Ownership Options

Becoming a Marin Valley Cooperative, Inc. (MVC) Member

MVC is a non-profit public corporation established on September 4, 2024. This was done according to objectives in the PAC Bylaws “to create whatever legal entity is required which conforms to state law to assume ownership of Marin Valley Mobile Country Club.” The intent is for MVC to acquire the Park and convert the Park to a limited equity housing cooperative (LEHC). Although acquisition will take some time, it is important to start building the democratic governance foundation of MVC by inviting residents to join MVC.MVC is a seniors-only community, requiring a single occupant/owner to be at least fifty-five (55) years of age upon purchase of a home or one resident homeowner to be at least fifty-five (55) years of age upon the homeowner’s purchase.

A Member in “Good Standing” is a person who owns and resides in a manufactured home (“Home”) in the community and who has completed the joining agreement and paid their $25 joining fee, as well as any spouse or partner in civil union and the other adult Members of their household who have signed the Joining Agreement.

Residents have been invited to join MVC by signing and returning the Joining Agreement along with a $25 check (made out to Marin Valley Cooperative) for a refundable Joining Fee. To learn what the Joining Agreement is all about and where to drop off your signed copy with your check, click HERE.

The following MVC documents are available for a final review. These documents will be approved by MVC Members at the first MVC Member Meeting on November 14, 2024, in the clubhouse ballroom from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm.

1.  Interim By-Laws for MVC, click HERE.

2. Three required MVC Board policies include Code of Conduct, Conflict of Interest, and Procurement, click HERE.

Activities Timeline

November 12, 2024  The amended Board Policies and Interim Bylaws were approved at the MVC Board meeting on Tuesday, November 12, 2024. They are available HERE. Ballots will be available at the first MVC Member meeting on Thursday, November 14, 2024, and will also be distributed for members unable to attend the meeting, for members’ approval of these documents.
Click HERE for the Zoom recording of the Board meeting.

Thursday, September 19  The September 19 workshop focused on joining the Marin Vally Cooperative and preparing for the first member vote. It covered critical updates on our “two-road” approach: (1) negotiations with the City to purchase the Park and (2) Limited Equity Housing Cooperative (LEHC) development; Instructions on how to become a Member of the non-profit public benefit corporation, an essential first step in becoming a LEHC; and Information on the measures to be voted on by the Members at the first Member’s meeting. The Joining Agreement was distributed with instructions to sign and drop it off with a refundable $25 check in the large ballot box in the lobby. Click HERE for the Zoom recording.

September 4, 2024   The Articles of Incorporation for the non-profit public benefit corporation Marin Valley Cooperative, Inc. were accepted by the Secretary of State. 

August 20, 2024  Becoming the Marin Valley Cooperative and What It Means for Us Workshop Recording is on the Marin Valley YouTube channel and  HERE

August 17, 2024    On Saturday, August 17, the ROD committee held a special Limited Equity Housing Cooperative (LEHC) workshop: Becoming the Marin Valley Cooperative —What it Means for Us — a critical opportunity for you to inform yourself about becoming a co-owner in the future Marin Valley Cooperative. Goal: Protect MVMCC from becoming an asset for a for-profit entity by becoming a resident-owned housing cooperative to provide affordability, security, and independence into the future. The workshop included on ZOOM Kim Coontz, Executive Director of CCCD, and Randy Keller, Manufactured Home Parks Acquisitions and Advocacy Manager.
The Workshop Handout is available HERE. The Fact Sheet is HERE

August 10, 2024, Save the Date Resident Update for August 17 Workshop.

July 10, 19, and 31, 2024  The ROD Committee held three Fireside Chats during July to meet together with residents in an informal setting to discuss current activities, long-term goals, and answer questions.

April 23, 2024  A Resident Update was distributed as a reminder to everyone that we are following two roads right now — one is the negotiations with the City and the other is taking steps toward becoming self-owned as an LEHC.

Sunday, March 24, 6 pm, Clubhouse ballroom, in person and on Zoom. A PAC community meeting of residents was held to ask for a vote on a proposal to elect an interim Board of Directors for the Public Benefit Corporation — in person, on Zoom, or by Proxy. For more information please see the March 24 Resident Update and the Video link from the March 20 workshop. There is no video for this meeting. The vote was passed decisively: Yes-219, No-14, Abstain-1.

March 20, Workshop The ROD Committee led a workshop to discuss and answer questions about the resident vote scheduled for March 24. The workshop focused on why are we calling for an election now of the Interim Board of Directors for the Public Benefit Corporation and why are we proposing the current PAC Board members to serve as the interim Public Benefit Corporation Board. A name for the Public Benefit Corporation has not been discussed yet. Keep thinking. March 20 Workshop Zoom link.

March 6, 2024  Information about the March 6 vote was sent to residents via email and also as a flyer in the tubes. Read the March 5 Resident Update here. All-Resident Vote (yes, no, or abstain) on the following proposal: “This vote is to begin the process of forming a Public Benefit Corporation that will have newly approved Articles of Incorporation and an elected Board of Directors.” The motion was passed decisively: Yes-283, No-2, Abstain-1

Zoom link

Follow-Up Workshop February 28, 2024

Handout, PowerPoint slides, Zoom link (video begins with PowerPoint slides)
 Agenda:
•  Comparison of ownership models
•  Financial aspects of resident ownership
•  Resident involvement in Park governance
•  Procedures for March 6 vote on proceeding with LEHC next steps
•  Q & A

 The ROC Path for MVMCC to Become a LEHC Community Workshop
Wednesday, February 21, 2024

To help our community understand the LEHC model, the ROD committee invited key staff from ROC USA and CCCD to provide an in-person community presentation on February 21 in our clubhouse to lay out the ROC path for MVMCC to become a LEHC with these questions to address.

• ROC USA and CCCD role in helping us become a LEHC
• How a LEHC housing co-op works
• Changes in resident responsibilities as a LEHC
• Management and governance as a LEHC
• Benefits of LEHC vs. other ownership options
• The process as we advance.

This workshop helped prepare residents to vote, for the March 6 PAC Board meeting, as to whether or not to begin the process of incorporating as a LEHC, which includes preparing the articles of incorporation. This was the first of several resident votes before committing fully to the LEHC form of resident ownership. 

Here are the Workshop handout, PowerPoint slides and Zoom link (video begins with PowerPoint slides).

On February 6, the PAC Board concurred with this recommendation and gave support for an outreach program to residents about how the Park could become an LEHC

On February 1, the ROD committee provided another resident update and analysis of ownership options. In this update, the committee developed a recommendation that the PAC Board and park move forward with the LEHC model as the most advantageous path toward resident ownership.

In August 2023, after the City of Novato’s decision to not go forward with the sale of MVMCC, the PAC Board created the Resident Ownership Discovery Committee to explore several resident ownership models. On September 11, 2023 the ROD committee provided an analysis of ownership options reviewed to the PAC board. Later that month the committee provided an Analysis of Options report summary to the community.

On December 6,  2023, the ROD committee facilitated a community presentation on the LEHC ownership option from ROCUSA and CCCD. These two organizations work together to help communities like ours become resident-owned. The presentation focused on the Limited Equity Housing Corporation (LEHC) model for resident ownership. The meeting was also summarized in the January Echo, pages 6–9.

Why a Limited Equity Housing Co-op?

Limited Equity Housing Cooperative (LEHC)

We recommend this model. As an LEHC:
a.  We would own our own land.
b.  Residents control who is elected to our board from members within our community.
c.  We can engage expert technical support from two organizations that specialize in helping communities like ours become resident owned:

1. Resident Owned  Communities USA  (ROC USA) and the California Center for Cooperative Development (CCCD), which is a CA nonprofit and serves as a certified technical adviser to ROC USA assisting communities in CA to become self-owned. CCCD understands CA law. All of its paperwork complies with CA State requirements.

2. ROC USA has helped 317 communities  become resident owned communities across the country, with a 100% success rate.

Together, ROC USA and CCCD have extensive in-depth knowledge of the legal, financial, and community-building work that is needed if we are to become self-owned. You can learn more about these organizations and their work at rocusa.org and cccd.coop, (rocusa.org/meet-the-communities)

The ROD Committee is working with these experts to develop a preliminary financial assessment of the impact of becoming self-owned and how residents’ rents may be impacted.

As a nonprofit LEHC, funding options for Park acquisition and future Park improvements, including grants and loans with favorable funding terms, are more readily available.

Other Models Considered

Given several possible models (below) including a Long-Term Lease, Mutual Benefit Corporation, and a Community Land Trust, the ROD Committee believes the Limited Equity Housing Cooperative (LEHC) model provides us the best option at this time.

Long-term lease with the City of Novato
The PAC Board has stated that this is not a viable option on the table right now.

Self Ownership as a Mutual Benefit Corporation
This path has been set aside for now because of several concerns. It requires a considerably high initial investment per household. Grant funding is less easily available. Creating a legal framework for this option involves more uncertainty and greater attorney involvement (and expense). These drawbacks could jeopardize our goal of creating an affordable low-income community.

Community Land Trust

ROD Committee research on a CLT model indicates the following, with some nuances:
a. The land trust has to find the funds to buy the Park.
b. The land trust would own the land.
c.. Residents would be renters with a 99-year land lease.
d. Residents would not have control of our board. The structure of the new board under a CLT is:   ⅓ residents, ⅓ from the local community,  and ⅓ to include public officials, community  leaders, and nonprofit workers, to name a few.
e. Other important considerations under the land  trust model include:
     i.    The resale values of our homes are considerably restricted (based on a formula).
     ii.   All home improvements must be preapproved, and certain upgrades are not included in your base cost when calculating your permissible resale price.
     iii. Our homes must be sold for less than market value.

Important Notes

First — no decision on any option for Park ownership will be made without a vote of residents.
Second — it will take several months to get to a recommended decision, and the timing cannot yet be determined.
Third — the ROD Committee and PAC Board are committed to realizing our goal of remaining an affordable and secure low-income senior community.

News Coverage

May 21, 2024, Washington Post Opinion Piece: Want Affordable housing? Take the chassis off manufactured houses. And don’t call them mobile homes by Lee E. Ohanian and James A. Schmitz

May 3, 2024, The Guardian: ‘It’s like winning the lottery’: the mobile home owners buying the land they live on, by Amos Barshad

March 31, 2024, Marin IJ: Novato mobile home park explores forming cooperative, by Richard Halstead

September 27, 2023, Marin IJ: IJ: Novato council opens door to sell mobile home park to its residents, by Will Houston

August 23, 2023, Marin IJ: Novato rejects $30M offer to sell mobile home park, by Will Houston

August 16, 2023, Marin IJ: With Uncertainty Surrounding Mobile Home Park, Novato Must Close Information Gap

August 7, 2023, Marin IJ: Marin Voice: Novato’s mobile-home community checks many ‘blue zone’ boxes, by Meg Jordan

August 6, 2023, Marin IJ: Marin IJ: Novato ponders response to report on financial troubles, by Will Houston

July 1, 2023, Marin IJ: Numbers conflict on profitability of Novato mobile home park, by Dick Spotswood

Background Information

SEE: Park Documents for
— Park purchase
— Historical information
— Financial information
and Current Park governance