I didn't find it convincing.
Elsewhere here I asked why factory-built housing doesn't seem to be popular world-wide, which is what you would expect if it's only US Federal policy which prevents it from being popular in the US.
I'll add that I saw no discussion of how local housing policies were designed to prevent "Large numbers of low-income, city residents [from moving] to these areas", in order to keep property values high. Or the classism that caused people to look down on mobile homes.
The author rhetorically asks "But what stops public transportation from expanding upon the arrival of new residents?", when I've heard so many New Urbanist videos answering that question.
I didn't understand how "a uniform building code across the country would be a great benefit to factory producers" is a meaningful goal, given that the needs for Florida, Arizona, and Alaska are quite different, making me question his understanding.
I read "There is a literature that asks why the poor live in cities." and counter with the observation that the poverty rate is higher in rural areas - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rural_poverty#Rural_versus_Urb... says "rural poverty rates are higher and more persistent than in urban areas, rural workers are disadvantaged by lower wages and less access to better paying labor markets" - note that housing prices aren't part of it.
And I didn't see mention that "stick housing" has moved towards factory methods. As https://priceonomics.com/in-defense-of-mobile-homes/ points out:
> Windows, doors, and other parts arrive prefabricated, Rybczynski writes, so labor costs have actually halved since 1949. Levitt and Sons spent $4 to $5 per square foot building Levittowners, and, adjusted for inflation, builders today spend the same amount.
> Instead the problem is almost wholly that land is too expensive. Reduce the size of a new, modern house by 50%, Rybczynski notes, and houses in metropolitan areas will still cost over $200,000.
> That’s the secret to the extreme affordability of a mobile home—take land out of the equation.
We aren't really using "traditional methods" - engineered wood is not traditional and is very common. "As of 2005, approximately half of all wood light framed floors were framed using I-joists" says https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engineered_wood#Beams . These were made in a factory, and not "on-site" as the author describes the house-building process.