Tennessee Mobile Home Cheat Sheet for Agents (Free PDF)

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The three labels — know which one you're looking at

HUD certification label: Red metal plate riveted to the outside rear of each section. Means built to the federal HUD Code (June 15, 1976 or later). One per section — a double-wide has two.
HUD data plate: Paper label inside — usually a kitchen cabinet, bedroom closet, or electrical panel door. Lists manufacturer, serial number, date of manufacture, and the wind / roof load / thermal zone map.
Tennessee modular label: State-issued numbered label (Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0780-02-13-.11). Means modular — built to the building code, not the HUD Code. People call it the "green tag," but color varies; read the wording, not the color.
No label at all: Pre-1976 or the label was removed. Most lenders will not finance it. IBTS can issue a label verification letter from HUD records for a fee.
Why it matters: HUD Code = manufactured, titled like a vehicle until de-titled. Modular = real property from day one. Different loans, different appraisals, different paperwork.

What to photograph and write down — every time

1: The red HUD label on each section (get the number readable)
2: The full data plate, straight on, no glare
3: The serial / VIN number, written down separately in case the photo blurs
4: Year of manufacture and the wind zone from the data plate
5: Under the home — piers, footings, anchor straps, skirting, any sagging
6: Whether the hitch, axles, and wheels are still attached
7: The parcel — is the home on land the seller owns, or leased/park land?
8: Any recorded affidavit of affixation in the register of deeds

De-title or don't — the five files you'll actually see

Conventional or FHA loan on land: DE-TITLE. Lender can't write a real-property mortgage while it's still titled through the clerk.
Owns land, title in a dead parent's name: DE-TITLE, but clear the estate first. Expect three to six weeks — start the day you list.
Home in a park on leased land: DO NOT de-title. It stays personal property. Telling that seller otherwise is the most common mistake agents make.
New home delivered to land the buyer owns: Affidavit is filed against the manufacturer's certificate of origin. Clean if you handle it at the front end.
De-titled home the owner now wants to move: Title has to be re-issued by the state before it can legally roll.

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The four steps that make it real property

1: Same person owns the home and the land
2: Home is permanently affixed to a permanent foundation (hitch, axles, and wheels removed)
3: Affidavit of affixation recorded with the register of deeds
4: Certificate of title surrendered to the state and cancelled — T.C.A. § 55-3-138
Result: The home merges into the land: one owner, one deed, one insured estate — and now a lender will write a mortgage on it.

Title, taxes, and the questions you'll get asked

Why won't the title company insure it?: Title insurance covers real property. A titled mobile home is personal property, like a boat — legally invisible to the policy until it's affixed and the title is cancelled.
Why change the name on the title now?: It behaves like a car title. Not transferred at closing means the seller is still the owner of record — back taxes and notices go to them, and a death, divorce, or bankruptcy tangles the home in it.
Most common title defect here: "We just never changed it" — ten years of unrecorded transfers. Costs a closing three to six weeks, sometimes a surety bond.
Lost title or broken chain: Certificate of title surety bond through the county clerk, then the title can be re-issued.
Tennessee paperwork to know: Affidavit of affixation (Dept. of Revenue), de-titling packet per VTR-63, VIN/serial verification, surety bond form. Pull the current versions — form numbers change.
Taxes: Titled home = personal property tax roll. Affixed home = assessed with the land on the real property roll.

Financing at a glance

Chattel loan: Personal property loan on the home only. Higher rate, shorter term, no land.
FHA Title I: Home only, or home and lot. Limited lender availability.
FHA Title II / conventional: Requires real property: permanent foundation, de-titled, home and land together, 1976 or newer.
Foundation certification: FHA and VA want an engineer's certification that the foundation meets the permanent foundations guide.
USDA: Available on much of Grainger, Hancock, and Claiborne — new units, real property only.
Deal killer to check first: Pre-1976, missing label, leased land, or title in someone else's name.

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Field reference only, not legal advice. Tennessee titling and de-titling rules are set by the Department of Revenue and can change — confirm current forms and requirements before you rely on one.