State agencies fix rules to allow ‘tiny homes on wheels’

The Oregon Building Codes Division, in cooperation with Oregon Driver & Motor Vehicle Services (DMV), said Wednesday it filed an administrative rule last Friday to help provide a mechanism for recreational park trailer (tiny houses on wheels) manufacturers to obtain an ownership document from DMV.

The new rule defines a “recreational park trailer” as:

A single living unit that is primarily designed and completed on a single chassis, mounted on wheels, to provide temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or other seasonal use; Is certified by the manufacturer as complying with a nationally recognized standard for the construction of recreational vehicles; and Has a gross trailer area not exceeding 400 square feet in the setup mode.

“We believe this rule will help provide clarity for manufacturers and allow an unfettered path to titling these types of recreational vehicles in Oregon,” said Mark Long, Building Codes Division administrator.

BCD filed the rule change after learning its attempt to deregulate this important emerging industry inadvertently affected the eligibility for tiny houses on wheels to apply for a vehicle title.

Under the new rule, DMV will be able to issue a title for recreational park trailers and file the ownership information in its records. Recreational park trailers may be moved in the following ways:

Shipping by a commercial moving company Vehicle trip permit from DMV -http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/DMV/pages/vehicle/trippermit.aspx Over-dimension permit from the Motor Carrier Transportation Division if the load is more than 8.5 feet wide – http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/MCT/Pages/Over-Dimension.aspx

DMV plans to start accepting title applications for recreational park trailers later this year.