A Guide To Paying Home Owner’s Association Fees At A Trailer Park

If you are planning to move into a trailer park, you may be probably asking yourself; do trailer parks have HOA fees? 

Do trailer parks have HOA fees?

Trailer parks managed and run by HOAs have HOA fees. This fee will cover almost all the park’s maintenance expenses. It will cover trash removal, gardening, water and sewage maintenance, pest control as well as cleaning and maintenance. HOA fees are around $200 to $300 per month in most states.

Living in a trailer park is a great option when you consider the cost of living. The upfront costs are much lower compared to purchasing a traditional home. However, you will still need some money to live in a trailer park. Just like a traditional home, there are various fees associated with living in a trailer park. 

And one of the questions I get from people who are considering making the shift to living in a trailer park is whether trailer parks have HOA fees. In this article, I will provide you with all the information you are looking for on the issue of HOA fees in trailer parks.

Paying HOA Fees At A Trailer Park

Before we delve deeper into the issue of HOA fees, it’s first important to understand what an HOA is. An HOA denotes a homeowners association. A homeowners association is a private entity created by the developers of a specific housing development. In this case, the developer of a trailer park will set up the HOA.

Initially, the developers will be in charge of the HOA. But, they will eventually hand over its control to the trailer park community after selling enough lots. The duties of an HOA include the daily running of the trailer park, management of the shared and common property on the trailer park, and providing services to the residents.

An HOA will also be responsible for enforcing various rules and regulations pertaining to what you can do with a mobile home. 

In most cases, an HOA will enforce a certain code that every resident in the park has to adhere to. This code is almost similar to the building codes enforced by cities and counties across the U.S.

If you decide to live in a trailer park managed by an HOA, then you will be required to sign some paperwork as a condition of living there. And this also means you will also be required to sign up for the HOA. Consequently, you will also be paying HOA fees. So, if you join a trailer park that has an HOA, then you will be paying HOA fees.

How Much are HOA Fees At A Trailer Park?

As we’ve mentioned above, if you decide to live in a trailer park managed by an HOA, then you will also be paying HOA fees. This fee is designed to cover most of the maintenance expenses needed to keep the trailer park running smoothly.

So, how much are HOA fees? On average, you can expect to be paying an HOA fee of approximately $200 to $300 monthly.

However, this fee is not fixed. It will vary from one park to the next. It’s mainly dependent on factors like the services offered, the housing costs in the area, as well as the amenities and facilities offered in the park, among others.

What’s Covered Under HOA Fees At A Trailer Park?

As we earlier mentioned, an HOA fee is designed to cover the maintenance expenses of running a trailer park. Also, it may sometimes be used to upgrade the public facilities and amenities at the park. In most parks, the monthly HOA fees will cover the following services:

• Pest control
• Water and sewage maintenance
• Trash removal
• Gardening and exterior maintenance like tending home gardens, watering yards as well as maintaining public parks
• Maintenance of facilities like gyms, clubhouses and pools
• Insurance for the park’s exterior
• General maintenance

After covering all the park’s maintenance expenses, the HOA may remain with some money every month. This money is usually kept in a reserve fund. It’s designed to cover unexpected expenses. 

For instance, the HOA may use the money in this fund to help the residents undertake major repairs after a serious storm. 

The HOA may also use money from the reserve fund to undertake a complete overhaul of the entire park. For instance, the HOA may decide to repaint all the exterior walls of the houses in the park or even add a development like a swimming pool if the park doesn’t currently have one. 

Other Trailer Park Fees

Apart from HOA fees, you will also incur other additional expenses when you are living in a trailer park. Some of the other fees that may incur when you make the shift to living in a trailer park include:

Lot Rent

Unless you own the piece of land where your mobile home will be resting, then you will be required to rent some space where you can place it. So, how much will it cost you to rent a lot? Lot rent is approximately $300 per month across the U.S.

Even if you were to add insurance on top, you will still end up paying less than $500 per month, which is much cheaper compared to renting an apartment or condo in the city. Besides, you will be living close to nature.

I should, however, mention that the lot rent will vary from one place to the other. The actual figure will depend on the state, the utilities present in the park, how well-maintained the park is, as well as the size of the lot.

For instance, if you are renting a lot in California, you will pay around $500 per month. But if you are renting a similar size in other states like Pennsylvania or Washington state, then the cost may be as low as $200. Also, if you are renting a lot for an 80-foot-long mobile home, then the cost will be higher than renting one for a 40-foot mobile home.

At the same time, if you are renting a lot in a park that offers additional amenities like gyms, pools, eateries, and picnic tables, then you can expect to pay a higher lot rent compared to renting in a trailer park that doesn’t offer these extra amenities.

Utilities

Some trailer parks will cover the cost of your utilities as part of the rent. However, some will charge you separately, meaning this cost will be added on top of your rent. The most common utilities that you will be paying for when you are living in a trailer park are water, electricity and gas.

In some trailer parks, you will be paying a flat fee for the utilities. On other hand, you may also be paying for the utilities based on the consumption at your lot. But based on my personal experience, the consumption rarely exceeds $250 per month for utilities.

Key Takeaways

• Trailer parks with HOA have HOA fees
• HOA fees are approximately $200 to $300 per month
• HOA fees are charged separately from rent
• HOA fees are designed to cover the park’s maintenance expenses