By Dani Tietz
As of April 27, only 58 of the 521 residents at Candlewood Mobile Home Park in Mahomet had signed a lease from Kodiak Property Management, LLC.
For Candlewood residents, the problem appears to be threefold: some residents have not received a lease agreement from the management group; others have received different drafts of the agreement over the last month; then, for others, the terms and conditions within the lease are troublesome.
For Kodiak, its plate has been full with working on the necessary requirements for the mobile home park to pass the Illinois Public Health Department inspection on May 3. Passing the inspection would give Kodiak the necessary licensure to operate Candlewood.
“Each year the State of Illinois inspects manufactured home communities ahead of issuing the property’s license for the upcoming year, which occurred last month in March,” Josh Weiss from the firm 10 to 1 Public Relations said. “The report received by the State of Illinois cites resident homes along with their homesites that have not been properly maintained by their owners. Within the report, violations include removing bulk trash items including mattresses, old couches, trash, tires, animal feces, appliances, personal belongings, and many other unsightly things. In addition, the report requests the removal of abandoned resident vehicles and clearly displaying home numbers, all of which are necessary for resident safety.”
Other IDPH violations included a missing lid on an electric meter, a sewer riser not in use, downed tree limbs, electrical wiring issues, ditch drainage, and abandoned homes.
On behalf of Kodiak, Weiss wrote that the group is waiting on the “legal process” to remove the abandoned homes.
“There’s a legal process that is slowing things down- but not for lack of desire on our part to resolve the issue,” he wrote. “The previous community owner did not provide us with the titles for the abandoned homes. As a result, we must file for each of the abandoned home titles, which we have done, but the process averages six months. Once the title is granted, we will be able to apply for a permit to abolish the home – which we intend to do as quickly as legally possible.”
Residents at Candlewood have struggled since Candlewood MHC, LLC. purchased the 108-acre property from Parkhill Enterprises for $15.6 million in Sept. 2022. With aging, and in some cases, failing infrastructure throughout the subdivision, a few residents were hopeful the new owners would take care of long-standing issues like street maintenance and adequate lighting, abandoned homes, weathered playground equipment, pool and the community clubhouse. Instead, they were told community improvements would come on the backs of rent increases.
Kodiak maintains that Candlewood is poised to become its flagship community.
When asked about whether or not the group had its vision set on turning over the property, making it something other than a mobile home community, Weiss responded, “no.”
“We are engaging an engineering group to assist in improving roads, infrastructure, pool, clubhouse, adding a fitness center, as well as a newly remodeled front office. A new playground is also in process.”
The rent increase Candlewood residents will begin paying in May is how those improvements will be funded.
Rent for a lot at Candlewood, not including rent or mortgage payment for a home, will increase from $340/month to $525/month, a 54-percent increase over last year.
Former owner Bud Parkhill increase rent by $50/month in 2023 before selling the land.
Leading up to the end of April, many Candlewood residents were unsure about what was actually about to happen. Some tenants received a lease for rent at $340/month for the following 24 months while other received a lease that showed their rent to be at $525.
The confusion deepened when some residents only saw a $340 payment for May 2023 in the Kodiak payment portal. That is until April 27, when Kodiak required them to pay an additional $185 by May 1.
No matter what monthly amount was part of the agreement, the document stated that Candlewood residents can expect a 7-percent rent increase in 2024, 2025 and 2026. By 2026, lot rent in Candlewood would be about $643/month.
The residents of Candlewood are among millions of mobile home residents who began renting from a mom-and-pop establishment that sold to an investment group that then jacks up rent prices in order to increase the property value.
“The general trend is for owners to increase rent and decrease maintenance to maximize profits,” Patrick McHugh with MHAction said. “Many residents are evicted or self-evict, allowing owners to rent out the property at a higher value.”
So far in 2023, 14 residents have voluntarily left Candlewood, while another five were evicted and two others passed away. Eleven new residents have moved to Candlewood since Jan., and Kodiak expects another four after May 1.
Candlewood residents, like many other mobile home residents nationwide who own mobile homes and rent land, feel trapped. For starters, some who live in mobile home communities are on fixed incomes, whether it be because of age or disability. On top of limit resources, a mobile home, especially an aged mobile home, isn’t a pick-up-and-go situation as the name “mobile” might suggest.
Mobile homeowners are often left with limited options for the investment in their homes. They could sell in a process that requires first right of refusal to the landlord or move the home, which can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000.
Candlewood homeowners who want to sell their home have one of two options. They can use Kodiak Property Management, which will charge a 10-percent fee, or they can sell the home themselves, pending new-owner approval by Kodiak.
If the homeowner wants to move their mobile home, Kodiak has also included a $1,000 deposit fee on top of the original land deposit fee. Within the lease, Kodiak also retains the authority to approve the home removal.
‘It’s a community rule, not a State law,” Kodiak said. “When removing a home, residents are required to be bonded and insured. If they damage the pad or leave stuff requiring cleanup after the home is removed or abandoned, they will be charged. If a resident doesn’t want to be charged a damage or clean-up fee, do not damage the lot or require someone else to clean up after them.”
That isn’t the only verbiage that concerns residents, though.
Residents have received communication with very vague terms like “Park standards”, “Rules and Regulations” and “satisfactory to the Park Owner” without outlining what many of those expectations might be.
As one of Mahomet’s oldest subdivisions, about a quarter of the mobile homes in Candlewood have metal siding. And under the former ownership, tenants were allowed to place sheds on the land they rented. Now, those standards have changed, and tenants are required to make changes.
“Many of the sheds are in violation of State laws regarding height or encroach on other lots,” Weiss said on behalf of Kodiak. “Others are simply unsightly and not up to community rules and standards. Not only do we want our community to be safe, but aesthetically pleasing for all residents to enjoy.
“When all residents take pride in homeownership, the value of the community will rise. Kodiak wants to partner with all residents to fulfill the vision of becoming a 5-star property. As it stands today, if residents continue to violate these rules, the community will remain a 2-star.”
Other past practices are also no longer permitted on the Candlewood property.
According to the lease, tenants are only allowed to have two cars in their lot, with no street parking available. Some residents in Candlewood are left wondering where their additional vehicles are to go as Kodiak has designated overflow parking areas for guests rather than tenants. That parking is located at the Kodiak office, which is several blocks away from many homes.
For Candlewood residents, the list goes on including everything from guest and pet registration to requiring the title of each home.
The residents know, though, that their recourse is limited. With many on limited incomes, living paycheck to paycheck, legal fees or being able to afford the fees associated with moving are out of reach.
Going up against a giant, like Kodiak, who not only has the means to enforce their community rules, whether or not they follow the law, is impossible.
As with most situations that seem dire, Candlewood residents have looked to state lawmakers to help create boundaries for businesses like Kodiak.
They’ve hung their hopes on House Bills that would give municipalities authority over mobile home rent control; to set caps on the amount of increase tenants can see each year; to give tenants leeway on how they pay their rent; and to hold mobile home owners accountable by requiring them to account for why rent increases are happening.
As of today, these bills have either failed or been tabled for the time being.
