A. On December 15, 1981, the city council of the city of Redlands determined that a serious shortage of mobilehome rental spaces within the city had created a virtual monopoly in the rental of mobilehome park spaces. In response to this lack of available rental space, the city declared it necessary to protect the owner-occupants of mobilehomes from unreasonable rent increases while recognizing the need for mobilehome park owners to receive a just and reasonable return on their property. Accordingly, this chapter was adopted to provide for mobilehome park rent stabilization within the city.
B. Mobilehome owner-occupants, unlike apartment renters or residents of other rental stock, are in a unique position of having made a substantial investment to purchase a mobilehome for which they must rent a space in a mobilehome park. They also make investments in maintaining and improving their homes as well as in landscaping the rental space. Alternative sites for the relocation of mobilehomes are difficult to find due to the shortage of vacant spaces, restrictions on age, size or style of mobilehomes permitted in many parks and the requirements related to the installation of mobilehomes, including permits, landscaping and site preparation. Additionally, the cost of moving a mobilehome is substantial and the risk of damage is significant. Thus, moving a mobilehome is rarely a feasible option if the rent for a mobilehome park space becomes excessive. The result of these conditions is the creation of a captive market of mobilehome owner-occupants. The immobility of mobilehomes and the shortage of rental spaces, in turn, creates an imbalance in the bargaining relationship between mobilehome park owners and mobilehome owner-occupants. Because mobilehomes are often owned by senior citizens, persons on fixed incomes and persons of low and moderate income, excessive rent increases fall upon those individuals with particular harshness. (Ord. 2458 § 1, 2000: Ord. 2207 § 1, 1993)