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