Bill Text: FL S0362 | 2010 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Mobile Home Park Lot Tenancies [CPSC]

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2010-04-30 - Died in Committee on Judiciary [S0362 Detail]

Download: Florida-2010-S0362-Comm_Sub.html

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Florida Senate - 2010                              CS for SB 362 
 
By the Committee on Regulated Industries; and Senator Detert 
580-04333-10                                           2010362c1 
1                        A bill to be entitled 
2         An act relating to mobile home park lot tenancies; 
3         amending s. 723.0381, F.S.; authorizing the court to 
4         refer actions to binding arbitration; providing that 
5         the arbitration decision may be made known to a judge 
6         in a trial de novo prior to the judge entering his or 
7         her order on the merits; amending s. 723.061, F.S., 
8         relating to grounds and proceedings for eviction; 
9         providing for nonapplicability of certain provisions 
10         to certain persons approved for payment by the Florida 
11         Mobile Home Relocation Corporation; amending s. 
12         723.0612, F.S., relating to relocation expenses; 
13         revising payment amounts mobile home owners are 
14         entitled to from the corporation under certain 
15         circumstances; increasing the amounts mobile home 
16         owners abandoning their mobile homes may collect from 
17         the corporation; amending s. 723.071, F.S.; requiring 
18         mobile home park owners receiving a bona fide offer 
19         for purchase to notify the officers of the homeowners’ 
20         association; requiring a homeowners’ association 
21         purchasing a mobile home park to execute a contract 
22         for only the park that it represents; authorizing a 
23         time extension for home owners when a park owner 
24         changes the terms and conditions of the offer to 
25         purchase the park; revising requirements with respect 
26         to unsolicited offers; providing the homeowners’ 
27         association with the right of first refusal to 
28         purchase the park in the event of an unsolicited 
29         offer; encouraging mobile home owners to organize as 
30         homeowners’ associations to negotiate a right of first 
31         refusal with a park owner; redefining the term “offer” 
32         for such purposes; providing a limitation on an 
33         exception relating to transfers by partnerships; 
34         amending s. 723.083, F.S.; revising procedures 
35         providing for the removal or relocation of mobile home 
36         owners; providing an effective date. 
37 
38  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
39 
40         Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 723.0381, Florida 
41  Statutes, is amended to read: 
42         723.0381 Civil actions; arbitration.— 
43         (2) The court may refer the action to nonbinding 
44  arbitration pursuant to s. 44.103 or to binding arbitration 
45  pursuant to s. 44.104 and the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. 
46  The court shall order the hearing to be held informally with 
47  presentation of testimony kept to a minimum and matters 
48  presented to the arbitrators primarily through the statements 
49  and arguments of counsel. The court shall assess the parties 
50  equally to pay the compensation awarded to the arbitrators if 
51  neither party requests a trial de novo. If a party has filed for 
52  a trial de novo, the party shall be assessed the arbitration 
53  costs, court costs, and other reasonable costs of the opposing 
54  party, including attorney’s fees, investigation expenses, and 
55  expenses for expert or other testimony or evidence incurred 
56  after the arbitration hearing if the judgment upon the trial de 
57  novo is not more favorable than the arbitration decision. If 
58  subsequent to arbitration a party files for a trial de novo, the 
59  arbitration decision may be made known to the judge prior to 
60  entering only after he or she has entered his or her order on 
61  the merits. 
62         Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 723.061, Florida 
63  Statutes, is amended to read: 
64         723.061 Eviction; grounds, proceedings.— 
65         (3) The provisions of s. 723.083 do shall not apply be 
66  applicable to any person whose application for funding pursuant 
67  to s. 723.0612(1) or (7) is approved for payment by the Florida 
68  Mobile Home Relocation Corporation park where the provisions of 
69  this subsection apply. 
70         Section 3. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) and subsection 
71  (7) of section 723.0612, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 
72         723.0612 Change in use; relocation expenses; payments by 
73  park owner.— 
74         (1) If a mobile home owner is required to move due to a 
75  change in use of the land comprising the mobile home park as set 
76  forth in s. 723.061(1)(d) and complies with the requirements of 
77  this section, the mobile home owner is entitled to payment from 
78  the Florida Mobile Home Relocation Corporation of: 
79         (b) An amount equal to 60 percent of the lesser of three 
80  written estimates of moving expenses provided by the mobile home 
81  owner to the Florida Mobile Home Relocation Corporation. The 
82  amount of $3,000 for a single-section mobile home or $6,000 for 
83  a multisection mobile home, whichever is less. Moving expenses 
84  include the cost of taking down, moving, and setting up the 
85  mobile home in a new location. 
86         (7) In lieu of collecting payment from the Florida Mobile 
87  Home Relocation Corporation as set forth in subsection (1), a 
88  mobile home owner may abandon the mobile home in the mobile home 
89  park and collect $2,800 $1,375 for a single section and $5,600 
90  $2,750 for a multisection from the corporation as long as the 
91  mobile home owner delivers to the park owner the current title 
92  to the mobile home duly endorsed by the owner of record and 
93  valid releases of all liens shown on the title. If a mobile home 
94  owner chooses this option, the park owner shall make payment to 
95  the corporation in an amount equal to the amount the mobile home 
96  owner is entitled to under this subsection. The mobile home 
97  owner’s application for funds under this subsection shall 
98  require the submission of a document signed by the park owner 
99  stating that the home has been abandoned under this subsection 
100  and that the park owner agrees to make payment to the 
101  corporation in the amount provided to the home owner under this 
102  subsection. However, in the event that the required documents 
103  are not submitted with the application, the corporation may 
104  consider the facts and circumstances surrounding the abandonment 
105  of the home to determine whether the mobile home owner is 
106  entitled to payment pursuant to this subsection. The mobile home 
107  owner is not entitled to any compensation under this subsection 
108  if there is a pending eviction action for nonpayment of lot 
109  rental amount pursuant to s. 723.061(1)(a) which was filed 
110  against him or her prior to the mailing date of the notice of 
111  change in the use of the mobile home park given pursuant to s. 
112  723.061(1)(d). 
113         Section 4. Subsections (1) through (3) and paragraph (d) of 
114  subsection (4) of section 723.071, Florida Statutes, are amended 
115  to read: 
116         723.071 Sale of mobile home parks.— 
117         (1)(a) If a mobile home park owner offers a mobile home 
118  park for sale or receives a bona fide offer for purchase, she or 
119  he shall notify the officers of the homeowners’ association 
120  created pursuant to ss. 723.075-723.079 of the offer, stating 
121  the price and the terms and conditions of sale. 
122         (b) The mobile home owners, by and through the association 
123  defined in s. 723.075, shall have the right to purchase the 
124  park, provided the home owners meet the price and terms and 
125  conditions of the mobile home park owner by executing a contract 
126  with the park owner within 45 days, unless agreed to otherwise, 
127  from the date of mailing of the notice and provided they have 
128  complied with ss. 723.075-723.079. To exercise its right to 
129  purchase the park, the homeowners’ association shall execute a 
130  contract for only the mobile home park that the homeowners’ 
131  association represents. If a contract between the park owner and 
132  the association is not executed within such 45-day period, then, 
133  unless the park owner thereafter elects to offer the park at a 
134  price lower than the price specified in her or his notice to the 
135  officers of the homeowners’ association or elects to change the 
136  terms and conditions of the offer, the park owner has no further 
137  obligations under this subsection, and her or his only 
138  obligation shall be as set forth in subsection (2). 
139         (c) If the park owner thereafter elects to offer the park 
140  at a price lower than the price specified in her or his notice 
141  to the home owners or elects to change the terms and conditions 
142  of the offer, the home owners, by and through the association, 
143  will have an additional 10 days to meet the price and terms and 
144  conditions of the park owner by executing a contract. 
145         (2) If a mobile home park owner receives a bona fide offer 
146  to purchase the park which that she or he intends to consider or 
147  make a counteroffer to, the mobile home park owner must first 
148  comply with subsection (1) park owner’s only obligation shall be 
149  to notify the officers of the homeowners’ association that she 
150  or he has received an offer and disclose the price and material 
151  terms and conditions upon which she or he would consider selling 
152  the park and consider any offer made by the home owners, 
153  provided the home owners have complied with ss. 723.075-723.079. 
154  Within 45 days after the date the mobile home park owner mails 
155  notification of a bona fide offer for purchase, the homeowners’ 
156  association must be given the right of first refusal to meet the 
157  price and terms and conditions required to execute a contract 
158  with identical price and terms and conditions made in the 
159  unsolicited offer for the mobile home park. The Legislature 
160  encourages mobile home owners to organize as homeowners’ 
161  associations pursuant to s. 723.075 for the purpose of 
162  negotiating a right of first refusal with a park owner. The park 
163  owner shall be under no obligation to sell to the home owners or 
164  to interrupt or delay other negotiations and shall be free at 
165  any time to execute a contract for the sale of the park to a 
166  party or parties other than the home owners or the association. 
167         (3) As used in this section, the term: 
168         (a) As used in subsections (1) and (2), the term “Notify” 
169  means the placing of a notice in the United States mail 
170  addressed to the officers of the homeowners’ association. Each 
171  such notice shall be deemed to have been given upon the deposit 
172  of the notice in the United States mail. 
173         (b) As used in subsection (1), the term “Offer” means any 
174  solicitation by the park owner to the general public or any 
175  unsolicited offer to purchase the mobile home park. 
176         (4) This section does not apply to: 
177         (d) Any transfer by a partnership to any of its partners. 
178  However, this exception may not be used to avoid sale to the 
179  homeowners’ association. 
180         Section 5. Section 723.083, Florida Statutes, is amended to 
181  read: 
182         723.083 Governmental action affecting removal of mobile 
183  home owners.—No agency of municipal, local, county, or state 
184  government shall approve any application for rezoning, or take 
185  any other official action, which would result in the removal or 
186  relocation of mobile home owners residing in a mobile home park 
187  without first determining that affordable, adequate mobile home 
188  parks or other suitable facilities exist for the relocation of 
189  the mobile home owners. An adequate mobile home park selected 
190  for the relocation of the mobile home owners must be affordable 
191  based on the income of very-low-income, low-income, or moderate 
192  income persons, as defined in s. 420.0004, and must be situated 
193  within the same county. 
194         Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.