Statutory Sales of Manufactured Housing Units

Manufactured housing units are often placed in manufactured housing parks where the unit owner pays park rent.  Under New Hampshire law, the residents of manufactured housing parks have a right to join together to form a Cooperative in order to purchase the park when the owner decides to sell.

Cooperatives as well as individual park owners often have to move through the eviction process if one of the unit owners stop paying rent.  Thereafter, the owners of the park are often saddled with financial losses, which is a burden to the owners.  To recover from these financial losses and after a former unit owner has been evicted, the Cooperative may take possession of that unit through a process called a statutory sale.

The eviction becomes final upon a Writ of Possession ordered by the court.  Governed by RSA 205-A:4-a, the landowner, whether a Cooperative or other, may commence the statutory sale process, which requires certain statutory notices to be served upon interested individuals, including the town or city, to sell the manufactured house to recover the amount of its claim.  Interested individuals include, but are not limited to, record title holder(s), town tax collector where the property is located, and any lienholders.

At the time of the statutory sale, interested individuals can bid on the property with the understanding that their accepted bid is contingent upon the buyer becoming a qualified member of the Cooperative or other requirements as may be imposed by other landowners.  Upon becoming a qualified member of the Cooperative or tenant, a deed is prepared and recorded to complete the statutory sale process.

The minimum bid price should be the amount necessary to make the Cooperative or landowner whole.  At the statutory sale, if someone bids the minimum bid price or higher, the Cooperative or landowner must sell the property to that successful bidder.  If the bid comes in substantially higher than the minimum bid amount, then the excess amount must be forward to the former owner of the unit, after all taxes and water/sewer bills are paid in full.  If there are no bidders at the statutory sale, then the Cooperative or land owner has the option of taking title to the unit by accepting the unit as satisfaction for the past due park rent.  The Cooperative can then put the unit on the market for sale and any profit that is made, would be retained by the Cooperative, who would also be responsible for real estate taxes and water/sewer expenses. 

Should the need arise for a Statutory Sale, our Real Estate Team will swiftly assist with all required procedures to help maximize your assets.