There are about 32 manufactured home parks in Nanaimo. I've separated them into three areas (plus Ladysmith) as you'll see below. I also have a list of ALL current mobile home listings down below.
Want to be notified when something becomes available in your favourite park? I'd be happy to create an alert - just contact me.
For more info ABOUT mobile home living, see down below.
All Mobile Homes in Nanaimo
Interested in knowing which MHPs have swimming pools for their residents? See my list of manufactured home parks with pools!
Or, here is a list of manufactured home parks which MAY allow for larger dogs.
Looking for a mobile home in a park where you OWN your lot? I've made a page for strata-titled mobile home parks.
Information about Buying Mobile Homes
While some mobile homes are on their own private lots, for the ones in "Parks" you own the building but not the land. The land is owned by a private company or individual who rents it to you, usually for about $550-$650/mo in Nanaimo.
I can't describe what life is like, in the parks. I have never lived in one. They usually appear to be similar to any sectioned-off suburban development, with people tending to their yards or staying invisible inside. There are Park rules against most forms of disturbance, so you won't encounter a lot of rowdiness in most cases. You don't want to rock the boat when your right to the land is subject to the continued approval of the park management! Indeed, most people who want to make noise will avoid the MHPs and live elsewhere.
Most parks' fees include garbage/recycling; some parks also pay for sewer and water, while others have metered connections. Hydro is seldom included. Some parks are connected to municipal water/sewer services, while others have big communal wells or septic systems.
Financing a mobile/manufactured home can be a bit trickier than a regular home because these homes depreciate faster, and because your interest in the land is not as “solid” for the banks in terms of collateral. It's one reason why mobile homes are geared toward retired people – they have sold their old family home and have enough money to buy a mobile home, mortgage-free, with some funds left over for other living expenses.
Q. Do you pay property tax when you own a mobile home?
A. In British Columbia, the Manufactured Home Tax Act dictates that you pay tax on the home itself as personal property, but you aren't taxed for the land if your home is in a manufactured home park where you pay rent.
Your Rights as a Tenant in an MHP
Although you own the HOME, you are RENTING the space (pad) in the park. Many people wonder what sort of protection they have against eviction – what happens if the park owner chooses to sell the land for re-development?
The Province has some regulations designed to make this less likely, and to compensate you for the inconvenience (if the eviction is due to redevelopment). Each tenant is entitled to $20,000 for example, as well as twelve months' notice. Furthermore, there is a process for recovering more compensation if the tenant is unable to find a new place for their home.
Vacant Mobile Home Pads for Sale?
I often get asked: Are there any empty lots for sale in manufactured home parks? Like a vacant pad for sale, upon which I can place a new home?
It seems reasonable to think that you should see these for sale – for example, what if someone dies and their mobile home is considered unsafe, and it's removed - shouldn't the family be able to sell the RIGHT to place a home on that pad?
The SHORT answer is no. In fact, I am only aware of one such sale in the past 20 years in our area, and it was a special case.
The longer answer has to do with the provincial regulations regarding a tenant's right to ASSIGN (i.e., sell) their tenancy to someone else. First of all, you can't sell a month-to-month tenancy – and it is very rare for a park to offer a fixed-term tenancy. Moreover, the regulations allow a park owner to deny requests for assignment of month-to-month tenancies when the home has been removed or destroyed. I haven't dug into the reasons for this, but there you have it: If a pad is vacant, the park owner will put a new home on it, and sell it for profit.
Contact me if you want to received new mobile home listings by email.
Assignment of the Tenancy Agreement
It's advantageous for a buyer if they are able to assume the seller's tenancy agreement when they are purchasing a home in a park (as opposed to a new agreement being created between the park and the new owner). It allows the buyer to keep the same monthly rate that the seller was paying, since the park owner is not allowed to increase the rent within the same agreement, more than once per year.
The regulations say that if the park owner receives a request by a seller to assign the tenancy agreement to the buyer, the park owner may not refuse, unless there are specific circumstances (failed credit/reference checks, the buyer plans a non-permitted use of the space, the home is unsafe or has been removed, the seller owes money to the park, etc.). However, in practice it is uncommon for a park to agree to the assignment. I don't know whether this has been challenged in court, or what. The good news however, is that most parks act reasonably and do not maintain large rent differences from one tenant to the next.