The Mobile Homes Act 2013 has officially replaced the long overdue and outdated previous one dating all the way back to 1983. Within the 30 years, things have changed and the park home industry has evolved.
This act was therefore introduced in order to raise standards throughout the industry as well as provide greater protection for residents.
So, what are the changes and what does it mean for you?Â
Any existing home owners who hold written agreements with the park owners starting BEFORE 26th of May 2013 must notify the park owner that they are looking to sell and/or gift the home on site assign the agreement (a document signed by the resident & the park owner setting out the rights to live on the park). In the case that the park owner refuses the sale, they are expected to serve a refusal notice within 21 days. The failure to do so within the time range means that it can be assumed that the same is approved.
With the new agreement which is anything signed AFTER 26th of May 2013, states that the occupier does not have to seek the approval of the park owner. However, the seller is expected to notify the park owner as soon as possible after the sale & agreement.
In any case, regarding gifting of park homes, this can only be exchanged between the members of family of the co-existing park homeowner.
Prior to the reformed Act, one major concern that was expressed by many park home owners was the ‘sale blocking’ by some park owners. In summary, many park homeowners experienced setbacks when trying to sell or gift their homes, with some park owners hindering or preventing residents from selling their property. This frequently happened as a result of the park owners holding the right to interject and interview the prospective buyers and potentially pinch them as potential buyers for NEW park homes rather than buying second-hand.
Changes in the way commission is paid to the park ownerÂ
Prior to the reformed legislations, it was expected that the commission of the negotiated sale price was paid by the park homeowner, since then this has changed and the commission is now expected to be paid by the incoming resident.
REMEMBER: once the negotiations of the sale price are complete, the seller only receives 90% of the sale price. Therefore, the buyer must pay 10% of the sale price to the park owner.
It’s important to note that the new legislations have made the process of buying and selling a park home more complex by introducing more forms and other paperwork. To ensure that everything is done to the correct standard, it is always advised to consider getting a solicitor.
Protection of the standards of the park homes
Change: the site licensing regime
All mobile home park owners are expected to set out clearly things like the number of homes, services and amenities, footpath, spacing, health and safety etc., within their site licensing. Following the new legislations, an annual fee is charged from park homes which will be used to fund police inspections of the park. This will ensure that the conditions of the park are in compliance with the agreed licensing provided to the local authority. Thus, if any park homeowners have concerns to the standards of their park living, this can be raised with the local authority and inspected by the local police.
