the full Hank Analysis in Appendix 3. It pays a juicy 7.7% dividend, has no debt, is buying back shares, and has been hammered recently because of AI risks. It also passes all levels of my Stink Test. I asked the software to do a deep dive on the stink test again after the first report. Sometimes, Ask Hank. Money doesn’t comb as deeply as I want it to. You will see in the report how it was corrected. I am accumulating this stock on weakness and more AI paranoia. Make sure you tell Ask Hank. Money to do a deep comb stink test on any company you analyze.

To summarize, it seems like a time to do stink tests on the entire portfolio. During difficult times, leadership is a key factor in increasing the chances of survival. I’m going to put all my investments through a deep stink-test analysis over the next few weeks and report back to you. Are any of your investments starting to stink? Let AskHank.money do the work for you.

Appendix 1

Full Hank Analysis – Flagship Communities REIT

Ticker: MHC.U

Share Price Used: $19.71 USD

Financial Statement Currency: USD

Analysis Date: March 13, 2026

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

Flagship Communities REIT owns manufactured housing communities in the United States where residents own the homes and rent the underlying land.

Portfolio includes ~81 manufactured housing communities, 2 RV resorts and 2 commercial properties across Midwest and Appalachian markets.

HANK 5 GROWTH FACTORS

Revenue

2023: ~$71M

2024: ~$88M

2025: ~$101M

Estimated CAGR: ~19–20%

Net Income

2023: ~$65M

2024: ~$103M

2025: ~$96M

Note: includes property fair‑value gains.

Owner Cash Flow (Proxy)

Operating cash flow 2024: ~$52M

Cash flow per unit: ~$2.70

Dividend

2023: $0.59

2024: $0.62

2025: $0.654

Book Value

2023: ~$436M

2024: ~$585M

2025: ~$646M

KEY HANK METRICS

Units Outstanding: 19,402,056

Market Capitalization: ~$382M

Price-to-Book: 0.59

Hank Cap Rate: ~13.7%

Payback Years: ~7.3

Dividend Yield: ~3.3%

Dividend Coverage: Strong

BALANCE SHEET

Assets: ~$1.23B

Debt: ~$449M

Debt Ratio: ~37%

Mortgage Interest Rate: ~4.3–4.5%

RELATED‑PARTY / GOVERNANCE REVIEW

Call Now HVAC

Insider‑linked vendor providing HVAC installation and service.

Payments:

2022: $421k

2023: $464k

2025 YTD: ~$536k

Assessment: Needs monitoring.

BG3 Landscaping / Construction

Landscaping and construction vendor linked to insiders.

Assessment: Routine but monitor.

Empower / affiliated acquisition entities

Some transactions involve management‑affiliated entities.

Assessment: Moderate governance complexity.

RISKS

• Equity dilution from acquisitions

• Earnings affected by property fair‑value adjustments

• Insider‑linked vendor relationships

• Small‑cap REIT liquidity

THE 10 HANK RULES

Hive Must Come First – 7

Nature Knows Best – 9

Recycle – 8

Focus & Efficiency – 8

Live in the Right Place – 8

Compounding – 7

Capital Allocation Discipline – 6

Probability of Success – 8

Governance & Feedback – 6

Listen to the Buzz – 6

Total Hank Score: 73 / 100

HANK VERDICT

Strong real estate sector with durable demand due to housing affordability.

Balance sheet is healthy with conservative leverage.

Key concern remains dilution and governance complexity from insider‑linked vendors and acquisition structures.

Overall: solid REIT but still proving long‑term per‑unit compounding.

Ask Hank™ One‑Page Investment Summary

Company: Flagship Communities REIT

Ticker: MHC.U

Share Price Used: $19.71 USD

Date: March 13, 2026

Business

U.S. manufactured housing communities REIT where residents own homes and rent the land.

Key Metrics

Market Cap: ~$382M

Price-to-Book: 0.59

Hank Cap Rate: ~13.7%

Payback Years: ~7.3

Dividend Yield: ~3.3%

Strengths

• Strong demand for affordable housing

• High operating margins

• Conservative leverage

Risks

• Equity dilution from acquisitions

• Insider‑linked vendors

• Accounting volatility from property valuations

Hank Score

73 / 100

Verdict

Good business in a strong sector but still proving long‑term per‑unit compounding.

Appendix 2

Ask Hank™ FULL HANK ANALYSIS — WELL HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES | March 21, 2026 | Share Price: $3.77 CAD
Educational Disclaimer: This information is for Educational Purposes only. Do not make portfolio changes without speaking with your financial advisor. I am not a financial advisor.

1. Business Snapshot: Digital healthcare roll-up (clinics, SaaS, US patient services, acquisitions). Complex capital allocator model.

2. Financial Snapshot (CAD $000s):
2023: Rev 776,054 | NI 16,637 | EPS ~0.00
2024: Rev 919,688 | NI 29,096 | EPS 0.13
2025: Rev 1,400,179 | NI 4,462 | EPS (0.03)
Assets: 1.41B → 2.10B | Equity: 846M → 1.04B
OCF: 66M → 9.5M → 121.9M

3. Growth (3yr CAGR): Revenue ~34%+, Earnings unstable, EPS negative trend, BV ~7–8%, no dividend. Acquisition-driven.

4. Metrics: P/B ~1.1x (BV ~$3.40/share). Hank Cap Rate ~12.7% (volatile). Buybacks minimal. Payback ~18–25 yrs.

5. Balance Sheet: Goodwill ~$787M, high intangibles, rising debt + preferred + convertibles. Roll-up structure.

6. Capital Allocation: Acquisition-heavy, earnouts, dilution risk, HEALWELL step acquisition.

7. Related-Party / Governance:
- Earnouts tied to employment → Needs monitoring
- NCI distributions → Needs monitoring
- HEALWELL acquisition → Starting to stink

8. Risks: Low tariff exposure. AI risk medium-high. Integration + revenue complexity.

9. Munger Inversion: Roll-up risk, weak earnings quality, leverage rising, complexity.

10. Graham: Fails (unstable earnings, high intangibles).

11. Hank Rules (/10): Hive 7 | Nature 3 | Recycle 4 | Focus 5 | Place 6 | Compounding 4 | Allocation 6 | Probability 5 | Governance 5 | Buzz 6
Total: 51/100

12. Verdict: Strong growth but not a clean compounder. Needs proof of stable earnings and disciplined capital allocation.

--- ONE-PAGE SUMMARY ---
Ask Hank™ Summary — WELL | Mar 21, 2026 | Price $3.77 | Score 51/100
Fast-growing roll-up (~34% revenue CAGR) with weak earnings quality and high complexity. 2025 revenue $1.4B but inconsistent profits and volatile cash flow. Balance sheet risk rising (goodwill ~$787M, debt + pref + converts). Valuation looks reasonable (P/B ~1.1x, ~12.7% CF yield) but not reliable. Key risks: integration, revenue recognition, acquisition reliance, governance complexity. Not yet a trustworthy compounder.

Appendix 3

Ask Hank™ FULL HANK ANALYSIS — Enghouse Systems Limited

Analysis Date: March 21, 2026

Share Price: $15.95 CAD

This information is for Educational Purposes only.

Do not make portfolio changes without speaking with your financial advisor.

I am not a financial advisor.

1. Business Snapshot
Enghouse is a mission-critical vertical software company. It sells contact center, video, telecom, IPTV, transit, public safety and mobility software through two segments: IMG and AMG. It grows by acquisitions and by expanding recurring SaaS and maintenance revenue. The important part is this: it still has no external debt and funds acquisitions from operating cash flow and cash on hand. That is a rare strength in software.

2. 3-Year Financial Snapshot
Revenue:
2023: $454.0 million
2024: $502.5 million
2025: $498.9 million

Net income:
2023: $72.2 million
2024: $81.3 million
2025: $73.7 million

Diluted EPS:
2023: $1.31
2024: $1.47
2025: $1.34

Operating cash flow:
2023: $115.3 million
2024: $132.1 million
2025: $104.6 million

Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments:
2023: $240.4 million
2024: $274.7 million
2025: $269.1 million

Q1 2026 check:
Revenue was $120.1 million, net income $17.5 million, diluted EPS $0.32, and cash plus short-term investments $260.2 million. The business is still profitable, but softer than the prior-year quarter.

3. Hank Growth Factors (3-Year CAGR)
Revenue CAGR from 2023 to 2025 is about 4.8%.
Net income CAGR is about 1.0% to 1.1%.
EPS CAGR is about 1.1%.
Dividend growth is strong. Dividends declared rose from $1.00 per share in 2024 to $1.16 in 2025, and Q1 2026 approved a quarterly dividend increase to $0.31.
Book value growth is steady, but not explosive. Equity has grown, supported by retained earnings and foreign currency translation, while shares outstanding have been modestly reduced by buybacks.
Hank read: this is not a rapid grower. It is a disciplined, slower compounding software allocator.

4. Required Hank Metrics
Price-to-Book
Using October 31, 2025 equity of roughly $555.7 million and 54.75 million shares outstanding, book value per share is about $10.15. At $15.95, P/B is about 1.57x. That is reasonable for a debt-free software company with recurring revenue, but not a screaming bargain.

Hank Cap Rate (Cash-Flow Yield)
Using 2025 operating cash flow of $104.6 million and market cap of about $873 million, the headline cash-flow yield is about 12.0%. If you use the company’s own cleaner figure, net cash from operating activities excluding working capital changes and income taxes paid of $129.5 million, the yield is about 14.8%. That is attractive. I prefer using the more conservative reported operating cash flow figure for the headline Hank Cap Rate.

Buyback Effect
Shares outstanding fell from 55.37 million in 2024 to 54.75 million in 2025, a net reduction of about 1.1%. In 2025 the company repurchased and cancelled 619,518 shares for $14.7 million. That is real shrinkage, not cosmetic.

Dividend Safety
2025 dividends declared were $63.8 million, versus net income of $73.7 million and operating cash flow of $104.6 million. That gives a payout of about 87% of earnings and about 61% of operating cash flow. On cash flow it looks safe. On earnings it is tighter than I would like. Dividend yield at $15.95 is about 7.3% using the 2025 annual dividend of $1.16. Using the new quarterly rate of $0.31, forward annualized yield is about 7.8%.

Payback Years
Using 2025 EPS of $1.34, simple earnings payback is about 11.9 years. Using operating cash flow per share of about $1.91, cash-flow payback is about 8.4 years. Good numbers.

5. Balance Sheet Review
This is the best part of the story.
Enghouse had no external debt in 2023, 2024 or 2025 and repeatedly stated acquisitions were funded through operating cash flow and cash reserves. Cash and short-term investments remained very high at $269.1 million at October 31, 2025. Working capital was still positive at $156.3 million.
The weak side is the usual software consolidator issue: goodwill and acquired intangibles are meaningful. At January 31, 2026, goodwill was about $338.5 million and intangibles about $85.9 million. That means a lot of balance sheet value depends on acquisition discipline and product durability. Still, because there is no external debt, the balance sheet risk is much lower than most roll-ups.
Hank read: strong hive, but you still watch the honey stored in goodwill.

6. Capital Allocation Review
This management team acts like adults.
2023 acquisitions: $55.2 million.
2024 acquisitions: $43.4 million.
2025 acquisitions: $33.4 million.
2025 dividends: $61.8 million paid.
2025 buybacks: $14.7 million.
They are buying companies, paying dividends, and reducing shares without leaning on debt. That is disciplined capital allocation. The issue is not recklessness. The issue is whether they can get growth back without sacrificing margins.

7. Related-Party / Governance Review — Full Stink Test
I redid this properly.
I combed the related-party note in 2023, 2024 and 2025, checked the expense-by-nature disclosures, staff costs, professional services, contractors, occupancy, restructuring, and looked for disclosed insider-controlled vendors or unusual related-party service payments. Here is what the audited filings say:

2023:
The company stated it had not entered into any related-party transactions other than key management compensation. Key management compensation was $8.53 million, made up of $7.805 million in salaries, bonuses and employee benefits plus $0.725 million in stock options expense. The key management team controlled about 11.7% of shares.

2024:
Again, the company stated it had not entered into any related-party transactions other than key management compensation. Key management compensation was $8.537 million, made up of $7.964 million in salaries, bonuses and employee benefits plus $0.573 million in stock options expense. The executive team controlled about 11.6% of shares.

2025:
Again, same disclosure. No related-party transactions other than key management compensation. Key management compensation was $9.340 million, made up of $8.565 million in salaries, bonuses and employee benefits plus $0.775 million in stock options expense. The executive team controlled about 11.7% of shares.

Named small vendor/service comb:
I did not find any disclosed related-party landscaping, HVAC, paving, consulting, occupancy, contractor, travel, professional services, license, maintenance, or other service vendors tied to directors, officers, or entities they control in the audited notes provided. The expense-by-nature tables show large third-party services, staff, contractors, professional services and occupancy costs, but no part of those expenses was disclosed as related-party in the related-party note.

Stink Test Classification
Routine:
2023 key management compensation: $8.53 million. Normal executive compensation.
2024 key management compensation: $8.537 million. Normal executive compensation.
2025 key management compensation: $9.340 million. Normal executive compensation.

Smelly Potential / Needs Monitoring:
Executives control about 11.6% to 11.7% of outstanding shares. That is not bad. It is actually decent alignment. But it means compensation and acquisition discipline should always be watched.

Starting to Stink:
None found in disclosed related-party notes.

Stinks / Potential Red Flag:
None found in disclosed related-party notes.

Governance verdict after full stink test:
Clean. I do not see disclosed insider vendor leakage, side deals, or odd related-party service arrangements in the audited filings provided. This passes the stink test.

8. Tariff / Trade Sensitivity
Management flagged tariffs, trade actions and geopolitical uncertainty as factors that can influence customer demand and cost structures, especially in telecom, software infrastructure and international markets. This is not a direct commodity tariff story, but it does have indirect exposure through customer spending and global deployments. Risk level: moderate.

9. AI Disruption Risk
AI is both risk and opportunity here. Management says AI is already being integrated into products and internal operations. That is good. But contact center, communication and workflow software can be reshaped quickly by AI-native competitors. Enghouse is not asleep, but it is not immune. Risk level: medium.

10. Munger Inversion — Why Shouldn’t I Buy?
Do not buy this thinking it is an exciting growth rocket.
Reasons not to buy:
Revenue was flat to down in 2025.
Net income and cash flow weakened in 2025.
Recurring revenue is rising, but SaaS mix is pressuring margins.
Some acquired businesses have churned customers. Lifesize attrition was specifically discussed.
A lot of value sits in goodwill and acquired intangibles.
This could settle into a slow-growth, high-yield software utility instead of a high-return compounder.

11. Graham-Style Analysis
Positives:
Profitable.
Strong balance sheet.
No external debt.
Dividend history is strong.
Buybacks are real.

Negatives:
Not statistically cheap on earnings if growth stays muted.
Intangible-heavy.
Growth is weak right now.

Graham verdict:
Better than average quality. Not classic cigar butt value. Not a pure Graham bargain. More of a quality balance-sheet software business at a fair price.

12. The 10 Hank Rules
The Hive Must Come First — insider alignment & growth: 8/10
Nature Knows Best — simplicity & durability: 7/10
Recycle — debt & capital discipline: 10/10
Focus & Efficiency — ROIC vs WACC, margins: 7/10
Live in the Right Place — moat & geography: 7/10
Compounding Over Time: 7/10
Strength & Discipline in Capital Allocation: 9/10
Probability of Success: 8/10
Governance & Feedback: 9/10
Listen to the Buzz — market & analyst sentiment: 6/10
Total Hank Score: 78/100

13. Final Verdict
Enghouse is the kind of business I respect.
Why?
No external debt.
Large cash reserve.
Strong recurring revenue base.
Shareholder returns through dividends and buybacks.
Acquisition discipline appears real.
Full stink test came back clean.

What holds it back?
Growth has cooled.
Margins have compressed.
2025 was softer.
Q1 2026 was softer again.

So here is the plain answer.
At $15.95, this does not look like a broken company. It looks like a profitable, disciplined software consolidator trading at a reasonable price with a very attractive cash-flow yield and dividend. If growth stabilizes, this can work well. If growth keeps sliding, it risks becoming just a slow dividend name.
Hank verdict:
Good business. Clean governance. Strong balance sheet. Fair-to-good price.
Not a screaming bargain, but the hive is healthy.

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ONE-PAGE SUMMARY
Ask Hank™ Summary — Enghouse Systems
Date: March 21, 2026
Share Price: $15.95
Hank Score: 78/100

Enghouse is a disciplined vertical software consolidator with no external debt, about $269 million in cash at fiscal 2025 year-end, and a recurring revenue base around 69% to 70%.
2023–2025 results show a solid but slowing business:
Revenue: $454.0M → $502.5M → $498.9M
Net income: $72.2M → $81.3M → $73.7M
Diluted EPS: $1.31 → $1.47 → $1.34

The big strength is capital discipline. Management funds acquisitions from cash flow, pays a strong dividend, and repurchased 619,518 shares in 2025. The balance sheet is excellent.
The weak spot is slowing growth and margin pressure from the SaaS shift and customer churn in acquired businesses.
Full stink test result:
Clean. I found no disclosed related-party vendor or insider service transactions in the 2023, 2024 or 2025 audited related-party notes. Only normal executive compensation was disclosed.
Bottom line:
Healthy hive. Not a hyper-growth story. More of a steady compounder and cash machine at a fair-to-good price.

This information is for Educational Purposes only.
Do not make portfolio changes without speaking with your financial advisor.
I am not a financial advisor.