Sun Communities, Inc 2026 Q3 Earnings Call

Good morning, and thank you for joining us to discuss our third quarter 2026 results and our outlook for the remainder of the year. We delivered another strong quarter. Core FFO per share was $2.35, two cents above the high end of our guidance. This marks the third consecutive quarter of exceeding our expectations this year, reflecting the consistency of execution we are seeing across the organization. Earlier this month marked my one-year anniversary at Sun, and I want to take a few minutes this morning to step back and reflect on the year. When I joined Sun, I knew I was joining a company with a rich history, exceptional communities, and a strong culture. What I did not fully appreciate was the depth of talent across the organization and a genuine pride of ownership within our communities. A year in, that initial conviction has only deepened.

In September, we completed the sale of our U.K. business, marking the culmination of a multi-year simplification effort. Today, Sun is a focused, pure-play North American manufactured housing and RV company in resilient, supply-constrained sectors with a strong balance sheet and significant financial flexibility. Earlier in the year, we established three strategic priorities: allocating capital with discipline, optimizing our operating platform, and investing in our people, technology, and operating capabilities. Let me share how we have delivered against each. First, allocating capital with discipline. We have been deliberate in deploying capital, guided by a consistent set of principles, maintaining a strong and flexible balance sheet, returning capital to shareholders, and investing in high-quality MH and RV communities where we can drive attractive long-term returns.

With the roughly $1 billion of U.K. proceeds, we returned capital through approximately $544 million of share repurchases year to date, paid down nearly $450 million of debt, and continued to pursue internal and external growth opportunities. We have continued with our proactive approach to portfolio management. During the third quarter, we sold three RV communities in Fort Myers, Florida for $127 million, realizing compelling value. We remain selective on acquisitions and are pleased with our purchase of two manufactured housing communities in the Pacific Northwest that closed earlier this month. Second, optimizing the operating platform. Our teams are collaborating more effectively, using better data to make decisions, and becoming more disciplined in how we allocate time and resources. You can see it in the results. Manufactured housing continues to deliver strong same-property growth on very high occupancy. Our annual RV communities continue to grow, and transient RV results are stabilizing.

As John will discuss, our 2027 rental rate increases are coming in above 2026 levels for both MH and annual RV. Third, investing in our people, technology, and operating capabilities. We have strengthened and broadened the skills of our leadership team, and we continue to build on our foundation with investments in technology and data to improve operating efficiency, revenue management, pricing, and procurement. A key addition to the team is Bob Garechana, who joined us as Chief Financial Officer in September. Bob brings more than two decades of REIT experience, including roughly a decade as CFO of a large residential REIT, and we are glad to have him. I also want to thank Fernando Castro-Caratini for his many contributions to Sun over his 10 years with the company, including his leadership as CFO and his partnership in ensuring a seamless transition.

We wish him the best in his next chapter. I am pleased with our progress over the past year, and I am encouraged by our outlook. Sun is a more focused company with a clear path to long-term value creation. We are strategically positioned around the themes that define our business: housing affordability, attainable vacationing, and demographic tailwinds behind both. The entire team is focused on consistent execution quarter after quarter, year after year. None of this happens without our people who turn properties into communities. I want to thank every one of our team members for their dedication, discipline, and focus on serving our residents and guests. With that, I will turn the call over to John and Bob to discuss our operating results and financials in more detail.

Thank you, Charles. I could not be more pleased with how the team executed this quarter. In the third quarter, our same property MH and RV NOI increased 3.6%, with strong performance from manufactured housing and occupancy of approximately 98%. In manufactured housing, same property NOI increased 6.9% for the quarter, driven by 5.8% revenue growth and a 2.8% increase in expenses. As Charles mentioned, the demographic tailwinds behind our business are something we see on the ground every day. Manufactured housing is part of the solution for housing affordability and demand for our communities remains very strong. That demand is illustrated at the top of the funnel with traffic to our MH website in the third quarter up approximately 50% versus last year, which translates to over 20 applications on average we receive for every available site.

The work we are doing to optimize our operating platform, including how we market our communities and convert that demand, is showing up in our occupancy and rental rate growth while continuing to execute solid expense discipline. We expect our 2027 full year rental rate increases for MH to average approximately 5.4%. Through the end of September, about half of our MH residents have received their 2027 rent increase notices. Turning to RV, same property NOI decreased 1.3% for the quarter. Revenue was in line with our expectations, supported by resilient annual demand and transient performance consistent with our outlook. Annual RV continues to provide a durable base of recurring revenue, with same property annual RV revenue up 2.4% for the quarter. Our work optimizing the RV platform is producing results.

Enhanced revenue management and the real-time data we now have on booking patterns and market trends are enabling us to be more disciplined in how we price and manage our RV portfolio. We have also improved the guest journey with technology initiatives that have expanded our booking channels, enhanced digital self-service, and helped drive approximately 40% improvement in response rates. We also continue to see strong demand and retention across our annual RV portfolio. For 2027, annual RV rental rates are being set with estimated annual average increases of approximately 4.4%. We are performing at a high level, and I want to take a moment to thank our entire team for the discipline and dedication they bring to achieving our goals and positioning us for continued success. Their commitment to service and operational excellence enables us to deliver these strong results.

We are long-term stewards of our communities, and we remain committed to investing in them while preserving quality, attainable housing options for residents. I'll turn the call over to Bob to discuss our financial results and updated guidance.

Bob? Thank you, John, and good morning, everyone.

Before getting to the numbers, I want to take a moment to say how glad I am to be here. I want to thank the entire Sun team for an incredibly warm and generous welcome. In my first couple of months, I've had the opportunity to visit a number of our manufactured housing and RV communities. The consistent theme is our high-quality, affordable communities, but even more so, our great people who are passionate, dedicated, and focused on serving our residents and guests. Having spent my career in residential real estate, I would tell you that the fundamentals supporting our business and the opportunities ahead for Sun are compelling, and I'm very excited to be here. Now to the numbers. This morning, I'll walk through our third quarter results, our capital deployment and balance sheet, and our updated 2026 guidance.