Evicted the tenant, then what?

mobile home university
#1

I know this is kind of a kindergartener’s question. But I do need some advise here…

After evicting one tenant, we found that the owner of the trailer did not know who that tenant is either. He was hoping that we evict that tenant so he can sell that trailer. Now, since he fails to sell that trailer, he has left that trailer in our park for so many months without paying a penny. He also tried to avoid talking with us.

The total amount of the lot rent and storage fee has accumulated over the market value of that trailer now. My questions are:

  1. Since I can not get the trailer owner to talk to us, how can I legally get that trailer to payoff the money he owe?

  2. It seems that the title of the trailer is belonging to someone else, where do I find who really owns the title?

  3. It doesn’t have the lot lease for the trailer, how do I deal with this?

Please tell me how you handle it if you have similar management problem…

#2

And the answers change State to State (and County to County).

In Florida a Park Owner has to legally Notice the Owner and lienholder that lot rent is fixin to begin (and can NOT exceed 17 per day). FROM DATE OF NOTICE, the owner has 30 days to remove home or rent begins to accrue and is due monthly. A new repo buyer can get a Writ of Possesion and forego rent fees and lates, but cost is 2-4K and takes a couple of weeks. The lien holder or Owner is still on the hook for rent from notice to sale to new Owner or removal of home (which ever comes first) but this is a civil matter at this point and home can be removed.

We usually cut a deal and pay a portion of rent.

In my County a VIN# is all that is needed to find last known Owner of home. The problem can be the home was sold 20 years ago, and the owner never put titles into their name. At this point we apply for an abandonment title. Takes three months, notices in papers weekly and legal fees…2-3K. Much easier to get affidavits or POA from last known title holder and retitle home.

It is extremely hard to collect rent or fees with no written instrument. This one I can not help you with!!

Greg