BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1047|
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CONSENT
Bill No: SB 1047
Author: Correa (D)
Amended: 5/12/10
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 4-0, 5/4/10
AYES: Corbett, Harman, Hancock, Leno
NO VOTE RECORDED: Walters
SUBJECT : Mobilehomes: nonprofit resident-owned
mobilehome parks
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill clarifies that the tenant provisions
of the Mobilehome Residency Law apply in nonprofit
resident-owned mobilehome parks to members of the nonprofit
mutual benefit corporation that lease a space in the park.
ANALYSIS : Existing law, the Mobilehome Residency Law
(MRL), contains nine Articles that extensively regulate the
rights, responsibilities, obligations, and relationships
between mobilehome park owners/ management and park
residents. Articles 1-8 deal with legal rights and
remedies related to the leasing of space by tenants;
Article 9 contains provisions that apply to resident owned
parks. (Section 799 et seq. of the Civil Code)
Existing law provides that in a subdivision, cooperative,
or condominium for mobilehomes, or a resident-owned
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mobilehome park, Articles 1-8 of the MRL apply only to
residents who do not have an ownership interest in the
subdivision, cooperative, or condominium for mobilehomes,
or a resident-owned mobilehome park. Existing law further
provides that Article 9 of the MRL governs residents who do
have an ownership interest in the subdivision, cooperative,
or condominium for mobilehomes, or resident-owned
mobilehome park. (Section 799.1 of the Civil Code)
This bill provides, with specified exceptions, that in a
mobilehome park owned and operated by a nonprofit mutual
benefit corporation whose members consist of park residents
where there is no recorded condominium plan, tract, parcel
map, or declaration, Article 1 (commencing with Section
798) through Article 8 (commencing with Section 798.84)
shall govern the rights of members who are residents that
have a rental agreement with the corporation.
Comments
According to the author, "The present law treats ? members
of a mutual benefit non-profit corporation as if they
actually own the space in which their home is sited and
treats them as if the typical CC&R [Covenants, Conditions,
and Restrictions] provisions apply and provide governance
as to their actions in such a park. No such CC&R
provisions exist and the persons who are members lease the
home site from the Corporation in which they are members
and as such these members have neither the protection of
the Civil Code sections set forth in [Civil Code Section
798] or the typical CC&R provisions. The Corporation also
has no viable method to enforce the members obligations
outside the leases which often refer to [Civil Code
Section] 798 which per [Civil Code Section 799] cannot
apply and cannot be used to enforce the Park leases or
Rules and Regulations."
Background
Enacted in 1978, the MRL governs the relationship between
park owners or managers and the residents of the 4,800-plus
mobilehome parks and manufactured housing communities in
California. In most of those parks, residents own their
home but lease the land on which their home is installed.
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Over the past 20 years, residents have been increasingly
interested in various ways to purchase their parks and the
space upon which the home is installed. One method of
purchasing a park - the nonprofit mutual benefit
corporation (the subject of this bill) - is described by
the Department of Real Estate as follows:
Park residents need a legal entity to purchase their
park. A nonprofit mutual benefit corporation is well
suited to this purpose. In general, the nonprofit
corporation makes an offer of participation to the
residents. Residents who decided to participate become
shareholders or members of the corporation. As residents
purchase shares or memberships in the corporation, cash
is accumulated for the down payment required to purchase
the park. The officers of the corporation, elected by
the members and acting on their behalf, negotiate with
the seller to purchase the park and solve problems
relating to conversion. After conversion, the
corporation may manage the park.
To deal with the various facets of mobilehome parks and
manufactured housing communities, the MRL is divided into
nine different Articles. Articles 1-8 of the MRL deal with
legal rights and remedies for mobilehome parks which rent
space to residents. Article 9 of the MRL generally deals
with the legal rights and remedies of resident owned
mobilehome parks. Under existing law, residents who have
shares in a nonprofit mutual benefit corporation but lease
their space from that corporation fall under Article 9, but
not Articles 1-8 of the MRL.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
RJG:mw 5/12/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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