DEMHRA Report for DMHOA Feb. 24th Meeting

Information from Feb.13, 2025 Meeting and Jan. 16, 2025 Minutes

Chair's Report

The Board discussed the current Trust Fund cap, currently at $15,000,000.00 The current Fund total is approximately $14,600,000,00. The monthly interest earned on the Fund is approximately $46,000.00. At this rate the fund will exceed its cap by the end of the year. In order to follow Chapter 70, the Board voted to increase the cap to $20,000,000.00. We are also considering reducing the assessment again, possibly next year. No decision was made at this time.

Executive Director's Report: 

Under Section 7022A: Lot rental assistance program, community owners and homeowners must comply with the requirements for the lot rental assistance programs. It states that a community owner will annually provide written notice of the lot rental assistance program to all homeowners in the community. The Delaware Manufactured Home Relocation Authority shall develop by November 2, 2025, requirements for the annual written notice. Community owners must follow these requirements when providing written notice of the lot rental assistance program to homeowners in their communities. Mr. Sutton stated that these requirements will be ready by then.

The Manufactured Housing Subcommittee of the Task Force has completed their last meeting on February 18th, and will be submitting their report to the Task Force for consideration. The next Task Force meeting will be March 13th. Go to this link for more information:

https://www.destatehousing.com/about/housing-production-task-force/

Legal Counsel Report: 

Per our legal counsel, all parks are either current or in process of paying. Everyone should be current soon. No legal actions are to be taken.

Arbitration: (Update on Status of Open Dockets as of 2/13/25):

• Docket 02-2021 (Ridgewood Manor vs. Ridgewood Manor LLC): As of 1/7/25, Mr. Sharp reported there was no changes from the last update. He is still waiting for confirmation from the attorneys as to the contents of the docket.

Rent Increase Certification Requests:

There were 43 rent certifications sent out in January. See § 7051A. Rent increase; health or safety violations in Title 25 for additional information.

Update on Parks for Sale:

• Holly Oak Park – Updated 2/3/25. Park is now sold and the settlement is pending.
• Dalton’s MHP – Updated 2/3/25. Park is still for sale.

Update on Parks Going Through Change in Use as of 2/13/25:

• Timberlane - There are 16 applications remaining.
• Pine Haven – No applications remaining.
• Lazy Pine Retreat - There are 5 remaining.
• Lakeland - No applications have been received. It was discovered that this park went through a change in use for Phase I in 2015, and this is Phase II. There are 17 homes in the community that are affected. 
• Lake Forest – They contacted Mr. Sutton for assistance in preparing the documents required for a change in use. There are 26 homes in the community that are affected.
• One application for funds was approved for Lake Forest Estates at our last meeting. It included one non-relocatable single-wide for $12,000. 

Financial Matters: (amounts are rounded to nearest dollar)

• The Trust Fund assessments collected during January totaled $240,639.00, plus interest of $47,075.00. A Trust Fund payment of $12,300 was paid out in January for relocation assistance. The Trust Fund as of January 31th is $14,622,387.00.
• The 2025 Legal Fund Year-to-Date is $26,874.00.
• The December CPI/U was 3.608%, effective January 15th. This would equate to an increase of 5.30% for one-year leases beginning in May and June. The next CPI/U will be out around March 14th.

Our next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 27, 2025 at 1:30. 

Our address is 1979 S. State Street in Dover and is opened to the public.

Please visit our website for additional information at demhra.delaware.gov.