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The owner passed away. What happens to the mobile home?

Answer five questions. See the likely way to move the HCD title, what the park can and can't do, and the papers you need.

What did the owner leave?
Who is on the HCD title?

Look at the HCD title or registration card. "Joint tenants" or "JTWROS" is written out. "TOD" means transfer on death.

$
Other assets that need probate?
Heir lived there with the owner?
Family wants to
Likely path
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Main HCD form—
Earliest you can file—
HCD fees (about)$35 transfer + $28 per section, 2-section home$0
Probate small-estate limitDeaths on/after 4/1/2025 (Probate Code §13100)$208,850

Steps, in order

    Papers to gather (tick as you go)

    The park and the heir

    The heir can sell the home in placeAn heir, joint tenant or estate representative can sell the home to a buyer who keeps it in the park, as long as the owner's unpaid rent, utilities and reasonable maintenance under the rental agreement get paid (Civil Code §798.78).
    Unpaid rent can cost the home its spaceIf those amounts aren't paid, the park can require the home to be removed (§798.78(b)). Keep paying space rent while the title moves.
    Living there is a separate approvalAn heir who wants to stay as a resident must meet the same approval rules as any buyer: ability to pay, past tenancy, honest application (§798.78(d), §798.74).
    Fix-up before selling is allowedBefore the sale, the heir may repair the home to meet health and safety standards, or replace it with one that meets the park's current written standards (§798.78(c)).
    Ask Ken Watch 15-sec video

    Email this plan to yourself

    Steps and the paper list in one email. Ken can help price the home and talk to the park. No spam.

    Or text: 408-666-2825

    Next steps

    1. Order 3–5 certified death certificates. HCD, the bank and the county each want one.
    2. Call HCD Registration & Titling, 800-952-8356, with the decal number. Ask what's on file and what's owed.
    3. Tell the park in writing who is handling the home, and keep paying space rent.
    4. Planning for your own home? Compare trust vs will in T121, find a lawyer in T122. Selling? Run T168.

    Many people get this wrong: "No trust means probate, no way around it." For a mobile home on an HCD title, there's a state form that skips probate no matter what the home is worth, once 40 days pass, if nothing else in the estate needs probate (H&S Code §18102).