How to find your mobile home's HUD label and serial number

Two of the first things any Florida mover, county inspector, or insurance carrier will ask for are the HUD label and the data plate. They are different things, mounted in different places, with different information — but together they prove the home is a HUD-code manufactured home, identify it for permits and title, and document the wind zone it was built for. Here is exactly where to look.

The HUD label

A small metal plate, usually red, mounted on the EXTERIOR of the home — typically on the rear wall, sometimes on a side wall near the rear. It is roughly two inches by four inches, riveted into the siding. Each section of the home has its own label: a single-wide has one, a double-wide has two, a triple-wide has three.

The label shows a federal certification number assigned to the home by HUD. That number, often starting with letters identifying the production state followed by a six- or seven-digit number, is what proves the home was built to HUD code. Florida counties require this number on every install permit application.

The data plate

A larger paper or plastic plate mounted on the INTERIOR of the home. Common locations include: inside a kitchen cabinet door, inside the door of the electrical panel, inside the door of the master bedroom closet, or on a wall in the utility closet. The data plate is roughly the size of a sheet of paper and contains far more information than the HUD label.

The data plate lists: the home's serial number, the manufacturer name and address, the model name and year of construction, the wind zone the home was built for, the roof load and thermal zones, the production state, and a list of installed appliances. This is the document your insurance carrier wants to see for wind-zone confirmation, and the document the county wants to see when calculating anchor requirements for retrofit.

What each document is for

• Permit application: HUD label number is the home identifier the county uses.
• Title work: serial number from the data plate appears on the home's title.
• Wind-zone compliance: data plate shows the original zone, which determines anchor requirements.
• Insurance: carrier needs the data plate's wind zone, year, and model.
• Real-property conversion: both documents are typically required as supporting paperwork.

What to do if the HUD label is missing or unreadable

Lost or unreadable HUD labels are unfortunately common on older homes that have been re-sided, repainted, or weathered for decades. There is a process to request a Letter of Label Verification from HUD that re-establishes the certification number based on factory records. The licensed installer or your title company can usually walk you through the request. It takes several weeks, so request it well before your move date.

What to do if the data plate is missing

Data plates fall off, get painted over, or get covered when interior work is done. If yours is missing, the manufacturer (if still in business) can sometimes provide a replacement based on the home's serial number — which is usually cross-referenced from the title. If the manufacturer is out of business, an engineering firm can produce a similar document by physically inspecting the home and verifying its construction against HUD records.