Teleconferência de Resultados do 3T 2026 da Legacy Housing (LEGH): Receita Salta 72%, Margem se Expande

Principais Destaques

• A Legacy Housing Corporation (LEGH) divulgou uma receita líquida de US$ 69,7 milhões no terceiro trimestre de 2026, alta de 72,2% na comparação anual, enquanto o lucro líquido saltou 133%, para US$ 20,1 milhões.
• O LPA diluído aumentou para US$ 0,85, ante US$ 0,35 no terceiro trimestre de 2025. As vendas de produtos subiram 92%, atingindo US$ 55,2 milhões, com os envios de casas passando de 420 para 635 unidades.
• A margem bruta de produtos expandiu 16,7 pontos percentuais, para 36,9%, impulsionada pelo mix de produtos e pelos aumentos de preços implementados em 2026. O mesmo trimestre do ano anterior havia sido impactado por tarifas e pela alta nos custos de materiais.
• A companhia encerrou o trimestre com US$ 36,1 milhões em caixa e certificados de depósito (CDs) de curto prazo, dívida zero e uma linha de crédito rotativo de US$ 50 milhões não utilizada. O fluxo de caixa operacional nos primeiros nove meses quase dobrou, alcançando US$ 35,3 milhões.
• A administração afirmou que o pipeline de oportunidades permanece sólido em habitações para canteiros de obras e instalações industriais, casas no padrão HUD e locações em parques residenciais. A mão de obra qualificada continua sendo o principal gargalo de produção no curto prazo.
• A Legacy espera iniciar a venda de lotes e casas em seu empreendimento no Condado de Bastrop em 2027, possivelmente no final do primeiro semestre. A diretoria informou que a maior parte dos investimentos de capital no empreendimento já foi concluída.

Principais Dados Financeiros

Desempenho Comercial e Operacional

As lojas da Heritage Housing aumentaram as vendas enquanto liberavam espaço para os modelos de 2027, cujos envios começaram em julho. As vendas com financiamento de estoque caíram devido à demanda mais fraca das concessionárias e ao menor número de revendedores aderindo ao programa.

A melhora na margem bruta refletiu um mix de produtos mais favorável e aumentos médios de preços de cerca de 3,8% nos primeiros nove meses de 2026. Materiais de origem internacional representam aproximadamente 9% dos custos com materiais, ou cerca de US$ 2.700 por casa. As tarifas adicionaram cerca de US$ 700 por casa durante o período.

Grandes contratos impactaram o capital de giro. Os depósitos de clientes aumentaram de US$ 1,8 milhão no encerramento do exercício para US$ 10,3 milhões, enquanto as contas a receber saltaram de US$ 5,5 milhões para US$ 30,4 milhões. A administração afirmou que as faturas correspondentes têm prazo de pagamento de até 35 dias.

A carteira de crédito ao consumidor permaneceu estável, com 97,6% dos saldos adimplentes ou com atraso inferior a 30 dias. O total de saldos em atraso de consumidores foi de 2,4%, ante 2,6% no fim do exercício. No financiamento de estoque de revendedores, cerca de US$ 2,5 milhões referem-se a casas mantidas nos pátios das concessionárias por mais de três anos.

A Legacy concluiu a repactuação de uma nota promissória de parque de casas móveis com saldo de US$ 46,6 milhões, após um pagamento de US$ 2 milhões do principal. O título prevê uma taxa fixa de 7,9% até abril de 2028 e taxa prime mais 3% a partir de então. A cobrança de juros foi retomada em outubro, após ter sido suspensa de 3 de julho a 3 de outubro. O título não estava vencido no final do trimestre, e a companhia não registrou provisão com base em sua análise de garantias.

Perspectivas da Administração

A administração espera que as oportunidades de demanda continuem em alojamentos para trabalhadores voltados a data centers, canteiros de obras e projetos em campos de petróleo, bem como em casas no padrão HUD e locações em parques residenciais. A companhia destacou que sua carteira de pedidos continua crescendo e acredita ser capaz de preencher a capacidade produtiva à medida que o grande contrato inicial de alojamento para trabalhadores for sendo concluído.

Os preços médios de venda podem se moderar caso as vendas para revendedores com preços mais baixos passem a representar uma fatia maior do mix. No entanto, a administração pretende priorizar as unidades mais rentáveis disponíveis, incluindo produtos de alojamento para trabalhadores maiores e mais complexos.

O empreendimento no Condado de Bastrop abrange mais de 350 acres e inclui cerca de 260 lotes para venda, aproximadamente 800 locais potenciais para locação, uma área para parque de trailers e lotes comerciais. A Legacy planeja adotar um mix de vendas de lotes, vendas de terrenos com casas, vendas de casas no próprio parque, locações e possíveis transações comerciais. A administração afirmou que o projeto se aproxima de US$ 50 milhões em investimentos e deve caminhar para um fluxo de caixa positivo assim que as vendas começarem.

A fábrica na Geórgia possui capacidade de crescimento adicional com investimentos modestos, mas a administração apontou a contratação e a retenção de mão de obra fabril qualificada como a principal restrição no curto prazo.

Riscos e Pontos de Atenção

• A demanda das concessionárias continua fraca, e as vendas com financiamento de estoque caíram durante o trimestre.
• A disponibilidade de mão de obra pode limitar a capacidade da Legacy de expandir a produção, apesar do pipeline crescente de oportunidades.
• As tarifas elevaram os custos com materiais em cerca de US$ 700 por casa nos primeiros nove meses de 2026.
• O cronograma do empreendimento no Condado de Bastrop ainda depende de obras de infraestrutura e aprovações regulatórias. A administração manifestou frustração com os atrasos, mas afirmou que o projeto está próximo da conclusão.
• Aproximadamente US$ 2,5 milhões em estoques financiados para revendedores permanecem nos pátios das concessionárias há mais de três anos. A Legacy está adotando incentivos de preços e crédito, e pode retomar a posse de casas para revenda.
• O litígio relacionado à aquisição da AmeriCasa permanece na fase de instrução processual (discovery), e a administração afirmou que não pode prever o desfecho.
• Deficiências relevantes divulgadas anteriormente continuam em processo de remediação. A Legacy ampliou sua equipe contábil, contratou um Diretor de Conformidade SOX e migrou para o Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, mas os novos controles ainda exigem testes e um período operacional adequado.

Destaques da Sessão de Perguntas e Respostas com Analistas

Empreendimento no Condado de Bastrop: A administração afirmou que a venda de lotes pode começar no final do primeiro semestre de 2027. No momento, a companhia não é favorável a vender toda a propriedade no atacado, pois acredita que isso deixaria um valor substancial por realizar.

Demanda por alojamento para trabalhadores: A Legacy concluiu recentemente um projeto de alojamento de cerca de 200 edificações para campos petrolíferos. A administração afirmou que projetos industriais e de data centers estão ajudando a empresa a estreitar relações com novos clientes e a gerar oportunidades adicionais.

Opção de recompra de alojamento para trabalhadores: O cliente poderá devolver unidades elegíveis entre o quarto e o quinto ano após a entrega por 33% do preço unitário original, ou entre o quinto e o sexto ano por 25%. O cliente deve limpar e transportar as unidades de volta. A administração considera o exercício improvável, mas acredita que as unidades devolvidas poderiam ser revendidas com lucro por meio da rede da Legacy.

Cenário de taxas de juros: A administração afirmou que a Legacy historicamente apresenta melhor desempenho quando as taxas de juros estão elevadas, pois alguns compradores ficam sem condições de adquirir casas construídas no local e migram para casas pré-fabricadas acessíveis.

Transcrição Completa da Teleconferência de Resultados

Transcrição completa da teleconferência de resultados

Comentários da administração

Operator

Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Legacy Housing Corporation Q3 2026 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions] Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, Jon Langbert, Chief Financial Officer. Please go ahead.

Jon Langbert

Good morning, and thank you for joining Legacy Housing's Third Quarter 2026 Conference Call. This is Jon Langbert, Chief Financial Officer. Our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Kenneth Shipley, is also on the line and will join me for the Q&A session following our prepared remarks.

Before we begin those, I'll read our safe harbor disclosure. Management's prepared remarks today will contain forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks and uncertainties, and management may make additional forward-looking statements in response to your questions. Therefore, the company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements that is contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Actual results may differ from management's current expectations. We refer you to a more detailed discussion of the risks and uncertainties in the company's quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed yesterday with the Securities and Exchange Commission and in our most recent annual report on Form 10-K. Any projections as to the company's future performance represent management's estimates as of today's call. Legacy Housing assumes no obligation to update these projections in the future unless otherwise required by applicable law.

Before we get into the quarter, on August 13, the Board appointed Kenny Shipley, Chairman of the Board, in addition to his role as Chief Executive Officer. Congratulations, Kenny. With that, let's get to the numbers. Total net revenue for the quarter was $69.7 million, up 72.2% from a year ago, and net income was $20.1 million or $0.85 per diluted share compared with $8.6 million or $0.35 per diluted share in the third quarter of 2025.

Product sales increased 92% to $55.2 million. We sold 635 homes in the quarter compared with 420 a year ago. Our Heritage Housing stores grew sales while making room for our 2027 models, which began shipping in July. Inventory finance sales declined, reflecting weaker dealer demand and fewer new dealers joining the program, and we're working closely with our dealers in that softer retail market. Gross margin on product sales was 36.9%, up 16.7 percentage points from 20.2% a year ago. The improvement reflected a shift in product mix, together with the price increases we implemented during 2026. Keep in mind, too, that the prior year quarter was weighed down by tariffs and rising material costs.

Other revenue increased primarily because of the gain on the sale of a mobile home park we had taken as collateral. That covers the headline numbers. The 10-Q has the full detail, including sales by channel, loan portfolio interest income, SG&A, our provision for loan losses, taxes and our year-to-date results. The balance sheet remains in excellent shape. We ended the quarter with $30.8 million in cash plus $5.3 million in short-term CDs, $36.1 million in total, up from $8.5 million at year-end. Operating cash flow for the first 9 months was $35.3 million, nearly double the $18.2 million of a year ago.

Two working capital items moved meaningfully with our large contracts. Customer deposits rose to $10.3 million from $1.8 million at year-end, reflecting advanced deposits under those contracts, and accounts receivable rose to $30.4 million from $5.5 million, reflecting invoices that are payable within 35 days. Inventories were $39.6 million, down from $43.9 million at June 30 and roughly flat with year-end as we shipped finished goods. Year-to-date capital spending was $10.2 million, mostly for development of our landholdings, principally in Bastrop, and plant equipment.

Our $50 million Prosperity Bank revolver remains undrawn. We remain in compliance with all financial covenants, and we intend to renew the facility ahead of its July 2027 maturity. Total stockholders' equity finished the quarter at $582.4 million, up from $562.2 million at June 30, and book value per share was $24.49, up from $23.64. We made no share repurchases during the quarter and approximately $9.3 million remains available under the Board's repurchase authorization through February of 2029.

As for growth, we continue to see a robust pipeline of opportunities, including housing for large construction and industrial sites, HUD-Code homes and park rentals. Many of these units are higher specification and more complex to build, and customers place real value on our ability to deliver large quantities on compressed schedules. Our principal near-term constraint remains securing and retaining enough trained labor, and the recruiting and retention programs we discussed last quarter are underway. Our Georgia plant still has room to grow with modest additional investment.

On costs, roughly 9% of our material costs, about $2,700 per home, come from internationally sourced materials, and tariffs added approximately $700 per home to material costs during the first 9 months. To offset that, we implemented price increases averaging about 3.8% over the 9 months, and we continue to diversify suppliers and source domestically where practical. Our loan portfolios remain a stable earnings engine. In the consumer book, 97.6% of balances are current or less than 30 days past due, and total past due consumer balances were 2.4% at quarter end compared with 2.6% at year-end.

Within dealer inventory finance, about $2.5 million relates to homes that have been on dealer lots for more than 3 years. We're working with dealers to move that older inventory through pricing and lending incentives and, where appropriate, repossessing homes for resale through our Heritage Housing stores or others.

Last quarter, I told you we had agreed to modify our roughly $48.6 million mobile home park note that matured in July, and we were finalizing the documentation. That's now complete. The final terms differ slightly from what we outlined last quarter, most notably a slightly longer interest-only period. Under the amended note, effective July 3, the borrowers paid down $2 million of principal, bringing the balance to $46.6 million, about 23% of our MHP notes, pledged an additional manufactured housing community in Mississippi as collateral and increased their personal guarantees. The note carries a fixed 7.9% rate through April of 2028 and prime plus 3% thereafter.

Interest was abated from July 3 through October 3. Payments are interest only through April 2028 and then amortizing, and the remaining balance is due at maturity in April of 2031. We accounted for this as a loan modification with no gain or loss. Because of the abatement, we recognized no interest income on this note during the third quarter, and interest resumed in October. The note was not past due at quarter end. And based on our analysis of the collateral, we determined that no allowance was required. This was covered in Note 4 of the 10-Q.

A brief update on AmeriCasa. Our litigation against the sellers is in the Texas Business Court and has moved into discovery. Both sides have served written discovery, and we're preparing for depositions and third-party subpoenas. It's still early, and we can't predict an outcome. Separately, during the quarter, we completed a measurement period review of the acquisition accounting. Based on the historical sales performance of the acquired business, we concluded that the trademark and noncompete agreement had no fair value at the acquisition date. We removed the $4 million recorded for those intangibles and increased goodwill by $3.1 million, net of the related deferred tax effect.

Finally, an update on our control environment. We continue to work on remediating the material weaknesses disclosed in our 10-K. Since year-end, we've substantially expanded our accounting and finance team, including staff accountants and financial analysts. And in September, we hired a SOX Compliance Director, a CPA with SOX 404 and systems implementation experience. On September 1, we completed our migration to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, and we're building out IT general controls around the new system. We've made a meaningful start, but remediation is a multistep process that will take time. The material weaknesses won't be considered remediated until the new controls have been tested and have operated effectively for a sufficient period.

To sum up, net revenue was up 72% to $69.7 million. Net income was up 133% to $20.1 million. Diluted earnings per share was $0.85, and gross margin on product sales was 36.9%. Through 9 months, we've generated $35.3 million of operating cash flow, and we ended the quarter with $36.1 million of cash and short-term investments, no debt, $582 million of stockholders' equity and a fully available revolver.

With a strong pipeline and our Bastrop County development expected to begin lot and home sales in 2027, we're well positioned heading into next year. Our loan portfolios remain a dependable earnings engine, and our balance sheet gives us the flexibility to fund that growth internally. Legacy has never had a losing quarter in its history, and the third quarter of 2026 keeps that streak going. We're conservatively capitalized and focused on long-term value creation as affordable housing becomes ever more important to U.S. consumers and policymakers.

Operator, that concludes our prepared remarks. Please open the line for questions. Kenny and I will both be available to respond.

Operator

[Operator Instructions] Our first question comes from the line of Rohit Seth of B. Riley.

Perguntas e respostas

Rohit Seth

I just want to learn a little bit more about the Bastrop County opportunity, where we stand now and how you see that playing out in the next 12 months?

Kenneth Shipley

Yes. We -- it's still a slow project. I mean it's hurry up and wait for the next regulator to give us an answer on something. We're putting -- we did get a DOT approval, and we're building the DOT entrance into the subdivision now. They're finishing up the sewer. They're claiming they'll be done by the end of December, they'll be finished with our sewer system that we're putting in. So -- and as they advance, I mean, it slowed down some of the road building. We got to come back in and do some more road work, and we've still got to build a bridge after they get underneath it.

So we've been kind of waiting on them guys. So it seems like it's put one puzzle piece in and we can't do anything else until -- we can't put any more puzzle pieces in until we get that one started. So that's been kind of the drawback. It's a pretty slow process, and we're a little bit aggravated with how long it's taken to do things. But we're right here. We can see the end of it coming pretty fast. We think we'll be selling lots here. In probably the -- maybe as late as the first half of the year, late in the first half of the year, maybe we'll be ready to start selling lots. So that's kind of where we're at.

Jon Langbert

At a high level, it's a large development. It's over 350 acres. A lot of the roads are in. We had to put in utilities. And this is a very nice development. It's higher end. It's not your old style mobile home park where you might have 8 or 10 units per acre. It's not that level of density. And if anybody happens to be in the Austin area, I'd be happy to get you the address if you want to drive by and see it in person.

Rohit Seth

There's been a lot of development with SpaceX around there. Is that right?

Kenneth Shipley

I'm sorry, I couldn't hear what you said.

Rohit Seth

There was some development there with SpaceX and whatnot, right? Would it make sense to -- have you seen people poking around to see if maybe just sell the land wholesale, right?

Kenneth Shipley

Yes. Yes, we -- I mean, we've always got some low balls out there that are looking for a screaming deal or something. But we're getting so close that I think we'd be leaving a lot of money on the table. I mean this is -- it's a big project, and it's going to be a cash cow once we get it going.

Rohit Seth

Okay. And then you've had a lot of success with the data centers, the workforce housing. It looks like you're seeing the end of that first contract with the customer. Maybe you can just talk about the opportunities that are out there today.

Kenneth Shipley

Well, I think there's a lot of opportunities in a lot of different areas. Our backlogs are continuing to build. And there's opportunities everywhere. It isn't just data centers. I mean we just finished a big project for a guy that's building a man camp for oilfield. And it was probably a 200 building man camp. So it's a pretty big man camp. But there's a lot of opportunities, and there's a lot of building going on.

So we've -- through some of these man camps that we're building in the oilfield and some of this data center work, we're meeting a lot of new customers. And so I look forward to this thing really domino, and we're going to get a lot of work out of some of this other stuff that we -- some of these other contracts we're making. It's kind of like selling a house to a park and the guy's buddy finds out what he's doing and he jumps in on the bandwagon. So we're getting some of that, that's starting to happen.

Rohit Seth

And then as you've had this workforce housing, ASP on there has been very attractive. And so should we see a normalization in ASP in the upcoming quarter as that contract rolls off?

Kenneth Shipley

Having a hard time hearing you.

Jon Langbert

Yes, we're having a hard time hearing you.

Rohit Seth

I said the -- you had the workforce housing contract and the ASP on that work is significantly higher than the base business. Now that the contract's kind of winding down, should we expect a normalization in the ASP?

Jon Langbert

It does have a slightly higher selling price. They're more complex units and larger. So it's really the overall product mix. If dealer sales pick up, yes, I would expect that number to come down a bit. But our goal is to fill the pipeline with as much profitable business as possible. And with the election results here and the national mood on data centers, the demand for data isn't going away. So on those high-end units, I expect they're going to have to pretty much always now going to be built in uninhabited areas. And those are the ones that require workforce housing.

And so I think you might find a higher percentage of data centers requiring that. So we're going to sell the most profitable units that we can produce. And I think our constraint is manpower. Can we get enough trained workforce into our factories and get production up as high as possible? And while we're doing that, sell the most profitable units.

Operator

Our next question comes from the line of Alex Rygiel of Texas Capital Securities.

Alexander Rygiel

Kenny and Jon, real nice quarter. A couple of questions here. First, as it relates to Bastrop, can you remind us what the total lot opportunity is there for you? And then talk a little bit about kind of what your strategy is going to be? Are you selling lots? Are you leasing lots? Are you selling homes? Are you leasing homes?

Kenneth Shipley

All of the above, everything what you just said. We've got -- I think there's somewhere around room on the lots that we're selling are like 260 and then there's another 800 -- something like that, about 800 rentals that we can do in the park. So it's got a park in the middle. It's got land that we sell around the backside. There's room to put an RV park over in one corner that we're going to do. So...

Jon Langbert

There are even some commercial lots they're widening the road that goes by across sites. So we've lost some land while they're widening the road, but that increases the value of everything else. So we do have some commercial lots that we could sell or lease. We haven't committed to anything. So we'll be opportunistic as the market develops. And this is nothing that's going to fill up in 1 year. So anything we think today could easily change a year from now as we roll it out. And it's a mix of single and double wide lots. Those are pretty much set based on your roads that you're putting in there, but...

Kenneth Shipley

We'll be filling the lots up and selling house and land. And even in the park, we're going to set homes up and sell homes in the park also.

Alexander Rygiel

That's great. And then -- do you have any plans to sort of build like community facilities at Bastrop, like a clubhouse or a pool or anything like that? I guess what I'm trying to get to is what's the incremental kind of CapEx you're looking at spending on this?

Kenneth Shipley

We're already in the process of building a big...

Jon Langbert

Clubhouse.

Kenneth Shipley

Clubhouse right near the park now.

Jon Langbert

Yes. Most of the spend is done at this point. I think we're, I think, approaching $50 million in that development. So it's close to turning cash flow positive as soon as we start selling. There's not a lot to go.

Kenneth Shipley

Lot rentals in that market are $1,000 to $1,300 a month just for lot rentals. So you can imagine if we get this thing when we get it full, what the spin-off of the money is per month. I mean it's going to be unbelievable.

Alexander Rygiel

For sure. As it relates to the workforce housing contract, how many units did you ship in the third quarter? And how many units remain to be shipped?

Kenneth Shipley

I don't know that we have that -- we rushed around and pulled all this information together and filed and got the earnings out. And I mean, if you want to call Jon after a while, he can probably pull that information up for you, Alex. We'd be glad to do that. We want to be as transparent with our partners as we can here. So -- but why don't you -- if you want to give Jon a call after a while, he can pull that information together for you.

Alexander Rygiel

That's super helpful. And then do you think you're going to be able to sort of backfill the capacity fairly efficiently as this first kind of big workforce housing contract kind of winds down in the first quarter/second quarter? Do you think you're going to be able to backfill it with kind of a second one or 2 or 3 smaller ones such that volume stays at a relatively high level?

Kenneth Shipley

I think so. I think we're in good shape. We've talked about our backlog, and I think we're in pretty good shape. I really believe that. And who knows? We've got a whole new administration coming in. A lot of these states went blue instead of red. And I mean, I don't know what's going to happen. I mean if I knew that, heck, I'd load up and go to Las Vegas and start sports betting. I think it's -- sometimes I think it's an easier way to make a living than building more homes. I don't know. But I think we're good at what we do, and I think we're going to be just fine. I really believe that. I'm still a big holder. I still got all most of our shares that me and my brothers have put in the pile, and we're not selling. So...

Operator

[Operator Instructions] Our next question comes from the line of Catherine Lapey of Gabelli Funds.

Catherine Lapey

Congrats on another great order -- another great quarter, really awesome. I wanted to ask a bit about the refund liability for the workforce housing repurchases. I saw that between the fourth and sixth anniversaries of delivery, the contract entails a refund option where you would buy the units back at 33% or 25% of the original unit price. Could you talk a little bit about that kind of more of the terms of that contract, if you think that's likely? And yes, just any of the thinking around that?

Jon Langbert

Sure. You're exactly right on the numbers. So if the customer decides to return the units between years 4 and 5 after they've been delivered, we buy them back at 33% and 25% if it is between years 5 and 6 of the original invoice for the unit itself, not for any extras. The customer needs to have the units clean and delivered back to us. And the math behind that is we have to kind of estimate what the likelihood is of that happening and what the numbers might look like at that time. We believe that it is unlikely that it would be executed. But if it was executed, we would be getting the units back at a cost below where we would be able to sell them.

We think the customer is most likely to do that themselves to use them there or at other projects or to donate them perhaps if they do or sell them themselves. But if they do put them back to us, we're pretty confident that, that will be a profitable enterprise. Legacy participated in a similar exercise many years ago post-Katrina. There was a large number of units available from FEMA that the company was able to buy en masse and sell quickly and do that profitably. And this is something we'd have lots of notice to plan for. So the expectation is the units won't come back. But if they do come back, we feel like we've got a -- we're in the business so that we could repurpose them and resell them through our network profitably.

Catherine Lapey

Awesome. Okay. That's super helpful. Do you have a sense of how long the project for this workforce housing customer will take? I'm just wondering, is it expected to end in 3 years, and that's why they picked the -- or that's why you agreed on the 4 to 6? Or is this project expected to take 6 or 7 years? Do you have a sense of that?

Jon Langbert

Do you want to take that, Kenny?

Kenneth Shipley

I mean I can't speak and be accurate on 3 or 4 or 5 years from now. I don't -- we don't know. I mean I'd be lying if I -- or it would just be my opinion. But I think we're good for a few years. I can't -- most of these guys, I mean, they're going to -- they put a lot of money in a pile to build these things. And I just can't see them unraveling them in 4 or 5 years. I mean I think it'd be -- first of all, they hadn't even got them -- a lot of them aren't even started using them yet. The construction part of the projects were so big that I mean, they're still building on them. So it hadn't even started yet. I don't know. We don't have any idea how long it's going to last.

Jon Langbert

I suspect these projects are going to be run in phases and they're going to keep expanding. The places where they build these where they need the workforce housing, they have places to grow. So long as demand for data continues to grow, and I don't think the math for data centers and space really works that I think these units will stay out there for quite a while.

Catherine Lapey

Okay. Great. That's super helpful. And then just a question on the financing side. I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about the rate environment with the Fed raising rates, how that impacts your business? I know chattel loans are less susceptible than regular mortgages. But I'd love to hear a little bit about that. And also if you've been seeing any increase in private lending in the industry, if that's affecting you? Yes.

Kenneth Shipley

So if you pull up a graph all the way back from the '80s and you put the interest rates on there along with shipments, it's a pretty amazing graph because you're going to see the graph pretty much on shipments follow the rates. So as rates went up, shipments went up because as rates go up, people that are buying these first-time homebuyers, they just fall right out of that market. It puts -- not only have we had a large increase in the cost of building these things, but interest rates going up, it just puts them out of reach, and they fall back into our industry, back into affordable housing. And as far as -- I mean, we've always done better in high interest rate environments than we have in low. I mean when rates go down low, then we're competing with site-built homes.

Operator

I am showing no further questions at this time. So I would like to turn it back to Jon Langbert for closing remarks.

Jon Langbert

Thank you all for joining us today and for your continued interest in Legacy Housing. We look forward to updating you next quarter.

Operator

Thank you for your participation in today's conference. This does conclude the program. You may now disconnect.