HB2257 - 522R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 33-1478, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

33-1478. Remedies for abandonment; sale; notice; required registration

A. If the tenant abandons the mobile home unit on a mobile home space, it is incumbent upon the landlord to shall locate the legal owner or lienholder of the mobile home unit within ten days and communicate to him his notify the owner or lienholder of the owner's or lienholder's liability for any costs incumbered incurred for the mobile home space for such that mobile home unit, including rent and utilities due and owing. However, The landlord shall be is entitled to a maximum of sixty days' rent due prior to for the period of unpaid rent immediately preceding notice to the legal owner or lienholder. Any and All costs shall then become the responsibility of the legal owner or lienholder of the mobile home. The mobile home unit may not be removed from the mobile home space without a signed written agreement from the mobile home park landlord, owner or manager showing clearance for removal, showing all monies due and owning owing as paid in full, or showing that an agreement was reached with the legal owner or lienholder and the landlord.

B. For the purposes of this section, a mobile home is abandoned if either of the following applies:

1. The tenant is absent from the mobile home without notice to the landlord for at least thirty days, rent for the mobile home space is outstanding and unpaid for at least thirty days, the landlord has delivered a termination notice for unpaid rent to the most recent tenant and at least seven days have elapsed and there is no reasonable evidence that the tenant is occupying the mobile home.

2. The mobile home remains on the mobile home space after entry of a judgment of eviction. If a judgment of eviction has not been entered, a mobile HOME IS not abandoned if the mobile home is being serviced under an active third-party utility provider for electricity, natural gas or water.

C. A landlord may not begin landlord lien sale procedures on a mobile home pursuant to this section unless the mobile HOME IS abandoned as prescribed in subsection B of this section.

D. Notwithstanding section 33-1480 and if the mobile home remains on the space, a landlord has a lien on an abandoned mobile home until all monies due to the landlord for the rental of the space, including utilities, are paid. The landlord's lien is established by operation of law and is not affected by any transfer or encumbrance of the mobile home after any monies become due to the landlord. The lien established pursuant to this subsection does not apply to the mobile home space tenant's household goods.

E. After determining that a mobile home has been abandoned, the landlord may serve a notice on the mobile home's legal owner that states the termination of any right to keep the home on the space and that demands payment of all monies due to the landlord for rent and utilities within seven days after receipt of the notice. The notice shall be sent by certified mail to the legal owner's address as shown in the department of transportation's records and to any other addresses known to the landlord. At a minimum the notice shall include the full amount due and necessary to be paid in order to terminate the lien sale and the date on which that amount is to be paid to the landlord. If all monies owed are not paid in full and satisfied within seventy-two days after the notice is sent, the landlord may sell the mobile home as prescribed in section 33-1023. At any time before completion of the sale of the mobile home:

1. If the abandonment is the result of the entry of a judgment of eviction, the legal owner has the right to recover possession of the mobile home as provided in section 33-1481, subsection B.

2. If the abandonment is not the result of the entry of a judgment of eviction from the mobile home space, the tenant has the right to reoccupy the mobile home on payment of the amount due at any time before completion of the sale. The landlord may not interfere with the tenant's right to reoccupy the mobile home and the mobile home may not thereafter be treated as abandoned while the mobile home remains occupied.

3. The landlord shall give the tenant access to the mobile home at reasonable times during normal business hours to remove household goods and other personal possessions, but the tenant may not remove fixtures, built-in appliances, appurtenances or building components of the mobile home.

F. If the abandoned mobile home is subject to a lien of record, both of the following apply:

1. At the time the notice is sent pursuant to subsection E of this section, the landlord shall send a notice of abandonment pursuant to subsection A of this section to the record lienholder at the record lienholder's most recent address as shown in the records of the department of transportation. The landlord shall include in the notice of abandonment a description of the mobile home and its vehicle identification number.

2. At least ten days before conducting a sale under subsection E of this section, the landlord shall send notice to any record lienholder on the mobile home that the lienholder, at any time before the sale, may recover possession of the mobile home. The record lienholder may pay the amount due to the landlord and, if paid, shall recover possession of the mobile home. On release of the mobile home to a record lienholder pursuant to this paragraph, the landlord is not liable to the tenant or the mobile home owner for the release of the mobile home.

G. If a sale is held pursuant to this section, the landlord shall distribute the proceeds of the sale in the following manner and in the following order:

1. Payment of all reasonable costs of sale.

2. Satisfaction of the landlord's lien.

3. Satisfaction of the valid claims of any record lienholder.

4. On demand by the former owner within ninety days after the date of the sale, payment of any remaining proceeds to the former owner of the mobile home.

5. If the former owner does not claim the balance within ninety days after the date of the sale, payment of the balance to the department of fire, building and life safety for deposit into the mobile home relocation fund established by section 33-1476.02, along with submittal of the names of the former owner of the mobile home, the landlord and the mobile home park in which the mobile home was located. Within two years after the date of payment of the balance to the department of fire, building and life safety, if the FORMER owner ESTABLISHES to the satisfaction of the director of the department of fire, building and life safety that the former owner has the right to receive the monies, the DIRECTOR shall pay those monies to the former owner.

H. If a mobile home is determined in writing by a fire department or other code or safety enforcement agency to be substantially damaged or destroyed by fire or another disaster on the mobile home space and unless work is promptly begun to restore the mobile home to a habitable condition, the landlord shall notify the lienholder of record and the legal owner of the mobile home to remove the mobile home from the park within thirty days and shall include with the notice a copy of the written determination of substantial damage or destruction. If the mobile home is not removed within thirty days, the landlord may remove or demolish the mobile home and dispose of it in any lawful manner and shall notify the department of transportation of the demolition. A landlord who disposes of a mobile home in compliance with this subsection is not liable to the owner or any lienholder for the loss of the mobile home.

I. If a landlord acquires title to a mobile home in a mobile home park pursuant to this section or otherwise and thereby obtains personal property from the mobile home that has reasonably apparent value, the landlord:

1. May store the personal property in the unoccupied mobile home that was acquired by the landlord or in any other available mobile home, dwelling unit or storage space owned, leased or otherwise controlled by the landlord on or off the premises. The landlord shall notify the tenant of the location of the personal property.

2. Shall hold the personal property for a period of at least ten days after obtaining title to the mobile home. The landlord shall use reasonable care in holding the personal property. If the landlord holds the property for ten days and the tenant makes no reasonable effort to recover it, the landlord may sell the property, retain the proceeds and apply them toward the actual and reasonable costs of disposing of the personal property. Any excess proceeds shall be mailed to the tenant at the tenant's last known address.

3. If the tenant cannot be found, shall pay the excess proceeds to the department of fire, building and life safety to be deposited in the mobile home relocation fund established by section 33-1476.02 and shall submit the names of the former owner of the mobile home, the landlord and the mobile home park in which the mobile home was located.

J. A tenant or former tenant who is the legal owner of a mobile home that is the subject of a landlord lien sale procedure pursuant to this section may petition the department of fire, building and life safety for a hearing under section 41-2198.01 on the single issue of whether the landlord is in compliance with this section. The department shall immediately refer the petition to the office of administrative hearings and on receiving notice of this action, the landlord shall defer any landlord lien sale on the mobile home pending determination of the issue. The hearing shall be scheduled at the earliest possible time on that single issue and the decision of the administrative law judge shall be issued at the conclusion of the hearing and shall be binding on the parties. If the decision is in favor of the landlord, the sale may proceed. If the decision is in favor of the tenant, the pending sale shall be canceled without prejudice for the landlord to initiate a new landlord lien sale pursuant to this section. Either party may appeal the decision as a final administrative decision pursuant to title 12, chapter 7, article 6.

K. A landlord who bids at a sale conducted pursuant to this section shall bid in at least the full amount of the value of the landlord lien and may not bid in less than that amount in order to create a deficiency balance.

L. A landlord of a mobile home park that is closed by action of a code enforcement agency due to infractions by the landlord of health and safety codes has no rights under this section.

B. M. A landlord shall require each mobile home space renter to complete a required standardized registration form shall be filled out by each mobile home space renter, upon on renting the mobile home space rental, showing the mobile home make, year, serial number and license number, if any be license number is legally required, and also showing if whether the mobile home is paid for, if whether there is a lien on the mobile home, and if so the name of the lienholder, if any, and who is the name of the legal owner of the mobile home unit. The registration cards or forms shall be kept on file with the park management as long as the mobile home is on the mobile home space within the park. The owner of the mobile home shall give notice shall be given to park management within ten days of after any changes in a new lien, changes of existing lien or settlement of lien. END_STATUTE