Mobile home utilities in Ohio

Ohio's manufactured home park law makes the park responsible for the utility systems it supplies, backs that duty with a rent-escrow remedy, and forbids shutting off service to force a resident out. The information below describes how the law generally works; anyone disputing a specific charge or outage should consider consulting a licensed attorney in Ohio.

What the statute says

Ohio Rev. Code §4781.38(A) lists the park's duties, including to "maintain in good and safe working order and condition all electrical and plumbing fixtures and appliances, and septic systems, sanitary and storm sewers, refuse receptacles, and well and water systems that are supplied or required to be supplied by the park operator" (A)(4), to "make all repairs and do whatever is reasonably necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition" (A)(2), and to "keep all common areas of the premises in a safe and sanitary condition" (A)(3).

When the park fails to meet those duties, §4781.41 gives the resident a remedy: a resident who is current in rent may give written notice of the problem, and if the park "fails to remedy the condition within a reasonable time ... or within thirty days, whichever is sooner," the resident may "deposit all rent that is due and thereafter becomes due ... with the clerk of court," or apply to the court for an order to remedy the condition or reduce the rent until it is fixed.

Section 4781.49(A) bars the park from "termination of utilities or services" as a way to recover possession outside the court process, and §4781.49(C) makes a violating park "liable in a civil action for all damages caused to a resident."

How it works in general

If an Ohio park supplies the water, sewer, septic, or the electrical and plumbing systems, it has to keep them in good and safe working order — and keep the premises fit and habitable. A resident who is current on rent and hits a utility or repair problem can put the park on written notice; if it isn't fixed within a reasonable time (or 30 days, whichever comes first), the resident can escrow the rent with the court clerk or ask a court to order repairs or cut the rent until the fix is made. The park can never cut off utilities to pressure a resident out — that's illegal self-help that exposes it to damages. Ohio's park law does not set a specific cap on how a park may bill submetered utilities, so the rental agreement (and, for regulated utilities, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio) governs the billing.

Common scenarios

General examples Ohio park residents commonly encounter:

• The park's water or sewer system breaks down. The park must keep supplied systems in good and safe working order (§4781.38(A)(4)).
• A repair drags on. After written notice and 30 days (or a reasonable time), the resident can escrow rent or seek a court order (§4781.41).
• A park threatens to cut the water over a dispute. That's barred self-help and exposes the park to damages (§4781.49).

Other authorities that may apply

The manufactured home park law (§§4781.38, 4781.41, 4781.49) sets the maintenance duty, the rent-escrow remedy, and the ban on utility shutoffs. The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio regulates jurisdictional utility service and rates, the Division of Industrial Compliance adopts park standards, and the written rental agreement sets the billing terms within these limits.