Cost of Space Rental

[Owner of Home, but not land]

Is it common practice to pay a set dollar amount for space regardless of the size of the space? We all pay the same amount at our park, and the Manager has varied ( by his allowance of larger installations and disregard for the 3 foot setback) the size of spaces. Does anyone know if this is legal? We are not in rent control.

[Mark]

Management can charge and base it on whatever they want, as long as it doesn't violate the 6 (or 7) protected items (race, sex, religion, etc).

They can change the size of the lots if they want to as well, and since everyone is paying the same amount, you can have no complaint since you aren't now being charged for a smaller lot than you had before.

That being said, they must still comply with whatever code restrictions are in place for your area regarding distance between homes, easements, etc.
Also, you can't just go out and remove survey markers if they are demarcating one indivial lot from another. Since you are in a park, the _entire_ park is surveyed as a whole, so now it depends on who divided up the interior and if it was filed with the county.

Do you have anything that says your lot is x feet by x feet?
Do you pay property taxes on the lot?
If you have a stated lot size, or you pay the property taxes on it, then you have something.

It would also make it very sticky for them, since the people living there no longer know where 'their' property ends and someone elses begins.

[Chrissy Jackson]

Mark is right. It is very common to charge the same rate of rent for all homesites within a community. I'm not sure what you mean when you refer to the 3' setbacks. Normally, however, all home installations in a community require a permit and inspection. Not all states or municipalities require this, but most do, and that would mean that any improperly placed or installed home would not then be able to connect to utilities.

[DP]

What is the average lot rental? We here in Va. are now paying $665. a month.

[Chrissy Jackson]

The rate of homesite rentals usually closely compares to the values of residential housing in the surrounding areas, with adjustments for amenities in each community. So . . . there is no one rate that is right for the entire country. There are some areas where monthly rents are as low as $100 per month and others where they are as high as $3,000 per month.

In order to see where your community rate fits, look at the market where you are located. Survey apartment complexes, condos, single family housing, other manufactured home communities and all other types of housing in your market area (usually 30-40 miles in diameter with your home as the center point).

More information on conducting a good market survey can be found on my website www.chrissy-jackson.com, and in my handbook, "Promoting Your Community" available for order online.