Question: A community owner entered into a Storage Agreement on a home in early January 2014. The agreement provides that the home must be removed by November 30th if it does not sell. We are now approaching the end of November, and the community owner does not believe the home will be sold by the end of this month. What's next? Does the community owner take the homeowner to court? Doesn't the landlord have to give one year to the home owner? [1]

Community Rules and Regulations along with your rental agreement are critical for the successful operation and management of your manufactured home community. Here are some provisions that should be part of your community rules. Remember, good rules are the first step in maintaining an orderly relationship with your residents. You must also apply and enforce the rules consistently and fairly.

Here are some suggestions:

Question: We have a resident who has about 40 cottonwood trees in her yard. She planted them some time ago. The trees are all about 50 feet in height and very overgrown. I'm pretty sure they've never been trimmed or maintained. We have had complaints recently from a neighbor that they are concerned with the safety of those trees in a storm. We had an arborist inspect the trees and he deemed them a safety hazard and recommended taking them all out, as trimming would only escalate the growth speed of that species of trees.

How do we get the resident to remove all of her trees? My interpretation of the law is that because she is the person who planted them, she is responsible for the maintenance and/or removal of the trees. Is that correct? What if she sold her home and then we wanted the new resident to remove the trees? Could the new resident avoid having to incur the cost of removal because they did not plant them?

I spoke with my insurance agent and they assured me we're not liable to any damage done by a tree falling as that is an act of God. So I guess my follow-up question is, why would we need to demand someone to remove or trim a tree for safety issues if we're not liable for it?

Question: We have been a little lax in keeping some of our RV tenants on track with their rent and late charges. It has to stop. How do we collect the money these tenants owe the park?

Oregon’s Joint Venture (Legalization of Marijuana)  – How Will It Affect Community Owners?  What you need to know about POT Legalization and Your Community

Question: Our community is having more and more residents who purchase pets as puppies, sign the MHCO Pet Agreement that CLEARLY STATES our maximum 25 pound weight limit, and then over time, and the animal becomes too large, they refuse to remove it from the community, and claim their pet is really a "service animal," "assistance animal," "emotional support animal" or some such other animal which they believe protects them from us enforcing the size limits they previously agreed to. What can be done? Do we, as landlords, have any recourse to require residents to get rid of their animals, as they are abusing the system to circumvent our size requirements?

Question: One of my tenants has approached me asking if I would pay relocate their home, as a portion of her space is falling away due to erosion from a nearby stream. As a park owner, what is my responsibility for undertaking this expense?

If you are reading this, chances are you are one of the millions of baby boomers at or near retirement. Although you might not care for the moniker, the government has officially designated you as an "older person". If you own property designated as housing for "seniors" you should periodically refresh yourself on the state of the law protecting "older persons" and to avoid the mistakes of other property owners.

Question: My RV tenant doesn't receive mail, how do I serve him with notices?

On July 26, 1990, President Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), The Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (the “1991 Regulations") were shortly thereafter developed to guide new construction and alterations undertaken by covered entities and established the minimum requirements for "accessibility" for disabled persons in buildings and facilities and in transportation vehicles. After more than twenty years, the Department of Justice implemented new regulations, which became mandatory in 2012 (the “2012 Regulations.”) Your state may have passed parallel laws, which could increase the protection of individuals with disabilities, e.g., the Unruh Act in California. However, this article focuses on Federal ADA compliance. Keep in mind that the ADA is a civil rights law, which addresses a number of subjects, but this article focuses on ac- cessibility (no longer called “handicap”) issues only.