Maine strengthens protections for manufactured housing residents

With a spate of laws passed during the 2025-2026 legislative session, the state of Maine is breaking new ground when it comes to protecting manufactured housing residents from corporate landlord-related consolidation and resident displacement.

During this past legislative session, lawmakers enacted a series of policies designed to help residents purchase their communities, discourage speculative acquisitions by large investors, and preserve long-term affordability. Together, these reforms represent a comprehensive state response to the growing trend of private equity and institutional investors buying up manufactured housing communities.

LD 2149/SP 867: leveling the playing field in favor of the little guy

In April of 2026, Maine passed its most recent manufactured housing legislation. LD 2149/SP 867, titled “An Act to Protect Affordability in Mobile Home Parks and Manufactured Housing Communities,” builds on preexisting laws from fall of 2025 that require some purchasers of manufactured housing communities with net worths over $50 million to pay a fee of $10,000 per lot as part of the park licensing process.^[1] Under the 2025 law, these funds are then deposited into the state’s Manufactured Housing Community and Mobile Home Park Preservation and Assistance Fund,^[2] which was established as part of Maine’s 2025 manufactured housing bill package (see below). Importantly, some buyers are exempt from the requirement. Resident-owned communities, municipal housing authorities, and purchasers with a net value worth under $50,000 do not have to pay the fee.^[3]

LD 2149/SP 867’s main new addition is that manufactured housing community operators seeking new licenses and license renewals are now required to provide evidence that they can comply with state operating standards. This provision gives regulators another tool to ensure community owners have the capacity and intent to responsibly manage their properties.^[4]

In addition, LD 2149/SP 867 also breaks new ground by expanding tax incentives designed to encourage sales to similarly resident-centered ownership structures. As an additional aspect of the law, sellers may receive tax deductions when transferring qualifying properties to resident cooperatives, affordable housing corporations, or municipal housing authorities, creating additional incentives for community preservation.^[5] These measures level the playing field in favor of non-institutional purchasers.

Finally, LD 2149/SP 867 also ensures accountability through clear enforcement provisions. In order to claim exemption, purchasers must provide sworn documentation declaring eligibility. Skirting the requirements can bring steep penalties, including damages and potential loss of licensing privileges.^[6]

Taken together, the components of the “Act to Protect Affordability in Mobile Home Parks and Manufactured Housing Communities” reflect a clear policy approach of supporting resident and nonprofit ownership while ensuring that large investors contribute resources toward preserving affordability.

Maine’s 2025 manufactured housing bill package

The 2026 law emerged in the context of a greater legislative push representing a concerted effort on the part of Maine’s state government to protect manufactured housing residents. In September of 2025, Maine passed a landmark bill package that included four major reforms:^[7]

Right of first refusal for residents

LD 1145, “An Act to Protect Residents Living in Mobile Home Parks,” gives residents first priority to purchase their parks when they come up for sale.^[8] Such policies give residents a competition-free period of time to organize a collective purchase. Cooperative ownership makes residents much less vulnerable to issues that are very common under investor landlords, such as skyrocketing lot rents, unreasonable fees, and maintenance neglect.^[9]

This law also requires a notice period for all sales and, even more crucially, requires that the park owner foots the entire bill if residents are forced to relocate if the park owner intends to change the use of the park.^[10] Manufactured home relocation otherwise costs tenants thousands of dollars that most do not have.^[11]

Transfer fee on large investor purchases

LD 1016 establishes the aforementioned Manufactured Housing Community and Mobile Home Park Preservation and Assistance Fund. Administered by the Maine State Housing Authority and the State Controller, the fund is designated to “support ownership of manufactured housing communities and mobile home parks by owners’ associations, resident-owned housing cooperatives or other nonprofit entities representing the interests of homeowners in manufactured housing communities or mobile home parks.”^[12]

As an additional component, LD 1016 applies a $10,000 fee to purchasers with a net worth over $50 million, which is then transferred into the assistance fund. This functionally makes it so that private equity firms and similar entities cannot profitably operate manufactured housing communities in Maine, and if they choose to proceed with their purchase, they will be made to fund resident ownership elsewhere in the state. Like in LD 2149/SP 867, small landlords and mission-driven operators are exempt.^[13]

Tax incentives for resident ownership

LD 554, “An Act to Encourage Resident-owned Communities and Cooperatives and Preserve Affordable Housing Through Tax Credits,” establishes tax deductions of up to $750,000^[14] that encourage owners to sell housing developments, apartment complexes, and manufactured housing communities to resident-owned communities, cooperative affordable housing corporations, and municipal housing authorities.

In a similar vein, LD 1768, “An Act to Protect Residents of Mobile Home Parks by Amending the Real Estate Transfer Tax,” removes real estate transfer taxes when residents themselves purchase their manufactured housing community, reducing another barrier to resident ownership. It also ensures that real estate transfer tax paid by non-resident buyers of mobile home parks is allocated entirely to the Housing Opportunities for Maine Fund within the Maine State Housing Authority.^[15]

Broader significance

New England states are amongst the most progressive in the country when it comes to pro-tenant manufactured housing policy.^[16] Maine’s statutes, however, are especially notable because they employ a comprehensive multipronged strategy that is most effective for combatting corporate landlords’ predation. Rather than relying on a single policy intervention, Maine has created a framework that addresses not just the supply of affordable communities, but perhaps even more importantly, the market pressures that can threaten them.

Maine’s new laws represent a bold step to get to the root of the affordability issue. As the next legislative session approaches, state governments throughout the country have the opportunity to take similar steps to protect some of their most vulnerable residents and homeowners.

While many such bills have been proposed, Maine is leading the way when it comes to actual implementation. At present, Michigan’s house is considering a bill package that would also improve conditions for residents.^[17] Many other state level bills are either being considered or have stalled. To view a list of state legislative initiatives that have sought to tackle the corporate landlord problem during the 2025-2026 legislative cycle in the United States, visit PESP’s State Housing Policy Tracker.  PESP has also published a report series outlining potential policy interventions for mitigating the negative impact of corporate landlords on tenants and homeowners in all housing types.

^[1]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0867&item=1&snum=132, pg. 1

^[2]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0867&item=1&snum=132, pg. 3

^[3]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0867&item=1&snum=132, pgs. 3-4

^[4]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0867&item=1&snum=132, pg. 1

^[5]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0867&item=1&snum=132, pg. 5

^[6]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0867&item=1&snum=132, pg. 3

^[7] https://www.mainesenate.org/transformational-new-laws-to-protect-residents-of-mobile-home-communities-take-effect/

^[8]https://legislature.maine.gov/backend/App/services/getDocument.aspx?documentId=112986

^[9] https://www.howwealthgrows.com/protecting-manufactured-home-park-residents-right-of-first-refusal/

^[10]https://legislature.maine.gov/backend/App/services/getDocument.aspx?documentId=112986, pg. 2

^[11] https://www.vplc.org/news/improve-housing-affordability-and-stability-for-residents-of-manufactured-home-communities/

^[12]

https://legislature.maine.gov/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0433&item=6&snum=132

^[13]

https://legislature.maine.gov/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0433&item=6&snum=132

^[14]https://legislature.maine.gov/legis/bills/getPDF.asp?paper=SP0211&item=3&snum=132

1. 1

^[15]https://legislature.maine.gov/backend/App/services/getDocument.aspx?documentId=115999

^[16] https://mf.freddiemac.com/docs/tenant-protections-manufactured-housing-communities.pdf

^[17] https://pestakeholder.org/news/new-manufactured-housing-regulations-move-through-michigan-legislature/