Virginia · Manufactured homesVirginia manufactured homes: DMV title cancellation and the affidavit of affixation

Once a manufactured home titled in Virginia has had its wheels and other mobility equipment removed and has been attached to land the home's owner owns, the owner may convert it to real property – and, apart from two tax provisions, this is the only way to do so. The owner submits a sworn affidavit to the DMV on the Commissioner's form; an owner not listed on the title also submits the documents showing the chain of ownership, proof that any lien on the vehicle record was released or the loan satisfied, and the title or certificate of origin if available. The DMV then cancels the title, but not while a recorded security interest remains unreleased (documentation that the loan was satisfied is accepted instead), and confirms the cancellation in writing. The owner then files a sworn affidavit of affixation with the circuit court of the locality where the land lies, giving the manufacturer and model, the VIN and serial number, the legal description and address of the land with a statement that the owner also owns it, a certification that there are no unreleased security interests in the home, and the owner's statement that the title was surrendered and cancelled and that the home is a permanent improvement to be taxed with the land, with the DMV's confirmation attached. From that filing the home is real estate, conveyed and encumbered only as real estate unless it is later severed and retitled (Va. Code §46.2-653.1).