58-4207. Same; requirements for licensure as a manufactured home dealer; application, contents, term of license; fees; financial responsibility requirements, bonding; place of business requirements.

58-4207

Chapter 58.--PERSONAL AND REAL PROPERTY
Part 6.--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Article 42.--MANUFACTURED HOUSING

      58-4207.   Same; requirements for licensure as a manufactured home dealer;application, contents, term of license; fees; financial responsibilityrequirements, bonding; place of business requirements.(a) No manufactured home dealer shall engage in business inthis state without obtaining alicense therefor. Any personholding a valid dealer's license and acting as a salesperson shall notbe required to secure a salesperson's license.

      (b)   No manufactured home manufacturer orfactory representativeshall engage in business in this state without alicense as required by this act, regardless of whether or notan office or other place of business is maintained in this state for thepurpose of conducting such business.

      (c)   An application for a license shall be made to thedirector and shall contain the informationprovided for by this section,together with such other information as may be deemed reasonable andpertinent, and shall be accompanied by the required fee. The directormay require in the application, or otherwise, information relating tothe applicant's solvency, financial standing or other pertinent mattercommensurate with the safeguarding of the public interest in thelocality in which the applicant proposes to engage in business, all ofwhich may be considered by the director in determining the fitness ofthe applicant to engage in business as set forth in this section. Thedirector may require the applicant for licensing to appear at such timeand place as may be designated by the director for examination to enablethe director to determine the accuracy of the facts contained in thewritten application, either for initial licensure or renewal thereof.Every application under this section shall be verified by the applicant.

      (d)   All licenses shall be granted or refused within 30 daysafter application is received by the director. All licenses,except licenses issued to manufactured home salespersons, shall expire, unlesspreviously suspended or revoked, on December 31 of the calendar year forwhich they are granted, except that where a complaint respecting thecancellation, termination or nonrenewal of a sales agreement is in theprocess of being heard, no replacement applicationshall be considered until a final order is issued by the director.Applications for renewals, except for renewals of licenses issued tosalespersons, received by the director after February 15shall be considered as new applications.All salesperson's licensesshall expire, unless previously suspendedor revoked, on June 30 of the calendar year for which they are granted.Applications for renewals of salesperson's licenses received by the directorafter July 15 shall be considered as new applications.

      (e)   License fees for each calendar year, or any part thereof, shallbe as follows:

      (1)   For new manufactured home dealers, $50;

      (2)   for used manufactured home dealers, $50;

      (3)   for manufactured home manufacturers, $200 plus $50 for eachbranch in this state;

      (4)   for factory representatives, $25;

      (5)   for brokers, $50;

      (6)   for lending agencies, $25;

      (7)   for manufactured home salespersons, $15; and

      (8)   for insurance companies, $50.

      Any new manufactured home dealer who also is licensedas a used manufactured home dealer shall be required to pay only one $50 fee for bothlicenses.

      (f)   Dealers establishing supplemental places of businesswithin the same county of their licensure shall be required to pay asupplemental license fee of $10. Original inspections bythe division of a proposed established place of business shall be madeat no charge, except that a $5 fee shall be charged by thedivision for each additional inspection the division must make of suchpremises in order to approve the same.

      (g)   The license of all persons licensed under the provisions of theKansas manufactured housingact shall state the address of the established place of business, officeor branch and must be conspicuously displayed therein. If such addressis changed, the director shall endorse the change of address on thelicense without charge, if it is within the same county. A change ofaddress to a different county shall require a new license and paymentof the required fees.

      (h)   Every salesperson or factory representativeshall carry on their person a certification thatthe personholds a valid state license. The certification shall name the person'semployer and shall be displayed upon request. An original copy of thestate license for a salesperson shall be mailedor otherwisedelivered by the division to the employer of the salesperson for publicdisplay in the employer's established place of business. When asalesperson ceases to be employed as such, the former employer shall mailor otherwise return the original copy of the employee's state license tothe division. A salesperson or factory representativewho terminates employment with one employermay file an application with the director to transfer the person's statelicense in the name of another employer. The application shall beaccompanied by a $2 transfer fee. A salesperson or factory representativewho terminatesemployment, and does not transfer the state license, shall mailor otherwise return the certification that the personholds a valid state license to the division.

      (i)   If the director has reasonable cause to doubt the financialresponsibility or the compliance by the applicant or licensee with theprovisions of this act, the director may require the applicant orlicensee to furnish and maintain a bond in such form, amount and withsuch sureties as the director approves, but such amount shall be notless than $5,000 nor more than $20,000, conditioned upon the applicantor licensee complyingwith the provisions of the statutes applicable to the licensee and asindemnity for any loss sustained by any person by reason of any act bythe licensee constituting grounds for suspension or revocation of thelicense.Everybond shall be a corporate surety bond issued by acompany authorized to do business in the state of Kansas and shall beexecuted in the name of the state of Kansas for the benefit of anyaggrieved party. The aggregate liability of the surety for all breachesof the conditions of the bond in no event shall exceed the amount ofsuch bond. The surety on the bond shall have the right to cancel thebond by giving 30 days' notice to the director, and thereafterthe surety shall be relieved of liability for any breach of conditionoccurring after the effective date of cancellation. Bondingrequirements shall not apply tosalespersons.The proceeds of the bond on deposit or in lieu of bond provided bysubsection (j) shall be paid upon receipt by the director of a finaljudgment from a Kansas court of competent jurisdiction against the dealerand in favor of an aggrieved party.

      (j)   An applicant or licensee may elect to satisfy the bondingrequirements of subsection (i) by depositing with the state treasurer cash,negotiable bonds of the United States or of the state of Kansas, negotiablecertificates of deposit of any bank organized under the laws of the UnitedStates or of the state of Kansas or irrevocable letters of credit of anysuch bank. The cash deposit or market value of any such securities shall beequal to or greater than the amount of the bond required for the bondedarea and any interest on those funds shall accrue to the benefit of the depositor.

      (k)   No license shall be issued by the director to any person to actas a new or used dealer or broker,unless theapplicant maintains an establishedplace of business which has been inspected and approved by the division.

      (l)   Dealers required under the provisions of this act tomaintain an established place of business shall own or have leased anduse sufficient lot space at the established place of business and anysupplemental place of business to display the dealer's inventory of manufacturedhomes or mobile homes.

      (m)   A sign with durable lettering at least 10 inches in height and easilyvisible from the street identifying theestablished place of business shall be displayed byevery dealer. Notwithstanding the other provisions of thissubsection, the height of lettering of the required sign may be lessthan 10 inches as necessary to comply with local zoning regulations.

      (n)   If the established or supplemental place of business orlot is zoned, approvalmust be secured from the proper zoning authority and proof that the usecomplies with the applicable zoning law, ordinance or resolution must befurnished to the director by the applicant for licensing.

      (o)   An established or supplemental place of business, otherwise meeting therequirements of the Kansas manufactured housing act, may be used by a dealerto conduct morethan one business as long as suitable space and facilities existtherein to properly conduct the business of a manufactured home dealer.

      (p)   If a supplemental place of business is not operated on acontinuous, year-round basis, the dealer shall give the department 15 days'notice as to the dates on which the dealer will be engaged in business atthe supplemental place of business.

      (q)   Any dealer selling, exchanging or transferring orcausing to be sold, exchanged or transferred new manufactured homesin this statemust satisfactorily demonstrate to the director that such dealerhas a bona fide manufactured home sales agreementwith the manufacturer to sell, exchangeor transfer the same or tocause it to be sold, exchanged or transferred.

      (r)   The director of vehicles shall publish a suitable Kansasmanufactured home salesperson's manual. Before a salesperson's license is issued, the applicant for an original license orrenewal thereofshall be required to pass a written examination based upon information in themanual.

      (s)   The annual fee foreach dealer license plate is $25.There shall be no refund of feesfor dealer license plates in the event of suspension, revocation orvoluntary cancellation of a license.The director is hereby authorizedto designate by identifying symbols on a dealer's license plate the typesof dealer's licenses that the person has been issued. If a dealer has anestablished place of business in more than onecounty, such dealer shall secure a separate and distinctdealer's license and dealer license plates for each established place ofbusiness.

      History:   L. 1991, ch. 33, § 7; July 1.