Hundreds of flood damaged homes were sold rather than scraped. Those damaged units were fixed in a fashion the media says covered up problems, rather than repairing and replacing building materials subject to mold, electrical or other safety and health concerns.
“It [the flood] took the mobile homes off the cement blocks and twisted and turned them sideways, and when that happens, the structural integrity of the home is damaged beyond repair,” said Evans Economic Development Director Sheryl Trent. “In every case, we found it was not safe to occupy.”
Colorado law doesn’t prevent investors from buying condemned manufactured or mobile homes and reselling, so long as the home condition is properly disclosed. Pat Coyle, director of the Colorado Division of Housing said failure to disclose a previously flooded condition is fraud.
Coyle sent a letter to all manufactured housing installers – as well as to municipal and county building inspectors – warning that it’s considered fraud and a violation of the Consumer Protection Act if a seller “knowingly fails to identify” the facts about a flood damaged home.
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The management company that owns the community where this practice has allegedly been taking place is Utah-based, and has some 40 other MHCs they operate. NassauNewsLive states the management firm didn’t return calls. ##
(Editor’s Note 1: This is an example of a recent Masthead commentary on the high cost to the industry’s image such incidents represents, see: MHDeath and Disaster, the Other Image Campaign. In the case of the story above, the media is urging those allegedly victimized to contact the state attorney general. The legal costs alone could outweigh any short term profits, not to mention the economic damage to a firm’s or the industry’s reputation.)
(Editors’ Note2: Both of the news agencies in the report above used improper industry terminology, which is why MHProNews developed this fact sheet for reporters in our media center. Industry professionals are advised to send a link to this page every time a news agency uses the wrong terminology.)
(Still images and video credits: 9Wants to Know)
