FOR HOMEOWNERS

According to the SC Department of Motor Vehicles, if a manufactured home is bought/sold between two people, sales tax is not required. This type of transaction is called a “casual sale” and not taxed.

In many cases, the title to your home will be needed to complete the sale. The title is the document that proves you own the home.

If you can’t locate the title, you should be able to obtain a copy from the “DMV,” the SC Department of Motor Vehicles.  

The steps are outlined below.

Sometimes getting the title can be a challenge, especially if you don’t have all the information the agency asks for. Your home retailer, lender or closing attorney may be able to help you. Attorney Chris Tuttle said his firm now offers title location as a popular service.

Step One: Forms

• Complete this form: Application for Certificate of Title– Form 400
• Get an “Affidavit of Responsibility” from the county.   This form must be signed and notarized.

Step Two: Mail Documents

• The Application for Certificate of Title, (Form 400)

• Affidavit of Responsibility

• Your check made payable to the South Carolina Department of Revenue & Taxation, in the amount of $5.00. This is the titling fee.

• The original Certificate of Origin or the duplicate Certificate of Origin you obtained from the manufacturer.

  (Retaining copies of all original documents is advised before mailing to the DOR.)

Mail the following documents to:
South Carolina Department of Revenue and Taxation
Titling Department
PO Box 1498
Columbia, SC 29216-0024

If you can’t locate the original Certificate of Origin on your home, write to the manufacturer, requesting a duplicate of the Certificate of Origin

• List information such as the model, serial number, and retailer the home was purchased from. (See below, “Finding the Serial Number.”)
• Enclose a postage paid, self-addressed return envelope.

Occasionally you may find that the manufacturer doesn’t have a copy of the Certificate of Origin. Or it may have gone out of business. In that case, the DMV is often able to find the title on your home through the Vehicle Identification Number, sometimes called the “VIN,” “VIN number,” or “serial number.” (The serial number is actually part of the VIN.)

The VIN can be found on a document called the data plate, which is actually an 8” by 11” piece of paper which is affixed to all manufactured homes by the manufacturer. The data plate is usually found in a location such as the wall of a bedroom or kitchen closet or the inside of a kitchen cabinet. The number is also listed on the Bill of Sale.

Even if you can’t find any of this paperwork, you can still retrieve the VIN on the outside of the home. Manufactured homes are built on a steel frame (as is the Biltmore House.) The VIN is also stamped into that frame at the “front beam cross-member.” That’s the point on the frame where the hitch is bolted on the frame in order to pull the house to the home site. It will be on one of the narrow ends of the home or home section.

A Note About Terminology: The Department of Motor Vehicles uses outdated terminology in their record-keeping such as “VIN number” and “mobile home.” That’s because their system goes back to decades ago when the predecessor to the modern-day manufactured home was more likely to be moved. The DMV uses its motor vehicle registration system for manufactured homes.

Many manufactured home owners “detitle” their home. The home and land are combined into one property and the owners receive one tax bill for both. Detitling is an option that can get the buyer a lower interest rate.

The DMV describes the process for selling a detitled home on the agency’s website

If the title has been retired on a mobile home and the home will be attached to real property in its new location, you do not need to get a new title. The home’s buyer must file a Manufactured Home Severance Affidavit with the county’s register of deed or clerk of court in the county the home is being moved to and the county it’s being moved from.

If the home will not be attached to real property, the owner must get a new title from the SCDMV. If you’re getting a new title, the lien must be released or the lien holder must consent to transfer the lien to the new home and you must mail all paperwork to the address below:

SCDMV
Titles and Registration
PO Box 1498
Blythewood, SC 29016-0024

You must send all of the following documents:

• Completed Application for Title/Registration of Mobile Home (SCDMV Form 400)
• Identification proving you are who you say you are
• Stamped, clocked copy of the Manufactured Home Severance Affidavit
• Affidavit of Security Interest of Record
  This document is written by an SC-licensed attorney, and identifies, in order of priority, any party having a security interest on the real property.
• $15 – Please mail a check or money order, made out to the SCDMV, to the address above. Do not mail cash.

You must file a copy of the completed Application for Title/Registration of Mobile Home (SCDMV Form 400) with the county the home was previously located in.

A good place to start is to get a payoff quote showing how much you owe on your present home and to get an appraisal estimating how much you can get for your home.

Payoff Quote
The company that services the mortgage can provide you a payoff quote showing what you still owe on the mortgage. Your lender can give you the address or email to request the quote. These can no longer be requested by phone because the company has to keep track of who requested the payoff information. Payoff quotes are normally good for 15 days and have the daily per diem should the payoff go over the 15 day period

Appraisal  
The next step typically is to call an appraisal company experienced in working with manufactured homes. The fee for the appraisal may run from around $295 to $350. 

Once the seller and buyer agree on a sales price, the seller should once again get a payoff quote from their lender that they can share with the buyer’s lender. 

If the purchaser is getting a loan, the buyer’s lender will pay the seller’s lender the amount of the payoff at the closing and pay the difference to the seller.  The buyer’s lender will then get the released title sent straight to them so that they can put their new lien on the title.

For a cash transaction, it may be wise to do the closing through an attorney or closing agent. (“Cash transaction” here means that buyer isn’t borrowing any money, not that actual cash is involved.)

The extra protection of using an attorney or closing agent may be advisable because there will be no lender involved. Lenders are licensed and bonded in the states they operate in and a buyer or seller would have reasonable assurances that they will get their money and legal requirements have been met.

Click here for more information. 

The Data Plate is a paper label affixed inside the home and is the size of a standard sheet of paper (8 ½” x 11”). The Data Plate can be found in a kitchen cabinet, an electrical panel, or a bedroom closet. The Data Plate has maps of the United States to inform the owner of the Wind Zone, Snow Load, and Roof Load of the home.

To find the date of manufacture, look for a data plate located inside your home, usually on or near the main electrical panel, in a kitchen cabinet, or in a bedroom closet. The data plate offers information about the home’s HVAC, i.e., heating, cooling, and other appliances and components. The data plate also shows you the wind zone and snow load for which the home was built.

A red HUD plate will be stamped with a serial number and attached to the exterior of the home.

For more, visit HUD.gov at https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/housing/rmra/mhs/mhslabels

Many manufactured homeowners “de-title” their home. The home and land are combined into one property and the owners receive one tax bill for both. De-titling is an option that can get the buyer a lower interest rate

Manufacturers place serial numbers on all manufactured homes. These numbers are located on either bedroom or kitchen closet doors, kitchen drawers, or the tongue (the pulling device), and on the Bill of Sale or original Certificate of Origin. This number is needed to obtain a duplicate title from the Department of Transportation (DOT).

Can’t locate the original Certificate of Origin on your home?

1. Write to the manufacturer, requesting a duplicate of the Certificate of Origin.
   
   
2. List information such as the model, serial number, and retailer the home was purchased from.
   
   
3. Enclose a postage paid, self-addressed return envelope.
   
   
4. Contact the Department of Transportation for the following forms:
   
   
   1. Application for Certificate of Title- Form 400
   2. Affidavit of Responsibility — This form must be signed and notarized.
      
      
5. Mail the following documents to: South Carolina Department of Revenue and Taxation, Titling Department, PO Box 1498, Columbia, SC 29216-0024
   
   
   1. The Application for Certificate of Title, (Form 400) and the Affidavit of Responsibility
   2. The original Certificate of Origin or the duplicate Certificate of Origin you obtained from the manufacturer
   3. Your check made payable to the South Carolina Department of Revenue & Taxation, in the amount of $5.00. This is the titling fee.
      
      
6. In some cases, where the last owner is deceased, you may need a letter from the tax accessors office stating that the home is 5 years or older and all taxes are current.
   
   
7. NOTE: Retaining copies of all original documents is advised before mailing to the DOT.

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