NEW REFORMS FOR MANUFACTURED HOMES IN QUEENSLAND

• The reforms were introduced to State Parliament on Thursday
• They will affect manufactured homowners and park owners
• The new changes will be introduced in stages

573 residents in Nicklin living in manufactured homes in residential parks are set to benefit from a suite of reforms announced by the Queensland Government.

The State Government reforms will make conditions fairer for residents, many of whom are seniors, living in manufactured homes in residential parks.

In the Nicklin electorate, there are 573 people living in 7 residential parks who will be better off under Labor’s reforms.

The reforms include limiting site rent increases to CPI or 3.5 per cent, banning rent reviews that have been used to justify rental hikes and making it fairer to sell manufactured homes.

An opt-in buyback and site rent reduction scheme will be introduced for homes on the market for more than 12 months, limiting costs and giving residents certainty.

The reforms include strengthening registration requirements for residential parks to enable more transparency for current and future homeowners.

Park owners will be able to apply for QCAT in a circumstance where they feel these reforms will impact a park’s viability.

The reforms aim to balance the interests of residents and park owners following extensive community consultation.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Housing, Local Government, Planning and Minister for Public Works Meaghan Scanlon:
“These reforms will make a real difference to the thousands of people living in residential parks across Queensland.

“More than 40 per cent of the 39,000 people living say they have been slugged with multiple increases in rent and that’s made things tough.

“These reforms will give cost of living certainty and make it easier and fairer for residents.”

Quotes attributable to Member for Nicklin, Rob Skelton MP:
“These reforms mean cost of living certainty to thousands of Queenslanders in residential parks,” said Mr Skelton.

“The Miles Government has listened to manufactured homeowners across the state facing site rent increases.

“This will bring confidence for park owners and residents investing in these homes.”

Quotes attributable to Queensland Manufactured Home Owners Association president Roger Marshall:
"The main challenge that we're facing right now across Queensland is that we're locked into site agreements with the park owners, which has resulted in the continuous increase in the rents that we're paying," he said.

“And the more we pay, the less we get in return- there’s no increase in amenities or park maintenance and in some cases, they are actually cut back.

"It's to the point where we believe that the park owners are making greater profits on the rents they charge which are over what's needed to run the park.

"The majority of people living in the parks are either fully or partly dependent on the age pension and the rents in most of the parks take up well over 30 per cent of the age pension."

Explainer/fast fact and or further information:
The Manufactured Homes (Residential Parks) Act 2003 (MHRP Act) regulates and promotes fair trading practices at residential parks to protect homeowners from unfair business practices and to enable them to make informed choices.

Residential park homeowners own their own home and rent the land it is sited on from a park owner.

While manufactured homes are movable, they cannot be moved without significant expense and many park owners are reluctant to accept a home from another site.

Site rent increases and unsold manufactured homes can be common causes of disputes in residential parks.

The Queensland Government made commitments to improve outcomes for manufactured homeowners through the Queensland Housing and Homelessness Action Plan 2021-2025.

One of the actions commits the government to deliver improvements to residential parks to address concerns about site rent increases and unsold homes.