First Time Renting Out A Mobile Home? Start Here!

Renting out your home for the first time can be ridden with obstacles

Renting out a mobile home doesn’t have to be as overwhelming as it may seem. Yes, there is a lot to consider, but if you go about renting your place in an organized fashion, it may be well worth the effort. This is especially true if you’re looking to rent out your mobile home for a profit.


First-Time Landlord Checklist
Here’s a very helpful first-time landlord checklist to help make the process go as smooth as you can imagine.

Whether you’re upgrading but want to make money on your mobile home or if you’re moving out of town for work, there are a few basic “rent out your home” steps to follow.

Special Note: If you live in a community, be certain to check the community rules and regulations before subleasing your manufactured home. Some communities disallow any renting of homes, and others will abide but under certain circumstances.

However, if you own the home and the land it sits on, the opportunity to rent out your mobile home is fairly wide open.

With that, let’s get started!


Clean it Up, Clear it Out
As obvious as it may sound, cleaning the interior and exterior is the first step. To ensure a deep clean, a professional cleaning service can really help. A clean start is a great start!

Now that everything from carpet to ceiling has been sterilized, it’s time for the exterior of your mobile home. A power washer for the windows and sliding doors, as well as some quick gardening, will easily freshen up the exterior. When everything has been cleaned, a fresh coat of paint on the interior and exterior will brighten the place up big time. Check out how to choose interior and exterior colors for your mobile home.

At this point, the “clean it up” part is done, and it’s time for the “clear it out”. Whether it’s your own home that you are now renting or a home you have purchased to put on the mobile home rental market, you want to be certain the decor and layout are welcoming. (Pro Tip: Here’s a great article on staging your mobile home to sell that goes into the importance of letting your renter see themselves in the space)

If you are offering your rental fully furnished, be sure to have the right size and the right amount of furniture. Additionally, ensure the rooms are laid out to allow the new renter some wiggle room in rearranging the space to their liking. The same rule should be followed when it comes to wall decor. A few simple pieces here and there is fine, but you don’t want to have too much of your decor in their new space.


Advertise Your Mobile Home for Rent

Where May I List My Mobile Home for Rent?
And, yes, there are other options when it comes to publicizing the availability of your house. Local newspapers, Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and other options.
However, be ready to answer quite a few questions if advertising your mobile home for rent on more general platforms. 

Price Your Rental
Do some market research on similar mobile or manufactured homes, including how they are priced for rent.  This is the best place to start considering what the right rental price for your mobile home might be.
You’ll also want to be sure to factor in any mobile home park lot rent that might be due monthly and explain that detail clearly in your rental agreement.

What follows is a helpful approach to mobile home pricing from Amanda Dixon of Smart Asset.
“The amount of rent you charge your tenants should be a percentage of how much the mobile home is worth (the home’s market value). Typically, the rents that landlords charge fall between 0.8 percent and 1.1 percent of the home’s value. For example, for a home valued at $250,000, a landlord could charge between $2,000 and $2,750 each month,” Dixon said.


Research A Great Tenant for Renting Out a Mobile HomeRenting Out a Mobile Home
So, now that the home is priced and set to be seen, get ready for reviewing and considering your potential takers. There are many options available online for a mobile home landlord to conduct background and credit checks. This is where an application for the renter to fill out ahead of time comes in handy. Similar to a job application, this form should provide interested renters with space to share:


Information for a Rental Application
Current contact information
Place of employment
Income
Renting history (have they rented/when and how long?)
Number of residents in the home
References (previous landlords, personal references, job references)
Also, there are some good sample rental applications floating around out there. Here is a website we found that provides some great rental, lease, and land agreement templates that can be used at least as a starting point for the paperwork on renting out a mobile home.

As those applications come in, create an A-B-C or 1-2-3 list of preferred prospects to help pare down the field. Again, much like a job application, start with what looks on paper to be the best candidates and begin making calls and checking references.

Avoid the urge to immediately turn down what may appear to be less desirable prospects. You never can be certain how many of the preferred group you may need to go through. Likewise, you never know which of the prospects might climb up the list either.


Get It All On Paper!
It is essential to ensure ALL of your bases are covered when creating the rental paperwork. It’s vital to protect your rental relationship from any miscommunication at the very beginning. Here’s another great list that covers which type of information should be in the mobile home lease, if not the application itself:


Details to Consider for Renting Out a Mobile Home:

– Lease term: A month-to-month lease offers more flexibility if you are selling. An annual lease provides more stability if you are holding on to the property.

– Security deposit, usually one month’s rent or more

– Rental due date and late penalties

– Repairs and who’s responsible for what

– Routine upkeep and maintenance responsibilities, such as lawn care

-List of tenants
Rules of behavior, including noise levels, neighborly conduct and smoking

-Pet policies and related deposits

-Who pays homeowner association dues

–Association rules that the tenant must follow

-Arrangements for showings, if you plan to put your home on the market while it’s being rented

– Eviction terms, such as not paying the rent or damaging the property

Clearly, there are free resources for a first-timer renting out a mobile home. However, it can’t hurt to consider working with a local professional to be certain everything is covered. Additionally, a professional will be able to help with any specific rules or regulations in your area for rental agreements that might have escaped your attention.

Management Options for Renting Out a Mobile Home

Renting Your Home
Depending on how many properties you have, the workload can be entirely manageable or too overwhelming. So, you also have the option to work with a rental management company that offers a variety of helpful services. At the very least, a property management professional can conduct a mobile home walkthrough to provide tips on next steps.


Standard practice has it that a home or property owner looking for help can anticipate paying a management firm about 10% of the monthly rental value of the property.