Georgia Senate Bill SB119

Georgia 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/6/25
• Refer: 2/10/25
• Report Pass: 2/19/25
• Engrossed: 3/6/25
• Report Pass: 3/20/25
• Enrolled: 4/7/25
• Chaptered: 5/14/25
• Passed: 5/14/25

Caption

Manufactured or Mobile Homes; limited exceptions to circumstances under which a manufactured home shall become real property; provide

Summary

SB 119 revises Georgia law governing when a manufactured or mobile home is treated as personal property versus real property. Under current law, a manufactured home generally remains personal property until a Certificate of Permanent Location is filed and the title is surrendered; this bill keeps that framework but adds explicit exceptions and clarifies how the conversion process works. It also requires notice and filing steps with the clerk of superior court, the state commissioner, and local tax officials when a home is converted to real property. The bill is especially focused on protecting existing lienholders and security-interest holders. It states that filing a Certificate of Permanent Location and surrendering title does not impair the rights or remedies of a prior lienholder until the debt is paid or satisfied, and it preserves the ability of those holders to enforce personal-property remedies, including removal of the home in certain circumstances. It also allows a lienholder or transferee exercising those remedies to obtain a new certificate of title without needing the last title certificate, and clarifies that the filing does not create additional licensing or conduct obligations for lienholders or their agents.

Impact

SB 119 amends Code Sections 8-2-181, 8-2-182, and 8-2-183 in Title 8, Chapter 2, governing manufactured homes. The bill changes the legal treatment of manufactured homes that are affixed to land, clarifies the recording and notification process for Certificates of Permanent Location, and preserves the priority and enforcement rights of prior security-interest holders even after a home is converted to real property. It also affects title issuance procedures under Title 40 and directs notice to tax assessors for property valuation purposes. The act applies to contracts entered into on or after July 1, 2025.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have broad support and little visible opposition. It passed the Senate 53-0 and the House 168-0, indicating unanimous approval in both chambers. The absence of committee transcript material suggests no recorded controversy in the available context, and the voting history points to a consensus measure aimed at clarifying property and lien rules for manufactured housing.

Contention

The main policy issue is the balance between converting a manufactured home into real property and preserving the rights of lenders or other prior lienholders. The bill protects those prior interests from being cut off by the filing of a Certificate of Permanent Location, which benefits secured creditors but may limit the expectations of homeowners or real-property owners who want the home fully integrated into the land. Another potential point of concern is the bill’s allowance for removal of the home by a lienholder exercising personal-property remedies without the landowner’s consent, though the bill confines that authority to the circumstances described in the statute. No recorded opposition appears in the provided legislative history.