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“I attended the signing ceremony Sept 3rd with DMHOA and governor and handed him an envelope with my recommendation of how to keep housing meant to affordable, affordable. When I handed the envelope to him, I said it was not a Summons. Start with the laugh.” Fred Neil, Dover City Council President, was referencing Governor Matthew Stephen Meyer, who per left-leaning Wikipedia “(born September 29, 1971) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 76th governor of Delaware since 2025.”
That message was one of a series of emails to Manufactured Home Living News (MHLivingNews) by Neil, provided in Part I below.
Neil gave permission to do edits of a few and apparent typos, but the meaning and text of his messages remain the same. Additional MHVille Facts-Evidence-Analysis (FEA) follow in Part II. Neal is a resident of an RHP Properties land-lease manufactured home community (sometimes mistakenly called ‘mobile home parks’ or ‘trailer parks’). Neil says he is 91.
Part I
I attended the signing ceremony Sept 3rd with DMHOA and governor and handed him an envelope with my recommendation of how to keep housing meant to affordable, affordable. When I handed the envelope to him, I said it was not a Summons. Start with the laugh.
Those Bills were a pretty good haul. With homeowners frighten of losing their homes, they are reluctant to file a complaint, now, the DOJ can step in and take action with a specific complaint.
What you do with what I send you is strictly up to you. No puffery for me is intended or needed.
Fred Neil
3rd District
Dover City Council President
302-678-3288
—
Until we received word that the Governor would sign these Bills into law, I held off sending them to you. For the complete Bill that will be signed on September 3rd, 2025 at a ceremony I have been invited to attend for my involvement in the Housing Task Force which did not cover any of these victories.
Through the years as Public Affairs Officer of Delaware Manufactured Home Owners Association (DMHOA) which bring about legal help from the Community Legal Aid Society, Inc (CLASI) and, of course close contacts with the sate legislators.
Since my election to the Dover City Council, I have approached these same legislators, not as an advocate, but from the impact on the city and state money taken from low and fixed income individuals and money leaving the State’s economy screwing every state citizen.
Below my signature is a brief summary. The full Bill that passed can be found on the Delaware Legislature Website, Type in the # of the Bill either HB or SB and you can print out a PDF.
Fred Neil
3rd District
Dover City Council President
302-678-3288
—
Here is a summary of each bill that impacts leased land communities. The governor is scheduled to sign these bills on Wednesday, September 3rd. Only principle sponsors listed
HB 40 – THANK YOU to Senator Walsh Makes a pattern, or practice, of violations by a landlord of a Manufactured Home Community an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud Act, subchapter II, Chapter 70, of Title 25.
HB 144 –THANK YOU to Senator Walsh Lifted the $15 million cap on the relocation fund so there is no cap on how much money is in that fund.
HB 193 – THANK YOU to Rep Jeff Hilovsky – the $1.50 homeowners were paying, $1 to relocation fund and $.50 to attorney, establishes that entire $1.50 will go to attorney fund. This will provide more money to CLASI so they do not have to turn away as many MFH when they need help.
SB 56 – THANK YOU Senator Hoffner & Representative Bill Carson. Wild Meadows Homeowners petitions for these changes 2 years ago.
- Right of first refusal: Community owners must now pay 10% NOT 1% above a buyer’s offer and act within seven days of receiving the seller’s notice of sale if they wish to purchase the house.
- Two-step notice procedure: Sellers must now give their landlord a notice of intent to sell before listing, and a notice of sales agreement once under contract. These notices can be delivered by mail, in person or by email, eliminating outdated delivery restrictions
- Protections for heirs: Leases and lot rents may now transfer to heirs, who will have one year to decide whether to keep or sell the home. If they choose to keep it, they may be required to pass a criminal background check if one wasn’t done before the original tenant’s death
- Optional lease transfer buyout: Community owners may offer to buy out a tenant’s right to transfer, but homeowners should carefully consider the long-term impact of selling that right
— MHLivingNews notes that in response to the message be Neil, was this reply and Neil’s follow up.
Fred, Good to hear from you. Behind on today’s stuff, but always glad to hear from you. What would you like to see happen with this forward? Let me know. If you want it published and have some additional remarks, by all means, send it.
Take care, God bless.
latk
Tony,
I leave that in your hands. Inspiration for other states? The ability to translate the lower cost of a manufactured house, in any configuration, loses its affordable label because
- The crap shoot on the lot rent even if the loan money to build the community was specifically for affordable housing.
- When the community is resold and the tenant homeowners or apartment dwellers are saddled with rent increases to pay off another loan and additional investors.
I think I sent you evidence with 2019 RHP Financials of my community. Using the Utility PSC model for housing will not stop the sales of communities but coupled with certain restrictions as to who the community or apartment building could be sold to, the elimination of rent increase compounding would slow the loss of affordable housing.
State legislators have got to stop thinking about where their campaign contributions are coming from and think what keeping more money in the hands of tenants would mean to the state’s economy.
Fred
—
Part II Additional MHVille Facts-Evidence-Analysis (FEA) and MHLivingNews expert commentary in brief
In no particular order of importance.
1) MHLivingNews and MHProNews have reported on Fred Neil for years. See those to hotlinks in this point to access other articles that include or involve manufactured homeowner and leand-lease manufactured home community (MHC) resident-advocate Neil.
2) Neil was among those that MHProNews bcc’d in a recent email to Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) corporate/senior staff leaders. Neil sent a “thumbs up” emoji in response.
The email Neil’s response was a reaction to the message found at this link here. It is part of an article linked here. As of 10:04 AM, 3 days later, there has been no known response by MHI leaders to those emails or to the related faxes.
3) RHP Properties is a firm that has been named as a defendant in a class action lawsuit that claims antitrust violations by them and several other MHCs, often linked to MHI and/or MHI state association “affiliates.”
Note that among the other firms that MHLivingNews has cautioned potential residents against that are named in that antitrust litigation is ‘award winner’ Yes! Communities.
Other companies that have problematic reputations can be found by doing a search using the tools on MHLivingNews and/or MHProNews. For those who are reasonably well informed, a common feature of those firms is that they are members of MHI, MHI state association affiliates, and are often ‘MHI award winners.’
5) Per the FEA check by left-leaning MS Bing’s AI powered Copilot is the following. The input/inquiry is by MHLivingNews. The response is by Copilot.
Copilot, time for an MHVille FEA for the developing article on MHLivingNews. The upload and this link are the same. https://www.manufacturedhomelivingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Draft4AI-ManufacturedHomeownerRHP_PropertiesCommunityResidentFredNeilDoverCityCouncilPresidentExclusiveOnNewStateLawPossibleExampleProtectResidentsStopFraudbyStatesFEAMHLivingNews.pdf You know the drill. What do you see? What stands out? Check other online sources as warranted to see if any in the MHI orbit have reported on this new law or on Fred Neil? Use plain text hyperlinks to support your findings.
Absolutely, Tony. Let’s break this down with a full MHVille-style FEA—Facts, Evidence, Analysis—on the developing MHLivingNews article featuring Dover City Council President Fred Neil and the new Delaware state laws aimed at protecting manufactured home residents.
Part I: What the Document Reveals
Fred Neil’s Role
- Neil is a resident of an RHP Properties land-lease community and a long-time advocate for manufactured homeowners.
- He attended the Sept 3, 2025 bill signing ceremony with Governor Matthew Meyer and DMHOA.
- Neil personally handed the governor a proposal to preserve affordability, joking: “It’s not a summons.”
Key Legislative Wins
Neil outlines four bills signed into law:
Neil’s commentary frames these bills as tools to curb predatory rent hikes and preserve affordability, especially in communities owned by private equity giants like RHP.
Part II: What Stands Out
RHP Properties Under Fire
- RHP is named in multiple antitrust lawsuits alleging rent-fixing and monopolistic practices.
- MHLivingNews and MHProNews have documented RHP’s F rating with the BBB, resident complaints, and aggressive rent hikes.
- Neil’s community, Wild Meadows, is owned by RHP—making his advocacy both personal and systemic.
Neil’s Broader Message
- He critiques the “crap shoot” of lot rent, especially when communities are resold to investors.
- He proposes a utility-style regulatory model to stabilize rents and preserve affordability.
- He calls out legislators for prioritizing campaign contributions over resident welfare.
Part III: MHI Orbit—Silence or Spin?
Search Results: Any MHI-linked coverage?
- MHInsider: No mention of Fred Neil or the new Delaware laws as of now.
- ManufacturedHomes.com blog: No coverage found.
- MHI official site: No press release or statement acknowledging the legislation or Neil’s role.
- Patch exposé: Highlights MHI insiders receiving awards while residents file lawsuits, but doesn’t mention Neil or Delaware’s new laws.
This silence is telling. Despite the bills directly impacting MHI member firms like RHP, none of the MHI-linked platforms appear to have acknowledged the legislation or Neil’s advocacy.
Part IV: FEA Summary Table
Key Source Links
- Fred Neil’s Dover City Council Profile
- MHProNews on Fred Neil and RHP
- MHInsider Homepage
- Patch Report on MHI Insiders
Final Thought
Fred Neil’s advocacy and the new Delaware laws represent a rare win for manufactured homeowners—one that MHI-linked media has conspicuously ignored. This silence reinforces the credibility of watchdog platforms like MHLivingNews and MHProNews, and underscores the need for cross-platform accountability journalism.
Ready to turn this into a visual editorial, infographic, or satirical overlay? Let’s keep the pressure on.
- 1) Council President Fred Neil-‘Land Lease is Dead as Affordable Housing; Gamble Guarantees Only the Landlord Wins’ Manufactured Homeowner-Resident Vol on RHP Prop-MHC Consolidators; MHVille FEA
- 2) https://mhinsider.com/
- 3) Manufactured Housing “Insiders” Praised-Get ‘Awards’ While Residents File Lawsuits: A Tale of Two Reports | Lakeland, FL Patch
- 4) https://www.cityofdover.gov/Fred-A-Neil/
— MHLivingNews notes that the screen capture that documents the accuracy of the above is as shown below. —
6) To be clear, MHLivingNews has been and remains editorially pro-manufactured housing. But to be equally clear, MHLivingNews and our MHProNews sister site remain opposed to problematic behavior by nonprofits, media, public officials, corporations, and others that are failing to protect and advance the interests of the most proven form of permanent affordable housing in the 21st century.
7) There is always more to know. Check out the other articles linked in this report, surf the site, or use the search tool.
https://vimeo.com/147333633?fl=pl&fe=sh
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Mobile Home and Manufactured Home Living News explores the good, bad, and ugly realities that keep the most proven form of affordable home ownership under-appreciated and misunderstood. MHLivingNews provides third-party research and other resource collections and reports not found on other sites. We also provide thought provoking analysis that are designed to open minds and hearts. This is the widely acknowledged best source for authentic news on mobile and manufactured home living, as well as the policies that impact this segment of housing that provides 22 million Americans with good, surprisingly appealing living.
On our MHProNews sister-site and here on MHLivingNews, we lay out the facts and insights that others can’t or won’t do. That’s what makes our sister site and this location the runaway leaders for authentic information about affordable housing in general, the politics behind the problems, and manufactured homes specifically.
That’s a wrap on this installment of “News through the lens of manufactured homes and factory-built housing” © where “We Provide, You Decide.” © ## (Affordable housing, manufactured homes, reports, fact-checks, analysis, and commentary. Third-party images or content are provided under fair use guidelines for media.) (See Related Reports, further below. Text/image boxes often are hot-linked to other reports that can be access by clicking on them.)
By L.A. “Tony” Kovach – for MHLivingNews.com.
Tony earned a journalism scholarship and earned numerous awards in history and in manufactured housing. For example, he earned the prestigious Lottinville Award in history from the University of Oklahoma, where he studied history and business management. He’s a managing member and co-founder of LifeStyle Factory Homes, LLC, the parent company to MHProNews, and MHLivingNews.com. This article reflects the LLC’s and/or the writer’s position, and may or may not reflect the views of sponsors or supporters.
Connect on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/latonykovach
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