Manufactured Housing Careers in Ohio (Dealer & Installer)
Career guide · Last reviewed July 2026 · By the OhioLicenseCheck.com team
Manufactured housing is one of Ohio’s most practical paths into a licensed business of your own. As affordable-housing pressure grows, manufactured homes are the least expensive ownership path in most Ohio counties — and the state licenses both the dealers who sell them and the installers whose foundation and anchoring work makes them safe.
Education
State licensing courses + business requirements — no degree required
Time to license
Months
Exams
State licensing requirements through the Department of Commerce
Typical pay
Installer trades roughly $40–70k; dealership income varies with sales volume (estimates)
Licenses covered
- Manufactured Home Dealer
- Manufactured Home Installer
Dept of Commerce Manufactured Homes by the numbers
These figures are ours, not the board's — we computed them from the full State of Ohio licence file so you can see this board in context rather than one record at a time. Data as of September 2026.
2,411
licences on record
22.9%
currently active
0.08%
carry a board action
98.4%
licensed on first application
Only 22.9% of the 2,411 licences this board has on record are currently active — the other 77.1% belong to people who retired, moved, changed careers, or simply let a credential lapse. That gap is the single best reason to verify a licence rather than assume a name in a database means somebody may practise today.
Most common licence types
| Licence type | On record |
|---|---|
| Manufactured Home Sales Person | 1,469 |
| Installer | 651 |
| Inspector | 291 |
When a licence from this board is not active, the most common reason recorded is lapsed (658 records), followed by suspended (512). Our status dictionary explains what each label actually means.
0.08% of this board's licences carry a recorded board action (2 of 2,411), against about 1.6% across all Ohio professions. A board action covers everything from an administrative consent agreement to revocation, and it is cumulative over a licence's whole life — see how we measured that before reading much into it.
Computed by OhioLicenseCheck from the State of Ohio eLicense dataset (issued licences only; application records excluded). Refreshed daily.
Why choose this path
- Business ownership (dealership) reachable without a degree
- Installer licensing turns construction skills into a regulated specialty with less competition
- Affordable-housing demand gives the sector a long tailwind
- Community operators, retailers, and transport firms form a whole adjacent job market
- Low startup cost relative to site-built construction trades
Path to the license
- 1
Choose dealer or installer track
Dealers need business licensing, bonding, and a retail location; installers need trade competency and the state installer license.
- 2
Complete Ohio’s licensing requirements
The Department of Commerce administers manufactured-homes licensing — coursework, application, bond/insurance, and background requirements.
- 3
Build the operational relationships
Manufacturers, transporters, community operators, and lenders make up the ecosystem; installers should also align with county permitting and inspection processes.
- 4
Stay current
Licenses renew on Commerce’s cycle; a lapsed dealer or installer license halts transactions, so track expirations.
Pay and outlook
Installer earnings typically track skilled-construction wages in Ohio ($40,000–70,000 with experience and crew leadership); dealer income is business-dependent — inventory turns and financing spreads drive it, and successful multi-lot dealers substantially out-earn wage benchmarks. These are working estimates; the sector lacks precise BLS categories.
Housing-affordability economics continue to push manufactured-home demand upward across Ohio.
Where Ohioans train
Ohio Department of Commerce licensing resources
Required courses and applications
Ohio Manufactured Homes Association
Industry training and connections
Schools listed are well-known examples, not endorsements — always compare accreditation, cost, and outcomes.
Official links & resources
Licensed by the Ohio Department of Commerce — Manufactured Homes Program
Read our verification guide for this board — what the license record shows, renewal cycles, and how employers check it.
Curious what a real license looks like?
Look up any current manufactured housing license in the official Ohio record — and when you earn yours, set a free expiry alert so it never lapses.
Try a Free License LookupPay figures are approximate, based on recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and Ohio market observations; actual earnings vary by employer, region, and experience. Licensure requirements change — always confirm current rules with the board and programs linked above. This guide is general information, not career or legal advice.