The Florida Senate

723.003  Definitions.--As used in this chapter, the following words and terms have the following meanings unless clearly indicated otherwise:

(1)  The term "division" means the Division of Florida Land Sales, Condominiums, and Mobile Homes of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

(2)  The term "lot rental amount" means all financial obligations, except user fees, which are required as a condition of the tenancy.

(3)  The term "mobile home" means a residential structure, transportable in one or more sections, which is 8 body feet or more in width, over 35 body feet in length with the hitch, built on an integral chassis, designed to be used as a dwelling when connected to the required utilities, and not originally sold as a recreational vehicle, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained therein.

(4)  The term "mobile home lot rental agreement" or "rental agreement" means any mutual understanding or lease, whether oral or written, between a mobile home owner and a mobile home park owner in which the mobile home owner is entitled to place his or her mobile home on a mobile home lot for either direct or indirect remuneration of the mobile home park owner.

(5)  The term "mobile home owner" or "home owner" means a person who owns a mobile home and rents or leases a lot within a mobile home park for residential use.

(6)  The term "mobile home park" or "park" means a use of land in which lots or spaces are offered for rent or lease for the placement of mobile homes and in which the primary use of the park is residential.

(7)  The term "mobile home park owner" or "park owner" means an owner or operator of a mobile home park.

(8)  The term "mobile home subdivision" means a subdivision of mobile homes where individual lots are owned by owners and where a portion of the subdivision or the amenities exclusively serving the subdivision are retained by the subdivision developer.

(9)  The term "operator of a mobile home park" means either a person who establishes a mobile home park on land which is leased from another person or a person who has been delegated the authority to act as the park owner in matters relating to the administration and management of the mobile home park, including, but not limited to, authority to make decisions relating to the mobile home park.

(10)  The term "pass-through charge" means the mobile home owner's proportionate share of the necessary and actual direct costs and impact or hookup fees for a governmentally mandated capital improvement, which may include the necessary and actual direct costs and impact or hookup fees incurred for capital improvements required for public or private regulated utilities.

(11)  The term "unreasonable" means arbitrary, capricious, or inconsistent with this chapter.

(12)  The term "user fees" means those amounts charged in addition to the lot rental amount for nonessential optional services provided by or through the park owner to the mobile home owner under a separate written agreement between the mobile home owner and the person furnishing the optional service or services.

(13)  The term "discrimination" or "discriminatory" means that a homeowner is being treated differently as to the rent charged, the services rendered, or an action for possession or other civil action being taken by the park owner, without a reasonable basis for the different treatment.

(14)  The term "resale agreement" means a contract in which a mobile home owner authorizes the mobile home park owner, or the park owner's designee, to act as exclusive agent for the sale of the homeowner's mobile home for a commission or fee.

History.--s. 1, ch. 84-80; s. 1, ch. 86-162; s. 2, ch. 90-198; s. 1, ch. 91-202; s. 242, ch. 94-218; s. 912, ch. 97-102.