093_HJ0042
LRB093 14241 LCB 19958 r
1 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, Manufactured homes, frequently known as mobile
3 homes, are a major source of housing for older Americans; in
4 2001, it was estimated that there were 7.2 million housing
5 units occupied year round as a primary residence; this
6 represents 7% of the nation's occupied housing; and
7 WHEREAS, Illinois has approximately 2,000 manufactured
8 home communities that house over 300,000 residents; of the
9 300,000 residents in Illinois approximately 50% are in the
10 age group of 55 and older; and
11 WHEREAS, Unlike conventional standard housing, which is
12 permanently affixed to the land on which it is built,
13 manufactured housing does not require a permanent foundation;
14 manufactured housing ownership does not necessarily imply
15 ownership on the land; and
16 WHEREAS, Most homes are in land-leased communities, and
17 there are advantages and disadvantages that come with owning
18 a home but not the land on which it is located; one advantage
19 is that low and moderate income households who cannot afford
20 to acquire land, especially in high cost markets, can still
21 buy and build equity in a home; disadvantages include the
22 cost and risk of moving a manufactured home from one rental
23 community to another, making moving difficult; such a
24 situation allows for community operators to adopt exploitive
25 rules and practices that are largely unfamiliar to residents
26 of conventional rental housing; and
27 WHEREAS, Because of the dual ownership between the
28 homeowner and the landowner, traditional laws relating to
29 home ownership or apartment rental are inadequate to meet the
30 unique needs of manufactured home rental; homeownership
31 implies a number of legal rights relating to home equity and
32 full use and enjoyment of the home; and because the land is
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1 owned by another entity, the community landlord can make full
2 use of the unit extremely difficult; and
3 WHEREAS, In Illinois, there is not a law requiring a
4 written lease for property; the landlord is only required to
5 make the offer of a written lease; many communities in
6 Illinois are on verbal leases, while other communities have
7 more than one lease in effect; the majority of leases that
8 are written consist only of the rental cost to live in the
9 community for the first year and the requirements of the
10 homeowner in the form of rules and regulations, many of which
11 are unreasonable; the landlord may make any change to the
12 lease provided he or she gives the tenant a 30 day written
13 notice; and
14 WHEREAS, Under current law, a landlord may sell or change
15 the land to another usage with only a 12 month notice to the
16 homeowner; when this happens a community is destroyed,
17 homeowners are evicted en masse, and neighbors are dispersed;
18 with the high cost of moving the manufactured homes, many
19 owners are forced to abandon their homes and lose their
20 carefully accrued equity; and many residents are elderly and
21 not prepared or able to find other housing options;
22 therefore, be it
23 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
24 NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
25 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there is created a Joint Task
26 Force on Illinois Mobile Home Owners for the purpose of
27 examining their special needs and making recommendations to
28 the General Assembly concerning those needs as they relate to
29 manufactured home communities and the rights of manufactured
30 home owners; and be it further
31 RESOLVED, That the Joint Task Force on Illinois Mobile
32 Home Owners shall consist of the following members: (i) 2
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1 co-chairpersons who are members of the General Assembly, one
2 of whom is appointed by the Speaker of the House and one of
3 whom is appointed by the President of the Senate; and (ii) 2
4 spokespersons who are members of the General Assembly, one of
5 whom is appointed by the Minority Leader of the House and one
6 of whom is appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate;
7 and (iii) one member from the Mobile Homeowners Association
8 of Illinois; and (iv) one member from the Illinois
9 Manufactured Housing Association; and (v) one member from the
10 Illinois Housing Institute; and (vi) the Speaker of the
11 House, the President of the Senate, the Minority Leader of
12 the House, and the Minority Leader of the Senate may each
13 appoint one additional member; and be it further
14 RESOLVED, That the members shall serve on a voluntary
15 basis and shall be responsible for any costs associated with
16 their participation in the Joint Task Force; and be it
17 further
18 RESOLVED, That all members of the Joint Task Force shall
19 be considered to be members with voting rights, that a quorum
20 of the Joint Task Force shall consist of a simple majority of
21 the members of the Joint Task Force, and that all actions and
22 recommendations of the Joint Task Force be approved by a
23 simple majority of the members of the Joint Task Force; and
24 be it further
25 RESOLVED, That the Joint Task Force on Illinois Mobile
26 Home Owners shall meet at the call of the chairpersons and
27 shall summarize its findings and recommendations in a report
28 to the General Assembly no later than February 28, 2004.