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WISCASSET, Maine — Mary and Terry Tardif have lived in their mobile home for about four years. It was meant to help them ease into retirement, since they had little to do to maintain the property besides mowing the lawn.
But after state regulators condemned their lot in Whippoorwill Mobile Home Park in March, the Tardifs were issued a 45-day eviction notice. On Saturday, due to a late February rent payment that the couple has since made up, they were sent a 48-hour notice to leave the property.
The Tardifs, who were part of a group in twin Wiscasset mobile home parks advocating for better maintenance after they were sold to out-of-state owners, said the damage to their home’s lot could have been prevented if the management company had done maintenance work. A lawyer for the company retorted that the damage dates back to the previous owner.
Mobile home parks like Whippoorwill have become some of Maine’s last bastions of affordable housing, especially in coastal areas. But the Tardifs’ situation shows how even residents who own their homes can be vulnerable to deferred maintenance or environmental changes at the parks that happen through no fault of their own.
“We wanted low maintenance, all we wanted to do is take care of our lawn, take care of our mobile home and pay the rent,” Mary Tardif said. “That’s all we wanted to do, and instead of our dream, it becomes a nightmare.”
Idaho-based owner Blake Furlow bought Whipporwill in 2021. He hired Bangor-based Maine Real Estate Management to manage the park. Rents at the park nearly doubled for some from early that year to early 2024. Park residents told the Bangor Daily News last year repairs had been delayed or ignored and they felt policed by fees and fines for minor issues.
The Tardifs said many of those problems have persisted, though the property managers have repaired roads and cleared out ditches over the past year. The current owner has “poured an awful lot of money” into maintaining the park, Michael Harman, the attorney representing Bangor-based Maine Real Estate Management, which manages the park, said.
The cracking in the pad under the Tardifs’ home is due to poor drainage. Even with only a drizzle of rain on Monday, the yard was waterlogged. The Maine Manufactured Housing Board condemned the lot due to the damage in March, saying the park had 45 days to fix it. The Tardifs had to move because the lot can’t be fixed with a home on it.
“The park was built in an area that’s prone to draining the areas around it,” Harman said. “It’s got some high ground behind the park, so water gets in under the pad and freezes, bucks it, and over time, cracks it.”
Once the couple was served the eviction notice, the park offered to move them to a different lot. They said because of the ongoing issues in Whippoorwill, they declined to go to another lot. They were offered $1,000 from the park to help with their move. Terry Tardif also declined that. Harman noted that the Tardifs came to an agreement for the eviction. He also said the management company did not offer more compensation because the state condemned the lot.
The Tardifs were still in their homes as of Friday because the order has not been enforced. After they leave, they intend to keep fighting in a civil suit they filed against the park management alleging that there were several issues in the park, including backed-up septic systems that led to waste entering the couple’s home, ongoing flooding and other issues.
Terry Tardif also alleged in the lawsuit that the management company continued to increase rent and offered no discounts. According to court documents, the Tardifs’ rent increased over a three-year period from $325 per month to $540 per month, a 66 percent increase.
In court filings, Maine Real Estate Management denied or said it was without sufficient knowledge of many of the allegations, though it admitted that a precautionary boil water notice was issued in 2023 due to “decreased water flow.” The company also admitted that it has raised the rent, but denied that the increases were unlawful.
The Tardifs don’t know where they are going to go next. Mary Tardif has kidney disease and rheumatoid arthritis, and the stress from the deteriorating conditions of the park have had a negative effect on her health, she said.
“Knowing how it’s taking a toll on her, it’s eating at me, too,” Terry Tardif said. “But I just hate seeing her like this. We don’t deserve to be like this. We didn’t ask for this.”
Jules Walkup is a Report for America corps member. Additional support for this reporting is provided by BDN readers.
