All pre-HUD homes (built prior to 1976) have flat roofs. However, some park residents decide that a flat roof is unattractive and does not drain well (which is true) and endeavor to build a new pitched roofline on their existing flat one. This is called a “roof-over,” and it is precisely as the name implies. In this video, we review the issues with this concept from a park owner’s perspective.
What Is A Mobile Home “Roof-Over? - Transcript
Here we have someone doing a classic roof-over. This is where you take an old flat roof home, not normally because it's leaking, or to improve insulation and you build a roof on top of it and this person has done a very good job with this roof-over. As you can see, he's put on a shingled pitched roof with plenty of air vents, and I'm sure plenty of insulation.
The question is, Is this okay in a mobile home park? And the answer is well, as long as you don't own the home, and are just renting the space, it's not really any of your business what the person does with their home.
Normally, these roof-over encompass homes that are pre-HUD. So as a result, since it's pre-HUD, there's very little case law and what it actually means as far as what you can and cannot do with the home regarding doing a roof-over. It is your property and if it has no HUD seal that HUD was not even involved in the original design or planning. So it's question whether they would have any say over what this person does anyway.
When you have roof-overs, the biggest thing to remember as a park owners to watch out for them, because it is kind of a structural hazard the weight of that roof is more than that home was designed for. So even though you have the benefits of greater insulation, better drainage and even better appearance, there is always that question of safety. I would not recommend that you as the park owner get involved and being on the title on a home that's had a roof-over.
But as far as is it okay for someone to do this in your park? Well, if the city inspector has no problems with it, and you're just renting, renting out that old parking space, it doesn't make that big of an impact.