Getting the Home you Deserve: Advice for Mobile Home Owners
Mobile homes (also known as manufactured homes) are popular with older Americans
because they are usually more affordable than conventional homes. The cost of
a mobile home may be up to a third less than a similar home built on site. Despite
the popularity of mobile homes, home owners face many problems. Common complaints
are that the home is defective or installed incorrectly. The manufacturer or
dealer may refuse to repair the defect even though the home is under warranty.
The most common problems mobile home owners face include:
Misrepresentations in the sales and financing of mobile homes.
High pressure sales tactics by mobile home dealers and salespeople lead to
inflated prices and hidden costs.
Defects in the manufacture, delivery or installation of the home.
Manufactured homes are built in accordance with standards set by the federal
government. Despite federal standards, consumers complain about leaking or
sagging roofs; improperly installed windows, doors and appliances; defects
in the heating, cooling, electrical or plumbing systems; and damaged flooring.
Many of these problems are difficult and expensive to repair. Home owners
typically look to the dealer or manufacturer to make such repairs.
Problems obtaining service under warranty. Mobile home
manufacturers typically provide at least a one-year written warranty. Unfortunately,
many consumers have a hard time getting warranty service. At other times repairs
are inadequate.
Eviction of residents in mobile home parks. Nearly half
of mobile home owners pay rent for the land on which the home sits, usually
in a mobile home park. Mobile home park residents often complain about poor
maintenance, arbitrary rent increases, unfair park rules, sudden imposition
of fees or decrease in services and harassment by the park owners or operators
if they complain about conditions in the park. Park spaces are scarce. Residents
who wish to move from an undesirable park may be unable to rent a new site.
General Advice about Mobile Homes
If a new mobile home appears to be defective, it is best to contact the manufacturer
or dealer right away. Federal law requires a mobile home manufacturer to fix
defects that present an unreasonable risk of injury or death to the home’s
occupants, or defects in the design or assembly of the home. Your state may
have an enforcement agency that oversees these federal standards and handles
consumer complaints. Contact that agency or the U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD), if the manufacturer will not cooperate in fixing the
defect.
Get help! Defects in mobile homes are expensive and difficult to repair. You
have many rights under your written warranty and state and federal law. You
may need the assistance of a lawyer or legal advocate to assert your rights.
If you cannot obtain legal assistance and you believe the manufacturer and the
state enforcement agency are not addressing your problem, you should call or
write HUD.
Additional Resources
National Consumer Law Center, Guide to Mobile Homes (2002). To order, see www.nclc.org
or call NCLC publications (617) 542-9595.
American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), 601 E. Street, N.W., Washington,
D.C. 20410, (800) 424-3410 or http://www.aarp.org.
Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20580.
The FTC’s website is www.ftc.gov or call
1-877-FTC-HELP.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Manufactured Housing &
Standards Division, Office of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, 451 W. Seventh
St., S.W., Room 9152, Washington, D.C. 20410. Phone (800) 927-2891.
This publication was supported, in part, by a grant # 90-AP-2640
from the Administration on Aging, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington,
D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged
to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of views or opinions
do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Administration on Aging policy.
and NCLC