BILL NUMBER: S3835
SPONSOR: HINCHEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the private housing finance law, in relation to estab-
lishing the manufactured home community preservation act; and to amend
the public authorities law, in relation to the distribution of funds in
the mortgage insurance fund
 
PURPOSE:
To ensure that mobile and manufactured home communities remain a viable
affordable housing option for rural communities in the state by purchas-
ing development rights from owners and by providing funding to non-pro-
fit organizations to purchase the mobile and manufactured home community
and preserve its affordability through a covenant in the deed.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one establishes the Manufactured Home Community Preservation
Act, which creates a program to provide financial aid and technical
assistance to local governments and nonprofit housing organizations for
housing preservation efforts and grants the commissioner certain author-
izations to facilitate this program. Section one additionally directs
funds from the mortgage insurance fund pursuant to section twenty-four
hundred twenty-nine-b of public authorities' law to provide financial
support to local governments or eligible non-profit housing organiza-
tions to acquire the development rights or to outright purchase mobile
homes and manufactured home parks.
Section two amends section twenty-four hundred twenty-nine-b of the
public authorities law to include a provision in the mortgage insurance
fund for the Manufactured Home Community Preservation Act.
Section three amends section twenty-four hundred twenty-nine-b of the
public authorities law to include a provision in the mortgage insurance
fund for the Manufactured Home Community Preservation Act.
Section four states the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Mobile and manufactured home communities or mobile home parks are a
vital affordable housing option in rural parts of the state. However,
manufactured home communities in our state are under threat from real
estate speculators who purchase them, increase rents and fees to drive
out residents, and finally to develop them into more expensive housing
options. Due in part to this speculation, mobile and manufactured home
communities have declined from 1,800 in 2019 to only 1,200 in 2022.
Because these homes represent 14% of rural housing stock, this loss is a
significant blow to available affordable housing in rural communities.
As New York State faces a dire shortage of housing stock, especially
affordable and workforce housing, we need to focus our efforts on ensur-
ing available housing for low-income earners. Protecting mobile and
manufactured home communities is a crucial part of that effort.
This bill will protect our rural communities from speculators and ensure
that mobile and manufactured homes remain a viable affordable housing
option. It does this in two ways. First by empowering local governments
or eligible non-profit housing organizations to purchase development
rights from owners, this bill enables owners to retain ownership of the
property and profit from its development potential while ensuring that
the property stays a mobile home park. Second, it allocates funding to
non-profit organizations to purchase mobile home communities and
preserve their affordability through a covenant in the deed.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-24: S.7770/A.8601 - REFERRED TO HOUSING/ referred to housing
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that the
amendments to subdivision 1-a of section 2429-b of the public authori-
ties law made by section two of this act shall be subject to the expira-
tion and reversion of such subdivision pursuant to section 19 of chapter
555 of the laws of 1989, as amended when upon such date the provisions
of section three of this act shall take effect.

Statutes affected:
S3835: 2429-b public authorities law, 2429-b(1-a) public authorities law