Idaho HB 800 opens single-family zones to manufactured homes — but not HOA covenants
Idaho HB 800 opens single-family zones to manufactured homes — but not HOA covenants
2026-09-03 · Idaho · Legislation
What happened. House Bill 800 was signed by Governor Little on 26 March 2026, became Chapter 171 of the 2026 Session Laws, and took effect 1 July 2026. It amended Idaho Code § 67-6509A, the manufactured-home siting provision of the Local Land Use Planning Act.12
The votes were lopsided: the House suspended its rules and passed it 60-6 on 9 March, and the Senate followed 28-5 on 24 March.2
For community associations this is a story about a sentence that did not change. Section 67-6509A(3) still provides: “This section shall not be construed as abrogating a recorded restrictive covenant.”1
What the section now requires of local government
The section directs governing boards to amend their comprehensive plans to permit manufactured homes in single-family residential zones, historic districts excepted. It sets placement standards a city or county may apply — foundation requirements, roof-pitch specifications, siding and roofing materials compatible with dwellings in the community, and garage or carport parity with site-built homes.
It also sets the minimum size a local government may demand: a single-section home must enclose at least 400 square feet, and a multisectional unit at least 800 square feet. Those are floors on what must be permitted, not standards a jurisdiction may raise.
The section has been amended repeatedly since it was added in 1994 — in 1995, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2007 and now 2026.1 The 2026 pass is the one that moves manufactured homes squarely into single-family zoning as a matter of plan obligation.
Why the covenant carve-out is the story
Idaho's 2026 session ran two manufactured-home bills, and the difference between them is exactly this point. HB 800 is the siting-only measure and it passed. A broader bill, HB 647, would have added a new Idaho Code § 55-619 voiding covenants that prohibit or unreasonably restrict siting a manufactured home. It died in the House Business Committee — a story covered separately in this column.3
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