The purchase of a park or mobile home in Scotland is similar in procedure to the sale of a bricks and mortar property but the legal requirements are very different.  When you buy a park home you buy the property but not the land it stands on and essentially rent the land for the lifetime of the home. Legal conveyancing is therefore not a requirement, home reports and energy performance certificates are not required by law but these may still be desirable.

 

A park home is ‘conveyed’ by assignment of the contract between the resident and site owner.  A seller does not require the permission or participation of the site owner in the transaction other than to be informed of certain details of the transaction after a bargain has been struck and to receive the rate of commission laid down by law

 

If you wish to live permanently in a park home with full protection of your residency rights, in law, be sure you choose a site with a permanent residential licence and not a holiday park. While some holiday parks may have a permanent licence for a proportion of their homes, others advertise holiday homes or lodges for permanent residency but only with a holiday agreement. These agreements are not protected in law for permanent main home residency and the agreements for such parks are not ‘written statements’ in terms of the Mobile Homes Act.

 

The contract documents which cover ownership and the right to station a park home on a given site is called the ‘Written Statement’; this document is a contract between a site owner and a resident and is enforceable in law BY both parties.  The Written Statement is a legally binding agreement under the Mobile Homes Act 1983 and The Mobile Homes (Written Statement) (Scotland) Regulations 2013 and consists of a statement of who the parties to the agreement are, the location and size of the pitch, the pitch fee, implied terms of the agreement which are set by law, express terms set by the park owner and any park rules. This agreement may be freely assigned (transferred) to another party if the park home is sold, with the purchaser enjoying the same terms, conditions and rate of pitch fee as the seller.  The site owner may not change these terms.

 

The Mobile Homes (Written Statement) (Scotland) Regulations 2013 and The Mobile Homes Act 1983 (Amendment of Schedule 1) (Scotland) Order 2013. (See the link and full details in this section). The Order extended the provisions of the Regulations to all park home agreements in Scotland including those contracted prior to 1 September 2013. Park Homes Scotland Ltd can act for you in this whole process in Scotland, much as an Estate Agent or Solicitor would do.

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BUYING A PARK HOME ON A RESIDENTIAL MOBILE HOME SITE

 

Park Home living is a relatively new concept in Scotland although it is well established elsewhere in the UK.  South of the Border, park homes change hands for very substantial sums particularly in desirable locations but the reasonably priced homes in Scotland offer a genuine alternative to a bricks and mortar bungalow.

 

So with a park home, you own the home but you do not own the ground it stands on.  This belongs to a site owner who charges a rent for the right to station your home on the land and for the garden ground surrounding your home.  This rent usually covers roads, street lighting and amenities within the park.  Rents are strictly controlled by law and Council Tax is generally Band A and B. The Written Statement mentioned earlier is the contract between you, the home owner and the site owner;  this contract is strictly controlled by law and residents have long term protection for their homes.

 

A park home is a heritable asset; it is yours for as long as you chose to live there (there are strict rules on security of tenure) and you can will it on to your family or you can sell it if you so wish, although the sale is subject to certain conditions.  The most specific condition is that when you sell a park home, under current legislation, the site owner is entitled to (up to) 10% of the selling price as a commission. You can obtain a loan to buy a park home although not a traditional mortgage.   

 

Park Home owners now market their park homes in the same manner as bricks and mortar homes.  Homes are advertised in the media and you may be reading this because you have seen a home that interests you. In Scotland, government regulations cover transfer of a home from one owner to another ensuring that the Written Statement is properly and legally transferred but there is no legal requirement for a seller to produce a Home Report or Survey.  Scottish and English Mobile Homes Regulations differ from each other and buyers in Scotland should be particularly aware of the seller’s responsibilities under contract law as well as the Mobile Home Acts provisions, to ensure that all the information given to a prospective buyer about the property, its location, condition, the written agreement and the park rules is completely accurate and not misleading in any way.

 

 A solicitor is not required within this process but as always with any major transaction, professional advice should be sought.  We recommend independent advice from Park Homes Scotland Ltd can assist you in the following steps of the purchase and transfer process and also act for you in a professional capacity much as an Estate Agent or Solicitor would.