(a) “Dealer” means a person not otherwise expressly excluded by subdivision (b), who is engaged in any of the following activities:
(1) For commission, money, or other thing of value, sells, exchanges, leases, buys, offers for sale, or negotiates or attempts to negotiate a sale or exchange of an interest in a manufactured home, mobilehome, or commercial coach, or induces or attempts to induce any person to buy or exchange an interest in a manufactured home, mobilehome, or commercial coach, and who receives or expects to receive a commission, money, brokerage fees, profit, management fees, or any other things of value from either the seller or purchaser of the manufactured home, mobilehome, or commercial coach.
(2) Is engaged wholly or in part in the business of selling manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches or buying or taking in trade manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches for the purpose of reselling, selling, or offering for sale, or consigning to be sold, or otherwise dealing in manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches, whether or not these manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches are owned by the dealer.
(b) “Dealer” does not include any of the following:
(1) An insurance company, bank, savings and loan association, finance company, or public official coming into possession of one or more manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches in the regular course of business, who only sells manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches under a contractual right or obligation, in performance of an official duty, or under the authority of any court of law. However, a sale subject to this paragraph shall be for the purpose of preventing the seller from suffering a loss or pursuant to the authority of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) Persons who sell or distribute manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches, subject to registration or titling pursuant to Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 18075), for a manufacturer to dealers licensed under this part, or who are employed by manufacturers or distributors to promote the sale of manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches dealt in by that manufacturer or distributor. However, if any person also sells manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches at retail, the person is a dealer and is subject to this part.
(3) Persons regularly employed as salespersons by dealers licensed under this part while acting within the scope of that employment.
(4) Persons exclusively engaged in the bona fide business of exporting manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches, or of soliciting orders for the sale and delivery of manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches outside the territorial limits of the United States, if no federal excise tax is legally payable on any of those transactions or the tax is legally refundable on the transactions. Persons not exclusively engaged in the bona fide business of exporting manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches but who are engaged in the business of soliciting orders for the sale and delivery of manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches outside the territorial limits of the United States shall be exempt from licensure as dealers only if their gross sales proceeds from manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches produce less than 10 percent of their total gross revenue from all business transacted.
(5) Persons not engaged in the purchase or sale of manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches as a business.
(6) Persons disposing of manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches acquired for their own use or for use in a business of acquiring, leasing, or selling manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches, if the manufactured homes, mobilehomes, or commercial coaches have been so acquired and used in good faith and not acquired or used for the purpose of avoiding the provisions of this part.
(7) Persons licensed as real estate brokers who buy, sell, list, or negotiate the purchase, sale, or exchange of manufactured homes or mobilehomes pursuant to Section 10131.6 of the Business and Professions Code.
(Amended by Stats. 1983, Ch. 1076, Sec. 3.)