Buying or refinancing a manufactured home in Sacramento starts with two questions that matter more here than in most California cities: does the address sit behind a levee in a mapped flood zone, and is it inside the City of Sacramento or in the unincorporated county around it?
Sacramento is the state capital and the seat of Sacramento County. The manufactured homes listed in the city and its suburbs are mostly in land-lease communities, where you own the home and rent the space it sits on. Homes sold together with their land are more common in the rural parts of the county.
Santiago Financial, Inc. finances both setups anywhere in California. The California hub page explains the general difference between a community home and a home on owned land and links HCD’s title pages. This page covers what is specific to Sacramento.
Sacramento sits behind levees, so flood insurance belongs in the budget even outside the mapped zones
Sacramento County’s flood preparedness page says that land in many parts of the county is at risk of flooding from creeks and rivers, that the levees confining the Sacramento and American rivers can be damaged by erosion with little warning, and that because most homeowners policies do not cover flooding, supplemental flood insurance is advisable for all residents.
The Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency, formed in 1989, plans and finances the region’s levee and flood-protection projects.
For a loan, the practical steps are these. Look the address up in FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center. If it is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, a lender generally requires flood insurance before closing; FEMA states that homes in high-risk flood areas with mortgages from government-backed lenders are required to have flood insurance.
If it is outside the mapped area, consider coverage anyway, as the county advises. The City of Sacramento’s flood insurance page is the place to ask about a specific address inside the city. Our manufactured home insurance team can quote coverage suited to a manufactured home.
The county taxes most homes, and HCD will not transfer a title without the county’s clearance
Two county offices come into a Sacramento transaction. The Sacramento County Assessor explains that all mobile homes sold new after July 1, 1980 are subject to local property tax, and that a buyer of a home sold new before that date may have a choice between paying HCD’s in-lieu fee and paying county property tax.
The Sacramento County Tax Collector issues the Tax Clearance Certificate that HCD requires before it transfers the title of a used home on local property tax.
For a home sold with its land, the assessor treats the home as real property, taxed like a conventional house, once the land and home are in the same ownership, an HCD Form 433A has been recorded with the County Recorder, and HCD’s title record has been updated to show a permanent foundation.
Ask the seller which tax system the home is on and whether a 433A is recorded. California HCD title basics for buyers walks through the title side, and the printable forms page has a short tutorial on the two ways California taxes these homes.
What to check for a Sacramento-area address
| Local factor | What to check | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Flood zone | Whether the address is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, which generally means required flood insurance | FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center; the city’s floodplain pages |
| Levee protection | Whether the home is on levee-protected ground, where the county still advises flood coverage | Sacramento County flood preparedness |
| Tax status | Local property tax or HCD in-lieu fee, and the county tax clearance before an HCD transfer | Sacramento County Tax Collector |
| Foundation record | Whether a 433A is recorded for a home sold with land | Sacramento County Assessor and Recorder |
City or county: which office covers the community
Sacramento County is large, and the address decides which office answers your questions. Citrus Heights, Rancho Cordova, Elk Grove and Folsom are separate cities with their own building and housing offices. North Highlands, Carmichael, Rio Linda, Orangevale and Fair Oaks are unincorporated and come under the county.
We did not find a mobilehome space-rent ordinance published by the City of Sacramento or by Sacramento County. Ask the community and the city or county housing office whether any local rule applies, and get the current space rent, what it includes and its recent increases in writing before you make an offer.
Statewide, park tenancies come under California’s Mobilehome Residency Law, and HCD runs a Mobilehome Residency Law Protection Program for certain disputes between homeowners and park management. Community approval and lender approval are separate reviews, so ask early what the community’s resident application requires and whether the community is age-qualified.
Summer heat is part of the monthly cost
Sacramento summers are hot. In NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 climate normals, the average daily high at Sacramento Executive Airport is 93°F in July. Cooling belongs in the monthly cost beside the loan payment and space rent, so ask the seller for a year of electricity bills and have the air conditioning, ducts and insulation inspected before you commit.
Before you make an offer, talk with a specialist about which loan path the home fits and what the file will need.
Nearby areas
The valley changes county by county, and so do the records. We also have pages for Stockton and Modesto down Highway 99, and the California service areas list covers the rest of the state.
Every application is reviewed individually, and all financing is subject to credit approval. Local rules change, so confirm them with the city or county; this page is general information, not legal or tax advice.