FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

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A land lease, also known as a ground lease, is an arrangement in which a landowner — the lessor, in legal terminology — rents out the land to a tenant, or the lessee. A land lease can be used to purchase a home plus land, or simply to purchase land that you plan to develop later on. A land lease is common for commercial places of business, but many residential real estate property owners also pay to lease the land their homes are on — many co-ops in New York City, for example, were built on land leases.

Under Title 25, Chapter 70 Section 42 of the Delaware Code (25 Del. C. § 70), both community owners (landlords) and residents (tenants) in manufactured home communities are required to contribute a monthly assessment for each rented lot to the Delaware Manufactured Home Relocation Authority (DEMHRA) Trust Fund.  The Attorney Fund is used by CLASI, the Community Legal Aid Society Inc, under contract with the DOJ to assist homeowners on leased land who pay into the fund.

Effective January 1, 2024:

• The community owner pays $1.00 per rented lot each month.
• The resident pays $1.50 per month, which is collected by the landlord along with the rent.
  • Of the $1.50, $0.50 is allocated to the “Attorney Fund,” administered by the Attorney General’s Office for the benefit of residents.

All assessments are remitted quarterly to the DEMHRA Trust Fund.

DEMHRA provides relocation assistance to residents in manufactured home communities only when the community owner decides to apply for a change in land use in accordance with Title 25 Chapter 70 Section 7010 of the Manufactured Home Owners and Community Owners Act. 

A change in land use is when the community owner decides to change the intended use of the land of a manufactured home community and intends to terminate or not renew the lease agreement of the individuals paying lot rent. 

The community owner must give the residents a one­ year notice and provide updates quarterly. 

You can apply for a non-relocation allowance or an abandonment allowance. You must show proof that your property taxes are paid and surrender your title to DEMHRA. 

Lot rent can only be increased once in a 12-month period, regardless of the term of tenancy or term of the agreement. A landlord shall give written notice of a lot rent increase to a tenant a minimum of 90 days prior to the effective date of the rent increase. 

If you have a complaint or concern you can file a complaint with the Consumer Protection Unit at the Attorney General’s Office. 

Unless you are going through a change in land use, DEMHRA cannot reimburse you for demolition expenses. 

An important explanation of the updated Lot rental assistance program

An important explanation of the updated Lot rental assistance program There are times when a homeowner’s household income decreases substantially. The death of a loved one, or some other dramatic change in income. With the passage of Delaware SB317, the lot rent assistance program changed dramatically. Previously it was almost impossible to qualify for this program. Effective July 1, 2022, the program has significantly improved. Under this legislation, a community owner shall provide lot rental assistance to qualified homeowners. Qualifications are as follows:

1. The homeowner must have owned the manufactured home or resided in the home in a manufactured home community for 5 consecutive years before requesting lot rental assistance.

2. The homeowner must reside full-time and exclusively in the manufactured home in the manufactured home community and the manufactured home must be the homeowner’s only residence.

3. A homeowner qualifies for limited lot rental assistance if the total income of the homeowner and all occupants are greater than 40% and below 55% of the county median household income as determined by the US Department of Housing and Urban development.

4. The total assets of the homeowner and all occupants do not exceed $50,000. Total assets means all liquid assets including bank accounts, stocks & and the total amount of excess lien paydowns against the manufactured home during the previous 5 years that exceed the scheduled amortization of the lien balance.

5. The homeowner and occupants must provide to the community owner all documentation necessary to determine eligibility for lot rental assistance, such as bank records, tax returns, etc..

6. The homeowner, occupants and the manufactured home must be in substantial compliance with all manufactured home community rules, regulations and standards.

The above is an abbreviated text taken from Delaware Title 5, Chapter 70 Sub-Chapter II 7022B. The complete text can be found at https://delcode.delaware.gov/title25/c070/sc02/index.html#7022.

DEMHRA does not provide financial assistance to residents needing emergency home repairs. However, there is a Statewide Emergency Repair Program (SERP), that assists eligible homeowners of manufactured homes on land-leased communities with emergency repairs. Situations that qualify include immediate health or safety threats, such as:

• Heating system repairs (winter months)
• Non-functioning plumbing
• Electrical repairs (hazardous cases)
• Roof repair or replacement for active leaks
• Major structural repairs
• Urgent accessibility modifications

 SERP is administered by the Milford Housing Development Corporation on behalf of the Delaware State Housing Authority. Residents can call (844) 413-0038 to see if they qualify. 

Contact the DOJ Ombudsman or Ombudsperson for Manufactured Housing by using this online form to file a complaint:

• https://attorneygeneral.delaware.gov/fraud/cpu/manufactured-housing-complaint/