Virginia Code 55.1-1301: Written rental agreement required
A. Before the tenancy begins, all parties shall sign and date a written rental agreement that includes all terms governing the rental and occupancy of a manufactured home lot. The landlord shall give the tenant a copy of the signed and dated written rental agreement and a copy of this chapter or a clear and simple description of the obligations of landlords and tenants under this chapter within seven days after the tenant signs the written rental agreement. The written rental agreement shall not contain any provisions contrary to the provisions of this chapter and shall not contain a provision prohibiting the tenant from selling his manufactured home. A notice of any change by a landlord in any terms or provisions of the written rental agreement shall constitute a notice to vacate the premises, and such notice shall be given in accordance with the terms of the written rental agreement or as otherwise required by law. The written rental agreement shall not provide that the tenant pay any recurring charges except fixed rent, utility charges, or reasonable incidental charges for services or facilities supplied by the landlord. The landlord shall post a copy of this chapter, including the full text of the sections referenced in § 55.1-1311, in the manufactured home park.
Terms Used In Virginia Code 55.1-1301
- Includes: means includes, but not limited to. See Virginia Code 1-218
- Landlord: means the manufactured home park owner or the lessor or sublessor of a manufactured home park. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
- Manufactured home: means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, that in the traveling mode is eight body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is 320 or more square feet, and that is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained in the structure. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
- Manufactured home park: means a parcel of land under single or common ownership upon which five or more manufactured homes are located on a continual, nonrecreational basis together with any structure, equipment, road, or facility intended for use incidental to the occupancy of the manufactured homes. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
- Rent: means payments made by the tenant to the landlord for use of a manufactured home lot and other facilities or services provided by the landlord. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
- Rental agreement: means any agreement, written or oral, and valid rules and regulations adopted in conformance with § 55. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
- Security interest: means the same as that term is defined in § 8. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
- Tenant: means a person entitled as under a rental agreement to occupy a manufactured home lot to the exclusion of others. See Virginia Code 55.1-1300
B. In the event that any party has a secured interest in the manufactured home, the written rental agreement or rental application shall include the name and address of such party and the name and address of the dealer from whom the manufactured home was purchased. In addition, the written rental agreement shall require the tenant to notify the landlord within 10 days of any new security interest, change of existing security interest, or settlement of security interest.
1975, c. 535, § 55-248.42; 1986, c. 586; 1991, c. 500; 1992, c. 709; 2019, c. 712.