Nobody Wants You to Own a Home?

A few weeks ago my family took a road trip to Maine.

Over the course of several days I drove nearly 500 miles through half a dozen states before finally arriving at Acadia National Park. The scenery was spectacular. Rocky coastlines, endless forests, lobster shacks every few miles, it was exactly the kind of trip that reminds you just how beautiful America can be.

But it wasn’t Acadia that stuck with me.

It was everything I saw along the drive.

Nearly every picturesque town had the same pattern. There would be a charming historic downtown filled with boutiques, coffee shops, antique stores, and restaurants.

Then, just outside town, often hidden behind a hill or tucked away in the woods, there would be an enormous trailer park.

Many looked rough.

Potholes. Aging homes squeezed together.

And they were packed.

In some towns it honestly felt like more people lived in the trailer park than in the postcard-worthy downtown everyone came to visit.

I also couldn’t help noticing something else.

There seem to be far more people living in RVs, camper vans, cars, and tent encampments than I remember seeing just a decade ago.