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

What must a mobile home lot lease include in Virginia?

In Virginia, renting a lot in a manufactured home community is governed by the Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act, Va. Code sections 55.1-1300 through 55.1-1320. It applies whenever the tenant owns the manufactured home but rents the lot (pad) it sits on, and it layers on top of specific parts of the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act that section 55.1-1311 incorporates by reference.

The core rule is that the lease must be in writing, signed and dated before the tenancy begins, and must contain all terms governing the rental and occupancy of the lot (section 55.1-1301). You must offer year-round residents a term of at least one year (section 55.1-1302), and you must deliver the DHCD statement of tenant rights and responsibilities within 10 business days (section 55.1-1303).

One thing to know before you audit your template: there is no single prohibited-provisions section unique to this chapter. Banned terms are spread across section 55.1-1301, section 55.1-1306, and the incorporated section 55.1-1208. Section 55.1-1305 is often miscited here, but it actually addresses a secured party's rent liability for an abandoned home, not lease content.

The written agreement and the DHCD statement of rights

Under section 55.1-1301, the lot lease must be a written, signed, and dated agreement executed before the tenancy begins that spells out all terms governing the rental and occupancy of the lot. Within seven days after the tenant signs, you must hand over a copy of the signed agreement plus either the full text of Chapter 13 or a clear and simple description of the landlord's and tenant's obligations under the chapter. You must also post a copy of the chapter in the park, include the required flood-insurance notice in bold type, disclose the name and address of any party holding a security interest in the home, and require the tenant to notify you within 10 days of any new, changed, or settled security interest.

The agreement may not contain provisions contrary to the chapter, may not prohibit the tenant from selling the manufactured home, and may not require the tenant to pay any recurring charge except fixed rent, utility charges, or reasonable incidental charges for services or facilities you actually supply.

Separately, section 55.1-1303 and section 55.1-1204(A) (pulled in through section 55.1-1311) require you to provide the tenant the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities developed by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) within 10 business days, and to have both parties sign the DHCD form acknowledging the tenant received it. This is not optional paperwork: you cannot file or maintain an eviction or other lease-violation action against the tenant until you have delivered that statement.

Prohibited lease provisions and fees

Section 55.1-1306 lists demands and charges you cannot make. You may not collect an entrance fee for the privilege of leasing or occupying a lot, an exit fee for moving a home out of the park, a fee for interior improvements or installations, or a commission on the sale of a home unless the tenant expressly employs you to perform a service. A tenant's guest or invitee must have free access to the home site without charge or registration, and you cannot restrict the home owner's choice of vendors except in connection with the initial leasing of a newly constructed lot.

On top of that, section 55.1-1208 of the Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act is incorporated by section 55.1-1311 and voids a familiar set of one-sided clauses. A lease may not make the tenant waive or forgo rights or remedies under the chapter, authorize anyone to confess judgment, agree to pay your attorney fees except as the chapter allows, agree to exculpate or limit your liability or to indemnify you, prepay a deposit plus damage and renter's insurance premiums exceeding two months' rent, or waive Servicemembers Civil Relief Act rights before a dispute arises.

The teeth are in section 55.1-1208(B): any prohibited provision is unenforceable, and if you bring an action to enforce one, the tenant can recover actual damages plus reasonable attorney fees. Combined with section 55.1-1301's ban on any clause prohibiting the tenant from selling the home, these rules mean an old boilerplate lease is a real liability.

Park rules, deposits, and fee disclosure

Because section 55.1-1301 requires the written agreement to contain all terms governing the rental and occupancy of the lot, park rules should be incorporated into or attached to the lease rather than imposed unilaterally after the fact, and you cannot use rules to impose recurring charges beyond rent, utilities, and reasonable incidental charges. Section 55.1-1306 does let you set reasonable requirements, as a condition of occupancy, governing the style, size, or quality of the manufactured home.

Security deposits are governed by section 55.1-1226 (applied through section 55.1-1302 and section 55.1-1311), which controls how the deposit is held, applied, and returned. Section 55.1-1208 caps the prepaid deposit plus damage and renter's insurance premiums at two months' periodic rent. Under automatic renewal, section 55.1-1302 bars you from increasing the deposit or demanding an additional one.

Section 55.1-1302 also requires a fee disclosure statement: the first page of the lease must itemize the security deposit, the rent due per payment period, and any one-time charges due before commencement, and it must state that no additional deposit or rent may be charged unless listed or added by a later addendum. Late charges may not exceed the lesser of 10 percent of the periodic rent or 10 percent of the remaining balance due, and nonrenewal requires at least 90 days' written notice stating the reason.

Lease requirements at a glance in Virginia

• Written lease required
  Section 55.1-1301 requires a signed, dated written agreement before move-in that contains all terms of the rental and occupancy.
• One-year term offer
  Section 55.1-1302 requires you to offer year-round residents a term of not less than one year, auto-renewing unless either party gives notice.
• Fee disclosure on page one
  Section 55.1-1302 requires the first page to itemize the security deposit, rent per period, and one-time charges; unlisted charges cannot be added later.
• DHCD statement of rights
  Section 55.1-1303 and section 55.1-1204(A) require delivery of the DHCD statement of tenant rights and responsibilities within 10 business days, with a signed acknowledgment.
• Deliver copies within 7 days
  Section 55.1-1301 requires giving the tenant a signed copy plus the chapter text or a plain description of obligations within seven days of signing.
• No sale ban; limited recurring charges
  Section 55.1-1301 bars any clause prohibiting the tenant from selling the home and limits recurring charges to fixed rent, utilities, and reasonable incidental charges.
• No entrance or exit fees
  Section 55.1-1306 prohibits entrance fees, exit or moving fees, interior-improvement fees, and unearned sales commissions.
• Void waiver clauses
  Section 55.1-1208, via section 55.1-1311, voids confession-of-judgment, rights-waiver, attorney-fee-shifting, and landlord-liability-limiting clauses.
• Deposit cap and rules
  Section 55.1-1208 caps the prepaid deposit plus insurance premiums at two months' rent; section 55.1-1226 governs handling and return.
• Post the chapter and flood notice
  Section 55.1-1301 requires posting a copy of Chapter 13 in the park and including the bold flood-insurance notice in the lease.

Operator best practices in Virginia

• Start from the DHCD model lot lease
  Begin with Virginia DHCD's model manufactured home lot lease agreement so the required disclosures, fee itemization, and one-year term are built in.
• Deliver and document the DHCD statement
  Provide the statement of tenant rights and responsibilities and keep the signed acknowledgment; you cannot maintain an eviction until it has been delivered.
• Audit your lease for banned clauses
  Strip out confession-of-judgment, rights-waiver, attorney-fee, no-sale, and liability-limiting language; enforcing them exposes you to actual damages and the tenant's attorney fees under section 55.1-1208(B).
• Itemize every charge upfront
  List the deposit, rent, and one-time charges on page one; you cannot collect unlisted recurring or one-time charges later, and recurring charges are limited to rent, utilities, and reasonable incidentals.
• Never charge entrance or exit fees
  Section 55.1-1306 flatly prohibits fees for the privilege of leasing a lot and for moving a home out of the park; do not build them into rules or addenda.
• Post the chapter and give required copies
  Keep Chapter 13 posted in the park, include the bold flood-insurance notice, and deliver the signed lease and chapter description within seven days.
• Build a relationship with a Virginia MHP attorney
  Have a Virginia attorney experienced in the Manufactured Home Lot Rental Act review your lease template and vet any nonrenewal or eviction before you act.