Can You Put a Mobile Home, Tiny Home, or RV on Your Land? Zoning, Permits, and Titles

Vacant land is cheap partly because nothing is on it yet. A manufactured home, a tiny house, or an RV looks like the fastest way to change that. Sometimes it is. Sometimes the county will not allow it, and the buyer finds out after closing.

The rules come in layers. The federal government decides what a manufactured home is and how it is built and installed. The state decides how it is titled and taxed, and in most states who may install it. The county decides where it may sit, what it must look like, and whether anyone can live in an RV on the parcel. A recorded deed restriction can override all of that.

The definitions that decide everything

Officials ask what code a home was built to, not what you call it.

Manufactured home versus mobile home

The federal definition in 24 CFR 3280.2 describes a manufactured home as a transportable structure "built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation", and adds that "The term does not include any self-propelled recreational vehicle."

The dividing date is June 15, 1976. HUD's rules apply to homes that "enter the first stage of production on or after June 15, 1976", and every transportable section built after that date "must contain a certification label (commonly referred to as a HUD Tag)". Homes from before that date are mobile homes, which HUD's glossary says "were not built in accordance with HUD's Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards (HUD Code)."

Florida's statutes define a mobile home as a chassis-built dwelling 8 body feet or more in width, including HUD-Code homes, so the Florida rules below use that word.

Modular home

A modular home is factory-built too, but HUD's glossary says modular homes "are constructed in a factory to all applicable state and local building codes similar to the way traditional site-built homes are constructed". Volusia County, Florida draws the same line: modular homes follow the Florida Building Code, mobile homes the HUD standards.

Tiny houses: on a foundation or on wheels

A tiny house on a permanent foundation is a small house under the residential building code. The International Residential Code's Appendix Q defines one as "A dwelling that is 400 square feet (37 m2) or less in floor area excluding lofts", but its provisions "are not mandatory unless specifically referenced in the adopted ordinance." Georgia added it to its state residential code as an optional appendix that applies only where the local ordinance references it. If your county has not adopted it, the full code applies.

A tiny house on wheels depends on how it was built and certified. Under 24 CFR 3282.15, a recreational vehicle is exempt from the HUD Code when it is "Designed only for recreational use and not as a primary residence or for permanent occupancy" and is built and certified to NFPA 1192 or ANSI A119.5 or is self-propelled. A park model built to ANSI A119.5 must carry a manufacturer's notice that it is "designed only for recreational use, and not for use as a primary residence or for permanent occupancy." A tiny house on wheels built and certified to those standards falls under this exemption. Ask the county how it classifies one that is not.

San Diego County spells out the result: "A Park Model Trailer is a type of recreational vehicle (RV). Recreational vehicles are not approved for permanent habitation."

Zoning: where each type is allowed

The range is wide.

Maricopa County, Arizona is permissive: "Any rural or residential lot in the unincorporated area of the county may be issued a development permit for the placement of one single-wide or multi-sectional manufactured home built after June 15, 1976." It adds that "The unit must be on a permanent foundation system".

Cherokee County, Georgia is restrictive. "Manufactured Housing is permitted exclusively in the AG, R-80, R-60, and R40 zoning districts." Single-wides are allowed only in AG, on "at least two (2) acres or more" with paved-road access or "at least five (5) acres or more" on an unpaved road.

San Diego County, California sets a date window: "Only mobile homes constructed between September 15, 1971 and June 14, 1976; and manufactured homes constructed on or after June 15, 1976" may be permanently placed on a private lot.

Some states rein counties in. Washington's RCW 36.01.225 says HUD-Code homes "must be regulated for the purposes of siting in the same manner as site built homes", though a county may still require a new home on a permanent foundation with the space beneath enclosed by concrete. Ask the county whether a state siting law applies where you are buying.

Conditions counties put on manufactured homes

HUD's installation guidance says a "Perimeter enclosure may be either recommended or required". Setbacks and floodplain rules apply on top; see our guides to checking zoning on land and flood zones.

Living in an RV on your land

Parking an RV and living in it are different questions. Counties often say no to the second; both counties below do.

Walton County, Florida is direct: "The use of a recreational vehicle as a permanent residence is not permitted", except inside licensed RV parks or where the code provides otherwise. RVs "may be used as temporary residences in zoning districts allowing residential uses as a primary use, only by the property owner, and only during construction of a primary residence on the same site", and only by permit.

Jefferson County, Colorado uses an Administrative Exception to "Allow living in a recreational vehicle while building a new home (must have active building permit)". It also requires a sewage permit and a well permit or public water. The approval "may be granted for a period of up to 1 year and may be renewed for up to 6 months", and the RV must leave within 60 days after a certificate of occupancy is issued or when the permit expires, whichever comes first. Jefferson County's rules for a tiny house on wheels are not covered here; ask Planning & Zoning directly.

Volusia County, Florida will not even let you park one on vacant land: boats and RVs "may not be parked on vacant property."

Permits: zoning approval, then installation

Zoning approval covers the use; installation needs its own permit. HUD's homeowner page lists what that involves, starting with "Locality requirements for zoning, septic, electrical and/or building permits", then site preparation, a foundation and anchoring system "approved/listed for use in the proper class of soil", the perimeter enclosure, and utility hookups.

Federal installation standards

The federal minimums are in 24 CFR Part 3285, and a state may substitute its own program only if its protection "equals or exceeds" them. They require foundations "based on site conditions, home design features, and the loads the home was designed to withstand, as shown on the home's data plate", and after blocking and leveling the home "must be secured against the wind".

Installer licensing

Under 24 CFR 3286.203, in a state without its own qualifying program, anyone "in the business of directing, supervising, or controlling initial installations of new manufactured homes" must hold, or employ someone who holds, a HUD installation license, and HUD notes that "Some States license and/or certify manufactured home installers."

Florida Statutes 320.8249 (2026 Florida Statutes) requires a mobile home installers license from the state Bureau of Mobile Home and Recreational Vehicle Construction, renewed annually for a $150 fee, with a performance bond of up to $5,000, liability insurance of up to $100,000, at least 8 hours of training, and a state-approved exam.

The utilities still have to exist

No home type skips this step. Florida's septic statute says no one may "construct, repair, modify, abandon, or operate an onsite sewage treatment and disposal system without first obtaining a permit approved by the department", and a building "may not be occupied" until the department approves the final installation. If the parcel has no sewer, the soil has to pass evaluation first; our perc test guide explains why that belongs in your contract. Water and power follow the same pattern: a well permit or public supply, and the electrical permit on HUD's list.

Titles, taxes, and loans

State law decides whether a manufactured home is personal property or real property, and that changes how it is taxed, financed, and sold. In Florida, a mobile home that is not taxed as real property must carry a current license plate, and one without a plate is presumed to be tangible personal property.

Why the paperwork matters for the loan

HUD's glossary says "Chattel loans are loans that are secured by a movable piece of personal property", that "Manufactured homes on leased land are typically financed with chattel loans", and that "Interest rates for chattel loans tend to be higher than interest rates for mortgages." HUD's homeowner page adds that "Some lenders offer long-term real estate mortgages which may require that the home be placed on an approved foundation". If you plan to buy the land with a land loan and add a home later, ask the lender early what foundation and title steps it requires.

How Florida converts a mobile home to real property

Under Florida Statutes 193.075, a mobile home "shall be taxed as real property if the owner of the mobile home is also the owner of the land on which the mobile home is permanently affixed", which means "tied down and connected to the normal and usual utilities". Once the title is retired under Florida Statutes 319.261, the home "shall be conveyed by deed or real estate contract and shall only be transferred together with the property to which it is affixed", and it can only be secured "as part of the real property through a mortgage or deed of trust."

Other states have their own versions. Ask the state agency that titles manufactured homes (in Florida, FLHSMV) and the county office that assesses property how it works where you are buying, and confirm the steps with a licensed real estate attorney or title company in your state before you commit.

Deed restrictions and HOAs can still say no

Zoning is public law. Recorded covenants are private law, and they can be stricter. Washington's statute says so directly: "This section does not override any legally recorded covenants or deed restrictions of record." Volusia County ends its RV FAQ the same way: "This does not address HOA restrictions."

A lot can sit in a district that allows manufactured homes while its covenants ban them or prohibit RVs. Read every document listed as an exception in the title commitment before you close. Our guide to title insurance for vacant land explains how.

What to ask the county before you buy

Call the planning or zoning office with the parcel number, get the answers in writing, and make your offer depend on them.

1. Does this parcel's zoning district allow a manufactured home, a modular home, or a tiny house as a permanent residence?
2. What conditions apply: minimum year built, floor area, roof pitch, siding, foundation, skirting?
3. Has the county adopted IRC Appendix Q for tiny houses?
4. May I live in an RV or a tiny house on wheels here, full time or during construction? What permit, for how long, and then what?
5. What permits cover installing the home, who inspects it, and does the state license installers?
6. Is public sewer or water available? If not, what do the septic and well permits require?
7. How does a manufactured home become real property here, and which office handles it?
8. Are there recorded deed restrictions, covenants, or an HOA? Ask the title company.

The land due diligence checklist covers the rest, and our guide to making an offer on land shows how to turn these answers into contingencies.

Who decides, and who to call

• County planning and zoning: allowed home types, conditions, and RV occupancy rules.
• County building department: installation permits and inspections.
• Environmental health office: septic permits and final approval before occupancy.
• State manufactured housing agency: installer licensing. In Florida, the Bureau of Mobile Home and Recreational Vehicle Construction at FLHSMV.
• State titling agency, county assessing office, tax collector: titling, conversion to real property, and taxes. In Florida: FLHSMV, the property appraiser, and the tax collector.
• Title company or real estate attorney: covenants, deed restrictions, and HOA rules.

The bottom line

The HUD Code decides what a manufactured home is and how it is built. The state decides how it is titled and taxed. The county decides whether it can sit on your parcel, what it must look like, and whether you can live in an RV there, which the counties in this guide allow only while you build. Get the zoning answer in writing, confirm the utilities can be permitted, and read the recorded restrictions before you buy. The land is only a bargain if you can legally live on it.