HUD - 007487 Handbook 4145.1

[KATHY]

Revision 2, what is the specific interpetation the handbook in reference to the
"what is their interpetetaion of a permanent foundation" does pier & post qualify?
The date of installation and unit are approximately 1993, original lot and location.

Thanks,
Kathy

[rmurray]

There seems to be 2 different definitions that are commonly used...FHA financing will require an inspection by a FHA inspector and his certification..Unfortunately inspectors themselves all seem to have slightly different definitions as to what is acceptable..

Then...all other sources of competitive mortgages also require "permanent" foundations...In these cases this is a function of the local code and an appraisor oppinion..again this can very from appraisor to appraisor...

I guess the answer to your question is...it is hard to say..

[JohnnyJ]

The biggest qualifier of the term "permanent" as it relates to the tax man in
Chilton County, AL, is the type of power connection you have to your home.

If the power goes to a breaker box and meter on a pole, and then is hooked
to your home, it isn't permanent. If the power goes to a breaker box and meter
mounted on the home, the wheels and axles removed, and on a permanent
foundation, it is considered to be permanent. The main thing is the power
pole or lack of.

[rmurray]

That is a different take on the question...this nicely proves the definition is different in every county of the United States...

[Bill Fry]

Different states allow different code for power going directly to the home's meter which is mounted on the house.Personally I think its a better idea to have it off(the house) but apparently Alabama allows either.In SC you can't have the meter on a manufactured house unless you get it certified from the builder as a modular and the space for the meter and conduit is built at the factory.
Correct me there of I'm wrong Murray but I think its somethin like that.

[JohnnyJ]

I have to wonder why it is a good idea to have the power meter mounted to the
home on a site built home, but not on a manufactured home. If all I have learned
about electrictiy is true, then proper installation by qualified personnel, should
be the same either way. Possiby in SC, as in AL, a licensed electrician must
do the installation to the home. If not, then problems would be most likely
the result.

[rmurray]

As long as the meter base has a stable backing the power companies allow it on the HUD home in SC....The requirement that there be a letter from the plant seems to have been a power company requirement..not a government requirement..
I have not been asked for one in a few years on homes with OSB wrap...which is everything we sell..

That said...for the other poster here..I prefer the service be separate from the home as well...The most common we do now is an underground installation where there is a small pedistal with a power box and meterbase at a location the power company chooses...I think it is better because..1) more access for the cooling systems electrical hook up, 2) empty space in the box for future expansion..such as work sheds, garages and the like..3) seems safer to me...The major ground is at the meter base...if lighting somehow gets into the line (not common on underground installations) it will go to the ground outside the home...maybe damage the box...but not the home..When mounted on the home with a weather head...The lightning travels directly to the home and then the ground...

[Bill Fry]

No that I think about it that was a particular county requirement in SC murray,not the states.Like you say codes vary widely wherever you go.

[S. Jordan]

I thought that I understood that as of January 2003, state and Fed'l required that all manufactured homes new or retrofit, no matter what type of loan, VA, FHA, or Conv. have a permanent foundation installed per HUD requirements. What in the world does elec. set-ups have to do with anything? Now you really have me confused!!

[rmurray]

Since 1976 HUD has "required" that the set up be done to the requirements of the set up manual that comes with the home...The rules have not changed..only the enforcement has changed and will change more in the coming months...Until recently HUD has always felt that set up was a state and local issue...Now HUD is requiring the states and local governments to more than they have in the past..
The term "permanent" set up comes into play with lenders and sometimes with local governments for taxing purposes...As you can see above......this term means different things to differnet people...
HUD itself just released an example "permanent" set up guide book (available for download on their web site)...It details 8 different set up systems...The most important statement in the guide is that these are only models of the many types of set up that are going on in the industry and any one of the others can also be ok....Oh Well..Thanks uncle for making thing more understandable ...