House Bill 579

Chair's Name: Wendell Willard

Committee: Judiciary

House Sponsor: Austin Scott

Chairman Willards’s opinion of the legislation:

HB 579 adds a provision to the statuatory list of landlord liens to allow the landlord of a mobile home to file a lien for rental charges against the mobile home beginning 30 days after vacancy or eviction.  The bill honors a lienholder’s ability to repossess a mobile home upon default by the borrower, and a landlord’s ability to evict a mobile home tenant from the land.  The lienholder’s purchase money lien maintains priority, but in the case of an eviction or abandonment, the landlord can send a statutory notice to the lienholder which requires the lienholder to make arrangements to pay unpaid rental or storage charges relating to the landlord’s lien.  The bill addresses the problem of foreclosed mobile homes being abandoned on landlords’ land.

This committee substitute passed the House under the Open Rule. No further changes were made by the Senate and the bill was sent to the Governor.