| Modular homes are houses built in factories and | | | | homes boast a variety of cost savings. The main |
| then transported to and assembled at the housing | | | | reason for this is that large-scale manufacturers |
| site. Modular homes are different from mobile | | | | can get favorable terms for supply of materials in |
| homes and site-built homes. | | | | bulk. |
| The term site-built refers to the construction of | | | | Also, indoor manufacturing of the house |
| new houses in the open, at the housing sites, at | | | | components means that they are safe from |
| the mercy of both the climate and the builder. | | | | problems related to weather and climate. This is a |
| They have to generally adhere to state, local and | | | | major problem of site-built houses, for which |
| regional codes and specifications. For example, | | | | work is delayed often by weather or vandalism. |
| earthquake-prone areas may require special | | | | Waste from a modular home unit is miniscule |
| facilities. Such houses are also called stick-built | | | | compared to waste generated by site-built |
| houses and often have rising value in the real | | | | homes. Also, factory workers are highly trained |
| estate market - especially for site value. | | | | for specialized manufacturing tasks. In comparison, |
| Mobile homes are also completely factory- and | | | | site-building is entrusted to contractors who |
| offsite-manufactured, but are built on a | | | | employ unskilled, temporary labor. |
| non-removable steel chassis. They adhere to a | | | | Modular homes are built in an offsite, quality |
| federal code, called the Housing and Urban | | | | controlled environment. The main advantage is |
| Development (HUD) code, rather than to the local | | | | that they can be built in half the time, while |
| codes where they move about. They are | | | | meeting the same quality standard. |
| cheaper than site-built houses and modular houses, | | | | Modular homes can be customer-designed. The |
| and decrease in value over time. | | | | time saving is immense: modular homes take |
| Modular homes, on the other hand, are built in | | | | thirty to ninety days for completion, compared to |
| sections in a factory. They are built to conform | | | | six to nine months for site-built houses. Typically, |
| to all of the local, regional and state building codes | | | | a two story, 2000 square-foot home can be |
| for where they are finally located. Sections are | | | | constructed in a factory in a single week! |
| transported from the manufacturing site to the | | | | Modular homes are growing more popular by the |
| building sites on truck beds and then are joined | | | | day. In 2002, three percent of new homes in the |
| together by local contractors. The building is then | | | | U.S. were modular homes, and the northeastern |
| laid out by a crane to an existing foundation. | | | | states accounted for the highest modular home |
| Modular homes have several advantages that are | | | | activity. The states in which modular housing was |
| making them increasingly popular. Modular homes | | | | most popular were North Carolina, Michigan, and |
| tend to be twenty- to forty-percent cheaper | | | | New York. |
| than site built homes. This is because modular | | | | |