There is modular and there is modular - sm
Posted By: on 2008-02-19
In Reply to: Building a house - Curious George
There are 2 types of modular homes, the type that is like the manufactured home but of better quality, and the modular that is basically a stick built house, but it is built inside in a warehouse piece by piece,then trucked to your lot and put together. My neighbors have a modular home.....$225,000---so obviously it is not a plain old rectangular ranch house. This is a very nice home. So there are different levels of modular to be aware of. The cheaper version is undoubtly not built inside protected from the elements and probably uses basic materials. Research it out, the more expensive modular is actually better than a house stick built on your lot. Talk to builders, talk to other you see building their own home etc.
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Stick Vs. Modular
I think stick means a house built completely on-site with 2x4 lumber from the ground up. A modular is a house built in sections in a building somewhere else and then the sections are moved to your site and put together there. All the modulars I have been inside seem to develops cracks in the walls and ceilings as the house settles over time. Just my opinion but I think stick will give better quality overall, thought probably cost more. But I have seen extremely nice modulars when they are new.
We just moved out of modular and built (sm)
We lived in a modular, what some would call a 'double-wide', for about 8 years, and while it was by no means what one would call a trailer, neither was it as sound as a site built house. It was a great starter home, but there were a couple of things about it that anyone looking to buy a modular should be aware of. The first thing is that resale on modulars/manufactured homes is not as brisk (at least in my part of the country) as a regular, site-built home. We ended up selling ours via land contract. The second thing to be aware of is that these homes off-gas. If you move into a new house, there is going to be a smell associated with that new construction but in a manufactured home, because of the way they are built, on an assembly line, some things are done differently than in a traditional house. There is a lot of formaldehyde used in the construction of these homes.
Heating and ventilation are other things to be concerned about, as well as insulation, and what type of foundation to put underneath the home. My suggestion is that if you go with a modular/manufactured home, go with a full slab.
As far as settling goes, any house is going to settle. If the home is set up properly the settling will be held to a minimum, but if it isn't done well, the settling will be more obvious. I would check with the BBB where you are looking to buy and see if there are any complaints on file with them re: the company/ies you are looking at.
Another thing to consider: Where are you putting this home? Many subdivisions have regulations against modular homes of any type, including the one we moved into. These people (small subdivision) freaked out completely when they found out we were building a house in THEIR subd. and that we lived in a modular at the time. I guess they thought the trailer trash was coming to town...let's just not go there.
We were able to go through a service where we hired a consultant who is a licensed builder to guide us through the process, and we actually did the general contracting ourselves. We managed to save a significant amount of money in the process, and while there were very stressful times we managed it well and are extremely pleased with the results. While we are not what could be considered tree huggers, we did want to build a house that was more environmentally friendly and energy efficient. There are several ways to do that, and it really is so much simpler than you may think. We just moved in about a month ago, and we do still have quite a bit to do, trim, paint, landscaping (we have a beyoootiful mud pit right now), but it is so very much worth it.
In any event, good luck with whatever you decide to do, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.
HC
Anybody with modular home advice?
 We would like to buy some land in the NC mountains and possibly put up a log cabin or modular home but I'm scared about handling all the details. We are looking at an area with lots for sale and water hookup available but we would have to handle septic tank, etc. Any advice for me? What kind of financing is available for just a lot if we wanted to get that now and build later?
modular/manufactured (double) are built the same
the modular comes in sections, the manufactured comes in halves. The specifics are the same.
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