Owning a Manufactured Home or Mobile Home; What you Need to Know.

California Mobile Home Loan

Mobile Home Mortgage

Mobile and manufactured home ownership is a growing trend in the US Housing market. If you are one of the 17 million Americans that live in manufactured housing, or are considering making a manufactured home your next home purchase, there are some unique facets to mobile home ownership you might want to understand.

Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards

On June 15, 1976, the US Department of Housing issued Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards to protect the quality, durability, safety and affordability of manufactured homes. These standards ensure that manufacturers, who build manufactured homes in the United States, are compliant with preemptive Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards. From June of 1976 on, designs of manufactured homes are reviewed for compliance, and homes are inspected during construction by Housing and Urban Development-approved third-party inspection agencies.

Manufactured Home and Mobile Home Repairs

If a manufactured home was built after September 1, 1958, alterations to the electrical, plumbing, or mechanical systems of a manufactured home will require a permit and inspection from the Department of Housing and Community Development regardless of where the home is located.

Mobile Home Park or Manufactured Home Community Information

A Mobile home park owner can increase the space or lot rent for residents in the community, as long as they are legally allowed to do so. The Mobile home Residency Law (MRL) allows a mobile home community owner/operator to increase rents after giving the mobile home park residents a 90-day notice. However, city or county officials may impose rent control restrictions. If you aren´t sure whether your rent can be legally increased, contact your local government for assistance. Additional information on this section of the Mobile home Residency Law can be found in MRL sections, 798.17, 798.21, 798.30, and 798.45 in the Civil Code here.

A community park manager or community management association must obtain permission from The Department of Housing and Community Development, or the local enforcement agency for the area, to move lot lines for individuals residing in the park. Lot lines can only be moved once permission has been granted, and after obtaining a homeowner´s approval. A manager may need to meet other requirements, outlined in Title 25 of the California Code of Regulations section 1104(d), here.

It is a requirement that the rules and regulations of a mobile home park or manufactured home community be given to the residents of the park at the time of application for tenancy. These community rules and regulations must also be given to all park residents when new space or lot leases are issued, or extended. Despite these regulations, there are no requirements stating that the park or community management must post the park rules, privately nor publicly.

Mobile home and Manufactured home park management can legally require that homeowners correct violations of local and/or state regulations for the homeowner´s own unit and/or their accessory structures. The mobile home park management, however, cannot require a mobile home owner to make physical improvements to the park-owned property or structures, including the owner´s rented lot, or space. More Information on this particular issue can be found in sections 798.73.5 and 798.83, in the Civil Code.

Some states require yearly health and safety inspections for mobile home parks. In California, for example, the state law requires that the California Department of Housing and Community Development maintain a health and safety hazard inspection on every mobile home or manufactured home community in California, every 5 to 7 years. For California residents, the Department of Housing, or HCD, has released an informative video, explaining why these inspections are necessary. The video can be viewed on youtube, here. Check with your state and local officials to find out when your state law requires that your mobile home or manufactured home community be inspected.