H 3585 Session 109 (1991-1992)
H 3585 General Bill, By P.B. Harris, Neilson and D.C. Waldrop
A Bill to amend the Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, by adding Chapter 47
to Title 27 so as to provide for the South Carolina Manufactured Home Park
Tenancy Act by setting forth purposes, scope, jurisdiction, definitions,
interpretation of principles, notice, rental agreements, obligations of owners
and residents, grounds for eviction, and notification of sale of park, change
in land use, and rezoning.
02/26/91 House Introduced and read first time HJ-14
02/26/91 House Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and
Industry HJ-14
02/04/92 House Tabled in committee
A BILL
TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976,
BY ADDING CHAPTER 47 TO TITLE 27 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR
THE SOUTH CAROLINA MANUFACTURED HOME PARK
TENANCY ACT BY SETTING FORTH PURPOSES, SCOPE,
JURISDICTION, DEFINITIONS, INTERPRETATION OF
PRINCIPLES, NOTICE, RENTAL AGREEMENTS, OBLIGATIONS
OF OWNERS AND RESIDENTS, GROUNDS FOR EVICTION, AND
NOTIFICATION OF SALE OF PARK, CHANGE IN LAND USE,
AND REZONING.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Title 27 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"CHAPTER 47
Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Act
Article 1
General Provisions and Definitions
Subarticle I
Short Title, Construction, and Purpose
Section 27-47-10. This chapter is known as the South Carolina
Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Act.
Section 27-47-20. (A) This chapter must be construed liberally
and applied to promote its underlying purposes and policies.
(B) The underlying purposes and policies of this chapter are to:
(1) provide for the rights and obligations of manufactured
home owners and manufactured home park owners and clarify the law
governing the renting or leasing of residential lots in a manufactured
home park in which five or more lots are offered for rent or lease;
(2) encourage manufactured home park owners and
manufactured home owners to maintain and improve the quality of
housing.
Subarticle II
Scope and Jurisdiction
Section 27-47-110. This chapter applies to, regulates, and
determines the rights, obligations, and remedies under a rental
agreement for a residential manufactured home park lot located within
this State.
Section 27-47-120. The following tenancies are not governed by this
chapter:
(1) in which both a manufactured home and a manufactured home
lot are rented or leased by the resident;
(2) in which a rental space is offered for occupancy by a vehicle
which primarily is designed as temporary living quarters for recreational
camping or travel use and which either has its own motor power or is
mounted on or drawn by another vehicle;
(3) at a manufactured home park in which fewer than five lots are
offered for rent or lease.
Section 27-47-130. Jurisdiction and service of process must be
determined pursuant to Section 27-40-130 with respect to a claim arising
from a transaction to which this chapter applies.
Subarticle III
General Definitions and Interpretation
of Principles; Notice
Section 27-47-210. Subject to additional definitions contained in
other provisions of law which apply to this chapter and unless the
context otherwise requires:
(1) `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 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 in the structure.
(2) `Manufactured home owner' or `resident' means a person who
owns a manufactured home and rents or leases a lot within a
manufactured home park for residential use.
(3) `Manufactured home park' means a use of land in which lots
or spaces are offered for rent or lease for the placement of manufactured
homes and in which the primary use of the park is residential.
(4) `Manufactured home park owner' or `owner' means an owner
or operator of a manufactured home park.
(5) `Rental agreement' means a written mutual understanding or
lease between a resident and an owner in which the resident may place
his manufactured home on a lot for direct or indirect remuneration of the
owner.
(6) `Tenancy' means the temporary possession or occupancy of a
manufactured home park lot by a resident pursuant to a rental agreement.
(7) `User fees' means the amounts charged in addition to the lot
rental amount for nonessential optional services provided by or through
the owner to the resident under a separate written agreement between the
resident and the person furnishing the service.
Section 27-47-220. Every duty under this chapter and every act
which must be performed as a condition precedent to the exercise of a
right or remedy under this chapter imposes an obligation of good faith
in its performances or enforcement.
Section 27-47-230. Unconscionability must be determined according
to Section 27-40-230.
Section 27-47-240. Notice must be given pursuant to Section
27-40-240.
Subarticle IV
General Provisions
Section 27-47-310. (A) An owner who offers for lease a space in
a manufactured home park shall provide to the resident an agreement in
writing containing the terms by which the space is leased.
(B) The duration of the lease must be stated in the agreement and
may be of a length agreed upon by the owner and resident.
(C) If the agreement provides an option for renewal, the amount
of rent to be paid for tenancy during the option must be stated in the
agreement.
(D) The rental agreement must specify:
(1) location and approximate size of the lot leased pursuant to
the agreement;
(2) monthly rental rate;
(3) date payment is due;
(4) place of payment;
(5) personal property, services, and facilities provided by the
owner;
(6) regulations governing residency which, if violated, may be
cause for eviction;
(7) statement of amounts to be paid by the resident including,
but not limited to, security deposits, service fees, and installation
charges;
(8) improvements, if any, which the resident may make to the
rental lot including landscaping;
(9) improvements, if any, required to be made by the resident;
(10) restrictions, if any, regarding pets, children, number of
occupants, and vehicle storage;
(11) notice required to exercise option for renewal or to
terminate tenancy.
(E) During the rental agreement a user fee must not be charged by
the owner to the resident for a service or amenity which previously was
provided and included in the lot rental amount unless there is a
corresponding decrease in the amount within the terms of the contract.
Article 3
Manufactured Home Park Owner's Obligations
Section 27-47-410. (A) An owner shall disclose his name and
address or a person authorized to act as his agent for the purposes of
service of process and receiving or receipting notices and demands. The
information required to be furnished by this section must be kept
current, and this section may be enforced against a successor owner.
(B) A person authorized to enter into a rental agreement on behalf
of an owner who fails to comply with this section with regard to a rental
agreement entered into on behalf of the owner becomes his agent for
purposes of that rental agreement for:
(1) service of process and receiving and receipting notices and
demands;
(2) performing the obligations of the owner under this chapter
and under the rental agreement and expending or making available for
the performance of the obligations rent collected from the resident and
retained by the person on behalf of the owner.
Section 27-47-420. When a tenancy is to continue beyond the
original term a resident must be given notice by the owner at least ninety
days in advance of the effective date of a new rental rate.
Section 27-47-430. The owner has the burden of proving a
manufactured home located in the park is unsafe, or unsanitary or fails
to meet the park's aesthetic standards. A resident must not be forced to
make an aesthetic change to his home's original design which would
create undue financial hardship and which is contrary to the terms of the
rental agreement.
Section 27-47-440. (A) The purchaser of a manufactured home
may not become a resident of a manufactured home park without the
approval of the owner. However, the owner may not withhold his
approval except for a failure of the purchaser to meet the park's entry
requirements or for good cause. Good cause is:
(1) intention to use the manufactured home for illegal or
immoral purposes or a purpose that would disturb the quiet enjoyment
of the park; or
(2) financial inability to pay the lot rental amount.
(B) The owner has fifteen days after receiving the purchaser's
written application for entry to the park to notify him in writing of the
reasons for withholding approval. If the owner fails to act within fifteen
days the application is approved.
Section 27-47-450. An owner shall provide access to the common
areas of the park at reasonable times for the benefit of residents and their
guests and maintain in proper working condition the utility connections
and systems.
Section 27-47-460. An owner is not the guarantor of the safety of
residents or invitees but shall exercise due care to keep the portion of the
premises under the owner's control in a reasonably safe condition.
Section 27-47-470. An owner shall take reasonable steps to maintain
the cleanliness and appearance of the common areas of the park.
Article 5
Resident's Obligations
Section 27-47-510. A resident shall:
(1) comply with the obligations of applicable provisions of the
building, housing, and health codes;
(2) keep his manufactured home lot clean;
(3) comply with regulations and require other persons on his lot
with his consent to comply and conduct themselves in a manner that
does not disturb other residents unreasonably.
(4) keep his rent current;
(5) give written notice to the owner whether he desires to
continue the tenancy beyond the original term within thirty days of
receiving notice of a new rental rate under Section 27-47-420.
Section 27-47-520. Upon termination of a tenancy, monies held by
the owner as a security deposit or prepaid rent must be returned less
amounts withheld by the owner for accrued rent or damages the owner
has suffered by reason of the resident's noncompliance with Section
27-47-510. Deductions must be itemized in a written notice to the
resident within thirty days after termination of the tenancy. The resident
shall provide the owner a forwarding address. The owner is not liable
for damages if the resident does not provide a forwarding address and
the owner has no notice of the resident's address and mails the notice to
the resident's last known address. If the owner does not return monies
due the resident, he may recover an amount equal to three times the
amount wrongfully withheld and reasonable attorney's fees.
Section 27-47-530. (A) An owner may evict a resident for one or
more of the following reasons:
(1) failure to comply with local, state, or federal laws
governing manufactured homes after he receives written notice of
noncompliance and has had a reasonable opportunity to remedy the
violation;
(2) engaging in repeated conduct that interferes with the quiet
enjoyment of the park by other residents;
(3) noncompliance with a provision of the rental agreement or
park regulations and failure to remedy the violation within fourteen days
after written notice by the owner. If the remedy requires longer than
fourteen days the owner may allow the resident in good faith to extend
the time to a specified date;
(4) not paying rent within five days of its due date;
(5) noncompliance with a law affecting the health, safety, or
welfare of other residents in the park or affecting the physical condition
of the park;
(6) wilfully and knowingly making a false or misleading
statement in the rental agreement or application;
(7) taking of the park or the part of it affecting the resident's
lot by eminent domain.
(B) An owner shall give thirty days' notice of the eviction.
Article 7
Notification of Sale of Park, Change
in Land Use, and Rezoning
Section 27-47-610. If an owner executes a contract to sell the park,
but it continues to operate as a park, the new owner shall notify residents
of the change in ownership within thirty days of the date of sale.
Section 27-47-620. If an owner changes the land use or applies for
rezoning, residents must be notified in writing before a hearing on the
change or rezoning."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect January 1, 1992.
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