Housing and Homelessness
Committee Memorandum
TO: HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS DATE: SEPTEMBER 28, 2026
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
FROM: HOUSING AND HUMAN SERVICES WARDS: ALL SUBJECT: DISCUSS POTENTIAL AMENDMENTS TO THE RIVERSIDE MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 5.75 MOBILE HOME PARKS RENT STABILIZATION ORDINANCE ISSUE:
Discuss potential amendments to the Riverside Municipal Code Chapter 5.75 -Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance.
RECOMMENDATION:
That the Housing and Homelessness Committee discuss and provide direction on potential amendments to Riverside Municipal Code Chapter 5.75, Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance.
BACKGROUND:
A significant portion of mobile homeowners and tenants in the City are senior citizens who live on limited or fixed incomes. The City Council established the Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance to provide a mechanism to prevent excessive, unreasonable, and frequent rent increases while recognizing the need for mobile home park owners to receive a just and reasonable return on their investment.
On August 25, 1992, the City Council amended Section 5 of the Riverside Municipal Code (RMC) to add Chapter 5.75, establishing a rent stabilization procedure for mobile home parks. The Ordinance allows annual rent increases based on the following.
Up to 80% of the change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the year ending in August; Changes in property taxes or government-mandated costs in excess of 2% per year; Capital improvements to existing facilities;
Increases in state fees; and
Rent increases associated with sale of a mobile home space.
On September 15, 2020, the City Council adopted an amendment to the RMC Section 5.75.040 to change the CPI region from Los Angeles-Anaheim-Riverside to Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario and change the CPI measurement period from the year ending August to the year ending in July, consistent with the availability of CPI data published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for the Riverside-San Bernadino-Ontario region.
From 2011 to 2026, the average annual rent increase under the Ordinance was 2.43%. During this period, the lowest annual rent increase was 0.64% and the highest was 7.36%.
In 2019, the City Council directed staff to conduct a comprehensive review of the Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance, which was originally adopted in 1992. Staff worked with the City Attorney's Office to review the Ordinance and conducted a review of mobile home park rent stabilization procedures in 91 cities and 10 counties. Through this review, staff identified provisions that could be improved or clarified. Staff also met with the Western Manufactured Housing Communities Association (WMA) to discuss the existing Ordinance and areas requiring further clarification.
Staff began planning a series of meetings with the WMA, local mobile home park owners, and park residents to review the Ordinance and obtain community input. However, these meetings were placed on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the 2022 annual public hearing on the Ordinance, the maximum rent increase for 2023 was announced at 7.36%, the highest rent increase experienced under the Ordinance. In response, the City Council directed staff to research establishing a cap on annual rent increases, conduct community outreach with mobile home park owners and residents, and present recommended amendments to the Ordinance to the Housing and Homelessness Committee for discussion.
Staff subsequently re-reviewed the proposed amendments with the City Attorney's Office. The proposed amendments were shared with mobile home park residents in June 2024 and with the WMA and local mobile home park owners in July 2024 to solicit feedback.
On September 23, 2024, the Housing and Homelessness Committee, with Chair Cervantes, Vice Chair Mill, and Member Robillard present, considered proposed amendments to the Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance. Following discussion, the Committee directed staff to forward the proposed amendments to the City Council for consideration. The proposed amendments included:
Adding or revising definitions;
Tenant notification requirements;
Annual registration requirements;
Prohibiting retaliation;
Establishing a minimum annual rent increase of 2% and a maximum rent increase of 5%; Establishing rent following the expiration of an exempt lease; Eliminating the proposed provision regarding rent increases upon in-place transfer; Addressing the frequency of rental increases; and
Eliminating the proposed provisions regarding utilities and related services.
The motion carried unanimously with Vice Chair Mill and member Robillard voting Aye, with the exception of Chair Cervantes voting no on recommendations 5, 7, and 9 as listed above.
The recommended amendments were presented to the City Council for discussion and consideration on February 4, 2025. Following the public hearing and discussion, the City Council modified several of the proposed amendments. The amendments, as modified by the City Council, were subsequently approved at the City Council meeting on March 4, 2025.
The following table summarizes the proposed amendments, the applicable sections of the Riverside Municipal Code, and the actions taken by the Housing and Homelessness Committee and City Council:
Action Item No.
Proposed Amendment
Ordinance Section
City Council Action
1 Adding and revising definitions
5.75.030
Definitions
Approved
2 Adding requirements for tenant notifications under the ordinance Forty-eight hours prior to any rental agreement in excess of 12 months being executed by a current mobile home owner or prospective mobile home owner, the mobile home park owner must:
Offer the option of a 12 month or less rental agreement to receive the benefits of the Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Program (MHPRSP).
Provide a City Informational Sheet to residents that give tenants an overview of the MHPRSP, its benefits, and contact information of the Administrator.
Provide in writing that if a rental agreement with a term of more than 12 months is signed, the rental agreement is not subject to the MHPRSP.
At the time the rental agreement is first offered to the mobile home owner or prospective mobile home owner, they should have at least 30 days to inspect the Rental Agreement and void the Rental Agreement by notifying the MH Park Owner in writing within 72 hours of the acceptance of a Rental Agreement.
MHPRSP should be posted in the office of every mobile home park and in the recreatio5.75n building or clubhouse of every mobile home park. i. – iv in Section 5.75.040 Ordinance Notification
Approved
3 Adding annual registration requirements for park owners due annually on June 1st. a. Mobile Home Parks contact information
b. Identify number of park spaces and total number participating in the MHPRSP c. Provide rent schedule
d. Listing of other charges including utilities not included in the space rent e. Notice of sale of park
f. Notice to prospective park purchasers that include a copy of the Ordinance and notice that the following would be a prerequisite to filling a rent increase application pursuant to the Ordinance:
i. A statement of the base year income, expenses, and net operating income of the Park with a breakdown of income and expenses by category. ii. Documents supporting the amounts reported in the income and expense statement.
Section 5.75.060 Annual Registration
Revised to:
Adding annual registration requirements for park owners due annually on June 1st. a. Mobile Home Parks contact information
b. Identify number of park spaces and total number participating in the MHPRSP c. Notice of sale of park
and Approved
4 Prohibiting retaliation for tenants participating in the Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Program.
5.75.080
Retaliation Prohibited
Approved
5 Placing a cap on annual rent increases to the lesser of 80% of the CPI or 3% of the base rent charged prior to the increase. The percentage amount of said increase shall be rounded to the nearest one-quarter of one percent.
This percentage was derived from using the average rent increase from 2011 to 2024, which was 2.42% and rounding up to 3%.
HHC had recommended a minimum of 2% and a maximum rent increase of 5%.
5.75.100
Automatic Annual Rental Increases
Revised to:
Placing a cap on annual rent increases to the lesser of 80% of the CPI or four percent (4%) of the base rent charged prior to the increase and a floor of two percent (2%) And Approved
6 Rent following the expiration of an exempt lease: A mobile home space that was previously exempt under a lease pursuant to Civil Code Section 798.17, upon the expiration of that lease and conversion to a less than 12-month lease, the Base Space Rent, for the purposes of calculating the annual adjustment, shall be the rent in effect as of the date of expiration of the lease.
5.75.110 Rent
Following the Expiration of an Exempt Lease
Approved
7 Rent increases upon in-place transfer
No rent increase may be imposed where the title to the mobile home passes to one or more person(s) who at the time of title transfer were/are parents, siblings, children, nieces, or nephews of the mobile homeowner and the mobile home remains in the same space No increase may be imposed if an increase was imposed pursuant to the Ordinance within the 24-month preceding the most recent transaction that would justify the increase pursuant to this new section Not recommended for City Council approval by the Housing and Homelessness Committee. 8 Limiting the frequency of rental increases
To not more than once per calendar year
Proposed rental increases resulting from an unseen assessment, special tax or general tax increase shall be submitted to the Rent Review
5.75.120
Limitation on frequency of rental increase.
Approved
9 Clarifying procedures for collecting utility and capital improvement fees and other increases in rents.
Not recommended for City Council approval by the Housing and Homelessness Committee.
DISCUSSION:
The following proposed amendments were not approved by the City Council as part of its February 2025 consideration of the Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance:
Action Item # 7
Place restrictions on rent increases for in-place transfers Action Item # 9
Clarifying procedures for collecting utility and capital improvement fees and other increases in rents.
These items were discussed during the City Council meeting on February 2, 2025. For Action Item #7, Councilmember Cervantes recommended limiting rent increases associated with in-place transfers to immediate family members, including a parent, sibling, or child, as well as individuals identified in a will, on the title, or otherwise designated as a beneficiary of the primary resident.
For Action Item #9, Councilmember Cervantes recommended that capital improvements be clearly defined, and that routine repairs not be considered capital improvement eligible for pass-through fees, and that pass-through fees be capped at $10 per month.
Councilmember Hemenway directed staff to bring Action Items #7 and #9 back to the Housing and Homeless Committee for further discussion and evaluation at a later date.
At the August 31, 2026, Housing and Homelessness Committee meeting, Chair Hernandez requested that staff bring the issue of pass-through fees back to the Committee for discussion at the next Committee meeting.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact related to this staff report.
Prepared by: Agripina Neubauer, Housing Project Manager Approved by: Michelle Davis, Housing and Human Services Director Certified as to
availability of funds: Julie Nemes, Finance Director
Approved by: Kris Martinez, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: James Johnson, City Attorney
Attachments:
Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance 7702
Presentation
Mobile Home Parks Rent Stabilization Ordinance Amendment Discussion ● Page 2