Manufactured and Mobile Homes In New Jersey - Buying, Owning and Selling

Manufactured (or mobile) homes are handled differently in New Jersey than other types of homes.  If you currently own and plan on selling, or are considering buying a manufactured home, you need to understand the process that you will undergo and the conditions that will effect you when selling and/or buying.  Here are some important points:

1. New Jersey treats manufactured homes as movable (mobile) units and they are therefore licensed by the NJ motor vehicle commission (MVC).  Any licensed NJ real estate agents can handle their sale and the homes can be listed on the local MLS just like any other type of home.  However, many agents have little or no experience with handling this type of property.  Usually licensed dealers handle the initial sale of a manufactured new home and then the home's resale is handled by regular real estate agents. 

2. If you plan on residing in a manufactured or mobile park, then you will probably be renting the land on which the manufactured home is located.  Therefore, regular residential mortgages are not available and you will need to qualify for a personal loan through a bank or loan company that specializes in manufactured homes.  The loans will require at least a 5% down payment, depending on the situation and your credit rating.  Interest rates will tend to be higher than a comparable mortgage.  Many institutions will not approve a loan for a mobile home that is past a certain age, such as 30 years old.
 
3. In addition to having to qualify for a personal loan, most manufactured/mobile home parks will require you to submit for a credit check and charge a processing fee (typically in the $35 to $50 range) before you can be accepted into the park.  Since you are leasing the ground, the park wants to protect it's own financial interests regardless of how you obtained the funds to purchase the home itself.  It is not uncommon for someone that can pay for the mobile home to find that they are rejected by the park because of a bad credit history.  Therefore, make sure you pass the park's credit check before proceeding with purchasing a home within the park.

4. Unlike other types of homes built on land that is owned along with the house, mobile homes may depreciate in value over time, especially when located on leased property or not meeting HUD qualifications as a "manufactured" home or not installed on a permanent foundation.
 
5. Know your rights and obligations before you buy. It is important that you understand the rights and restrictions under which you will agree to operate as a tenant member of the park community in which you may be residing.  Park regulations must be made available to you in writing and you should read them thoroughly prior to signing any agreements.
 
6. After the agreement of sale is signed for a used manufactured home, and prior to closing, an inspection by a mobile home specialist is strongly recommended.
 
7. Usually, the closing is a simple matter of meeting to exchange monies, sign over title by seller to buyer, and wait in line to at the motor vehicle department to register the new owner and pay license fees (sales of used mobile homes are currently exempt from NJ sales tax).
 
8. Don't forget to obtain proper insurance coverage for your mobile home and it's contents.

9. If you are buying a manufactured home that will not be located in an established mobile home park, then you will be subject to local community ordinances which usually include very tough restrictions for (against) stand-alone manufactured (mobile) homes.  Check the local zoning regulations before buying and "dropping" a mobile home on land which you own or intend to purchase.

10. Mobile homes (purchased or leased) can also be viable temporary housing or office space alternatives while constructing a permanent building.   Usage will be subject to local regulations.


New Jersey has manufactured/mobile home parks throughout the state, although more are found along the shore and South Jersey areas.  Some are 55+ communities.  


Here are some resources providing more information regarding manufactured homes and New Jersey manufactured home communities or mobile home parks:
Manufactured Housing and Mobile Homes Communities by City
Mobile Home Parks and Manufactured Home Communities
Mobile Home Parks and Used Parks for Sale in NJ
Mobile Home Dealers Parks
Manufactured Home Dealers in NJ / Retailers
New Jersey Manufactured Housing Association (NJMHA)
NADA Guides - What's Your Manufactured Home Worth? (For 1968 or newer. NOTE: Fee required)
NJ OAL: Administrative Code / NJ Law Network / NJ Legislature
APA: Manufactured Housing - Trends and Issues in the "Wheel Estate" Industry (2004)
AARP: Manufactured Housing Tenants - Shifting the Balance of Power (includes 2003 summary of statues by state for tenants of land-lease communities; for NJ summary see p. 119, for PA see p. 131, for DE see p. 87) 
New Jersey State Legislature - Thesaurus (Search for "HOUSING - CONDOMINIUMS, COOPERATIVES AND MOBILE. HOMES")
Legal Services of NJ (LSNJ) - Special Tenants - Rooming and Boarding Homes and Mobile Home Parks
Land Use Law - Mt Laurel Doctrine (including zoning for mobile homes)
About.com - All About Manufactured Homes

 
See my article for a discussion of Manufactured vs. Modular Homes - What's The Difference? 


See also Know Your Rights: Mobile Home Park Residents (for PA residents; and special thanks to Rich for reminding me to complete this article).
 
 
Manufactured or Mobile Home Park?  The term mobile home park refers to groups of manufactured/mobile homes with one management that supplies utilities and other kinds of services. A few sources call these groupings manufactured home parks or manufactured home communities, but mobile home park seems to be a more widely used term. It is more accurate, as well, because many of these communities contain pre-1976 units that do not meet the federal definition of manufactured homes. (Ref. MHNA)
 
 
 
For additional real estate resources, help and support services in acquiring or selling properties in New Jersey, Visit my web site: LawrenceYerkes.com
  
and visit Besthomes-NJ.com to shop for the latest New Jersey Real Estate property listings (Residential, Commercial, Multi-Family, Farm, Land).   
 
Copyright 2007 by Lawrence Yerkes. All Rights Reserved.