The Mobilehome Parks Act provides for the regulation of mobilehomes and related vehicle parks by the Department of Housing and Community Development. The Mobilehome Residency Law governs the terms and conditions of residency in mobilehome parks, and authorizes the management of a mobilehome park to terminate a tenancy for, among other reasons, a change of use of the park or any portion of the park if certain requirements are met. If the change of use does not require any local governmental permits, existing law requires the written notice of termination of tenancy to disclose and describe in detail the nature of the change of use, and to be given 12 months or more before the management’s determination that a change of use will occur.

The Planning and Zoning Law requires an owner of an assisted housing development, before the termination of a subsidy contract, the expiration of rental restrictions, or prepayment on an assisted housing development, to provide certain notices of the proposed change to each affected tenant household residing in the assisted housing development and affected public entities, as specified. Existing law defines “affected public entities” as the mayor or chair of the board of supervisors, as applicable, in which the assisted housing development is located, the appropriate local public housing authority, if any, and the Department of Housing and Community Development.

This bill would delete the above-described notification requirements applicable to a change of use of a mobilehome park that does not require any local governmental permits, and would revise the Planning and Zoning Law to, instead, require management, at least 12 months and at least 6 months prior to the anticipated date of closure, cessation, or change of use of a mobilehome park, to provide notices of the proposed change to each affected tenant, prospective tenant, and affected public entities, as provided. The bill would require the Director of Housing and Community Development to approve forms to be used by management to comply with these provisions, and would require management to use the approved forms once the director has approved the forms. The bill would provide for injunctive relief to any affected public entity or affected tenant, including a resident organization, as defined, who is aggrieved by a violation of these provisions.

The Planning and Zoning Law prohibits an owner from terminating a subsidy contract or prepayment of a mortgage unless the owner or its agent has provided specified entities an opportunity to submit an offer to purchase the development, as specified.

The Planning and Zoning Law also requires, before the conversion of a mobilehome park to another use, except as specified, or before closure of a mobilehome park or cessation of use of the land as a mobilehome park, the person or entity proposing the change in use to file a report on the impact of the conversion, closure, or cessation of use of the mobilehome park. Existing law requires the impact report to include a replacement and relocation plan that adequately mitigates the impact upon the ability of the displaced residents of the mobilehome park to find adequate housing in a mobilehome park. Existing law requires the person proposing the change in use to provide a copy of the report to a resident of each mobilehome in the mobilehome park at least 60 days before a hearing on the report, as specified.

The Mobilehome Residency Law requires management of a mobilehome park to offer the previous homeowner, as defined, a right of first refusal to a renewed tenancy in the park if the park is destroyed due to a fire or other natural disaster and management elects to rebuild the park in the same location.

The bill would provide that previous homeowners shall receive specified notices required under certain provisions of the Planning and Zoning Law, as revised by the bill as described above, the Mobilehome Residency Law, and the Mobilehome Parks Act, as applicable, in the same manner as a current homeowner of the mobilehome park. The bill would also provide that previous homeowners are not obligated to pay rent during the time at which they are unable to live in the mobilehome park following a wildfire or other natural disaster.