Filing a Complaint with the “Federal Trade Commission (FTC)”

If you are having a construction related problem(s) with a new manufactured home (you’re the first purchaser or owner) that you purchased or leased, and you have done nothing other than use your home as intended, then you should take 10 minutes of your time to file a complaint with the "Federal Trade Commission" (FTC).

It is important to understand that filing this complaint will not likely aid in remedying your problem. Your complaint is however vital for tracking consumer problems with any given producer of goods and/or services. Unlike HUD who claims that such records are confidential or don’t exist, FTC records can be obtained by consumer organizations (less your personal information) that are seeking information on the types and extent of problems being encountered by the consumers of this product. This information could as well lead the FTC to investigate a manufacturer(s) if there are an ornately high number of complaints against any given manufacturer.

It has been recognized that in general, people do not realize how information is categorized by government agencies, nor should the system be designed to be so restrictive, but it has been. This has lead to a database of information that is fragmented in so many ways that it would confound the most astute who are seeking patterns that show consumer abuse by corporations. The purpose of the information provided herein is to assist people in reporting their problems in a standardized format, by which, patterns of abuse will be more readily apparent when such databases are accessed.

The following is based on the presumption that you were the first purchaser of a new manufactured/mobile home. A "first purchaser" means a person who purchased a NEW manufactured home in good faith, for purposes other than resale. If you feel you have done nothing to cause the problems or are uncertain if you have caused the problems, which you are experiencing with your manufactured home, then you should file a complaint with the FTC. If you purchased a used manufactured or mobile home and you are having problems, you may find some of the information provided below helpful to you in filing your complaint with the FTC, and you should file a complaint if you feel that you have been wrongly treated.

This page deals with defect(s) in NEW manufactured home and failures by the manufacturer, or any agent(s) thereof, to honor their warranty, and not with other aspects of owning a manufactured home, i.e., landlord/tenant disputes. If you find in the brands listing, that your lender or insurer, is a subsidiary or division of the parent company that produced or manufactured your home, and your problem is with the lender or insurer, you should file your complaint against the parent company or manufacturer listed in the brands listing. If you know your problem is related to the lender, provided the lender is not a subsidiary or division of the manufacturer of your home, or your problem is related to lease or rent space in a manufactured home community, you should file a compliant with the Federal Trade Commission against that entity and not the manufacturer of your home.

It will be stated during this discussion that a manufactured home owner has the right to seek restitution from the manufacturer if they make repairs to their home at their expense, which are necessary to bring the manufacturer’s product into compliance with the federal standards.

HUD has been less than effective at enforcing this regulation (or any others for that matter), and as a result, most manufacturers’ will not reimburse you for such expenses, nor is likely HUD will order them to do so. Reimbursement will most likely only be obtained by legal action against the manufacturer, who counts on the cost of legal services to end your efforts.

The catch 22, once the repairs have been made to the home at your expense, is that the manufacturer’s product may no longer be out of compliance with the federal standards; thereby, dammed if you do, dammed if you do not. You cannot count on the manufacturer or the manufacturer’s agents to make the required repairs in a timely and/or equitable manner, if they do any repairs. If other damage occurs because of the original defect, you may find yourself fighting new battles for the repair of the defect(s) that have been caused by the original defect(s).

MOST IMPORTANTLY, no defect is worth jeopardizing your or your family’s safety over the principal of the thing. You will of course have to judge for yourself what the degree of risk is if you wait, possibly forever, for the manufacturer or his or her agents to correct the defects in their product. It is recommended if possible, that you make, or have the repairs made, that can become bigger or more serious problems, and possibly become life threatening, if left unattended.

It is recommended that if you make or have the repairs made to your home, that all work be documented to the best of your ability. If you hire someone to do the repairs, you should have the person making the repairs carefully document what they found and what they did to correct the problem (work order), and make sure that they sign and date the work order. This could be important and useful if required too seek reimbursement through litigation. If you make or have made the repairs to your home, you should also write in the comment section of the FTC complaint form, a total of your cost to repair the defect(s) in the home, i.e. "Cost to homeowner to repair manufacturer’s violations of 24 CFR part 3280 - $600.00"

First, and most important, it is not the manufactured home owner’s job or responsibility to determine the cause or reason for a defect(s) in their purchase. Your job as a homebuyer is to report the symptoms and it is the manufacturer’s job to decide what the cause is and what they need to do to remedy the construction and/or safety defect(s) in their product. The most common mistake homeowners make are to interject their theory of the cause or reason for the defect(s). Unless you are an Engineer or Architect that has a background in forensic investigations, it is best that this job be left to the manufacturer or his or her agent. The reason for this is that they may find your theory far more appealing than the actual cause. In addition, they may simply choose to correct only what you dictate to be the cause and never investigate to assure that what they are repairing will not return because this was not the actual cause of the failure. As long as they are making the determination and corrections, if it does not work, they have no one to blame. If you put your two cents in, or you insist they do something different than what they propose, then the waters are muddied, and so shall they be forever more. It is far more important that they have no one to blame for their failure to correct the defect in your home, even if you know they are acting in bad faith or not being forthright.

If you are having problems with the contract, i.e. items on contract not provided, and the sales staff where you bought the home completed the contract, you need to file your FTC complaint against the primary or parent company for your home.

The lender, while it would seem like a good business practice to check with the homebuyer before paying the seller for the goods and services, is not legally accountable for doing this. Lenders for the most part are held harmless for the fraud and/or the deceptive practices of others, leaving you with little, if any recourse against the lender. If your problem is explicitly with the loan, and the lender is not a division or subsidiary of one of the primary or parent corporations’ listed in the brands listing page for your home, then you should file your complaint against that lender. If the lender is a division or subsidiary of the parent company listed for your brand of home, file you FTC complaint against the parent company of the lender listed in the brands listing page.

Manufacturer Warranties are a product. They are offered by the manufacturer to induce a potential purchaser into buying their product, and if you have not neglected or abused your manufactured home, or modified your manufactured home, and you have been unsuccessful at obtaining repairs under the warranty, then in addition to any defect(s) in your home or any part thereof, the "warranty" product is also defective.

You should include in the comments section of the FTC complaint form, "Manufacturer warranty not honored".

In addition, Federal law requires that you be fully informed in writing of all conditions or stipulations of your warranty. There are conditions and/or stipulations related to the Manufacturer’s Warranty, which are not disclosed in the manufacturer’s warranty, but instead in the Homeowner’s Manual and/or the Manufacturer’s Installation Instructions. If you did not receive, both of these manuals prior to signing the purchase contact or agreement for your home, you should note in the comments section of the FTC complaint form, "Not all provisions and/or conditions of the Manufacturer’s Warranty disclosed before signing the purchase contract or agreement".

An example of one of these SEPARATE conditions that may have influenced your decision to sign such an agreement or contract is for homes located in northern climates. One of the conditions not shown in the "Manufacturer’s Warranty", which can void the manufacturer’s warranty, is that you must shovel the snow from the roof of your home once so many inches have accumulate on the roof. This is regardless of the weather conditions at the time. In addition, you may be required to place shoring material, such as plywood, on the roof where you need to stand to shovel the snow off your roof. Again, this is regardless of the weather conditions at the time the roof requires shoveling. Failure to do so can be considered by the manufacturer, as a failure by you to maintain your home properly. They can and do commonly cite failure to maintain your home properly as an excuse to slither out from under their warranty obligations.

The federal standards require that the building site be graded to provide drainage away from the structure (24 CFR 3280.4). Many homebuyers are lured by the manufacturer’s sales agents/retailers into signing an agreement that holds the homebuyer responsible for complying with this federal standard, which is prohibited under the National Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards Act, Section 622 (42 USC 5421). Many States, such as Texas, have promulgated policies that aid and abed the manufacturers in obtaining such written agreements, which assign federal compliance responsibilities to the purchaser.

For example, as noted above, the Federal Standards require that the home site be properly graded before the home is sited. No one other than the manufacturer is responsible for the validity of their certification, which is a certification that attests that they have complied with all of the federal standards, including those standards set forth under 24 CFR 3280.4. It is illegal for the manufacturer to make a certification, or any part thereof, that is false or misleading in a material respect.

For example, Texas requires that the purchaser sign a State promulgated form that states that the homebuyer is responsible for assuring their purchase complies with all applicable MHCSS, even though the manufacturer has already certified that they have assured this to be the case. The State in this example aids and abets the manufacturers in obstructing federal law.

While it may be reasonable by some form of an agreement to separate the cost of site preparation from the cost for completing the home on-site, this does not mean that the site preparation is no longer a federal standard. Most importantly, it does not relieve the manufacturer of their legal responsibility for assuring that the home site was properly prepared for the placement of their product, after all, they certified that to their knowledge, the site was properly prepared.

In many cases, the manufacturers and/or their agents use improper site preparation by the purchaser as an excuse for a manufactured home’s failure to comply with the federal standards and/or to void the manufacturer’s warranty for the home.

NO ONE forces the manufacturer or any agent thereof, sale or installation, to complete a home on a site that is not properly prepared or does not comply with the federal standards. For the manufacturer or any agent thereof, to complete a home on a site, knowing the site is not properly graded or does not comply with the federal standards, given their knowledge of the consequences (emphasis added) to the purchaser of the merchandise, is unconscionable.

Interior cosmetic defects for the most part are not covered by the federal standards. However, floor coverings in wet areas, such as kitchens and bathrooms are often used by the manufacturer in designing his or her product, as a moisture barrier for the sub flooring in these areas. Tears in the surface of flooring materials, such as linoleum, in these areas, or seams that are improperly sealed, or not sealed, can allow moisture to migrate to the sub floor, which will cause damage to the sub-flooring. In this case, such defects would be a violation of the federal standards.

If the floors in wet areas, such as bathrooms, are carpeted, the manufacturer should have sealed the sub flooring before the carpet was installed. If your sub-flooring in these areas is being water damaged, then it is unlikely that the sub-flooring was properly sealed to prevent water penetration in sub-flooring material, which would be a violation of the federal standards.

Your exterior envelope (walls, roofs, fascia board, eves, etc…) is intended to keep the elements out of the wall cavities and interior living area of your home. If there are nail holes, scratches, or any form of damage, or exterior material or components that are not properly installed, (Do not forget the bottom board of the home) or the connections at the marriage wall are improperly made, this can lead to accelerated failure of the exterior envelope. Such failure(s) will most likely lead to more serious structural failure, and possibly to mold growth in the living area of the home. Therefore, cosmetic defects such as scratches, chipped or spotty paint, unpainted surfaces, exposed staples or nails, that initially seem harmless, should not be treated as such.

The examples of defects that follow by no means cover all of the problems or defects that may be encounter in a manufactured home, and it will be necessary for you to evaluate each problem you are experiencing with the home. The intent of the examples is to help you understand how to categorize the defects in your home so that your FTC complaint will have a greater impact

Where items below are noted as "safety hazards", it is recommended that in addition to filing a complaint with the FTC that you also file a complaint with the "Consumer Product Safety Commission" (CPSC) (https://www.cpsc.gov/incident.html).

Unless you have been injured by a safety hazard related to the home's design and/or construction, report the hazard on the CPSC incident report form, and in the spaces asking for victim information, write "non-applicable". Not all safety hazards will be listed in the examples provided below, so you will have to decide for yourself if the defect you are addressing poses a safety hazard to you, your family, or those who you may foresee coming into contact with your defective home.

The following citation from the "Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards" describes the level of quality in the construction of your manufactured home that you should expect.

24 CFR 3280.303
(b) Construction. All construction methods shall be in conformance with accepted engineering practices to insure durable, livable, and safe housing and shall demonstrate acceptable workmanship reflecting journeyman quality of work of the various trades.

This citation from United States Code, Title 42, Chapter 70 – "The Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000", describes what is a defect in a manufactured home under federal law and therefore, is a failure to comply with the federal standards.

42 USC 5402
(3) ''Defect'' includes any defect in the performance, construction, components, or material of a manufactured home that renders the home or any part thereof not fit for the ordinary use for which it was intended;

A list of examples of some types of problems are provided below. You should list in the comments section of the FTC complaint form, the category heading under which your defect falls, or that you determine your defect falls under. For example, if it requires excessive force to open and close your windows, this would be a "Structural Defect".

Home not anchored (1976 or later construction) – this is a defect in the performance, construction, materials or components. The Federal Standards require that all manufactured homes in the United States and its territories, regardless of location within the United States and its territories, be anchored. Any State or local laws or ordinances to the contrary are preempted by Federal law, and therefore, they are void. (This applies until the new standards are promulgated in accordance with Manufactured Housing Improvement Act of 2000) (Safety Hazard)

Windows – Hard to open or close, if at all or will not lock or unlock without difficulty, if at all. Windows should open and close with little effort and the locks should lock and unlock with little resistance. If window assemblies do not operate normally, this is a structural defect in performance, construction, component, or material. This could also be a safety hazard in the event of an emergency, when the speed of exiting the home could be a matter of life or death. You will have to make your own determination if such a defect could result in delays to you or your family, to exit the home in an emergency, and decide if such a defect is a safety hazard to you or your family. If such will impede or slow your exit from the home during an emergency, then it is a safety hazard.

Exterior Doors: – Hard to open or close, if at all or will not lock or unlock without difficulty, if at all. Doors should open and close with little effort and the locks should operate with little effort. If doors do not operate normally, this is a structural defect in performance, construction, component, or material. You will have to make your own determination as to whether such a defect may impede or impair your family’s ability to quickly exit your home during an emergency. If such will impede or slow your exit from the home during an emergency, then it is a safety hazard.

Interior doors: – Hard to open or close, if at all. If doors do not operate normally, this is a structural defect in performance, construction, component, or material. Interior doors that do not open easily could also impede your ability to exit the home in an emergency. You will have to make your own determination as to whether such a defect may impede or impair your family’s ability to quickly exit your home during an emergency. If such will impede or slow your exit from the home during an emergency, then it is a safety hazard.

Walls bowed or warped: – walls are not perfect, and some slight vertical and horizontal alignment imperfections over the length of the wall are normal. Bulges (in or out) or a wall that is noticeably out of alignment is not normal and is most likely the result of warped framing materials, repeated exposure to moisture, or improper support and stabilization of the home. Bowed or warped walls reflect a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Floors bowed or warped: – Slight deflections in sub flooring are normal. Noticeable swelling or warping of sub flooring is not normal and can be caused by the sub flooring being continually exposed to moisture, or improper support and stabilization of the home, and reflects a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Holes in sub flooring: – penetrations in sub flooring for wiring, plumbing, and air-conditioning and heating ducts/vents are normal. Penetrations for these reasons should be filled to prevent moisture from coming into contact with sub flooring and to prevent outside air, insects, and/or rodents from entering the living space of your home. Holes in the sub flooring that are either not filled properly, have no apparent purpose, or have developed due to collapse, are not normal and reflect a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Sagging Ceiling: – Normal deformations in the ceiling will not be readably noticeable when standing in the room and looking at the ceiling. If you can see noticeable bowing, warpage, sagging or deformations from this point, this reflects a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Roof sagging: – Roofs are not perfectly flat, but normal deformations should not be readably visible from the ground. If you can see noticeable bowing, warpage, deformations or sagging from the ground, this reflects a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Roof leaks: – roofing leaks are not normal and are generally caused by a defect in design, construction, material or improper on site completion of the home. Regardless of cause, a leaking roof is not performing as it was intended and, as the manufacturer certified it would, and is therefore a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. Note: Roof leaks can lead to other more serious problems with your home, and if the manufacturer does not promptly have it corrected, if possible, you should hire an outside contractor to make the repairs or make the repairs yourself, and seek restitution from the manufacturer in accordance with the Federal Manufactured Home Procedural and Enforcement regulations. If the manufacturer refuses to make restitution, file another complaint with the FTC for the manufacturer’s failure to comply with 24 CFR part 3282. Note: if such leaks are permitting water to come in contact with electrical appliances, such as light fixtures, wall sockets, light switches, etc, this represents a safety hazard.

Window leaks: – this is not normal and is generally caused by a defect in construction; window assemblies or materials used to install the window assemblies, and is therefore a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. If the problem keeps coming back after it is repaired, this is most likely related to improper support of the manufactured home, which must be remedied by the manufacturer to bring their product into compliance with the federal standards. Note: if such leaks are permitting water to come in contact with electrical appliances, such as light fixtures, wall sockets, light switches, etc, this represents a safety hazard.

Nail popping: – regardless of what myths are told about nail popping, nail popping is not normal, nor is it harmless. Most nails and staples used in new home construction are driven with a pneumatic and/or electric, nail or staple gun, have an adhesive coating on the shank. This adhesive melts due to the friction of being driven in at high speed, and then hardens once it cools back down. This adhesive forms a stronger bond between the building materials and the nail or staple shank than do the traditional uncoated nails or staples. Remembering that a hole already has been made by the original installation of the nail or staple, once this adhesive bond is broken by nail or staple popping, while driving the nail or staple back in manually will generate a small amount of friction, it is insufficient to thoroughly melt the adhesive, hence the original bond is not restored. For this reason, the nails or staples do not reseat with the same holding force as when they were originally driven into the building material. If uncoated nails or staples were used, this does not alter the fact that nail or staple popping reduces the hold that the shank had on the building material it was driven into. It should be noted that a nail or staple here and there would not likely have a significant impact on the structure of the home. What is being discussed is a series of nails or staples being popped loose in the same area of the home.

All problems similar or the same as the examples listed above should be listed on a new line in the comments section of the FTC complaint form as "Structural defect(s)".

Circuit breaker constantly tripping: – to many devices (light, wall outlets, etc.) on a branch circuit can be a safety/fire hazard. Repeated tripping and resetting of circuit breakers indicates that the contact temperature has repeatedly exceeded the rating of the contacts. This excessive temperature can lead to the fusing of circuit breaker contacts, thereby, eliminating the overload protection. This requires some common sense, for example, if you have two electric space heaters plugged in and operating at the same time, within the same room, both are probably on the same branch circuit, which would not be uncommon in any type of housing. Two space heaters on the same circuit would overload most any branch circuit in any type of home.

Smoke detectors/alarms not present: – the federal standards require smoke alarms and if they are not present, this is a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. (Safety hazard)

Smoke detectors/alarms don’t work: – the federal standards require that the smoke alarms work and if they do not, this a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. (Safety hazard)

Smoke detectors/alarms: – on same circuit as lights, wall outlets, or GFI devices. Smoke alarms should be on their own branch circuit and this circuit should not contain a Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) device of any kind. If they are not on their own circuit, or a GFI device is on the same circuit with the smoke detectors, this is a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. (Safety hazard)

If the manufacturer will not promptly correct problems with smoke detectors/alarms, you should hire a contractor to install these devices or properly install these devices, or at least purchase battery operated devices and install them until the manufacturer corrects the defects, if they correct this defect at all. You can seek restitution from the manufacturer under the Manufactured Home Procedural and Enforcement Regulations.

Wall outlet(s) don’t work: – a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Light(s) don’t work: – a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Multi-section homes – the method of crossover for electrical connection between each section of the home varies from manufacturer-to-manufacturer, from model-to-model. You should consult your installation manual for the details on how this should have been accomplished. If what was done is not done in accordance with the manufacturer's detail for accomplishing this job, this reflects a defect in performance, construction, materials, or components. (Can be a safety/fire hazard)

Electrical Service power line connections – should be accomplished in compliance with local electrical codes. If you live in an area where no such jurisdiction exists, this should be accomplished in accordance with your electrical provider. If these connections are not done in accordance with the local code jurisdiction, or in accordance with your electrical provider, this reflects a defect in performance, construction, materials, or components. (Can be a safety/fire hazard) Note: this applies only if the manufacturer/retailer/installer included this task as part of the on-site completion of your manufactured home.

All problems similar or the same as the examples listed above should be listed on a new line in the comments section of the FTC complaint form as "Electrical defect(s)"

Plumbing leaks can lead to structural damage to the home as well as mold growth in your home. If the manufacturer will not promptly repair leaks in the plumbing system, you should hire a contractor to make the repairs and seek restitution from the manufacturer under the Federal Procedural and Enforcement Regulations. If the leak was severe and has already caused problems like those listed under structural defects, this damage should be listed on the FTC complaint form as "Structural defects", in addition to listing the "plumbing defects" that resulted in the secondary damage.

Natural, Propane, or Butane gas line leak – a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. (Safety/fire/explosion hazard)

Outside exposed water lines not insulated in accordance with manufacturers instructions or leaking – a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Drain lines are not supported in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions or leaking – a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Water leaks in any water lines are a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Drain line leaks at any point prior to and up to the connection with public sanitary sewer system or a septic system, are a defect in performance, construction, materials or components

All problems similar or the same as the examples listed above should be listed on a new line in the comments section of the FTC complaint form as "Plumbing defect(s)".

Leaks in Heating/AC ducts are a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Leaks in heating equipment exhaust venting pipe (Natural, propane, or butane gas only) are a defect in performance, construction, materials or components. (Safety/fire hazard)

Leaks in Furnace/AC closet are a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

Crossover AC/Heat duct not supported or in contact with ground (Floor vents only), or which leak, are a defect in performance, construction, materials or components.

All problems similar or the same as the examples listed above should be listed on a new line in the comments section of the FTC complaint form as "Heating/AC defect(s)".

Tears in carpeting

Glue on wall finishes, such as paint or vinyl covering.

Interior finishing scratches (Note: in northern climates, vinyl covered sheetrock represents a moisture barrier, which is essential to the homes structural performance. Because of this, if the damage to these finishes is extensive, this may represent a structural defect)

Cracks in wall finishes (Note: if this has been corrected and the problem has come back, this is likely related to an unstable foundation system or structural failure).

Trim falling off or fell off

Scratches Cabinets, counter tops, etc.

Broken cabinet drawers or doors

Crooked cabinet drawers or doors

There are many types of finishing defects, and those listed above are just a few examples. In the end, this is a judgment call that you will have to make.

All problems similar or the same as the examples listed above should be listed on a new line in the comments section of the FTC complaint form as "Finishing defect(s)".

Go to FTC Complaint form page

Go to Brands Listing page

Go to listing of Federal Standards that are dependent on the proper on-site completion of a manufactured home

Go to Federal Trade Commission On-line Consumer Complaint form

Go to Manufactured Home Construction Standards

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