House Urban Affairs Committee
September 3, 2008
Chairman Petrone, Chairman Taylor, members of the House Urban Affairs Committee, I wish to thank you for holding today’s hearing on my legislation, House Bill 1673, which would amend the Mobile Home Park Rights Act to provide much needed protections to the owners of mobile homes or manufactured housing, as it is known today.
As is true of the vast majority of Americans, the purchase of a home is their greatest investment and represents their greatest asset. Owning a home is the very corner stone of the American Dream. For those of lesser or limited economic means, manufactured housing is often times the only way to realize that dream. It is nevertheless, the fulfillment of their aspirations of owning a home and is as much a source of pride and security to them as it is to those with the economic means to own a grander home. And yet the position of a manufactured home owner is a precarious one. Their dwelling is neither fish nor fowl. They own the structure but a landlord owns the land upon which it resides. This puts their version of the American Dream at risk; particularly in high growth areas where the land where their manufactured housing is located can fetch a high price from would be developers.
House Bill 1673 is drafted to ensure that the owners of manufactured housing will not see their American Dream turned into an American Nightmare. It is design to prevent the usurpation of their property. They should not have to face the prospect of having their only real financial asset turned into mere scrap metal, because the landlord of the land upon which it resides and the developer interested in turning that land into another use can easily sweep away their investment of a life time, depriving them of a home and robbing them of their property.
House Bill 1673 was prompted by a situation that took place in Bethlehem Township in the Lehigh Valley when a Mobile Home Park owner decided to sell the land of the facility to a developer for a new housing development. As a result, the residents were forced to vacate the site with little notice and only to find out that they could not move their manufactured homes to another location either because of the cost of moving, the fact that the Mobile Home Park owner had long ago discarded the equipment of the trailer necessary to transport it elsewhere, or because no Mobile Home Park would agree to accept an older trailer. These homeowners were in effect made homeless and saw their property unfairly devalued.
What then are the provisions of House Bill 1673 and how would it protect the owners of manufactured housing? My legislation provides for a number of common sense safe guards to ensure a fair resolution to the plight of manufactured home owners faced with displacement and devaluation of their property.
To begin with, under my bill Mobile Home Park owners would have to provide written notice of any pending sale of the Mobile Home Park to the residents within 30 days of entering into any agreement for sale of the park. They would have to notify prospective tenants prior to leasing a mobile home space if the park is subject to an agreement of sale. They would also have to provide right of first refusal to the residents of the park to give them the chance to purchase the park and save their homes.
If forced to move due to the sale, the Mobile Home Park owner would have to pay relocation expenses and pay the appraised value of the mobile home if the owner is unable to find a suitable replacement site. Additionally, no resident would be required to vacate the premises until at least 180 days after the resident received notice of the pending sale in order for them to have adequate time to find alternative accommodations.
Finally, Mobile Home Park owners with mobile home spaces available would not be allowed to reject used mobile homes from their facility provided that the used mobile home is in good and tenantable condition and complies with applicable building codes.
I realize that the provisions of my legislation may require refinement. However, the principles and provisions embodied in this proposal are nothing if not sound and just. I call upon the members of this committee to bring this bill up for a vote in the very near future so that we can ensure the fair and reasonable protection of the property of our fellow citizens who own manufactured homes.
I thank the chairmen and committee for their consideration of House Bill 1673.