Fees in Idaho manufactured home communities

Idaho's Manufactured Home Residency Act (Idaho Code Title 55, Chapter 20) addresses what charges a manufactured home community may collect beyond periodic lot rent. The Act prohibits certain fees outright, requires that permitted fees be disclosed in the rental agreement, and separately regulates deposits. For questions about specific charges in a particular tenancy, consider consulting a licensed attorney in Idaho.

What the statute says

Idaho Code §55-2007(2) lists provisions that rental agreements are prohibited from containing. On entrance and exit fees, subsection (2)(b) provides:

Any provision allowing the landlord to charge an 'entrance fee' or an 'exit fee.'

The same section notes that expenses for repairs or maintenance required as a condition of the landlord's approval of a rental application do not constitute an entrance or exit fee.

On disclosure, §55-2007(1)(a) requires the rental agreement to contain:

The terms for the payment of rent, including the time and place for payment, and a description of any other charges.

Idaho Code §55-2003 supplies the statutory definitions. "Fees" means:

financial obligations incidental to a resident's tenancy including, but not limited to, charges for late payments, pets, the storage of recreational vehicles and the use of community facilities.

"Other charges" means:

fees, service charges, utility charges or any other financial obligations specified in the rental agreement, but not including rent.

On security deposits, §55-2013(1) defines a regulated deposit as any payment collected as prepaid rent or to compensate for resident default, beyond periodic rent and utility or service fees. Section 55-2013(2) requires the landlord to maintain a separate record of deposits.

How it works in general

The Act takes a disclosure-and-prohibition approach to fees. Entrance and exit fees are flatly prohibited. All other fees and charges must be described in the written rental agreement — they cannot be collected on an ad hoc basis outside the agreement. Deposits are separately regulated and must be tracked in dedicated records. The priority rule in §55-2013(4) means that if a landlord has financial difficulties, a resident's deposit claim ranks ahead of the landlord's general creditors.

Common scenarios

General situations Idaho manufactured home community residents commonly encounter:

• A landlord asks for an upfront payment before a resident moves in, described as an "entry fee" or similar. Idaho Code §55-2007(2)(b) bars entrance fees in the rental agreement. Whether a specific charge qualifies as a prohibited entrance fee depends on how the statute and Idaho courts interpret it.
• A community charges a monthly pet fee or a fee for a storage space. These may fall under the definition of "fees" in §55-2003 and should appear in the rental agreement under §55-2007(1)(a).
• A landlord seeks to collect a late payment charge. Late payment charges are included in the §55-2003 definition of "fees" and must be specified in the rental agreement.
• A resident asks what will happen to a deposit if the park is sold. Under §55-2013(3), the selling landlord must either transfer the deposit to the new owner or return the balance to the resident.

Other authorities that may apply

Chapter 20 is the primary authority for community fees and deposits, but it is not the only one. The written rental agreement governs the specific amounts and terms of permitted charges. The Idaho Consumer Protection Act and federal regulations governing fair lending and disclosure can apply in certain situations. The prohibition on retaliatory rent increases and fee changes in §55-2015 is also relevant when a fee change follows a resident's protected activity.