New York’s Land-Home Property Act: A Quiet Change That Could Add Real Housing Inventory

New York State has enacted a practical housing-supply reform, recently signed by Governor Hochl, that could meaningfully expand affordable housing options: the New York Land-Home Property Act (S7120). In plain English, it creates a legal path for certain manufactured homes to be treated like real property instead of “vehicle-style” titled property, which can open the door to mortgage financing and smoother resale.

Why this matters for New York’s housing inventory problem

New York’s housing crunch is not just a “prices” story. It’s also a “not enough homes” story. Manufactured housing is one of the fastest and most cost-effective ways to add livable units, but New York’s long-standing treatment of many manufactured homes as titled personal property made financing harder and often more expensive. That limits buyers, depresses liquidity, and discourages investment in this part of the housing stock.

The Land-Home Property Act modernizes the system by establishing a process to surrender a manufactured home’s title and convert qualifying homes into real property. The practical impact: more homes may qualify for conventional mortgage-style financing rather than higher-cost alternatives.

What the new law does

• Creates a process for surrendering a manufactured home certificate of title and converting the home to real property when conditions are met.
• Establishes a recording pathway using an “affidavit of affixation” with the County Clerk (key step in tying the home to land records).
• Aligns DMV titling processes and real property procedures so manufactured homes can be conveyed and encumbered like real estate once converted.

Why agents,lenders, buyers, and communities should care

This is one of those “boring on paper, big in practice” reforms. Financing determines what buyers can buy, what sellers can sell, and what developers and communities will build. The promise here is making manufactured homes look and behave more like traditional residential real estate for financing purposes, though the results will depend on how rulemaking is implemented.

Potential benefits if implemented smoothly

• More affordable purchase options for first-time and workforce buyers.
• Better mortgage access and potentially lower-cost financing compared with chattel-style loans.
• Improved resale liquidity because the home can be transferred more like traditional real estate.
• More incentive for communities and owners to invest in and upgrade manufactured housing stock.

What real estate professionals should do next

For brokers, agents, lenders, and local officials, the immediate action is simple: watch the rollout and be ready to educate consumers. The law creates the pathway; the day-to-day usability will depend on the details of implementation and market adoption.

If you work with buyers who need affordability, or with sellers/parks/owners who want better financing options, this is worth tracking closely. It won’t fix inventory overnight, but it can remove a structural barrier that has kept a whole category of housing from functioning like normal housing in the financing ecosystem.

Sources

• New York State Senate, S7120: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/S7120
• NYS Tax Dept (ORPTS) 2025 legislative summary (notes Chapter 636 and affidavit-of-affixation concept): https://www.tax.ny.gov/pdf/publications/orpts/legis/legsum25.pdf