Guide · updated Nov 10, 2026

Moving an older or used mobile home

The June 15, 1976 HUD Code date

The federal standards (often called the HUD Code) apply to manufactured homes made for sale in the United States on or after June 15, 1976. Under 24 CFR 3282.1, a home counts as manufactured on or after that date if it entered the first stage of production then. HUD also says transportable sections of homes built in the U.S. after that date must have the certification label, sometimes called a HUD tag. The construction standards themselves are in 24 CFR Part 3280.

Homes built before that date were made to earlier state or local codes. People often call those pre-HUD or mobile homes. That history is not, by itself, a ban on moving the home, and it is not a promise a park, lender or local office will accept it.

What to find on the home

Look for the HUD certification label on each section, and for the data plate inside the home (often in a cabinet or closet). The data plate is described in 24 CFR 3280. If those are missing, or the home was built before June 15, 1976, tell the mover and the destination park or land office before you book. Title, serial numbers and the year of manufacture are worth having in writing.

Paperwork often comes first

A used home often cannot get a moving permit until taxes are paid in the county where it sits now. A few examples from official sources we have already checked:

• Arizona. A used home cannot get an oversize moving permit until the county assessor issues a Form 504 tax clearance showing ad valorem taxes are paid, good for no more than 30 days (Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 28-1104).
• Colorado. The county treasurer issues an authentication of paid ad valorem taxes and an orange transportable manufactured home permit before a used home may move, and state-highway moves also need a CDOT permit (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 42-4-510).
• Texas. If a used home was sold in the last 18 months, TDHCA needs a tax statement or paid-in-full receipt from the tax assessor-collector as part of the Statement of Ownership process. See the TDHCA FAQ.
• Virginia. A used manufactured home may not leave the locality where it has been used as a residence until the owner gets a tax permit from the treasurer, issued only after local property taxes assessed or assessable against the home are paid (Va. Code § 58.1-3520). The permit expires in 45 days.

Those are not the only states with tax or title steps. See the permit pages for the origin and destination states, and permits and tax clearance for a move for how to ask about them in a quote.

Washington's rule for homes built before June 15, 1976

Washington writes the 1976 date into its moving-permit law. For mobile homes constructed before June 15, 1976, and already in the state, the applicant also needs a Labor & Industries fire-safety certification, or a signed owner affidavit in the commerce-prescribed form that the owner is moving the home for continued occupation or use, or title plus an affidavit that the home is going to a wrecking yard for disposal (RCW 46.44.170). We have not confirmed a matching pre-1976 fire-safety certificate in every other state, so we do not say it is a nationwide rule.

Ask the mover, and ask the destination

Whether axles, a hitch and tires are still on the home, and what the roads and the new site can take, is something to put in the quote request. We do not publish a standard list of equipment an older home needs. Parks, lenders and local offices sometimes have their own age or code rules; we do not keep a list of those, so ask before you buy or book.

If the move crosses a state line, look for a carrier whose FMCSA census operation type is Interstate, and still confirm the route with them. Use the quote form to say whether the home is a single-wide, double-wide or triple-wide, and to give the origin and destination ZIPs.

Buying the home itself is a separate step. See buying a used mobile home that has to be moved.

Sources

• 24 CFR 3282.1 (HUD procedural and enforcement regulations: June 15, 1976 effective date) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• HUD: Manufactured Housing Homeowner Resources (certification label / HUD tag) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• 24 CFR Part 3280 (Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards, including the data plate) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• RCW 46.44.170 (Washington special movement permit, including pre-June 15, 1976 homes) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 28-1104 (Form 504 tax clearance) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• Colo. Rev. Stat. § 42-4-510 (used-home tax authentication and moving permit) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• TDHCA Statement of Ownership FAQ (used-home tax statement) (checked Nov 10, 2026)
• Va. Code § 58.1-3520 (local treasurer tax permit for a used home) (checked Nov 10, 2026)