ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) — An Albuquerque mobile home community spotlighted by KRQE News 13 in January is still charging homeowners $1,500 before they can move their homes from the park.
Wyoming Terrace, a sprawling mobile home park at the intersection of Wyoming and Zuni SE, calls the money a “move-out deposit.” It’s more than three times the monthly rent at the park, according to leases and advertisements reviewed by News 13.
THE FACTS
Wyoming Terrace charges a moving “deposit”
State law doesn’t allowing moving or transfer fees
People who buy mobile homes and move them from Wyoming Terrace have no contractual relationship with the mobile home park
Whether the deposit requirement violates state law may be up to the courts to decide. News 13 spoke with several people who are suing the mobile home park to test that theory.
Ethan Fuchs is a rancher from Santa Rosa. In September, he bought the mobile home in spot W-38 at Wyoming Terrace and made plans to move it from the park to his land.
Moving a mobile home is a bit of a guantlet of titles, tax forms and license documentation: “When you move a mobile home,” Fuchs said, “you have to get a moving permit. And you have to go down to the assessor’s office and make sure all the property taxes are paid up to date. Then they give you a moving permit. And then you have to hire a licensed mover, which I did.”
Documents in hand, Fuchs called Lyllyan Morejon, the park manager, to let her know he planned to move the next day. She told him he needed to bring a cashier’s check for $1,500. Fuchs admits he initially agreed to the fee.
Then he called Leroy Carrillo, the man who sold him the mobile home.
Carrillo told Fuchs that the park had a history of demanding the money. And he told him about News 13’s story from January, which described the experience of a man named Sam Sandoval.
Sandoval sued Wyoming Terrace for the return of his $1,500, which the park had deposited in a bank account and then didn’t return to him — as a deposit would normally be handled — after the two sides got into a dispute. A Metro Court judge in Albuquerque heard the case in March, and the two parties settled in court.
The park returned Sandoval’s money.
Ethan Fuchs figured his case against having to hand over $1,500 to Wyoming Terrace was even stronger. “I had just purchased a home from an owner. I had no relationship with the Wyoming Terrace Mobile Home Park,” he said. He didn’t trust that he’d get the deposit money back in a timely fashion.
What he experienced the next day reinforced his belief.
When Fuchs showed up at the park, a blue Dodge pickup was parked in front of his home. The driver’s side front tire had been taken off and the vehicle was up on a jack. The truck had been placed there by the park.
When Fuchs demanded that Morejon move the truck from his space, she demanded $1,500.
He called Albuquerque police.
The officers who arrived were familiar with the move-out deposit policy run by the park. News 13 in January highlighted three other instances of police responding to similar complaints. Since that story, several other former residents or mobile home owners have called News 13 to complain about the deposit policy.
While the police faithfully show up, there’s not much APD can do. That’s because the matter is a civil dispute. An officer did confirm that part of the truck blocking Ethan Fuchs from moving his mobile home did appear to be on the lot his home occupied. APD couldn’t tow it, but Fuchs could.
When the tow truck showed up, Morejon parked herself in front of the blue Dodge and refused to move. Unless the police or tow truck driver or Fuchs himself wanted to lay hands on her to get her out of the way, they were out of luck.
Fuchs filed suit instead, and hopes a judge will side with him by ordering Wyoming Terrace to let his mobile home go without having to shell out $1,500 he wasn’t certain he’d ever see again.
His first hearing is scheduled for next week.
WHO DECIDES WHAT THE LAW SAYS?
Decisions by Metro Court judges don’t set precedent
Judges can interpret laws that don’t speak to a specific legal issue
The NM State Legislature can rewrite laws that are unclear
HOW IS THE LAW WORDED: NMSA 47-10-12. Selling fees prohibited.
The owner of a mobile home park or his agent shall not require payment of any type of selling fee or transfer fee by either a tenant in the park wishing to sell his mobile home to another party or by any party wishing to buy a mobile home from a tenant in the park as a condition of tenancy in a mobile home park for the prospective buyer. This section shall in no way prevent the owner of a mobile home park or his agent from applying the normal park standards to prospective buyers before granting or denying tenancy or from charging a reasonable selling fee or transfer fee for services actually performed and agreed to in writing by the tenant. Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the rent charged.