The short answer
Mobile and manufactured home insurance covers a factory-built home, its contents and your liability, much like a house policy, but insurers ask extra questions: the year and maker, the certification label, how the home is anchored and skirted, what was added on site and how it is heated. Whether you own the land or rent a lot changes the details. Find the label and serial number, and a licensed broker can compare insurers that write these homes.
- Owners of a manufactured or mobile home on a leased lot in a community
- Owners of a manufactured or modular home on their own land, in town or on an acreage
- Buyers of an older mobile home who need cover before the sale closes
- Anyone who has added a porch, room or deck to a factory-built home
4 licensed brokers in the network handle this. In Alberta, Canada, a request for mobile and manufactured home insurance can be offered to up to three of them, chosen because they are licensed for this line and place. They are test brokers while we are in demo.
See the brokers → Outside Alberta, Canada you can prepare and save a request today; sending opens place by place. Brokers answer with their own quotes. Broker.insure does not quote, advise or take commission.
01 / What it covers
The parts worth understanding
The home itself
Insured at replacement or depreciated value depending on the policy and the age of the home. Older units are more often settled at a depreciated value, so ask which method applies.
Additions and attached structures
Porches, sunrooms, added bedrooms and decks built on site are part of what needs insuring. Insurers usually want to know who built them and whether permits were issued.
Belongings
Furniture, clothing and other contents, with the same small limits on jewellery, collections and electronics found on a typical house policy.
Liability
Your legal responsibility if someone is hurt at your home or you damage someone else's property. Many communities require residents to carry liability and may ask for proof.
Wind and anchoring
Factory-built homes can be more exposed to wind than site-built ones. Insurers commonly ask about tie-downs or anchoring, and the answer can affect what is offered.
Moving the home
Transport from one site to another is a separate risk that most home policies do not cover automatically. Ask before the home leaves its lot.
02 / Get ready
Bring this, and expect these questions
Gather
- The year, maker and model of the home, and its serial number
- The certification label or plate, often found inside a cupboard, near the electrical panel or on an exterior wall
- Whether you own the land or rent a lot, and the community's name and rules if you rent
- The foundation or support system, and how the home is anchored or tied down
- Skirting material and its current condition
- Additions built after the home was placed, with who built them and any permit
- Heating source and furnace age, and any wood stove with its inspection report
- Updates to the roof, plumbing, electrical and windows, with years
- Your current policy, or the lot lease clauses that mention insurance
A broker will ask
- What year was the home built, and who made it?
- Does it carry a CSA certification label, and can you photograph it?
- Do you own the land, or rent a lot in a community?
- How is the home supported and anchored, and is it skirted all the way around?
- Has anything been added since it was placed, such as a porch or extra room?
- How is it heated, and is there a wood stove or an older furnace?
- Has the original roof been replaced, or covered with a new pitched roof?
- Is the home ever left empty for long stretches, or rented to someone else?
Not sure of an answer? Leave it. "Not known yet" is a fine answer, and a broker will help you fill it in.
03 / Build your request
Answer a few questions. Get your own list.
Pick what fits. Your answers shape the list beside them, and they are saved to your request as plain facts a broker can read. "Not sure yet" is always a fine answer.
04 / Three situations
See which one sounds like yours
A retiree buying in a land-lease community
A retiree is buying a 1990s manufactured home on a leased pad in a community outside Edmonton. The community requires residents to hold liability cover and show proof each year, and the sale closes in two weeks.
First steps. Ask the seller for a photo of the certification label, the serial number and any records of roof or furnace work, and read the lot lease for insurance clauses. Send these to the broker right away and ask what liability limit the community requires and how the home would be valued.
A family with a new manufactured home on an acreage
A family placed a new manufactured home on a permanent foundation on their own land, then added a covered deck and a heated garage. The home runs on a well and septic system and sits some distance from a fire hall.
First steps. Gather the purchase documents, the installation and foundation details, and permits for the deck and garage. Ask the broker whether the home is insured like a site-built house on that foundation, and how the garage, well and septic are treated on a rural property.
An owner of a 1970s mobile home with additions
An owner bought an older mobile home that previous owners extended with a built-on room and a wood stove. The skirting is patched, the certification label is missing, and the current insurer has said it will not renew.
First steps. Look for the serial number on the frame or in the original paperwork, and have the wood stove inspected. Photograph the additions and skirting, then give the broker the non-renewal letter and ask which insurers consider older homes and what repairs or proof they want first.
05 / Words you will hear
The jargon, in plain words
- Manufactured home
- A home built in a factory on a permanent steel chassis and moved to its site, commonly certified in Canada to a CSA standard for manufactured homes.
- Modular home
- A factory-built home made in sections, generally certified to meet the same building code as a site-built house, and assembled on a permanent foundation.
- Tie-down
- A strap or anchor connecting a manufactured home to the ground or its foundation so that it resists being shifted or lifted by strong winds.
- Skirting
- The panels that close in the space between the bottom of the home and the ground, protecting plumbing and the underside from cold, animals and debris.
- Land-lease community
- A park or community where residents own their homes but rent the lot underneath, under a lease with its own rules about insurance and upkeep.
06 / Common mistakes
What trips people up
- Assuming the community's insurance covers your home, when it usually covers only the community's own property.
- Losing or painting over the certification label, which insurers and lenders may ask to see.
- Adding a room or porch without permits and without telling the insurer.
- Moving the home to a new lot without arranging transport cover first.
- Letting skirting fall apart, which can let pipes freeze and animals in underneath.
Ready when you are
Turn this into one clear request.
Save it, add what you know, and choose when to send it. A licensed broker who handles mobile and manufactured home insurance takes it from there.
07 / Questions people ask
Straight answers
What is the difference between mobile, manufactured and modular homes?
The terms overlap. Mobile home often refers to older units built to move on their own chassis. Manufactured homes are built in a factory on a permanent chassis, commonly to a CSA standard for manufactured homes. Modular homes are built in sections, generally to the same building code as site-built houses, and set on a foundation. Insurers may treat each differently.
What is the CSA label on a manufactured home?
Factory-built homes made for the Canadian market are usually certified to a CSA standard and carry a label or plate showing that certification, often with a serial number. It is commonly inside a kitchen cupboard, near the electrical panel, or on an exterior wall by the door. Insurers and lenders may ask for a photo, so find it before you shop.
Does the community or park insurance cover my mobile home?
Usually not. The community's policy generally covers its own buildings, roads and liability, not your home, your belongings or your personal liability. Many land-lease communities require residents to carry their own insurance and to show proof. Read the lease for the exact requirements and pass them on to the broker.
Can I insure an older mobile home?
Often, though fewer insurers may write very old units, and those that do may settle claims at a depreciated value or ask for updates first. Records of roof, plumbing, electrical and furnace work help, as do sound skirting and anchoring. A broker can approach insurers that take older factory-built homes and explain what each one needs.
Is a modular home insured like a regular house?
Often, yes. A modular home built to the regular building code and set on a permanent foundation is frequently treated much like a site-built house. Insurers still ask about the maker, the year and how it was assembled. Bring the certification details and foundation information so the broker can present the home accurately.
Why do insurers ask about tie-downs and skirting?
Tie-downs and anchoring help keep a lighter, factory-built home in place during high winds, and skirting protects plumbing and the underside from freezing, pests and debris. Both affect how likely a claim is. Photograph the anchoring system and the skirting, and note when each was last inspected or repaired.
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General information, not insurance advice. Broker.insure is a directory and request service: it is not an insurer and does not quote, bind or advise. Policy terms, availability and what is required where you live depend on your situation and on licensed professionals. Updated 2026-10-31.