Mobile home parks in Pinellas County: what to know before you buy or move in

Pinellas County has more licensed mobile home park spaces than any other county in Florida: about 36,600 spaces in 217 parks, according to the Florida Department of Health's January 2026 list. Most of them are around St. Petersburg, Largo and Clearwater. The county itself says it has one of the largest concentrations of mobile and manufactured homes in the state. If you are thinking about buying a home in a park here, or bringing your own, a few things work differently than in the rest of Tampa Bay.

Where the parks are

St. Petersburg has the most parks, but Largo has the most spaces: its parks are bigger, and 35 of them have 100 spaces or more. A big park usually means more amenities and an on-site office; a small one usually means quieter streets and fewer rules.

Source: Florida Department of Health list of licensed mobile home parks, January 2026. Grouped by the park's mailing city, which can include unincorporated areas around the city.

Pinellas is Wind Zone III

Under the federal standards, Pinellas is one of the Florida counties in Wind Zone III, the highest rating for manufactured homes. The state's rule is simple: a mobile home has to be built for the wind zone of the county where it is set up. In practice, a home built for Wind Zone II, which covers most inland Florida counties, generally cannot be installed in Pinellas.

• Before you buy a home in another county to bring here, check the data plate inside the home. It shows the wind zone it was built for.
• If you are buying a home already in a Pinellas park, it should already be rated for the zone. Ask to see the data plate anyway.

Mobile home residents always evacuate

Pinellas County says residents of mobile and manufactured homes must always evacuate when an evacuation is ordered, no matter which zone the park is in, because of the risk from wind. Before you buy, look at where you would go during a storm and how the park handles it.

Flooding and what 2024 taught

Hurricane Helene's storm surge in 2024 flooded several Pinellas parks, and the county later sent about 1,100 substantial damage letters to mobile home owners. Pinellas treats a home as substantially damaged when repairs reach 49% of the home's value, and a substantially damaged home in a flood zone has to be elevated, moved or removed. One St. Petersburg park that flooded again and again is being turned into apartments.

• Ask whether the park is in a flood zone, and look it up yourself on the county's flood map.
• Ask how the park did in Helene and Milton, and whether homes were damaged.
• If you are buying a home that was repaired after 2024, ask whether it passed the county's substantial damage review.

Many Pinellas parks are owned by the residents

Pinellas has a long history of resident-owned communities: co-ops and condo-style parks where you buy a share or a lot instead of renting the land. A county housing study counted about four in ten park lots as resident-owned. In a co-op you usually pay a monthly maintenance fee instead of lot rent, and the board, not an investor, decides increases and approvals. Ask which kind of park it is before comparing monthly costs.

Before you sign

1. Get the park rules, the age policy if it is a 55+ park, and the approval process in writing.
2. Ask for the prospectus and the lot rental agreement, or the co-op documents, and read them before you sign.
3. Ask for the rent or fee history for the last three to five years.
4. Check the flood zone and how the park did in the 2024 storms.
5. If you are bringing a home, confirm it is rated for Wind Zone III and that the park accepts its year and size.

If your park is closing

When a park closes because the land is changing use, Florida's mobile home relocation program can help owners with moving costs, up to $3,000 for a single-section home or $6,000 for a multisection home, or a smaller payment if you leave the home behind. After Helene, Pinellas also opened a recovery program for income-qualified mobile home owners that can replace a damaged home with a new elevated Wind Zone III home or help with relocation.