Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards

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Summary
This program protects consumers through the development and enforcement of construction and safety standards, installation standards, and dispute resolution regulations for manufactured homes.

Purpose
In the United States, the regulation of building construction is normally a function of local government. However, manufactured homes are usually built in a different jurisdiction than the one in which they will be occupied. In 1974, Congress passed the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act to improve the quality and safety of manufactured homes through HUD regulation of the manufacturing process. In 2000, Congress added regulation manufactured home installation and dispute resolution HUD responsibilities. Accordingly, HUD now maintains and enforces standards for manufactured home construction and safety as well as manufactured home installation, and also provides consumers and industry with a forum for resolving disputes.

Type of Assistance
All manufacturers who build manufactured homes for sale in the United States must comply with HUD's construction and safety standards. They must also provide installation manuals that meet the minimum requirements of HUD's model installation standards. This program provides consumer protection by enforcing these standards through control of plant certification, ongoing inspection of in-plant production and quality assurance, ongoing review of designs, and investigation of consumer complaints. These functions are performed, by HUD, HUD-approved primary inspection agencies, licensed installers, installation inspectors, and HUD-approved State Administrative Agencies. HUD's construction and safety standards preempt state and local laws that differ from the Federal standards. However, the model installation standards establish only Federal minimum requirements that the states may exceed.

Eligible Customers
A purchaser of a manufactured home built on or after June 15, 1976, benefits from the construction and safety standards. A purchaser of a manufactured home sold after October 20, 2008 benefits from the model installation standards. A purchaser of a manufactured home installed after February 8, 2008 benefits from the dispute resolution program.

Eligible Activities
HUD-approved primary inspection agencies review all manufactured home designs for compliance with the construction and safety standards and inspect homes for compliance during construction. If a manufactured home does not comply with the construction and safety standards, the manufacturer must notify the consumer. If a noncompliance presents an unreasonable risk of injury or death, the manufacturer must also correct the defect. Retailers are prohibited from selling homes that they know do not meet the construction and safety standards. Installers of manufactured homes must be trained and licensed, and installations are subject to inspection.

Application
Manufacturers must have designs for each manufactured home model reviewed and approved by a HUD-approved primary inspection agency. Each transportable section of manufactured housing must also be inspected by a primary inspection agency at least once during construction. Once a plant is certified by HUD, a certification label must be placed on each transportable section indicating compliance with the construction and safety standards. Manufactured home installers must be trained and licensed and are subject to suspension or revocation for poor performance. HUD or a HUD-approved State Administrative Agency responds to purchaser complaints by asking the manufacturer, retailer or installer to investigate the problem and by taking enforcement actions as necessary.

Technical Guidance
The program is authorized under the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, Title VI, Public Law 93-383 (42 U.S.C. 5401). The construction and safety standards are published at 24 CFR 3280. The procedural and enforcement regulations are published at 24 CFR 3282. The model installation standards are published at 3284. The installation program regulations are published at 3286. The dispute resolution program regulations are published at 3288. All manufactured home standards and regulations are available online through HUDCLIPS or in print and electronic forms from HUD USER, P.O. Box 6091, Rockville, MD 20849, 1-800-245-2691. The Standards are administered by the Office Regulatory Affairs and Manufactured Housing, HUD, 451 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20410; phone 1-800-927-2891.

For More Information
Contact the Manufactured Housing Institute, (703) 558-0400. FAQs and other program information and links are available through the MHCSS page on HUD's website.