Minnesota Senate Bill SF1207

Minnesota 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/10/25
• Refer: 2/10/25
• Refer: 3/3/25

Caption

Manufactured housing late rent fees limitation

Summary

SF 1207 amends Minnesota’s manufactured housing law to limit the amount a park owner may charge for a late fee on delinquent rent. Under the bill, a late fee must be reasonable, must be authorized in the rental agreement, and may not exceed 8% of the delinquent rent payment. The fee is treated as part of the rent owed by the resident and therefore enforceable in the same way as rent. The bill also preserves existing restrictions on other types of charges in manufactured home parks. Park owners would still be prohibited from imposing fees based on the number of occupants, the age or number of children, guests, home size, temporary vacancy, or the type of personal property in the home. The bill continues to allow pet fees, capped at $4 per pet per month, and does not change the ability of a park owner to abate rent for residents with special needs.

Impact

The bill would amend Minnesota Statutes section 327C.03, subdivision 3, which governs rent and fees in manufactured home parks. Its main legal effect is to cap delinquent-rent late fees at 8% and make clear that such fees are enforceable as part of rent owed. It would affect manufactured housing park owners and residents by limiting contract-based late charges and reinforcing existing consumer protections against occupancy-based or household-characteristics-based fees.

Sentiment

The available context suggests the bill is straightforward and consumer-protective, with no recorded opposition in the provided materials. Its caption and referral to the Housing and Homelessness Prevention Committee indicate it was treated as a housing affordability and resident-protection measure. Because there are no committee transcripts or votes included, there is no documented debate in the record provided, but the bill’s structure suggests a generally favorable policy intent toward manufactured home residents.

Contention

The likely point of contention is the balance between protecting residents from excessive late fees and preserving park owners’ ability to enforce timely rent payment. Park owners may view the 8% cap as limiting contractual flexibility and revenue from delinquency, while resident advocates would likely support it as a guardrail against punitive charges. No specific objections, amendments, or recorded votes are included in the provided materials, so any contention is inferred from the bill’s subject matter rather than documented debate.