Selling RVs, does the SAFE Act apply?

A buddy of mine here sells them like hot cakes using some form of rent credit program. I’m just wondering if the SAFE Act applies as this is not real estate.

I would think a loan for a RV does not constitute a mortgage, but a loan similar to a car loan. SAFE act probably will not be in play here.

Someone else more knowledgeable may be able to confirm/deny

This is where the SAFE Act gets very confusing. Mobile homes, like RVs, are personal property. Yet the SAFE Act says that it specifically controls the financing of mobile homes. As a result, I would check with your state MHA (or at a minimum substantial on-line research) to see if SAFE Act applies to RVs. My guess is that, if it did, it would be based on the proposed use of the RV. If for permanent housing, then probably “yes”. If strictly recreational use then probably “no”. But we have all learned by now that many of these laws and regulations make no sense, so I would not even attempt to guess which is correct.

As a mortgage broker who took the tests 2 years ago, I recall that they do not aply unless attatched to property

Even if not affected by the SAFE act, don’t most state regulate consumer financing for items like cars? So, he may still need some sort of license. All that said, I would love to hear more about what your buddy is doing, if you wouldn’t mind giving more details. I’m thinking about buying some RVs for rentals, but would much prefer to rent-to-own them. thanks for any info.

I’ll get info out of him on how he does it. Verbally he told me he’ll pick up an RV for 4-5k, fix any issues, and then use a rent credit program like Frank & Dave. He’s responsible for fixing items that break in the RV but does not tell the tenant that and they often fix their own issues. I’ve been wondering something similar. Is it possible to sell the customer (finance) the RV off of the park property and have that been a completely separate transaction? So customer finances the RV through my separate company and then parks it in my MHP, thus avoiding the Safe Act completely. I would probably need some sort of dealer license to sell the RV?Personally, I don’t want to get into financing RVs unless I absolutely have to. Those RVs are tinder boxes. I’ve got a park with RV demand so they just roll on in after seeing my dirty rickety sign on the side of the road. Now I want to understand that market a bit more so that I can pick up downtrodden MHPs with empty lots, fill quick, and flip them for profit. I think the biggest difficulty will be reaching those customers that live in RVs who are not middle class full-time RVers. Chances are they don’t use the Internet. So in my park, that rickety sign on the side of a major highway is the only marketing I need which nets about 5 potential customers per week.