Since 1992, the State Housing Improvement Program (SHIP) has provided funding to local governments across Florida to encourage the construction and maintenance of affordable housing. A bill introduced by Pinellas representative Kim Berfield (R–Clearwater) would encourage localities to provide much more support to mobile home owners.

Berfield’s bill, HB-267, introduces several changes to the SHIP program, which is administered by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation. SHIP funds “may be used to pay for emergency repairs, new construction, rehabilitation, down payment and closing cost assistance, impact fees, construction and gap financing, mortgage buy-downs, acquisition of property for affordable housing, matching dollars for federal housing grants and programs, and homeownership counseling,” according to a non-partisan analysis of the bill. 

The program is designed to exclusively serve families below 120% of the median adjusted gross income in each area, with resources specifically earmarked for families below the 50% and 80% thresholds. For a four-person household in St. Petersburg, the 120% SHIP income limit is $125,120/year.

Under SHIP, each local government develops a Local Housing Assistance Plan (LHAP) that distributes funds to eligible individuals. Berfield’s bill will make the following changes:

  • Berfield’s bill would allow mobile home owners up to 6 months’ lot rental assistance; 
  • Mobile home residents must be included in LHAPs, and SHIP funds are permitted to be used for rehabilitation and emergency repairs of mobile homes; further, lot rental assistance must be provided by LHAPs;
  • SHIP currently restricts the amount of funds usable on manufactured housing to 20%; this restriction is revoked.

Berfield did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but presenting her bill to the House Intergovernmental Affairs Subcommittee, she said, “We have overlooked a segment of our population who need our help: That’s mobile home residents.

“Many are on fixed disability or retirement incomes, and do not have the ability to work to improve their situations. In many cases they are forced to choose between paying their lot rent, which is ever-increasing, and buying food or medicine.”

Berfield further described the bill as an effort to “eliminate the discrimination that exists against mobile home owners within the current conversation about affordable housing.” 

Mobile home owners typically own the structure they live in, but not the land the mobile home sits on, for which they pay lot rents. Mobile home owners have come under increasing pressure in Florida as lot rents and associated fees have increased dramatically in the past decade. This corresponds to the growth in private equity ownership of mobile or manufactured home parks; according to the Private Equity Stakeholder Project, Florida leads the nation in private equity-owned parks, representing more than 64,000 homes. Florida has more mobile homes than the rest of the Southeastern United States combined, making residents a large and uniquely vulnerable population.

Nancy Stewart, of the Federation of Manufactured Home Owners of Florida, spoke in support of the bill, telling the subcommittee, “None of us intend to outlive the financial plans we’ve made for ourselves, but it happens.

“This bill will help those who really do need your assistance to remain in their homes in Florida.”

The bill was reported out unanimously by both the Intergovernmental Affairs and Housing, Agriculture, & Tourism Subcommittees. It is set to be heard next by the House Commerce Committee in the new year.