our core portfolio average occupancy was 93.5 % for the year ended december 31 , 2016 , compared to 92.6 % for the year ended december 31 , 2015. our historical high was 94.6 % in 2000. in the years following the disruption in the site-built housing market , our home sales business was negatively affected by our customers ' inability to sell their existing site-built homes and relocate to their retirement destination . as a result , we focused on home rental rather than sales as our primary source of occupancy upon turnover . at its peak , in 2013 , rental occupancy represented almost 10.0 % of our core portfolio occupancy . in recent years we have focused on the quality of occupancy growth by increasing the number of manufactured homeowners in our core portfolio . as of december 31 , 2016 , we increased occupancy of manufactured homes within our core portfolio by 597 sites with an increase in homeowner occupancy of 33 management 's discussion ( continued ) 814 sites compared to occupancy at december 31 , 2015 . by comparison , as of december 31 , 2015 , our core portfolio occupancy increased by 473 sites with an increase in homeowner occupancy of 749 sites compared to occupancy at december 31 , 2014 . as of december 31 , 2016 , we had 4,750 occupied rental homes , which represents 7.2 % of our occupancy in our manufactured home communities . for the years ended december 31 , 2016 and 2015 , home rental program net operating income was approximately $ 32.3 million and $ 32.8 million , respectively , net of rental asset depreciation expense of approximately $ 10.7 million for each of the comparative periods . approximately $ 35.7 million and $ 36.6 million of home rental operations revenue was included in community base rental income for the years ended december 31 , 2016 and 2015 , respectively ( see the rental operations tables in the sections below for additional detail regarding our rental activity ) . we believe at this time we compete effectively with other types of rentals ( i.e . , apartments ) . we continue to evaluate home rental operations and expect to continue to invest in additional units . approximately one third of our rental agreements on mh community sites have rent increases that are directly or indirectly connected to published cpi statistics that are issued from june through september of the year prior to the increase effective date . approximately one half of those rental agreements have a cpi floor of approximately 3.0 % . state and local rent control regulations affect 27 properties , including 19 of our 49 california properties , all of our seven delaware properties and one of our five massachusetts properties . the impact of the rent control regulations is to limit our ability to implement rent increases based on prevailing market conditions . the regulations generally permit us to increase rates by a percentage of the increase in the cpi , which may be national , regional or local , depending on the rent control ordinance . the limit on rent increases may range from 60.0 % to 100.0 % of cpi with certain maximum limits depending on the jurisdiction . we continue to see population growth in our key markets , increased access to distribution channels for our products and a renewed willingness by our customers to commit to us for longer periods of time . we place homes in communities where we believe we can successfully sell homes . at these communities we have been successful at increasing home ownership and we continue to allocate capital to home purchases based on our assessment of market conditions . new home sales in our core portfolio increased 37.4 % over the prior year . the recent new home sales have been primarily in our california , colorado and florida communities ( see the home sales operations tables in the sections below for additional detail regarding our home sales activity ) . in the ordinary course of business , we acquire used homes from customers through purchase , foreclosure of a lien , or abandonment . we have seen a decrease in the number of homes coming back to us , which we believe generally means that our residents have the opportunity to resell their homes . while we continue to focus on selling homes , we continue to evaluate rental units , and based on market conditions , we expect to invest in additional new homes for customer rentals . during 2013 we formed a joint venture , echo financing , llc ( the `` echo jv `` ) , with a home manufacturer to buy and sell homes , as well as to purchase loans made by an unaffiliated lender to purchasers of such homes at our properties . the echo jv may also rent homes to customers in our communities . we also have a limited program under which we purchase loans made by an unaffiliated lender to purchasers of homes at our properties . in the manufactured housing industry , chattel financing options available today include community owner funded programs or third party lender programs that provide subsidized financing to customers and require the community owner to guarantee losses upon customer defaults . third party lender programs have stringent underwriting criteria , sizable down payment requirements , short loan amortization and high interest rates . in our rv portfolio , we offer a variety of products that provide our customers the opportunity to place their housing unit , which may include rvs or resort cottages , either permanently or on a long-term or short-term basis at our properties . we are focused on engaging with our existing customers and providing them the lifestyle they seek as well as attracting additional customers interested in our properties . story_separator_special_tag replace_table_token_24_th at december 31 , 2016 , other expenses decreased $ 13.2 million as compared to december 31 , 2015. the variance from prior year is driven by approximately $ 17.0 million of early debt retirement fees associated with defeasance and prepayment activity during the first quarter of 2015 ( see note 8 to the consolidated financial statements for additional detail regarding our first quarter of 2015 defeasance and refinancing activity ) . additionally , interest and related amortization decreased compared to the prior year due to the decrease in secured debt related to refinancing and payment activity as well as lower weighted average interest rates . these decreases are partially offset by increases in depreciation on real estate and rental homes and property rights initiatives and other , net . these expenses increased due to higher capital expenditures , 2016 acquisitions properties ( see note 5 to the consolidated financial statements for additional detail regarding our recent acquisition activity ) as well as $ 2.4 million related to resolution of the california lawsuits ( see note 18 to the consolidated financial statements for additional detail regarding these matters ) . 40 management 's discussion ( continued ) comparison of year ended december 31 , 2015 to year ended december 31 , 2014 income from property operations the following table summarizes certain financial and statistical data for the core portfolio and the total portfolio for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 ( amounts in thousands ) . replace_table_token_25_th ( 1 ) non-gaap measure . the increase in total portfolio income from property operations was primarily due to increases in core community base rental income , core resort base rental income , the contribution from property operations related to the 2014 and 2015 acquisitions as well as increased utility and other income . the increase was partially offset by an overall increase in expenses , with the most significant relating to payroll , repair and maintenance , and property taxes . the 3.5 % increase in core portfolio community base rental income primarily reflected a 2.9 % growth from rate increases and a 0.6 % growth from occupancy gains . the average monthly base rent per site increased to approximately $ 569 in 2015 from approximately $ 553 in 2014. the average occupancy increased to 92.6 % in 2015 from 92.2 % in 2014. resort base rental income is comprised of the following ( amounts in thousands ) : replace_table_token_26_th right-to-use contracts current period , gross , net of sales and marketing , gross , decreased as a result of a lower number of upgrade sales by our third party sales agent . during the year ending december 31 , 2015 , there were 2,687 upgrade sales with an average price per sale of $ 4,745. this compares to 2,978 upgrade sales with an average price per sale of $ 4,665 for the year ended december 31 , 2014 . 41 management 's discussion ( continued ) the increase in property operating and maintenance expenses was primarily driven by increased property payroll and repairs and maintenance expenses . the increase in property payroll was primarily driven by increased overtime and additional employees in the the current year as well as annual salary increases , while the increase in repair and maintenance was largely due to certain storm events in texas , california , and north carolina , higher cabin rental maintenance , and an overall increase in general maintenance supplies expenses . home sales operations the following table summarizes certain financial and statistical data for our home sales operations for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 ( amounts in thousands , except home sales volumes ) . replace_table_token_27_th _ ( 1 ) new home sales gross revenues and costs of new home sales does not include the revenues and costs associated with our echo jv . ( 2 ) total new home sales volume includes 26 home sales through our echo jv for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 , respectively . . the decrease in income from home sales operations and other was primarily due to lower gross profits from new home sales due to a decrease in sales in the california region where properties are fully occupied . increased home selling expenses also contributed to the overall decrease , offset by increased income from ancillary services , which include retail sales at various properties . 42 management 's discussion ( continued ) rental operations the following table summarizes certain financial and statistical data for our manufactured home rental operations for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 ( amounts in thousands , except rental unit volumes ) . replace_table_token_28_th _ ( 1 ) rental operations revenue consists of site rental income and home rental income . approximately $ 36.6 million and $ 39.3 million as of december 31 , 2015 and 2014 , respectively , of site rental income are included in community base rental income in the income from property operations table . the remainder of home rental income is included in rental home income in the income from property operations table . ( 2 ) included in depreciation on real estate and other costs in the consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income . ( 3 ) the new home cost basis does not include the costs associated with our echo jv . our investment in the echo jv was $ 10.4 million and $ 6.3 million at december 31 , 2015 and 2014 , respectively . ( 4 ) includes 100 and 33 homes rented through our echo jv in 2015 and 2014 , respectively . the decrease in income from rental operations , net of depreciation was primarily due to a decrease in the number of occupied used rental units . other income and expenses the following table summarizes other income and expenses for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 (

net cash provided by operating activities increased $ 0.4 million to $ 353.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2016 from $ 352.9 million for the year ended december 31 , 2015 . the overall increase in net cash provided by operating activities is primarily due to an increase in income from property operations of $ 27.6 million and an increase of $ 4.7 million in accrued expenses and accounts payable , offset by a decrease in escrow deposits , goodwill and other assets of $ 20.4 million and a decrease of $ 4.4 million in rents received in advance and security deposits . net cash provided by operating activities increased $ 67.2 million to $ 352.9 million for the year ended december 31 , 2015 from $ 285.7 million for the year ended december 31 , 2014 . the overall increase in net cash provided by operating activities is primarily due to an increase in income from property operations of $ 25.8 million , an increase in escrow deposits , goodwill and other assets of $ 21.9 million , and an increase of $ 10.9 million in accrued expenses and accounts payable . investing activities net cash used in investing activities was $ 218.8 million for the year ended december 31 , 2016 compared to $ 120.7 million for the year ended december 31 , 2015 . significant components of net cash used in investing activities include : we paid approximately $ 98.4 million ( net of mortgage debt assumed of $ 22.6 million ) in 2016 to acquire rose bay rv resort , portland fairview , forest lakes estates and riverside rv , which resulted in an additional 1,483 rv sites and 894 manufactured home sites , as well as vacant land in florida for $ 2.0 million .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```net cash provided by operating activities increased $ 0.4 million to $ 353.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2016 from $ 352.9 million for the year ended december 31 , 2015 . the overall increase in net cash provided by operating activities is primarily due to an increase in income from property operations of $ 27.6 million and an increase of $ 4.7 million in accrued expenses and accounts payable , offset by a decrease in escrow deposits , goodwill and other assets of $ 20.4 million and a decrease of $ 4.4 million in rents received in advance and security deposits . net cash provided by operating activities increased $ 67.2 million to $ 352.9 million for the year ended december 31 , 2015 from $ 285.7 million for the year ended december 31 , 2014 . the overall increase in net cash provided by operating activities is primarily due to an increase in income from property operations of $ 25.8 million , an increase in escrow deposits , goodwill and other assets of $ 21.9 million , and an increase of $ 10.9 million in accrued expenses and accounts payable . investing activities net cash used in investing activities was $ 218.8 million for the year ended december 31 , 2016 compared to $ 120.7 million for the year ended december 31 , 2015 . significant components of net cash used in investing activities include : we paid approximately $ 98.4 million ( net of mortgage debt assumed of $ 22.6 million ) in 2016 to acquire rose bay rv resort , portland fairview , forest lakes estates and riverside rv , which resulted in an additional 1,483 rv sites and 894 manufactured home sites , as well as vacant land in florida for $ 2.0 million .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : our core portfolio average occupancy was 93.5 % for the year ended december 31 , 2016 , compared to 92.6 % for the year ended december 31 , 2015. our historical high was 94.6 % in 2000. in the years following the disruption in the site-built housing market , our home sales business was negatively affected by our customers ' inability to sell their existing site-built homes and relocate to their retirement destination . as a result , we focused on home rental rather than sales as our primary source of occupancy upon turnover . at its peak , in 2013 , rental occupancy represented almost 10.0 % of our core portfolio occupancy . in recent years we have focused on the quality of occupancy growth by increasing the number of manufactured homeowners in our core portfolio . as of december 31 , 2016 , we increased occupancy of manufactured homes within our core portfolio by 597 sites with an increase in homeowner occupancy of 33 management 's discussion ( continued ) 814 sites compared to occupancy at december 31 , 2015 . by comparison , as of december 31 , 2015 , our core portfolio occupancy increased by 473 sites with an increase in homeowner occupancy of 749 sites compared to occupancy at december 31 , 2014 . as of december 31 , 2016 , we had 4,750 occupied rental homes , which represents 7.2 % of our occupancy in our manufactured home communities . for the years ended december 31 , 2016 and 2015 , home rental program net operating income was approximately $ 32.3 million and $ 32.8 million , respectively , net of rental asset depreciation expense of approximately $ 10.7 million for each of the comparative periods . approximately $ 35.7 million and $ 36.6 million of home rental operations revenue was included in community base rental income for the years ended december 31 , 2016 and 2015 , respectively ( see the rental operations tables in the sections below for additional detail regarding our rental activity ) . we believe at this time we compete effectively with other types of rentals ( i.e . , apartments ) . we continue to evaluate home rental operations and expect to continue to invest in additional units . approximately one third of our rental agreements on mh community sites have rent increases that are directly or indirectly connected to published cpi statistics that are issued from june through september of the year prior to the increase effective date . approximately one half of those rental agreements have a cpi floor of approximately 3.0 % . state and local rent control regulations affect 27 properties , including 19 of our 49 california properties , all of our seven delaware properties and one of our five massachusetts properties . the impact of the rent control regulations is to limit our ability to implement rent increases based on prevailing market conditions . the regulations generally permit us to increase rates by a percentage of the increase in the cpi , which may be national , regional or local , depending on the rent control ordinance . the limit on rent increases may range from 60.0 % to 100.0 % of cpi with certain maximum limits depending on the jurisdiction . we continue to see population growth in our key markets , increased access to distribution channels for our products and a renewed willingness by our customers to commit to us for longer periods of time . we place homes in communities where we believe we can successfully sell homes . at these communities we have been successful at increasing home ownership and we continue to allocate capital to home purchases based on our assessment of market conditions . new home sales in our core portfolio increased 37.4 % over the prior year . the recent new home sales have been primarily in our california , colorado and florida communities ( see the home sales operations tables in the sections below for additional detail regarding our home sales activity ) . in the ordinary course of business , we acquire used homes from customers through purchase , foreclosure of a lien , or abandonment . we have seen a decrease in the number of homes coming back to us , which we believe generally means that our residents have the opportunity to resell their homes . while we continue to focus on selling homes , we continue to evaluate rental units , and based on market conditions , we expect to invest in additional new homes for customer rentals . during 2013 we formed a joint venture , echo financing , llc ( the `` echo jv `` ) , with a home manufacturer to buy and sell homes , as well as to purchase loans made by an unaffiliated lender to purchasers of such homes at our properties . the echo jv may also rent homes to customers in our communities . we also have a limited program under which we purchase loans made by an unaffiliated lender to purchasers of homes at our properties . in the manufactured housing industry , chattel financing options available today include community owner funded programs or third party lender programs that provide subsidized financing to customers and require the community owner to guarantee losses upon customer defaults . third party lender programs have stringent underwriting criteria , sizable down payment requirements , short loan amortization and high interest rates . in our rv portfolio , we offer a variety of products that provide our customers the opportunity to place their housing unit , which may include rvs or resort cottages , either permanently or on a long-term or short-term basis at our properties . we are focused on engaging with our existing customers and providing them the lifestyle they seek as well as attracting additional customers interested in our properties . story_separator_special_tag replace_table_token_24_th at december 31 , 2016 , other expenses decreased $ 13.2 million as compared to december 31 , 2015. the variance from prior year is driven by approximately $ 17.0 million of early debt retirement fees associated with defeasance and prepayment activity during the first quarter of 2015 ( see note 8 to the consolidated financial statements for additional detail regarding our first quarter of 2015 defeasance and refinancing activity ) . additionally , interest and related amortization decreased compared to the prior year due to the decrease in secured debt related to refinancing and payment activity as well as lower weighted average interest rates . these decreases are partially offset by increases in depreciation on real estate and rental homes and property rights initiatives and other , net . these expenses increased due to higher capital expenditures , 2016 acquisitions properties ( see note 5 to the consolidated financial statements for additional detail regarding our recent acquisition activity ) as well as $ 2.4 million related to resolution of the california lawsuits ( see note 18 to the consolidated financial statements for additional detail regarding these matters ) . 40 management 's discussion ( continued ) comparison of year ended december 31 , 2015 to year ended december 31 , 2014 income from property operations the following table summarizes certain financial and statistical data for the core portfolio and the total portfolio for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 ( amounts in thousands ) . replace_table_token_25_th ( 1 ) non-gaap measure . the increase in total portfolio income from property operations was primarily due to increases in core community base rental income , core resort base rental income , the contribution from property operations related to the 2014 and 2015 acquisitions as well as increased utility and other income . the increase was partially offset by an overall increase in expenses , with the most significant relating to payroll , repair and maintenance , and property taxes . the 3.5 % increase in core portfolio community base rental income primarily reflected a 2.9 % growth from rate increases and a 0.6 % growth from occupancy gains . the average monthly base rent per site increased to approximately $ 569 in 2015 from approximately $ 553 in 2014. the average occupancy increased to 92.6 % in 2015 from 92.2 % in 2014. resort base rental income is comprised of the following ( amounts in thousands ) : replace_table_token_26_th right-to-use contracts current period , gross , net of sales and marketing , gross , decreased as a result of a lower number of upgrade sales by our third party sales agent . during the year ending december 31 , 2015 , there were 2,687 upgrade sales with an average price per sale of $ 4,745. this compares to 2,978 upgrade sales with an average price per sale of $ 4,665 for the year ended december 31 , 2014 . 41 management 's discussion ( continued ) the increase in property operating and maintenance expenses was primarily driven by increased property payroll and repairs and maintenance expenses . the increase in property payroll was primarily driven by increased overtime and additional employees in the the current year as well as annual salary increases , while the increase in repair and maintenance was largely due to certain storm events in texas , california , and north carolina , higher cabin rental maintenance , and an overall increase in general maintenance supplies expenses . home sales operations the following table summarizes certain financial and statistical data for our home sales operations for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 ( amounts in thousands , except home sales volumes ) . replace_table_token_27_th _ ( 1 ) new home sales gross revenues and costs of new home sales does not include the revenues and costs associated with our echo jv . ( 2 ) total new home sales volume includes 26 home sales through our echo jv for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 , respectively . . the decrease in income from home sales operations and other was primarily due to lower gross profits from new home sales due to a decrease in sales in the california region where properties are fully occupied . increased home selling expenses also contributed to the overall decrease , offset by increased income from ancillary services , which include retail sales at various properties . 42 management 's discussion ( continued ) rental operations the following table summarizes certain financial and statistical data for our manufactured home rental operations for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 ( amounts in thousands , except rental unit volumes ) . replace_table_token_28_th _ ( 1 ) rental operations revenue consists of site rental income and home rental income . approximately $ 36.6 million and $ 39.3 million as of december 31 , 2015 and 2014 , respectively , of site rental income are included in community base rental income in the income from property operations table . the remainder of home rental income is included in rental home income in the income from property operations table . ( 2 ) included in depreciation on real estate and other costs in the consolidated statements of income and comprehensive income . ( 3 ) the new home cost basis does not include the costs associated with our echo jv . our investment in the echo jv was $ 10.4 million and $ 6.3 million at december 31 , 2015 and 2014 , respectively . ( 4 ) includes 100 and 33 homes rented through our echo jv in 2015 and 2014 , respectively . the decrease in income from rental operations , net of depreciation was primarily due to a decrease in the number of occupied used rental units . other income and expenses the following table summarizes other income and expenses for the years ended december 31 , 2015 and 2014 (

