AN ACT RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- MOBILE AND MANUFACTURED HOMES (Gives mobile home residents a right of first refusal to buy or lease their park, requiring owners to notify the residents’ association and the Department of Business Regulation of bona fide offers and allow time to match the terms.)

H8013

2026 -- H 8013
========
LC004800
========

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026
____________
A N A C T
RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- MOBILE AND MANUFACTURED
HOMES

Introduced By:
Representatives Speakman, and Cortvriend

Date Introduced:
February 27, 2026

Referred To:
House Municipal Government & Housing
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
1
SECTION 1. Sections 31-44-1, 31-44-1.4 and 31-44-3.1 of the General Laws in Chapter
2
31-44 entitled "Mobile and Manufactured Homes" are hereby amended to read as follows:
3

31-44-1. Definitions.
4
As used in this chapter:
5
(1) “Department” means the department of business regulation.
6
(2) “Director” means the director of the department of business regulation.
7
(3) “Entry requirements” means any written, nondiscriminatory criteria for resident
8
selection incorporated into the rules and regulations of a mobile- and manufactured-home park
9
which are equally applied by the licensee to all purchasers and prospective residents.
10

(4) “Executive office of housing” means the office within the executive branch of state
11
government established pursuant to the provisions of § 42-167-1.
12

(4)
(5)
“Fee schedule” means an itemized list of fees for goods or services sold or performed
13
by a mobile- and manufactured-home park licensee including, but not limited to, the entrance fee,
14
hook-up fee, and maintenance fee, if any.
15

(5)
(6)
“Hook-up fee” means a reasonable fee for the services required to install a mobile
16
and manufactured home on a mobile- and manufactured-home space or lot. The charge shall include
17
the cost of connecting water and sewer lines, electrical connections, tie-downs, removal of wheels
18
or axles, steps, if necessary, and other necessary services, including, but not limited to, the creation

1
of new pads or piers.
2

(6)
(7)
“Household” means one or more persons occupying a housing unit.
3

(7)
(8)
“Licensee” means any person or agent licensed under § 31-44-1.6 who is directly or
4
indirectly engaged in the business of selling mobile and manufactured homes or who operates and
5
maintains a mobile- and manufactured-home park under the provisions of this chapter.
6

(8)
(9)
“Mobile and manufactured home” means a detached residential unit designed:
7
(i) For a long term occupancy and containing sleeping accommodations, a flush toilet, and
8
a tub or shower bath and kitchen facilities, and having both permanent plumbing and electrical
9
connections for attachment to outside systems;
10
(ii) To be transported on its own wheels or on a flatbed or other trailer or detachable wheels;
11
and
12
(iii) To be placed on pads, piers, or tied down, at the site where it is to be occupied as a
13
residence complete and ready for occupancy, except for minor and incidental unpacking and
14
assembly operations and connection to utilities systems.
15

(9)
(10)
“Mobile- and manufactured-home park” or “park” means a plot of ground upon
16
which four (4) or more mobile and manufactured homes, occupied for residential purposes are
17
located.
18

(10)
(11)
“Mobile- and manufactured-home space or lot” means a plot of ground within a
19
mobile- and manufactured-home park designed for the accommodation of one mobile and
20
manufactured home.
21

(11)
(12)
“Owner” means a licensee or permittee or any person who owns, operates, or
22
maintains a mobile- and manufactured-home park.
23

(12)
(13)
“Prospective resident” means an applicant for admission to a mobile- and
24
manufactured-home park who is ready, willing, and able to buy a mobile and manufactured home
25
owned and offered for sale by a licensee or resident, and who is able to meet the entrance
26
requirements of the rules of the park.
27

(13)
(14)
“Protected lawful action” means any report of a violation of this chapter, or of any
28
applicable building or health code, or any other justified complaint to a governmental authority, or
29
any other justified lawful act by the resident(s) or prospective resident(s).
30

(14)
(15)
“Qualified sale” means the sale of a mobile- and manufactured-home park to a
31
resident organization with the goal of resident ownership by at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the
32
homeowner households residing in the park.
33

(15)
(16)
“Reprisal” means any act taken against the resident(s) which is intended as a
34
penalty for any protected lawful action taken by the resident(s).

LC004800 - Page 2 of 11
1

(16)
(17)
“Resident” means an owner or renter occupying a mobile and manufactured home
2
in a mobile- and manufactured-home park with the consent of the owner as defined in subdivision
3
(11) of this section.
4

(17)
(18)
“Resident organization” means a group of mobile- and manufactured-home park
5
residents who have formed a nonprofit corporation, cooperative corporation, or other entity or
6
organization for the purpose of acquiring the mobile home park in which they reside and converting
7
the mobile home park to resident ownership.
8

(18)
(19)
“Resident ownership” means, depending on the context, either the ownership, by
9
a resident organization, as defined in this section, of an interest in a mobile- and manufactured-
10
home park which entitles the resident organization to control the operations of the mobile home
11
park, or the ownership of individual interests in a mobile home park, or both.
12

(20) “Secretary” means the secretary of housing appointed pursuant to the provisions of §
13
42-167-4.
14

(19)
(21)
“Security deposit” means a sum not to exceed the monthly rental which a licensee
15
may require a resident of a rented mobile or manufactured home to deposit as security in case of
16
damage caused by the resident in excess of ordinary wear and tear.
17

(20)
(22)
“Standards for mobile and manufactured homes” means any written,
18
nondiscriminatory minimum specifications for structural soundness, safety, and habitability
19
adopted by the department or any other government agency.
20

31-44-1.4.
Powers and duties of department
Powers and duties of department and
21
secretary.
22
(a) The department may:
23
(1) Interpret and implement
in collaboration with the secretary of housing,
the provisions
24
of this chapter and the applicable provisions of chapter 44.1 of this title;
25
(2) Act for the purpose of promoting a uniform policy relating to all phases of mobile and
26
manufactured home business and use;
27
(3) Monitor and determine the sufficiency of the state Mobile and Manufactured Home Act
28
under this chapter as well as local mobile and manufactured home ordinances which are designed
29
to provide local governments with superintending control over mobile and manufactured home
30
business or use and to make recommendations to it; and
31
(4) Conduct public hearings relating to these advisory responsibilities.
32
(b) The department shall:
33
(1) Monitor the implementation of statutes and regulations affecting mobile and
34
manufactured homes;

LC004800 - Page 3 of 11
1
(2) Make investigations and conduct or authorize periodic surveys to determine compliance
2
with this chapter;
3
(3) All departments of state government are authorized to provide assistance to the
4
department as the department requires;
5
(4) Conduct a public education program to improve public perception and local acceptance
6
of mobile and manufactured homes and to promote them as affordable housing; and
7
(5) Study additional issues related to mobile and manufactured homes and periodically
8
disseminate acquired information.
9

(6) Assist as requested by the secretary in the enforcement of the provisions of § 31-44-
10
3.1.
11

(c) The secretary shall, pursuant to the powers and duties enumerated in § 42-167-5 in
12
collaboration with the department, carry out the purpose of the executive office of housing as
13
specified in § 42-167-2 to implement and enforce the provisions of this chapter.
14

31-44-3.1. Sale of mobile home parks — Tenants association right of first refusal.
15
(a)
In any instance in which a mobile home park owner has been sent a certified letter from
16
an incorporated home owner households association indicating that the association has at least fifty-
17
one percent (51%) of the home owner households residing within that park as members, and has
18
articles of incorporation specifying all rights and powers, including the power to negotiate for,
19
acquire, and operate the mobile home park on behalf of the member residents, then, before

Before

20
a mobile home park may be sold for any purpose and before it may be leased for any purpose that
21
would result in a discontinuance, the
park
owner shall notify
the association

each owner of a mobile
22
home in the mobile home park and the executive office of housing established pursuant to the
23
provisions of § 42-16.7-1,
by certified mail return receipt requested of any bona fide offer that the
24
owner intends to accept, to buy the park or to lease it for a use that would result in a discontinuance.
25
The park owner shall not make a final unconditional acceptance of an offer for the sale of the mobile
26
home park, or for the lease for a use that would result in a discontinuance, earlier than the forty-
27
five (45) days after the notice required by this subsection is mailed in accordance with this
28
subsection and received by the executive office of housing.
The park owner shall also give notice
29
by certified mail return receipt requested to
the incorporated homeowners’ association

each owner
30
of a mobile home in the mobile home park and executive office of housing
of any intention to sell
31
or lease the park for a use which will result in a discontinuance within fourteen (14) days of any
32
advertisement or other public notice by the
park
owner or his or her agent that the park is for sale
33
or the land upon which the park is located is for lease.
Nothing in this section shall limit the
34
association from acting as an agent of the residents in any other cause of action, objective or purpose

LC004800 - Page 4 of 11
1
in advancing a stated purpose in the articles of incorporation of the homeowners’ association.
2
(b) The notice of pending bona fide sale from the
park
owner
must

shall
contain
at a
3
minimum
the following
:

if known and available and applicable to the sale:
4

(1) An affidavit from the buyer or lessee stating the offered purchase price or offered lease
5
payment;
6

(1) A statement that a group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association
7
of the mobile home park has a right to purchase the mobile home park, and may make an offer to
8
purchase the mobile home park within forty five (45) days of when the notice containing
9
information required by this subsection is mailed in accordance with this subsection and received
10
by the executive office of housing;
11

(2) The price, terms and conditions of any acceptable offer the owner of the mobile home
12
park has received for the mobile home park, including a signed copy of the written offer or purchase
13
and sale agreement that contains a description of the property. The park owner may redact the
14
name, address, contact information or other identifying information of the party making the offer.
15
If an owner of a mobile home park intends to accept an offer to purchase the mobile home park and
16
the mobile home park is to be included in an investment portfolio by the purchaser, the price, terms
17
and conditions specific to the mobile home park shall be specified in the notice required by this
18
subsection.
19

(3) The notice of pending bona fide sale from the park owner shall contain the following if
20
known and available and applicable to the sale:
21

(2)
(i)
The terms of seller financing, including the amount, the interest rate and its
22
amortization rate;
23

(3)
(ii)
The terms of assumable financing, if any, including the amount, the interest rate and
24
its amortization rate;
25

(4)
(iii)
The legal description and a statement of appraised or assessed value of property
26
included in any land trade involved in the sale of the park;
27

(5)
(iv)
Proposed improvements to the property to be made by the
park
owner in connection
28
with the sale, or other economic concessions by the
park
owner in connection with the sale, if any;
29

(6)
(v)
A statement that the
park
owner will allow reasonable access to the property by
30
parties involved in the potential purchase including, but not limited to,
the tenants’ association
,
the
31
group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
consultants,
legal
32
representatives or advisors,
and lenders;
33

(7)
(vi)
A statement that the
park
owner
will

shall
make available to the
residents

group of
34
mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
copies of any easements either on or

LC004800 - Page 5 of 11
1
off the property to which the
park
owner is a party and copies of all permits or licenses in force
2
within seven (7) days of a signed purchase and sale agreement with the
residents

group of mobile
3
home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
;
4

(8)
(vii)
A statement that the
park
owner
will

shall
make available to the
residents

group of
5
mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
a survey and legal description of the
6
park, plus an itemized list of monthly operating expenses, utility consumption rates, taxes,
7
insurance and capital expenditures for each of the past three (3) years within seven (7) days of a
8
signed purchase and sale agreement with the
residents

group of mobile home owners or the mobile
9
home owners’ association
;
10

(9)
(viii)
A statement that the
park
owner
will

shall
make available to the
tenants’
11
association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
the most recent
12
rent roll, a list of tenants, a list of vacant units and a statement of the vacancy rate at the park for
13
the three (3) preceding calendar years within seven (7) days of a signed purchase and sale agreement
14
with the
residents

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
;
15

(10)
(ix)
A statement that the
park
owner
will

shall
make available to the
tenants’
16
association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
any available
17
data relating to the past and present existence of hazardous waste either on the property or in close
18
proximity within seven (7) days of a signed purchase and sale agreement with the
residents

group
19
of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
;
20

(11)
(x)
A statement that the
park
owner
will

shall
make available to the
tenants’ association

21
group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
any available data relating
22
to the water, sewer and electrical systems of the park within seven (7) days of a signed purchase
23
and sale agreement with the
residents

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’
24
association
;
25

(12)
(xi)
A statement that the
park
owner
will

shall
make available to the
tenants’
26
association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
all income and
27
operating expenses relating to the property to be purchased for the three (3) preceding calendar
28
years within seven (7) days of a signed purchase and sale agreement with the
residents

group of
29
mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
and any other information that may
30
be required by the lender. Any additional information that is required by the lender shall be kept
31
strictly confidential
between the park owner, the group of mobile home owners or the mobile home
32
owners’ association, and their lenders
.
33
(c)
Any incorporated home owners’ association entitled to notice under this section

A
34
group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association
shall have the right to

LC004800 - Page 6 of 11
1
purchase, in the case of a third party bona fide offer to purchase, or to lease in the case of a third
2
party bona fide offer to lease, the park, provided it meets the same price and
the same terms and
3
conditions

has substantially equivalent terms and conditions
of
any offer of which it is entitled to
4
notice under this section

the offer the park owner has conditionally accepted or plans to accept
by:
5
(1)
Executing

Submitting
a
proposed
contract or purchase and sale or lease agreement
with

6
to
the
park
owner within forty-five (45) days of notice of the offer
, along with reasonable evidence,
7
such as a signed petition, that the owners of at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the mobile homes
8
in the mobile home park that are occupied by the mobile home owner or a family member of the
9
mobile home owner support making an offer
; and
10
(2) Obtaining any necessary financing or guarantees within an additional one hundred
11
thirty-five (135) days.
12
(d) No
park
owner shall unreasonably refuse to enter into, or unreasonably delay the
13
execution of a purchase and sale or lease agreement with a
home owners’ association

group of
14
mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association
that has made a bona fide offer to meet
15
the same price and
the same terms and conditions

has substantially equivalent terms and conditions

16
of an offer for which notice is required to be given pursuant to this section.
17
(e)
(1)

The deposit monies must be credited to the purchase price of the mobile home park.
18
A park owner shall negotiate in good faith with a group of mobile home owners or a mobile home
19
owners’ association concerning any purchase offer made after receiving the notice required by
20
subsections (a) and (b) of this section. If the park owner rejects the proposed purchase offer made
21
by a group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association, the park owner shall
22
provide the reason for rejection in writing within three (3) days of the rejection.
23

(2) The deposit monies shall be credited to the purchase price of the mobile home park. A
24
group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners' association shall not be required to pay a
25
nonrefundable deposit at the time of execution of a purchase and sale agreement as a condition of
26
acceptance.
27
(f) The
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile
28
home owners’ association

will

shall
use diligent efforts to obtain a commitment for financing from
29
a lender by making immediate application for financing upon signing of the purchase and sale
30
agreement. In the event that the
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home
31
owners or the mobile home owners’ association
, with the exercise of reasonable efforts, is unable
32
to obtain necessary financing or comply with other contingencies of the purchase and sale
33
agreement, the
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile
34
home owners’ association
shall immediately notify the park owner and the deposit shall be returned

LC004800 - Page 7 of 11
1
to the
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home
2
owners’ association. Notwithstanding the requirement that the offer from a group of mobile home
3
owners or a mobile home owners' association be on substantially equivalent terms and conditions,
4
a mobile home park owner shall not reject a proposed purchase and sale agreement solely on the
5
basis of the inclusion of a financing contingency
.
6
(g) If the
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home owners or the
7
mobile home owners’ association
shall default in the performance of its obligations as a purchaser
8
under the terms of the purchase and sale agreement, the park owner shall have, as sole and exclusive
9
remedy for the default, the right to retain the deposit as liquidated damages in full settlement and
10
discharge of all obligations of the
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home
11
owners or the mobile home owners’ association
without further recourse in law or equity.
12
(h) Failure of the
incorporated home owners’ association

group of mobile home owners or
13
the mobile home owners’ association
to
execute

submit
a
proposed
purchase and sale agreement or
14
lease within the forty-five (45) day period or to obtain a binding commitment for financing within
15
the one hundred thirty-five (135) day period
following signing of a purchase and sale agreement

16
shall serve to terminate the right of the
association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile
17
home owners’ association
to purchase or lease the mobile park home.
18
(i)
Residents shall have a total of one hundred eighty (180) days from the receipt of notice
19
of a bona fide sale to complete a transaction under the right of first refusal legislation. Any delays
20
by the seller in supplying requested information as stated in this legislation or any delay resulting
21
from litigation involving the sale and/or litigation affecting the marketability of the title of the
22
mobile home park shall result in the same number of days over the due date being added to the one
23
hundred eighty (180) days available to the residents for a right of first refusal purchase unless the
24
litigation is frivolous and prompted for the sole purpose of delay by the home owners association.
25
(j) The time periods provided in this section may be extended by agreement of the
26
association

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
and the
park

27
owner.
28
(k) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require
an

the park
owner to provide
29
financing to any
association

group of mobile home owners or mobile home owners’ association
or
30
to prohibit
an

a park
owner from requiring
an association

a group of mobile home owners or mobile
31
home owners’ association
which is offering to lease a park to have within its possession a sum
32
equivalent to the capitalized value of the proposed rent of the park and requiring that a portion of
33
that sum, of an amount necessary to pay the rent on the park for a period of no greater than two (2)
34
years, be kept in escrow for that purpose during the term of the lease.

LC004800 - Page 8 of 11
1
(l) The right of first refusal
and other rights
created in this section shall inure to a
home
2
owners’ association

group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association
for the
3
time periods provided in this section, beginning on the date of notice to
the home owners’
4
association

each owner of a mobile home in the mobile home park and the executive office of
5
housing
. The effective period of the right of first refusal
and other rights
shall apply separately
for

6
to
each substantially different bona fide offer to purchase
or sell
the park or to lease it for a purpose
7
that would result in a discontinuance, and for each offer the same as an offer made more than three
8
(3) months prior to the later offer. However, in the case of the same offer made by a prospective
9
buyer who has previously made an offer for which notice to
a home owners’ association

each owner
10
of a mobile home in the mobile home park and the executive office of housing
was required by this
11
section, the right of first refusal shall apply only if the subsequent offer is made more than six (6)
12
months after the earlier offer.
The right of first refusal shall not apply with respect to any offer
13
received by the owner for which notice to a home owners’ association is not required pursuant to
14
this section.
15
(m)
No right of first refusal shall apply

This section shall not apply
to a government taking
16
by eminent domain or negotiated purchase, a forced sale pursuant to a foreclosure, transfer by gift,
17
devise, or operation of law, or a sale to a person who would be included within the table of descent
18
and distribution if there were to be a death intestate of a park owner.
19
(n) In any instance in which the
incorporated home owners’ association of a mobile home
20
park

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
is not the successful
21
purchaser or lessee of the mobile home park, the seller or lessor of the park shall prove compliance
22
with this section by filing an affidavit of compliance in the official land evidence records of the
23
city or town where the property is located within seven (7) days of the sale or lease of the park.
24
(o) In any instance in which the
incorporated homeowners’ association of a mobile home
25
park

group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’ association
is the successful
26
purchaser or lessee of the mobile home park, the association shall have the right to distinguish in
27
terms of lease conditions and rent and fees as between members of said association and non-
28
members of said association.
The group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’
29
association shall be governed by and open to all mobile home owners in the park.
For purposes of
30
this chapter, members of a homeowners’ association and non-members of a homeowners’
31
association shall not be deemed residents of a similar class.
32

(p) A park owner shall not accept or conditionally accept an offer for the sale, lease, or
33
transfer of the mobile home park unless its price, terms, and conditions are universal and applicable
34
to all potential buyers, nor shall the park owner accept or conditionally accept an offer that contains

LC004800 - Page 9 of 11
1
any provision penalizing the park owner for entering into a purchase agreement with a group of
2
mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association.
3

(q) A group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association that has rights
4
under this section may, at its election, assign such rights to the municipality in which the group or
5
association is located, a housing authority located in such municipality, an agency of the state, or a
6
nonprofit organization, including a special purpose entity, for the purpose of continuing the use of
7
the property as a mobile home park. Upon assignment, the assignee shall be entitled to exercise the
8
rights that this section grants to the group of mobile home owners or the mobile home owners’
9
association.
10

(r) As used in this section, the term “group of mobile home owners or a mobile home
11
owners’ association” means and includes:
12

(1) A “resident organization” as defined in § 31-44-1;
13

(2) An “unincorporated entity” as defined in § 7-6-2; or
14

(3) A mobile home park organization consisting exclusively of resident mobile home
15
owners organized as a profit, nonprofit entity or as an unincorporated association.
16

(s) A group of mobile home owners or a mobile home owners’ association as defined in
17
subsection (r) of this section, in the case of an unincorporated association shall provide for an
18
executive board to manage the affairs of the association. A certificate evidencing the names of the
19
executive board members and mailing addresses for the association shall be recorded with the
20
municipal land records department for the city or town in which the association is located, which
21
shall be updated as often as necessary to reflect any changes in the composition of this executive
22
board.
23
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC004800
========

LC004800 - Page 10 of 11
EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES -- MOBILE AND MANUFACTURED
HOMES
***
1
This act would give mobile home residents a right of first refusal to buy or lease their park,
2
requiring owners to notify the residents’ association and the executive office of housing of bona
3
fide offers and allow time to match the terms.
4
This act would take effect upon passage.
========
LC004800
========

LC004800 - Page 11 of 11