Park Model Homes: Where Can You Legally Put One?
Updated: Aug 27
Park model homes are one of the fastest-growing categories in small-home living, and almost every buyer lands on the same question before they ever pick a floor plan: where am I actually allowed to put one?
It is the right question to ask first. Placement drives everything downstream — financing, insurance, utility hookups, permitting, and how the home can be used once it is on site. At Phoenix Building Solutions we manufacture park model homes up to 400 square feet in our 75,000 sq. ft. NTA-certified plant in Greenville, Alabama, and we deliver nationwide. Below is a straight answer on where these homes can go, how to confirm it with your county before you spend a dollar, and what delivery actually looks like from our floor to your site.
400 Max Sq Ft
A119.5 ANSI Certified
4–6 Week Build
48 States Delivered
What Makes Park Model Homes Different From Other Small Homes
Before you can answer the placement question, you have to know exactly what you are buying. Park model homes are built to the ANSI A119.5 standard — not to HUD manufactured-housing code, and not to a state modular code. That one distinction is the reason the placement rules look the way they do.
400 square feet maximum of gross trailer area in set-up mode. Lofts and porches are handled separately under the standard.
Built on a single steel chassis with wheels, which is why the finished unit is titled and registered much like a recreational vehicle.
Treated as personal property in most states rather than real estate, which changes how taxes and insurance work. If you own the land it sits on, many states allow the home to be converted to real property once it is placed and tied down — ask your county how that conversion works before you assume it either way.
Third-party certified. Every unit we build is inspected and certified to ANSI A119.5 before it leaves the plant.
This is federal, not a matter of local interpretation. HUD's own rules say a unit built and certified to ANSI A119.5, and designed for recreational rather than permanent use, is exempt from the manufactured housing standards in 24 CFR parts 3280 and 3282. That exemption is what opens up RV parks, campgrounds and resort properties as legal placements — and it is also why some residential-zoned lots are more complicated.
Park Model Tiny Homes vs. Mobile and Modular Homes
Where we stand on scope: Phoenix Building Solutions builds park model homes only. We do not manufacture mobile homes and we do not manufacture modular homes. If you have been cross-shopping categories, that difference matters more than any feature list, because it decides which code your unit is built to and which placements are open to you.
You will also see this product searched as park model tiny homes, and in practice the two phrases describe the same thing. "Tiny home" is a lifestyle term. "Park model" is a code classification. Park model tiny homes carrying an ANSI A119.5 seal are park model RVs — and that seal is what a campground manager or county planner is going to ask about.
Where Can You Put Park Model Homes? Six Placements That Work
Here are the six placements our buyers use most, roughly in order of how easy they are to get approved.
1. RV Parks, Resorts, and Campgrounds
This is the path of least resistance and the use case the standard was written for. Most RV parks and resorts accept ANSI A119.5 park model homes outright, though many have their own rules on age, siding, skirting, and roof pitch. Call the park manager, confirm they accept A119.5-certified units, and ask for their site dimensions and any aesthetic requirements before you finalize a plan.
2. Tiny Home Communities
Purpose-built tiny home communities are expanding fast across the Southeast, Texas, the Carolinas and the Mountain West. These communities are typically zoned specifically for park model homes, which removes most of the guesswork. Lot rent replaces a mortgage on land, and utilities are usually already stubbed to the pad.
3. Private Land: The Biggest Variable for Park Model Homes
Private land is where the answer genuinely depends on your address. Some counties permit park model homes on private acreage without much friction, especially in unincorporated areas. Others allow them only as a seasonal or accessory structure, and a few restrict them entirely. Rural counties tend to be more permissive than incorporated city limits, and unrestricted acreage is more permissive than a platted subdivision with an HOA. Never assume — verify in writing, using the questions in the next section.
4. Short-Term Rental and Vacation Properties
Owners buying for Airbnb, VRBO or Hipcamp income are one of our largest buyer segments. A park model on a lakefront, mountain or roadside-attraction lot can be turned around quickly compared to stick-built construction, and our 4–6 week production window means the asset starts earning sooner. Check your local short-term rental ordinance and your lodging tax obligations alongside the zoning question.
5. Family Land, Guest Quarters, and Hunting Camps
A large share of our orders go onto land the family already owns — a guest house behind the main home, a place for visiting family, a deer camp, or a weekend place on the river. Because these units are personal property rather than real estate, they can often be placed with far less process than a permanent addition would require.
6. Campground and Resort Expansion
For commercial operators, adding a handful of park model homes is one of the highest-return ways to increase nightly rate and occupancy without pouring foundations. We regularly build multi-unit orders with matched exteriors and repeatable floor plans so a property can scale a consistent look across a phase.
Five Questions to Ask Your County Before You Order
Zoning for park model homes is decided locally, so call the planning and zoning office for the county — not the city, unless your parcel is inside city limits — and ask these five questions. Take names and get the answers by email.
Do you permit an ANSI A119.5 park model RV on this parcel? Use the standard number. It is the language they recognize, and it separates your unit from a HUD manufactured home immediately.
What are the occupancy limits for an ANSI A119.5 unit on this parcel? Ask what the limit is, not whether you can live there permanently. These homes are certified for recreational use, and counties set their own caps on consecutive nights or seasonal windows.
What permits are required for placement and utility connection? Usually a placement or setup permit plus separate electrical, water and septic permits pulled by licensed local trades.
What are the setback, tie-down, and skirting requirements? These affect where on the lot the unit can sit and what you will need on delivery day.
Are there overlay districts, HOA covenants, or floodplain rules on this parcel? A parcel can be zoned correctly and still be blocked by a covenant or a flood elevation requirement.
Use the right words. A park model home is certified under ANSI A119.5 as a recreational park trailer — designed for recreational use, not as a primary residence or permanent dwelling. That is how it is titled, that is what the certification label says, and that is how it should be described to the county. Calling it a permanent residence invites them to evaluate the home against a building code it was never built to, which is the fastest way to turn a simple placement permit into a denial.
If the county gives you a "no," ask specifically what would be allowed. Many jurisdictions permit the exact same unit as an accessory dwelling, a seasonal cabin, or a temporary structure during construction of a primary home. The unit does not change; the category on the application does.
Park Model Home Delivery: Our Alabama Floor to Your Site
Park model home delivery is more routine than most buyers expect, but it is not a driveway drop. Park model homes ship as a finished unit, not as a kit. Here is the real sequence, and it is the same sequence whether your site is two hours away or two thousand.
Production. Current build time runs roughly 4–6 weeks from approved design to a finished unit on our line.
Transport. The home ships on its own steel chassis behind a licensed oversize carrier. Oversize permits are pulled per state, and pilot cars are added where a state or route requires them.
Site prep. The setting surface needs to be level and ready before the truck arrives, and the route in needs clearance for the width and turning radius. Local contractors handle any sitework — but talk to your PBS rep before you hire anyone. A full pad often is not necessary for these homes, and not paying for work you do not need is one of the easiest places to save real money on the project.
Set and tie-down. The unit is positioned, blocked, leveled and anchored per the standard and your local requirements.
Hookups. Licensed local trades connect power, water and sewer or septic. This is always local by law, everywhere in the country.
Two points worth emphasizing on delivery. First, we deliver nationwide — Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Texas are heavy volume for us, but we routinely ship park model homes to the Carolinas, the Midwest, the Mountain West and the coasts. Second, freight is quoted by distance, route and site access, so the delivered price on the same floor plan is not the same in Mississippi as it is in Montana. Ask for the delivered number, not the base number, when you compare manufacturers.
Common Questions About Park Model Homes
Can you live in a park model home full time?
No — and that is by design rather than a shortcoming. Park model homes are certified to ANSI A119.5 as recreational park trailers, a classification that specifically covers homes designed for recreational use rather than as a primary residence or permanent dwelling. The right way to think about one is as a second place: a seasonal home, a weekend place, a guest house, a rental you use when you want it. Occupancy limits are set locally and vary widely, so ask your county what is allowed on your parcel.
Do park model homes pay property tax?
Generally no, because they are usually classified as personal property rather than real estate. You may owe a registration or ad valorem fee depending on the state. Verify locally — this is a state-by-state answer, not a national one.
How big can a park model home be?
400 square feet is the ceiling under ANSI A119.5. Lofts add usable space above that footprint, and porches designed within the unit expand how the space lives without breaking the standard.
Do you build mobile homes or modular homes?
No. We build park model homes exclusively, up to 400 square feet, certified to ANSI A119.5. If a project truly requires HUD or modular construction, we will tell you that up front rather than sell you the wrong product.
Can park model homes be financed?
Yes. Because these units are classified as recreational vehicles, they are typically financed through RV or chattel lenders rather than a conventional mortgage. See our financing options for the lenders our buyers use most.
How far will you deliver?
Nationwide. We coordinate permitted oversize transport to your site anywhere in the country and quote freight as part of your delivered price.
Ready to Compare Park Model Homes and Pricing?
Once you know where the unit is going, the fun part starts. Our park model homes range from an economical ADA-accessible studio to two-bedroom, two-loft layouts with 10-foot ceilings — all with vaulted ceilings, real wood interiors and full-size appliances as standard. Browse the full lineup on our park model homes floor plans and pricing page, or start from scratch with a custom build.
