Question: Do the state and federal eviction moratoriums apply to RV tenants?  What about short-term guests who are not technically “tenants?”

In the continuing fight to slow the spread of COVID, the White House has just announced an Order barring nonpayment of rent evictions against most tenants through December 31, 2020. 

It has been issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”). The text can be found here.  

This new moratorium is just one of many throughout the country. The federal government passed the CARES Act, which was intended to protect renters in apartments and single-family homes financed with a federally backed mortgage (e.g. Fannie and Freddie, etc.). It has since expired, which, in part, is why the CDC Order was enacted. 

However, the CDC order is much broader than the CARES Act, and applies to all renters of residential housing.[1] However, to obtain this protection, tenants will have to attest, under oath, to a substantial loss of household income; the inability to pay full rent; to having exercised their best efforts to obtain all available government assistance for rent or housing; that eviction would require them to live in close quarters with others; and attesting that an eviction would likely leave them homeless or otherwise, etc.

Question:  A man has set up a tent on one of our park’s RV spaces, with lot of garbage around the space.  He did not sign any agreement – he just showed up one day.  How does the landlord best deal with this situation?

Question:  A resident in our community has ants in her home. She says they are coming from the ground around the home and has had an exterminator out who confirms that the infestation is coming from the ground.  The resident demands that we pay for the exterminator and that the infestation be controlled at the expense of management. WE do not believe it is our responsibility.  What are your thoughts?

Question:  A month-to-month resident in our RV Park (on MHCO Form 80 - RV Agreement) is causing numerous problems for other RV residents.  In one case he was verbally abusive to several children – a restraining order was issued and subsequently violated.  What options do we have as the landlord to evict this tenant?  

In June 2020, a court denied a Texas resident’s request for an emergency order to allow him to fence off his yard because his disability—a compromised immune system—left him vulnerable to COVID-19 exposure to passing strangers.

Given today’s volatile political climate, it’s more important than ever to be vigilant for any signs of racially motivated harassment, discrimination, or violence directed against anyone at your community. 

Criminal background checks are the latest battleground for potential race discrimination claims. If it’s been a while since you last reviewed your policy, it’s important to check to make sure your policy doesn’t run afoul HUD guidelines addressing the discriminatory effect that criminal background policies may have on racial and ethnic minorities.

Who bought a planner for 2020?  Doesn’t that seem like the most useless purchase now?

Fear, failure, and uncertainty have been words we have heard, seen, and felt this year.  2020 has certainly thrown us a curve ball, and if you are like the most of us, you had no plan or procedure on how to deal with a global pandemic.  I have been instructing emergency preparedness for over 15 years, and Covid19 has never been in my research or curriculum.  It will be from now on.  I have always dedicated time to address the necessity of proper PPE.  You can bet that will be even more emphasized now. And what about technology and the ability to quickly pivot to a remote workforce? Did this fit into a pre-2020 emergency plan?  Probably not, but now that piece is vital.

When showing available units in your community, refrain from any comments or conduct that suggest a prospect should—or shouldn’t—live at your community, or in a particular area within your community—because of her race or color. It’s considered “steering,” an unlawful practice under the FHA, if you direct, guide, or encourage prospects, based on an illegally discriminatory reason, to rent only certain units at a community or to seek alternate living options.