Which License You Need for Work on Manufactured Homes and Mobilehomes
In June 2024 the CSLB issued a bulletin clarifying which classification is required for work on manufactured homes, mobilehomes and multifamily manufactured homes. It settled a question that had caused a lot of confusion, particularly around whether specialty contractors needed to add a C-47 to work on a manufactured home.
They do not. Here is how it breaks down.
Installing or moving: C-47 only
Only C-47 General Manufactured Housing contractors are authorized to install a manufactured home or prepare one for moving.
That is the boundary of the classification. It covers the structure being placed or made ready to relocate, not what happens to it afterwards.
One trade after installation: the relevant C classification
Once the home is installed, a contractor performing a single construction trade needs only the appropriate C specialty classification for that trade.
So if you are installing, replacing or servicing an HVAC system in a manufactured home, you need a C-20. You do not need a C-20 and a C-47. The same logic applies across the specialties, a C-10 for electrical work, a C-36 for plumbing, and so on.
This is the point most commonly misunderstood, and it means specialty contractors do not need to add a classification simply because the structure is a manufactured home rather than a site built one.
Two or more unrelated trades: B General Building
Where a contract covers two or more unrelated trades after the home is installed, a B General Building Contractor license is required.
This mirrors how the B classification works on any other structure. Once you are taking responsibility for a project spanning unrelated trades rather than performing one of them, you are operating as a general contractor.
Three or more unrelated trades on a wood frame home: B-2 may fit
If the project involves three or more unrelated trades and the manufactured home is wood frame, aB-2 Residential Remodeling Contractor classification may be appropriate, subject to meeting the requirements of that classification.
B-2 is a narrower classification than B and it is not a straight substitute, so it is worth checking whether your work genuinely falls inside it before applying.
If you are applying for a C-47
The bulletin also confirms that every C-47 application has to include proof of completion of a federally approved manufactured housing installation training program. We have covered that requirement and how to meet it in more detail.
Not sure which classification you need?
Getting this wrong in either direction is costly. Adding a classification you do not need means unnecessary exams and fees. Working outside the one you hold is a licence law violation.
If you are unsure which classification your work falls under, or you need to add one,talk to us before you commit to anything.
Call us now on (800) 580-8129 orget in touch and we will talk it through.
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