By Svea Herbst-Bayliss

NEW YORK, May 20 (Reuters) - A large real estate investor wants to shake up the board at manufactured housing and mobile home park operator UMH Properties UMH.N, arguing the lead director is responsible for many of the company's problems and should be removed.

Erez Asset Management, which owns about 4% of the Freehold, New Jersey-headquartered real estate investment trust, told other shareholders it will vote against director Matthew Hirsch and urged them to do the same.

"Meaningful change is necessary, and it must start with independent Board leadership that is responsive to shareholders," Erez's Chairman and Chief Investment Officer Bruce Schanzer wrote in the letter seen by Reuters. "To that end, we intend to withhold our support from Matthew I. Hirsch."

A representative for UMH and Hirsch did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Investors will vote on May 27. Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholders Services, whose recommendations often guide how investors vote, said shareholders should re-elect three other directors but withhold support for Hirsch. The last time Hirsch stood for election, nearly 40% of votes cast withheld support for Hirsch.

Erez is not running a full-blown proxy fight and did not nominate its own directors. But it is running a so-called Vote-No campaign, a cheaper way to press for changes that has become more popular with investors, industry lawyers said.

Schanzer wrote that by withholding support from Hirsch, shareholders could signal they want the status quo to change and for new board members to be appointed.

UMH Properties, which has a market valuation of $1.3 billion, has seen its stock price drop nearly 10% in the last 12 months. Rival Sun Communities' market valuation is $15.2 billion and its stock price is flat over the last 12 months while rival Equity Lifestyle Properties , with a market valuation of $12.2 billion, has seen its stock price drop 3.6% in the last 12 months.

Schanzer blames the underperformance on investors' lack of trust in the board which he says failed to properly oversee management and made questionable capital allocation choices that hurt the company's business.

Hirsch has served on the board since 2013 and is currently its presiding director.