RR
Rent Regulations

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, ch. 953 § 9097-A

Unfair rental contracts

In Force
Verified 10/21/2026 · Next check 10/28/2026
effective 10/21/2026MaineProhibited Clauses

Operative Text

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, ch. 953 § 9097-A
1.
Illegal waiver of rights.
It is an unfair and deceptive trade practice in violation of Title 5, section 207 for a park owner or operator to use a rental agreement or rule that has the effect of waiving a tenant right established in chapter 953 and, if applicable to mobile home park tenants, Title 14, chapters 709 , 710 and 710‑A . This subsection does not apply when the law specifically allows the tenant to waive a statutory right during negotiations with the park owner or operator.






2.
Unenforceable provisions.
The following rental agreement or rule provisions are specifically declared to be unenforceable and in violation of Title 5, section 207 :



A.
Any provision that absolves the park owner or operator from liability for the negligence of the park owner or operator or the agent of the park owner or operator;



B.
Any provision that requires the tenant to pay the legal fees of the park owner or operator in enforcing the rental agreement;



C.
Any provision that requires the tenant to give a lien upon the tenant's property, including a tenant's mobile home, for the amount of any rent or other sums due the park owner or operator; and



D.
Any provision that requires the tenant to acknowledge that the provisions of the rental agreement, including tenant rules, are fair and reasonable.
Source: Legislative text reproduced verbatim
Plain English

Under Maine law at 10 M.R.S. §§ 9091–9097-A, mobile home park rental agreements may not be used to strip tenants of rights granted by state law, and certain contract clauses are declared flatly unenforceable. Specifically, provisions that shield a park owner from their own negligence, force tenants to pay the owner's legal fees, impose a lien on a tenant's property (including their mobile home) for unpaid rent, or require tenants to pre-certify that the agreement is 'fair and reasonable' have no legal effect. Using such provisions is treated as an unfair and deceptive trade practice under Maine's consumer-protection law, Title 5, section 207.

Written by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.6 · Reviewed on October 22, 2026

Plain English — not legal advice.

For Property Managers

Park owners and operators subject to 10 M.R.S. §§ 9091–9097-A generally review their rental agreements and park rules to ensure no clause attempts to waive tenant rights established under chapter 953 or the applicable Title 14 chapters. Compliant operators remove or never include provisions that disclaim liability for their own negligence, shift their legal fees to tenants, place liens on tenants' mobile homes, or ask tenants to pre-acknowledge that terms are fair. Because using such provisions constitutes an unfair and deceptive trade practice under Title 5, section 207, operators typically work with legal counsel familiar with Maine mobile home park law when drafting or updating their agreements.

General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.

For Tenants

Maine tenants in mobile home parks are protected by 10 M.R.S. §§ 9091–9097-A, which renders certain rental agreement clauses unenforceable regardless of whether a tenant signed them. If a park owner attempts to enforce a provision that waives your statutory rights, disclaims their negligence, demands you pay their attorney's fees, places a lien on your mobile home, or requires you to certify the agreement is fair, that clause generally has no legal standing. Tenants who believe a park owner is relying on such provisions may consider raising the violation as a defense in any legal proceeding, filing a complaint under Maine's consumer-protection framework, or reaching out to a tenant-rights organization for general information about available options.

General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.

Generated October 22, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.

Effective Timeline

Expression #1
Oct 21, 2026
Current
Oct 21, 2026
Click on timeline segments to view historical versions.

References Out

Rules and statutes cited by this regulation

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 5, § 207
Me. Rev. Stat. ch. 953

References In

Rules and statutes that cite this regulation

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, § 9097
Me. Rev. Stat. ch. 953
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9094-A
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9093-B
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9097
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9097
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9094-A
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9097-B
Me. Rev. Stat. ch. 953
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9091
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9091
Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, § 9097
Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, § 9091
Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, § 9099
Me. Rev. Stat. ch. 953
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9094-A
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9093-B
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9097
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9097
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9094-A
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9097-B
Me. Rev. Stat. ch. 953
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9091
Me. Rev. Stat. § 9091
Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, § 9091
Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 10, § 9099

Related Rules

§ 28
Waivers of Secs. 23 to 27 void and unenforceable
§ 966.6
§ 966.6 Prohibited lease provisions.
§ 12
Stay of proceedings; validity of waiver in lease

Source Information

Source:https://legislature.maine.gov/statutes/10/title10sec9097-A.html
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