What is a Park Model Home?

An RV that feels like a house.

Park model homes, although considered recreational vehicles, are transportable and primarily designed for long-term or permanent placement at a destination where an RV or mobile home is allowed. When set up, park models are connected to the utilities necessary to operate home style fixtures and appliances. Park models are popular with people for use as a cottage, vacation or retirement home.

Most park model RV owners locate their home near their primary residence and use them for weekend excursions. Some may place theirs in a warm climate and use seasonal, a temporary escape from the gray dreary bone chilling weather of winter. Others may place them in colder environments to escape the constant heat and humidly found in the southern regions of the U.S. Some find somewhere in between (aka “Tweeners”), up north and down south for that perfect environment that’s not too cold and not too hot but still experiences all 4 seasons.Many believe Franklin, N.C. offers this, and is why Tiny Life Homes chose this area to offer our unique array of TINY HOUSES, the HOMES FOR AN ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLE!

The Specifics:

In the United States, park models must remain under 400 square feet (37 m2) to qualify as a recreational vehicle under most federal and state laws. A park model usually has steel tie-down straps for attachment to ground anchors. These are often required to satisfy local zoning and/or mobile home park regulations.

The Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) operates a safety standards and inspection program that requires member manufacturers of all recreation vehicles, including park model RVs, to affix a RVIA standards program seal to every unit they build in their factories. This seal indicates the manufacturer’s certification that the unit complies with the requirements of the applicable standards. A park model RV can always be identified by the blue and gold RVIA ANSI A119.5 certification seal (or its predecessor green RPTIA seal) affixed to the right of the main door of the unit.

Although the distinctive appearance of park model RVs may sometimes lead people to think they look like small manufactured homes, appearances can be deceiving. PMRVs are actually titled and registered the same as other RV’s. Due to their design, small size and use as mostly recreation, vacation and seasonal units, PMRVs are explicitly excluded from being considered or used as a manufactured home. This is under the codes and regulations of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) specifically because they are a type of recreation vehicle (Title 24 § 3282.8(g)).