Tucson Region

Taxpayer Watch: Mobile homes can go one of two ways for taxing purpose

Situation: Georgia Yager owns a mobile home and property in Catalina. She asks how she can find out about affixing the mobile home to the property for tax purposes. Status: Mobile homes can be taxed as motor vehicles, or they can be taxed like a house, said Rick Lyons, Pima County assessor. Usually, the owner of the mobile home decides how it should be taxed. If the mobile home occupies a permanent site, Lyons said, the owner can file a document called an affidavit of affixture. The affidavit is filed with the county assessor. The affidavit makes the mobile home into a home. It is then taxed as an improvement to a piece of property, Lyons said, the same way a house is taxed. The owner also must surrender the vehicle's title and certificate of origin to the state Motor Vehicle Division. Once the mobile home is affixed, it remains in place even if the home is sold. Before the mobile home is moved, the county assessor is asked to remove the affixation. In that case, the home again becomes taxed as a vehicle. Who's responsible: The Pima County Assessor's Office (740-8630) handles affidavits of affixation. The state Motor Vehicle Division (629-9808) regulates mobile homes that are not affixed to property. Update: The Pima County Health Department followed up on a report of mosquitoes breeding in standing floral vases at an East Side cemetery, but mosquitoes were not found.