Mobile home park kicking out residents for $11,000 - in Canada

Many mobile home park residents live in fear of being kicked out due to the park owners wanting to develop or sell the land. In the USA, this actually does not happen too often I assume due to our legal system and society being bent on saving the little guy, while also keeping as much low-income housing as possible.

However, it does happen. But, in most cases, the park owners are forced to buy out the residents at market value.

Not the case in British Colombia Canada. There, and across Canada, the park owners buy out residents at very low amounts. The government of Canada is working on getting this stopped, but it is actually quite common.

Here is a snippet of an article I found today:

"Several Abbotsford, B.C., seniors whose homes will be bulldozed are calling for more compensation from the landowner, who is closing the manufactured home park where they live.
“This is a horrible, horrible situation to put people in,” said resident Barb Lewis. “None of us knew that when we bought in here — we had absolutely no idea.”
Karen Matty, a prominent developer in Abbotsford whose family owns the park with 100 homes on it, is offering tenants of Garden Village approximately $11,000 to vacate, so the 5.3 hectares can be redeveloped.
The seniors own their manufactured homes and rent the “pads” they sit on, for approximately $400 per month. Most of the homes are too old to be moved.
“Some residents have bought into this park within the past two years at a cost of $70,000 to $80,000 and had asked if the park is safe and will remain as a mobile home park, and they were told yes, this park will remain,” said 60-year-old resident Ron Leitch.
“What about all the money we’ve invested? What’s to happen to that? What’s to happen to us?” said Lewis, 61. “I would like to see Matty provide us with an adequate place to live.”
Homes turned to rubble
Almost half the residents from the retirement community have taken the compensation deal and some of the homes have already been leveled."

The article goes on to say:


"“No one should be forced to leave their home without being fairly compensated for it,” said Joyce Klein of the Active Manufactured Home Owners Association.
Klein said this is a problem across Canada. She wants the B.C. law beefed up, to require landowners to give residents fair market value or assessed value for their homes when they can’t be moved. She said some municipalities already require fair compensation, beyond the provincial minimum, while others have few rules."

This article was written by:
By Kathy Tomlinson, CBC News
Posted: May 30, 2012 2:08 AM PT

Please read the full article here:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2012/05/29/bc-trailerparkclosure.html

In the USA, and across the world, it is very important for the residents to stick together and fight this kind of behavior. Our legal system is there to protect everyone from this type of thing.

Any comments? What is your opinion?