Manufactured homes

A manufactured home is built in a factory to a federal code and moved to a site. It is often the cheapest way to own a home. The big question is the land. If you own the land too, the home can be financed and valued much like a regular house. If the home sits on a rented lot in a park, you own the house but pay “lot rent” to the park owner. Since moving the home is costly or impossible, you have little power if the rent goes up.

Since about 2015, investors and private equity firms have bought many parks and raised lot rents sharply. Some residents have fought back by buying their parks as resident-owned cooperatives (ROCs), often with help from nonprofits like ROC USA and state funds. AP reported increases of 87% at one Iowa park, and at another, owned by Utah-based Havenpark, rent and fees nearly doubled. In California, residents of a Fresno County park bought their park as a cooperative in 2024 using state programs.

Loans on homes without land are usually “chattel” loans (personal-property loans). They make up about 42% of manufactured home purchase loans and have higher interest rates and fewer protections than mortgages (CFPB). Older homes in parks often lose value instead of gaining it. State law matters too. Nevada requires 90 days’ written notice before a lot-rent increase (NRS 118B.150). California has its Mobilehome Residency Law, and some of its cities and counties have local rent control. In Arizona, a park must give written notice at least 90 days before a lease ends or renews to raise the rent (A.R.S. 33-1413(G)). In Utah, a rent or fee increase on a month-to-month space can’t be enforced until 60 days after the notice is mailed (Utah Code 57-16-4). In Texas, the community must offer renewal, with the proposed rent, or give notice to vacate at least 60 days before the lease ends (Property Code 94.055).

Who it suits

Buyers who also buy the land, so the home can be financed and gain value more like a house.
People who need low housing costs and choose a resident-owned park, or one with local rent control or a long-term lease.
Retirees on fixed incomes in parks with stable, protected rents.
Residents ready to organize with neighbors to buy their park when it goes up for sale.

Who it doesn’t

Investors expecting a home on a rented lot to gain value like a house.
Buyers in an investor-owned park without rent protection who can’t handle large rent increases.
Anyone who needs a low interest rate but can only get a chattel loan.
People who assume the home can easily be moved. Moving costs thousands, and older homes may not be movable at all.

Real stories

Residents bought their park and kept rent near $500 (2024)

A Stockton-based company bought the park in 2019. Residents alleged a 32% rent increase and poor conditions, and they sued. As part of a settlement, they formed a limited-equity co-op and bought the park for a little over $7.6 million, using two state programs ($4.5 million and $3.25 million) and a bridge loan from ROC USA. Rent and fees were expected to be close to $500 a month. The whole effort took five years.

Lesson: Buying a park is possible, but it took organizing, lawyers, nonprofits and state money. KQED: To fight rising rents, these Fresno County residents bought their mobile home park (Mar 1, 2024)

A state notice law let residents beat an outside buyer (2024)

The longtime owner got a $26.25 million offer from an outside buyer. A new Maine law required him to give residents notice and a chance to buy. Residents formed a board, offered $26.3 million and closed with loans and grants from the state and town. Lot rents went up $100 at first to cover the debt, but residents gained security against investor rent hikes.

Lesson: A ‘right to buy’ or notice law gives residents a real chance. Check whether your state has one. New York Times (via Boston.com): Maine mobile home park renters buy their community (Oct 13, 2024)

A retiring owner sold to the residents (2021)

The longtime owner wanted out and suggested resident ownership. Working with a nonprofit, residents bought the park with a $9.5 million loan repaid through lot rents. A volunteer board now handles finances and upkeep with a hired manager. Residents say neighbors now know each other.

Lesson: Resident ownership works best when the seller cooperates. It also means owners take on the work of running the park. Stateline (via Daily Montanan): To save affordable housing, states promote resident-owned mobile home parks (Oct 31, 2024)

Rent and fees up 87% in three years (2022)

Investors began buying Iowa parks. Iowa Legal Aid reported that one park bought by Impact Communities saw rent and fees rise 87% between 2017 and 2020. Many residents were on fixed incomes and could not keep up. The Iowa attorney general’s office said complaints rose sharply.

Lesson: On a rented lot, a new park owner can change your costs quickly. Check ownership history and state protections before buying. Associated Press (via Times-Republican): Rents spike as big-pocketed investors buy mobile home parks (Jul 26, 2022)

Lot rent jumped nearly 150% (2024)

A new owner of eight parks raised monthly lot rent at one community from $207 to $503.06. The new owner said the old owner had charged too little for decades and left a backlog of repairs. The town’s rent board approved it, and the decision was challenged in court.

Lesson: Very low rent under an old owner can mean a big jump after a sale. Budget for it. Stateline (via Daily Montanan): To save affordable housing, states promote resident-owned mobile home parks (Oct 31, 2024)

Co-op ownership didn’t cut rent right away (2021)

Residents bought their park for $14 million from a corporate owner under Colorado’s right-of-first-refusal law. The purchase loan had to be repaid, so lot rents went up at first rather than down. The volunteer board now has to run the park.

Lesson: A resident-owned park protects against investor hikes. But loan payments can raise rent in the early years. KSJD / Rocky Mountain Community Radio: Coloradans have been purchasing their own mobile home parks... but the resident-owned model also comes with challenges (Nov 16, 2021)

Costs

Lot rent, which can rise quickly. One Massachusetts park went from $207 to $503.06 a month in 2024 (Stateline). A Montana resident’s rent and fees rose $117 in under two years (AP, 2022).
Higher loan costs: chattel loans ‘have higher interest rates and fewer consumer protections than mortgages’ (CFPB).
Moving costs if the park closes or rent becomes too high. Owners may have to abandon the home and lose tens of thousands of dollars (AP).
Park fees and utilities billed separately, plus home insurance and repairs (roof, skirting, plumbing).
In a resident-owned park, your share of paying back the purchase loan through lot rent. At Linnhaven in Maine, rents rose $100 at first.

How people pay

Chattel (personal property) loans are secured by the home only. About 42% of manufactured home purchase loans are chattel loans (CFPB).
Less than 30% of manufactured home loan applications are approved, versus more than 70% for site-built homes (CFPB).
Owning the land and titling the home as real property opens up regular mortgages. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have manufactured-housing programs.
Resident co-op purchases use nonprofit lenders (such as ROC USA Capital) and state or local grants and low-interest loans.

Check before you buy

Find out whether you are buying the land or renting a lot. If renting, get the lease, the park rules and the history of rent increases.
Ask who owns the park, whether it has been sold recently, and whether a sale is pending.
Check state and local protections (rent control, notice rules, right of residents to buy the park). In Nevada, ask for the list of rent increases for the last 5 years.
Compare chattel loan offers with mortgage options if land is included.
Inspect the home (roof, floors, plumbing, ties/anchoring) and check its age and HUD label.
Estimate the cost of moving the home, or whether it can be moved at all.
In Texas, look the home up in TDHCA’s ownership records by its HUD label or serial number: they show the owner, whether the home is treated as personal or real property, and recorded liens. Check TDHCA’s tax lien records too.
In Texas, a deed to the land alone doesn’t prove the home goes with it. The home counts as real property only after the owner’s election is filed in the county’s real property records and TDHCA and the appraisal district are told (Occupations Code 1201.2055). If that wasn’t done, ask your title company and lender how the home will transfer and whether they’ll insure and lend on it before you commit.