Idaho Mobile Home Park Lease Law: What Operators Need to Include

What must a mobile home lot lease include in Idaho?

In Idaho, manufactured and mobile home lot tenancies are governed by the Manufactured Home Residency Act, Idaho Code Title 55, Chapter 20. If you rent lots to residents who own their own homes, this act controls your lease rather than the ordinary residential landlord-tenant law.

Idaho Code 55-2005 requires a written rental agreement or lease, executed in duplicate, with each party keeping a copy. You must also give the resident a copy of the community rules when they submit their application and again before the agreement is signed.

Idaho Code 55-2007 then sets the minimum content of that written agreement and lists the terms you may never include. An oral or month-to-month handshake arrangement does not satisfy the statute.

Required written rental agreement contents in Idaho

Start with the mechanics in 55-2005: the lease must be in writing, signed in duplicate, and paired with the community rules delivered at application and before signing. Skipping the rules copy is a direct compliance gap.

Idaho Code 55-2007 requires every lot lease to contain the terms for payment of rent, including the time and place for payment; a description of the utilities and services included in the monthly rent; the rules of the community; the names and addresses of the manager and the owner; and the terms for withholding a deposit or security upon termination.

Section 55-2007 also builds several landlord duties into every agreement by law, whether or not you print them: providing the base or pad the home sits on, not letting the home extend into a roadway, maintaining street, entry, and common-area lighting, and limiting entry onto a resident's lot to maintenance or emergencies.

Provisions Idaho prohibits in a lot lease

Idaho Code 55-2007 makes three types of clauses off-limits: any provision by which the resident waives or forgoes rights or remedies under the act; any provision letting you charge an entrance fee or an exit fee; and any provision that unreasonably restricts access to the community by the resident's invitees. These clauses are unenforceable even if the resident signs them, so remove them from your template.

Section 55-2007 also carries a disclosure duty: on the resident's request, you must provide a written statement covering owner and manager contact information, a general description of acceptable home types, the lot boundaries, utilities and services included in rent, utilities and services available in the community, the applicable zoning and jurisdiction, and the date and amount of the most recent rent increase.

Rules, rent changes, and the 90-day notice in Idaho

The dedicated Rules section is Idaho Code 55-2008. A written rule binds a resident only if it is part of the lease they signed. A rule adopted or amended after signing is unenforceable unless the resident consents or receives 90 days' written notice, and a rule change restricting home type or size cannot be applied to a home that already complied. Rules must be fairly and uniformly enforced and must state their effective date.

Idaho Code 55-2006 governs rent and service adjustments. Rent may change only after the lease term and only with 90 days' written notice sent by first class mail, certified mail, or personal delivery. Increases must be uniform throughout the community, or uniform within a rent tier where rents are tiered by size, amenities, or location. You may not amend the agreement or the rules more than once in any six-month period. Escalation clauses tied to ad valorem taxes or utility assessments require only 30 days' notice.

Lease requirements at a glance in Idaho

• Governing law
  Idaho Manufactured Home Residency Act, Idaho Code Title 55, Chapter 20 (55-2001 et seq.).
• Written lease required
  55-2005 requires a written agreement executed in duplicate, each party keeping a copy.
• Rules copy timing
  Give the resident the community rules at application and again before signing (55-2005).
• Required contents
  55-2007: rent payment terms and place, utilities/services included, community rules, manager and owner names and addresses, deposit-withholding terms.
• Prohibited clauses
  55-2007 bars rights waivers, entrance or exit fees, and unreasonable limits on invitee access.
• Disclosures on request
  55-2007 requires a written disclosure of ownership, home types, lot boundaries, utilities, zoning, and last rent increase.
• Rule changes
  55-2008 requires consent or 90 days' written notice to change rules; rules must be uniformly enforced and dated.
• Rent increases
  55-2006 requires 90 days' written notice, uniform increases within tiers, delivered by first class, certified, or personal delivery.
• Amendment frequency
  55-2006 forbids amending the agreement or rules more than once in any six-month period.

Operator best practices in Idaho

• Use one compliant written template
  Execute every lot lease in writing and in duplicate, and confirm it carries all five 55-2007 required contents before any resident signs.
• Deliver and sign the rules
  Attach the community rules, hand a copy at application and before signing, and get them signed so they are enforceable under 55-2008.
• Scrub prohibited clauses
  Audit your template to remove rights waivers, any entrance or exit fee, and any clause that limits a resident's invitees.
• Prepare the disclosure packet
  Keep a ready 55-2007 disclosure statement (ownership, home types, lot boundaries, utilities, zoning, last rent increase) to hand over on request.
• Calendar the 90-day notices
  Set reminders so rent changes (55-2006) and rule changes (55-2008) always issue at least 90 days ahead, and never amend more than once per six months.
• Keep increases uniform
  Apply rent increases uniformly across the community or within each defined rent tier to satisfy 55-2006.
• Document delivery
  Send notices by first class mail, certified mail, or personal delivery and retain proof of the method and date.
• Build a relationship with an Idaho MHP attorney
  Have Idaho manufactured-home-park counsel review your lease, rules, and notice forms, since statutory citations can be recodified and local ordinances vary.