Tennessee House Trailer Set Up Regulations

Trailer home purchases are a popular purchasing option in the state of Tennessee. As with buying any home, the rules and regulations for purchasing and owning home are stringent. Tennessee created purchasing regulations concerning trailer homes, in addition to land use and dwelling regulations for trailer cars to make the rules fair for everyone.

After researching trailers, the buyer should have a contract written up between himself and the seller. At this point of the negotiations a lawyer should look over the contract to make sure everything appears legal for both parties. If using a loan to buy a trailer home, Tennessee home loan laws require a buyer to make all payments, or the lender may repossess the trailer home. Tennessee law also requires trailer home buyers to insure the mobile home within a certain number of days; if not insured, the home may be repossessed for this reason as well. Tennessee law requires lenders to obtain a court order called a writ of execution before the trailer home repossession can occur.

Purchasers of trailer homes often move the home to land already owned, or rent land from another owner. Tennessee law prohibits trailer home placement on land marked "Planned Residential Zones," even if the land is owned personally. The placement of a trailer home in the following zoned areas: residential, estate, general residential and agricultural zones, remains lawful in the state of Tennessee. While these zones all allow the placement of trailer homes, the buyer must still get a permit before moving a mobile home on public roads. Tennessee finds it unlawful to move a trailer home on streets, highways and rural routes without this permit. A permit remains good for six days and can be obtained from the Tennessee Department of Transportation. If a trailer home will be placed on land where no homes were built before, a permit must be purchased for that new structure.

A new trailer can only replace the old one within six months, as long as the health department approves of the dwelling, and the owner obtained a building permit. Only one dwelling unit may reside on any piece of property. In order to build a second home or add a trailer home to the property, a licensed surveyor must cut a tract off for the second dwelling. In Tennessee all homes must have a minimum of .92 acres and have 50 feet of county road frontage to access both homes.