Give Home Park Residents Rights

Section 1. Section 233 of the real property law, as amended by chapter 566 of the laws of 1996, paragraph 6 of subdivision b as amended and subdivision x as added by chapter 561 of the laws of 2008, paragraph 1 of subdivision f as amended by chapter 48 of the laws of 1998, paragraph 5 of subdivision f as added by chapter 103 of the laws of 1996, subdivision w as amended by section 18 of part B of chapter 389 of the laws of 1997, and paragraph 3-a of subdivision w as added by chapter 405 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows:

§ 233. Manufactured home parks; duties, responsibilities. a. Wherever used in this section:

1. The term "manufactured home [tenant] resident" means one who rents space in a manufactured home park from a manufactured home park owner or operator for the purpose of parking his or her manufactured home or one who rents a manufactured home in a manufactured home park from a manufactured home park owner or operator.

2. The term "manufactured home owner" means one who holds title to a manufactured home.

3. The term "manufactured home park" means a contiguous parcel of privately owned land which is used for the accommodation of three or more manufactured homes occupied for year-round living.

4. The term "manufactured home" means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, which in the traveling mode, is eight body feet or more in width or forty body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is three hundred twenty or more square feet, and which is built on

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD09667-01-7

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a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained therein; except that such term shall include a "mobile home" as defined in paragraph five of this subdivision, and shall include a structure which meets all the requirements of this subdivision except the size requirements and with respect to which the manufacturer voluntarily files a certification required by the secretary of housing and urban development.

5. The term "mobile home" means a moveable or portable unit, manufactured prior to January first, nineteen hundred seventy-six, designed and constructed to be towed on its own chassis, comprised of frame and wheels, connected to utilities, and designed and constructed without a permanent foundation for year-round living. A unit may contain parts that may be folded, collapsed or telescoped when being towed and expanded later to provide additional cubic capacity as well as two or more separately towable components designed to be joined into one integral unit capable of being again separated into the components for repeated towing. "Mobile home" shall mean units designed to be used exclusively for residential purposes, excluding travel trailers.

6. The term "resident's bill of rights" means a document published and disseminated by the division of housing and community renewal setting forth the provisions of this section.

b. A manufactured home park owner or operator may not evict a manufactured home [tenant] resident other than for the following reasons:

1. The manufactured home [tenant] resident continues in possession of any portion of the premises after the expiration of his or her term without the permission of the manufactured home park owner or operator.

2. The manufactured home [tenant] resident has defaulted in the payment of rent, pursuant to the agreement under which the premises are held, and a demand of the rent with at least thirty days notice in writing has been served upon [him] such resident as prescribed in section seven hundred thirty-five of the real property actions and proceedings law. Upon the acceptance of such delinquent rent together with allowable costs, an action instituted for nonpayment of rent shall be terminated. Any person succeeding to the manufactured home park owner or operator's interest in the premises may proceed under this subdivision for rent due [his] the predecessor in interest if he or she has a right thereto.

3. The premises, or any part thereof, are used or occupied as a bawdy-house, or house or place of assignation for lewd purposes or for purposes of prostitution, or for any illegal trade or business.

4. The manufactured home [tenant] resident is in violation of some federal, state or local law or ordinance which may be deemed detrimental to the safety and welfare of the other persons residing in the manufactured home park.

5. The manufactured home [tenant] resident or anyone occupying the manufactured home is in violation of any lease term or rule or regulation established by the manufactured home park owner or operator pursuant to this section, and has continued in violation for more than ten days after the manufactured home park owner or operator has given written notice of such violation to the manufactured home [tenant] resident setting forth the lease term or rule or regulation violated and directing that the manufactured home [tenant] resident correct or cease violation of such lease term or rule or regulation within ten days from the receipt of said notice. Upon the expiration of such period should the violation continue or should the manufactured home [tenant] resident

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or anyone occupying the manufactured home be deemed a persistent violator of the lease term or rules and regulations, the park owner or operator may serve written notice upon the manufactured home [tenant] resident directing that [he] such resident vacate the premises within thirty days of the receipt of said notice.

6. (i) The manufactured home park owner or operator proposes a change in the use of the land comprising the manufactured home park, or a portion thereof, on which the manufactured home is located, from manufactured home lot rentals to some other use, provided the manufactured home owner is given written notice of the proposed change of use and the manufactured home owner's need to secure other accommodations. Whenever a manufactured home park owner or operator gives a notice of proposed change of use to any manufactured home owner, the manufactured home park owner or operator shall, at the same time, give notice of the proposed change of use to all other manufactured home owners in the manufactured home park who will be required to secure other accommodations as a result of such proposed change of use. Eviction proceedings based on a change in use shall not be commenced prior to six months from the service of notice of proposed change in use or the end of the lease term, whichever is later. Such notice shall be served in the manner prescribed in section seven hundred thirty-five of the real property actions and proceedings law or by certified mail, return receipt requested.

(ii) Where a purchaser of a manufactured home park certified that such purchaser did not intend to change the use of the land pursuant to paragraph (b) of subdivision two of section two hundred thirty-three-a of this article, no eviction proceedings based on a change of use shall be commenced until the expiration of sixty months from the date of the closing on the sale of the park.

c. If the manufactured home park owner or operator does not have one of the above grounds available, the manufactured home [tenant] resident may raise the same by affirmative defense to an action for eviction.

d. The proceedings to evict shall be governed by the procedures set forth in article seven of the real property actions and proceedings law, except for the provisions of subdivision two of section seven hundred forty-nine of the real property actions and proceedings law which shall be superseded by the provisions of this subdivision.

1. The officer to whom the warrant is directed and delivered shall give at least ninety days notice, in writing and in the manner prescribed in article seven of the real property actions and proceedings law for the service of notice of petition, to the person or persons to be evicted or dispossessed and shall execute the warrant between the hours of sunrise and sunset.

2. The court may order that such warrant be directed and delivered with only thirty days written notice to the person or persons to be evicted or dispossessed if the conditions upon which the eviction is founded pose an imminent threat to the health, safety, or welfare of the other manufactured home [tenants] residents in the manufactured home park.

3. The court shall order that such warrant be directed and delivered with thirty days written notice to the person or persons to be evicted or dispossessed if the condition upon which the eviction is founded is that such person is in default in the payment of rent.

4. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs one and two of this subdivision, nor of any other general, special or local law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the officer to whom the warrant is directed

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and delivered shall give seventy-two hours written notice to the person or persons to be evicted or dispossessed, if such person or persons rents a manufactured home in a manufactured home park from a manufactured home park owner or operator and such officer shall execute such warrant between the hours of sunrise and sunset.

e. [Leases.] 1. The manufactured home park owner or operator shall offer every manufactured home [tenant] resident prior to occupancy, the opportunity to sign a lease for a minimum of one year, which offer shall be made in writing.

2. (i) On or before, as appropriate, (a) the first day of October of each calendar year with respect to a manufactured home owner then in good standing who is not currently a party to a written lease with a manufactured home park owner or operator or (b) the ninetieth day next preceding the expiration date of any existing written lease between a manufactured home owner then in good standing and a manufactured home park owner or operator, the manufactured home park owner or operator shall submit to each such manufactured home owner a written offer to lease for a term of at least twelve months from the commencement date thereof unless the manufactured home park owner or operator has previously furnished the manufactured home owner with written notification of a proposed change of use pursuant to paragraph six of subdivision b of this section. Any such offer shall include a copy of the proposed lease containing such terms and conditions, including provisions for rent and other charges, as the manufactured home park owner shall deem appropriate; provided such terms and conditions are consistent with all rules and regulations promulgated by the manufactured home park operator prior to the date of the offer and are not otherwise prohibited or limited by applicable law. Such offer shall also contain a statement advising the manufactured home owner that if he or she fails to execute and return the lease to the manufactured home park owner or operator within thirty days after submission of such lease, the manufactured home owner shall be deemed to have declined the offer of a lease and shall not have any right to a lease from the manufactured home park owner or operator for the next succeeding twelve months.

(ii) For purposes of this paragraph, a manufactured home owner shall be deemed in good standing if he or she is not in default in the payment of more than one month's rent to the manufactured home park owner, and is not in violation of paragraph three, four or five of subdivision b of this section. No manufactured home park owner or operator shall refuse to provide a written offer to lease based on a default of rent payments or a violation of paragraph three, four or five of subdivision b of this section unless, at least thirty days prior to the last date on which the owner or operator would otherwise be required to provide such written offer to lease, the owner or operator notifies the manufactured home owner, in writing, of the default in rent or the specific grounds constituting the violation and such grounds continues up and until the fifth calendar day immediately preceding the last date on which the written offer would otherwise be required to be made.

(iii) For purposes of this paragraph, the commencement date of any lease offered by the manufactured home park owner to the manufactured home owner shall be the ninetieth day after the date upon which the manufactured home park owner shall have provided the offer required pursuant to this paragraph; provided, however, that no such lease shall be effective if, on such commencement date, the manufactured home owner is in default of more than one month's rent. In the event the manufactured home owner shall have failed to execute and return said lease to

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the manufactured home park owner or operator within thirty days after it is submitted to the manufactured home owner as required by subparagraph (i) of this paragraph the manufactured home owner shall be deemed to have declined to enter said lease.

3. No lease provision shall be inconsistent with any rule or regulation in effect at the commencement of the lease.