Manufactured Homes
Manufactured Homes Valuation & Taxes:
Number of Homes, Taxable Value, Taxes Levied &
Delinquencies, Calendar Year 2000
Ohio Revised Code Section 4503.06 establishes a tax on
manufactured homes (house trailers) that is computed and
assessed by the county auditor where the manufactured home is
located, and is paid to and collected by the treasurer of the
same county.
- The manufactured home tax is computed based on the
assessed value, which is equal to 40 percent of the
depreciated value of either: (1) the manufactured home’s cost
to the owner; or (2) the market value at the time of
purchase, whichever is greater. Whether the home was
purchased with or without furnishings determines which
depreciation schedule is used. Manufactured homes used in a
business other than for lease or rental as a residence are
taxed as tangible personal property. Manufactured homes that
are leased or rented and used as a residence are not taxed as
personal property but are subject to the tax on manufactured
homes.
- The tax rate is equal to the real property tax rate for
the prior year for the subdivision where the manufactured
home is located. The revenue from this tax is distributed
among the taxing subdivisions of the county in which the
taxes are collected and paid in the same ratio as real estate
and public utility taxes are distributed for the benefit of
the taxing subdivision.
Owners of manufactured homes may elect to be taxed under
either the manufactured home or real property tax if
ownership was acquired prior to January 1, 2000. The
conditions to be met are: the home is affixed to real
property owned by the homeowner; the manufactured home is on
a permanent foundation; and the certification of title is
surrendered to the county auditor. Furthermore, manufactured
homes meeting the above conditions are taxed like real
property if the home was purchased on or after January 1,
2000. If the home was purchased prior to that date, and the
home is taxed under the manufactured home tax, it will be
taxed like real property after is it sold.
Real property in all counties is reappraised every six years
and property values are updated in the third year following
each sexennial reappraisal. The state assesses real
property at 3.5% of the true value. State law grants
tax relief in the form of a 10 percent reduction in each
taxpayer's real property tax bill. In addition, a 2.5
percent tax rollback of real property taxes is granted on a
homestead for each homeowner. Tax rates vary by taxing
district and is the compilation of all local levies.
Excluding Fairfield and Trumbull counties, a total of $37.0
million taxes was levied on manufactured homes for calendar
year 2000. A total of $21.4 million in prior years’
delinquencies was reported, for a total amount due of $58.4
million. The number of manufactured homes by county ranged
from 644 in Medina County to 6,637 in Clermont County with an
average of 2,545 per county. Taxable value by county ranged
from $1.1 million in Wyandot County to $23.1 million in
Portage County. Total 2000 taxes levied (including prior
years’ delinquencies) ranged from $71,766 in Wyandot County
to $2,549,400 in Portage County.
Table MH-1 shows the taxes levied (manufactured home and like
real property) by each county along with the number of
manufactured homes and their taxable value. The data
presented in the table were compiled from a survey of county
auditors conducted by the Ohio Department of Taxation