Joe Kelly, executive vice-president of the Manufactured Housing Association of Iowa (MHAI) tells MHProNews.com a bill approved by the Senate Judiciary committee would require a community owner to provide a legitimate reason for terminating a resident or refusing to renew a lease. Introduced by state attorney general Tom Miller, it would also give MH owners 14 days to make up a late payment instead of three, and require one-year leases from the community operator. The Iowa association says the bill is unnecessary because landlords hardly ever evict good tenants. The bill also adds legal steps to evict a problem tenant. It is similar to one that failed to pass last year, but has fewer provisions. The impetus for the legislation derives from a series of stories in the Des Moines Register about abusive and illegal sales practices in MHCs around the state, pinpointing Regency Mobile Home Park outside Iowa City.
