A mobile home park usually needs its own zoning district, often called MH, MH-1, RMH or MHP, or approval as a conditional use or planned development in a residential zone. Few codes allow a new park by right, so plan on a rezoning or public hearing.
New to zoning types? Read what residential zoning means and what it allows.
R - Residential
Is a mobile home park allowed in Columbus?
Open the Columbus zoning map to find a property's zoning district, then check what that district allows.
Check zoning in Columbus, OH →Park districts go by many names. MH, MH-1 and MHP usually mean a manufactured or mobile home park district. RMH usually means residential manufactured home, a district that can cover parks, manufactured home subdivisions or both. Read the district's purpose statement to see which one your code means.
| How the code handles parks | What approval usually looks like |
|---|---|
| Dedicated park district (MH-1, MHP) | Rezone the land to that district, then get site plan approval |
| Residential manufactured home district (RMH) | Allowed if the district lists parks, sometimes with a minimum site size |
| Conditional use in a residential or agricultural zone | Conditional use permit with a public hearing |
| Planned development | Site-specific plan approved by the planning commission and governing body |
Older codes may still say "trailer park" or "trailer court." Our residential zoning guide explains how residential districts are usually arranged.
A new park is a land development project, so expect several approvals. The order varies, but it usually runs like this:
Rezoning hearings for new parks often draw neighbor opposition, so budget time for revisions and conditions.
Park districts carry their own design rules, separate from the rules for a single house. They commonly cover:
The parking calculator helps with a first estimate of spaces.
On the zoning map, a park is a residential use, since people live there. As a business, it's commercial real estate. The owner typically rents home sites, often called lot rent, and many residents own their homes but not the land under them. That mix is why the industry also uses names like manufactured home community.
Lenders, appraisers and insurers usually treat a park as an income property. Some parks also rent out homes the owner holds, which changes how the business is classified and taxed.
Many older parks were built before current zoning and now operate as legal nonconforming uses. That status usually lets the park keep running, but codes often limit adding sites and may restrict replacing homes once a site sits empty past a set period. Before you buy, check these points:
Placing a single home on your own lot is a separate question covered in our manufactured home zoning guide. If you plan short stays, compare the rules for an RV park.
Sometimes. Some R-1 zones allow manufactured homes that meet design standards, while others limit them to parks or rural zones. Our manufactured home zoning guide covers those rules.
A mobile home park is long-term housing where homes stay in place for years. An RV park serves travel trailers and motorhomes, and many codes limit how long an RV can stay, so the two usually fall under different districts.
The owner can usually apply to rezone and redevelop the land, but many states require advance notice to residents and some require relocation help or give residents a chance to buy the park.
No. Many parks are open to all ages, and others are 55-and-over communities. Zoning rarely sets that; the park's rules and federal fair housing exemptions for senior housing do.