Hi guys, does anyone know what the process is to become a mobile home dealer in California?
1 Like
Classes and a test; see the HCD website.
2 Likes
The Classes are not that hard and the test is pretty easy also.
You will likely have to start out as a “Used Only” dealer unless you can get a factory/manufacturer to agree to sell homes to you.
1 Like
As a new NC-licensed dealer I’ll add a comment regarding recent experience with new home manufacturer relationships. Our first one after getting established last year was setup with Champion Homes as they took an interest in our hybrid community/street dealer model.
At that time Clayton Homes had massive backlogs and long lead times trying to serve their existing dealer channels and thus were not interested in a new business relationship.
Fast forward to this month - FWIW things have apparently changed. My latest inquiry was met with great interest and we had a dealer contract in place within a week. Factory lead times are now down to 2-3 months.
As a result we now offer a nice portfolio of selected models from both top brands and I’m guessing other US manufacturers may also be more open to working with new dealers.
2 Likes