It is official: Texas has changed the rules for manufactured homes

Texas has changed the rules for manufactured homes, reducing the power of municipalities to demand special permits and requiring them to make room for HUD-code units in suitable residential areas.

Senate Bill 785 amends the Texas Manufactured Housing Standards Act, which forms part of the state’s Occupations Code. The legislation, approved during the 89th regular legislative session, gives HUD-code homes treatment closer to that of other residences within the same zoning classification.

A municipality may no longer require a specific-use permit or similar authorization to install a new HUD-code home when the unit complies with federal law and state standards. Local governments also cannot demand that type of permit for other residential properties in the same zoning category.

The law requires local governments to allow residential HUD-code units in areas they consider appropriate. The listed locations include subdivisions, planned unit developments, individual lots, rental communities and parks. Applications remain subject to a 45-day process: if the municipality does not reject a request in writing within that period, the application is considered approved. A denial must also arrive within 45 days and explain the reason.

SB 785 keeps a ban on permits, fees, bonds or insurance for transporting and installing manufactured homes when a licensed seller or installer handles the work. A local government may still recover the actual costs of moving the structure. The law also preserves municipal authority to protect historic monuments and include properties in local historic districts. It does not change deed restrictions adopted before January 2, 2025, and includes an exception for municipalities where every residential area had deed restrictions banning manufactured homes as of September 1, 2025.