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Council approves amendment to mobile-home rent formula, replacing CPI-based method
Summary
Lancaster City Council approved an amendment to the city code changing the formula for annual mobile-home park rent increases, replacing the prior 60%-of-CPI method with a tiered approach that sets an approximate minimum of 2.5% and a 3% cap.
Lancaster City Council approved an amendment to the municipal code that changes how annual rent increases in mobile-home parks are calculated, saying the move will reduce volatility and provide more predictability for both residents and park owners.
Sam McNutt, manager for community preservation, said the city's existing method used a 60%-of-CPI (consumer price index) formula that produced wide swings in recent years: "In 2023, the rate was 1.3%. 2024 was 5.2% increase, and 2025 was 1.9% increase," he told the council. Those year-to-year changes, staff said, made budgeting difficult for seniors and low-income families and for park operators who need stable revenue for maintenance.
The adopted amendment replaces the automatic 60%-of-CPI formula with a tiered approach. Staff described it as establishing a minimum annual increase of roughly 2.5% when CPI is below that threshold, while capping increases at about 3% when CPI exceeds that level. Staff told the council this approach aims to "protect residents from sudden rent spikes" while offering park owners a dependable, modest annual adjustment.
Councilmember discussion on the item was brief. The council moved and seconded adoption of ordinance 11-42; the vote was recorded as 4 yes and the motion passed.
The ordinance amendment was presented as balancing resident protections and owner needs; staff said there would be no direct fiscal impact on the city. Council approved the ordinance and the measure will be codified into the Lancaster Municipal Code at the section noted in the staff report.
