Health and Safety in Mobile Home Parks

The park owner is responsible for water and the septic pipes and system under the ground. The owner of the mobile home is responsible for water and septic pipes above the ground. If something is wrong with either system, try to find out whether the problem is above or below ground.

A mobile home park water system must have water that is safe for humans to drink, wash, take a bath, and wash and cook food. A mobile home park septic system has to be covered. It can’t let waste water come to the top of the ground, back up into a mobile home or get into the water supply.

If any of those things happen and are not a result of problems in the piping above ground, contact your park owner immediately. Put your complaint in writing and ask the owner to fix it. You can write your information on a health and safety problem form letter from the CVOEO statewide Mobile Home Program. Give your letter to the owner and keep a copy for yourself.

If the problems are a result of piping and you own the mobile home, you will have to fix the problem. If you do not own the mobile home, contact the owner of the mobile home — either the park owner or another person you rent the mobile home from.

If a problem with water or septic occurs again and again, it means the system has failed. The law says the mobile home park owner has to fix it.

If you think your system has failed, file a complaint with: 

• your town health officer, and  
• the office of the Department of Environmental Conservation closest to where you live, and  
• the Department of Housing and Community Development at 802-828-3749.

A mobile home park owner is responsible for the health and safety of parts of the park that residents have access to. This means the roads must be safe and maintained. The electrical system also must be safe and maintained. If there are places for trash to be stored, they must be clean and trash must be picked up on a regular basis.

If there is a problem affecting multiple people in the park, first notify the park owner. If the problem is not addressed, file a complaint with:

• the Department of Housing and Community Development at 802-828-3749, and  
• the Division of Fire Safety. Use their online form and where it says “Structure,” enter the name of the Mobile Home Park.

If the problem has to do with only your mobile home, contact the person who rents the home to you. That will be either 1) the park owner or 2) another person who owns your mobile home and rents the lot from the park owner. Notify the owner of the mobile home of the problems you are having. You can write your information on a health and safety problem form letter from the CVOEO statewide Mobile Home Program Give your letter to the owner of the mobile home and keep a copy for yourself.

If the problem does not get fixed, you can consider withholding your rent. Be sure to review the information below before you take this step.

If the problem can be fixed for less than half your rent, you can repair the problem and deduct the cost of the repair from your rent. This is called “repair and deduct.” This is useful only for relatively minor repairs such as a broken window or running toilet. First you must ask the landlord to fix the problem. It is best if you do that in writing and keep a copy for yourself. If the landlord fails to fix the problem within 30 days, you can deduct the amount from your rent. When you pay your rent include a note with the reason why you have not paid full rent, and include any receipts that you have. Keep a copy of the note and receipts.

You have to give the park owner a reasonable amount of time to fix the problem before you withhold rent. If you decide to withhold rent, give your park owner notice in writing and keep a copy for yourself. You could still be ordered to pay the rent, so set the money aside just in case.

If you are thinking about withholding rent, you should talk to a lawyer first. You may be able to get free legal help from Vermont Law Help. Fill out our form and someone from Vermont Law Help will call you.

According to Vermont law, a mobile home park owner can’t retaliate against you for reporting a problem. For example, they can’t change the terms of your lease or threaten to evict you because you reported a problem.

If you think a landlord has retaliated against your for complaining about problems in the park or in your mobile home, contact Vermont Law Help. Fill out our form and someone from Vermont Law Help will call you.

Did you write to ask the park owner to fix a serious problem?

Have you waited a reasonable amount of time and the park owner or mobile home owner still hasn’t fixed the problem?

Are the problems seriously affecting your health and safety?

If so and you have not been able to get them addressed by the park or mobile home owner, there are additional things you can do:

• Call the CVOEO statewide Mobile Home Project at 802-660-3455, ext. 204.
• Contact Legal Services Vermont and Vermont Legal Aid. Fill out our form or call 1-800-889-2047. We may be able to help you:
  • get a court order that requires the park owner to make the repairs
  • sue for damages to your property, other costs and reasonable attorney fees
  • end the lot rental agreement and move out. You have to give the park owner reasonable notice.
• Report the problem to the Vermont Department of Housing and Community Development. It is part of the Agency of Commerce and Community Development. The department can make the park operator pay a fine, if applicable.