Answer: Unfortunately, Oregon’s “3-strikes rule” only applies to mobile home park tenants who own their homes. It allows parks to issue a non-curable, 30-day eviction notice to mobile home tenants if they accumulate three or more 10-day nonpayment notices within a 12-month period. The rule does not apply to RV tenants or to tenants in park-owned homes.
There is a “modified” 3-strikes rule that might work, but it requires the park to enter into fixed-term rental agreements with RV tenants instead of the typical month-to-month agreements. Under ORS 90.427 (7), a fixed term tenancy can be terminated and does not become a month-to-month tenancy at the end of the term if the tenant commits three or more violations within the preceding 12 months (i.e., receives three or more 10-day notices). However, this option requires the landlord to issue written warnings with specific statutory language each time the tenant commits a violation. It also requires a 90-day termination notice correlating with the end of the fixed term. Since this “modified” 3-strikes rule requires fixed-term tenancies, considerable paperwork, and special forms, it is not the ideal option.
A better option is to use month-to-month rental agreements and never allow any RV tenant to stay in the park for more than 12 months. Since RV tenants can be evicted with a 30-day,
no-cause termination notice during their first year of occupancy, this gives you the option of giving a 30-day notice if the tenant starts falling behind on rent. Conversely, it also requires you to issue 30-day notices to anyone approaching 12 months living in the park. This might be contrary to your park’s business model if you rely on keeping long-term residential RV tenants rather than short-term tenants.
(CAVEAT: The cities of Portland, Eugene, and Milwaukie require 90-day notices within the first year of occupancy, not 30-day notices. Portland and Eugene also impose “relocation assistance” payments to tenants. Consult an attorney before issuing no-cause notices in these cities.)
For RV tenants who have lived in the park for more than one year, the park’s options are limited. The best you can do is regularly issue 10-day nonpayment notices every month to keep tenants paying rent on time. If they don’t pay by the 10-day deadline, file in court and try to get them to agree on a stipulated court move-out agreement at the 1st court appearance hearing. If that doesn’t work, keep issuing 10-day nonpayment notices every month. Also keep up the pressure by issuing 30-day notices every month for nonpayment of late fees and utilities (MHCO Form 205).
Mark L. Busch, P.C., Attorney at Law, Cornell West, Suite 200, 1500 NW Bethany Blvd., Beaverton, Oregon 97006; Phone: 503-597-1309; Web: www.marklbusch.com
