Manufactured Homeowners Who Rent Lots Lack Security of Basic Tenants Rights A report prepared by Consumers Union Southwest Regional Office February 2001 available in pdf format

August 2000: the San Antonio Express-News reports on the plight of a 90 year old retired school teacher. After 38 years in the same mobile home park, the landlord gave all the residents a 30 day notice to move off. Three days before the deadline, fewer than half of the residents had been able to arrange to move their homes.

State Laws There are over 1,300 manufactured housing communities in Texas.(9) Some of the larger communities are owned or controlled by manufacturing companies like Palm Harbor, Champion, or Clayton Homes. The larger multi-state corporations are used to working under regulation. As of 2000, 37 states had regulations covering landlord-tenant relations relating to mobile home owners.(10) (See Map) Clayton runs 75 manufactured home communities across the country, including 26 in Texas.(11) These communities lease land to new manufactured home buyers. Other national or multinational companies operate parks here as well. Most larger new parks are run by large companies or development funds. The Austin Edition of the 2000 Manufactured Housing Community & Land Guide lists only seven parks currently leasing spaces in Austin (there are dozens of parks in the city). Of those seven parks, all of them are owned by companies based out of state.(12) The 37 states with laws governing lot rentals have recognized the potential problems faced by lease-less tenants. Illinois requires landlords to offer a 1 year lease option with automatic renewal unless landlord has good cause to terminate. Arizona limits unreasonable community rules. Florida requires one year notice before closure of a park.(13) Oregon prevents a landlord from forcing a home from the park based on age, architectural style or original materials, if the home meets the codes of the date of manufacture.(14) These states and many others provide a wide range of protections to their mobile home park residents. Texans purchased more manufactured homes than residents of any other state in 1999,(15) and our state has more parks then all but two other states.(16) In fact, Texans bought more homes than people in 25 other states combined - 25 states, of which 22 have laws covering mobile home park residents. Despite the prevalence of manufactured homes here, people who lease the land but own their home have neither the legal protections afforded homeowners, nor those afforded conventional renters. They fall between the cracks. Specific Problems The specific problems facing mobile homeowner tenants are caused by the imbalance of power resulting from making a long term investment in a home placed without the protections of a long term lease. Once placed, homeowners will have little opportunity to move their home without suffering financial harm. Homeowners have no rights, despite the fact that the combined investment of homeowners in a park may surpass that of the park owners. An examination of the tax appraisal rolls for the Regency Village community in El Paso reveals that homeowner property is valued at over 2.5 times that of the park owner.(17) Only a handful of states--including Texas--have not passed some kind of legal protections for manufactured home owners who least their land. Notes: _______ 9 Internet source: http://www.Mobilehomeparks.com 10 Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Practices Manual, Cumulative Supplement 2000, National Consumer Law Center. 11 June 1999 10-K, Clayton Homes, Inc p. 9 & p. 11. 12 Travis County Appraisal District, Appraisal Roll search, www.traviscad.org, and Securities and Exchange Commission information about company ownership and affiliates. 13 Unless otherwise cited, information on state statutes is from: Manufactured Housing Park Tenants: Shifting the Balance of Power. AARP 1991. 14 Oregon Revised Statutes Title 10 90.632. 15 "Statewide Manufactured Home Shipments (1970-1999)" National Conference of States on Building Codes and Standards, as reported by the Manufactured Housing Institute. 16 According to www.mobilehomepark.com, California and Florida have more parks then Texas. Both of these states have laws covering lot rental, including the requirement of offering a one year lease. 17 El Paso County Appraisal District 1999 tax values. A study in Oregon found "The combined investment of the homeowner's averages a 65% greater investment than that of the park owners" Manufactured Home Owners of Oregon, inc./OSTA. Internet Source: http://www.mhoo-osta.com/html/facts/html