Mobile Homes and Property Taxes

INFORMATION ABOUT MOBILE HOMES &

PROPERTY TAXES

WARNING! If you live in a mobile home in Indiana, you could lose your home if the property taxes are behind. It doesn’t matter whether you own or rent the mobile home in which you are living. 

Mobile Homes with unpaid taxes can be sold by the county.

Personal property taxes must be paid on mobile homes yearly. If taxes are owed on your mobile home from a previous year, your mobile home is at risk of being sold at auction. The county can sell your mobile home at a tax sale if taxes owed are more than $25. The County Treasurer prepares a list of mobile homes that will be auctioned and must provide notice of the date, time, and location of the auction.

Caution! Demand for payment and notice of sale should be mailed to each taxpayer. If title to the mobile home is not in your name, if you don’t have a recorded contract that you are buying it, or the county does not have your address, you may not get notice.

You need to know that:

• Anyone may call a treasurer’s office to see if taxes are owed on a mobile home. You only need an address or name of whoever holds title.
• Anyone may pay taxes owed on a mobile home. You do not need to be the title holder to pay off the taxes.

How do you avoid sale?

• Call your county treasurer and make sure taxes are current. If not, let them know you have a legal interest in the property (renting or buying).
• If someone else owes taxes, make sure the owner, seller or landlord has paid. If you pay, the mobile home owner may have to pay you back.
• Pay the taxes, as well as any penalties, and collection expenses. Some counties may let you pay in installments.
• If you have a defense to the tax, you must file in court before the date listed in the notice.

To see if you qualify for free legal help, contact Indiana Legal Services at (844) 243-8570  between 10:00 and 2:00 Eastern Monday Through Friday.