By Chuck Loring

Tax paying citizens deserve protection. The state of California has created laws called the Mobile Home Residency law (MHRL) and Title 2.5 in the city code.
The Agencies that have been charged with that protection have failed in this mission. When a homeowner files a complaint with the ombudsman, it is forwarded to the Housing and Community Development (HCD) Department, which should be the first line of communication and defense.
In the cases of lot lines in the Valley Village Mobile Home Park, resident rights are being blatantly violated. Martin Ford, the HCD Inspector for Southern Ca., has failed to make public the ten hours of measuring the spaces in that park and then failed to notify the residences of his visit, even though the complaints were not filed by the park manager. The residents filed them when the managers moved lot markers without due process. Title 2.5 lists only three ways a lot marker can be moved. This means that property is being stolen when management ignores these laws.
These illegal actions by some management companies affect several dozen Mobil Home Parks in the Valley and must be stopped. Some of those cases have gone to court only to have the Judge and Commissioners completely disregard the law. Failure to apply the law ends up costing the homeowners their life savings in order to protect their homes.
Another problem with the system is that the management companies continue harassment until the homeowners have exhausted their funds. The managers have financial resources from the rentals of the spaces, which can be used to force people out of their homes.
Mobil Homes are the only true affordable residential housing left and most are owned by senior citizens It is time for the city and state officials recognize this problem and step up to aid our powerless and low income families.
If you find yourself in an abusive situation, please call your local representatives and let them know your problem. This is the only way these homeowners will get justice. Mobil Home owners deserve the same protections that the government gave to homeowners when the banks did the similar things during the mortgage crash. Go on line to www.ZIMAS.org, enter your address and find out a host of information on the property. 311 can point you in a right direction.

Editor’s Note: Chuck Loring is President GSMOL, Chapter 1486, Assoc. Manager, Region 3, GSMOL (Golden State Mobile Home Owners League), LAHD Mobile Home Task Force, and Board Member, North Hollywood North East Neighborhood Council, Land Use Committee:. chuckloring@dslextreme.com