Foreclosures Affecting Owners of Mobile Homes

foreclosure mobile homes

Foreclosures are affecting the owners of mobile homes as their lots fall into trouble. Each owner has a tale to tell. Richard Carle came to know about the plight of mobile home park that he and his spouse had known to be their home for 17 years only when a notice arrived telling him about increases in monthly water bills from 1st April. Angrily Carle started making phone calls. With one thing leading to another he finally contacted his lawyers who gave him the staggering news about the foreclosure. The lawyer asked him whether he knew that the park was in foreclosure.
In his mid fifties, Carle was formerly a labourer. He survives on disability benefits. He shares with his wife, dogs, cats and birds a mobile home. Initial anger has now been replaced by his fear and worry about the future.
Foreclosures had been filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court during February against Mann’s Country Estates (Pickaway County) and three other communities in Columbus. It was not mandatory to inform either Carle or any of the other residents.

Ohio House saw through a bill that allows certain rights to renters living in foreclosed houses. It mandates notifying of the tenants within 60 days of foreclosure filing. It also gives the tenants a minimum of 30 days to find new accommodation once the foreclosure process has been complete. The Senate in Ohio has now taken up the bill.

The passage of the bill however will not help the owners of mobile homes who pay rent for the lots in the manufactured-home communities counting to 1,814. Irrespective what they are termed – (trailers, mobile homes etc) these living quarters come under a separate group as per the law of Ohio.

The tenant’s rights bill was co-sponsored by Mike Foley (Democrat). He opined that the bill has already travelled far. Too late it has dawned that the mobile homes have been excluded from it. Another additional legislation has been drawn up and he hopes that it will be introduced within the forthcoming weeks. Foley said, “I’m still trying to get my arms around this. Everything is unique and different when it comes to these parks.”

Foreclosure does not mean the automatic shutting down of any manufactured-home community. It could however lead to the sale of the property for being used for some other purpose than the current one.