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this is the company that produces modular homes in iowa and they look nothing like what ud expect

 

And this one is popular around here (Ffld County, CT)

Haven Homes: We're Making a Difference

 

It's interesting that of the samples you were looking at all pictorials showed a garage but, the floor plans did not. Also see if there is a local builder that has installed any of the homes (the company) that you might be looking at. Don't forget to check about firecode sheet rock if needed.

 

Just a thought,

IDK if they'd be too wide for road travel.
The industry makes extensive use of shear walls to keep these things stable in transport. The whole front is open in a garage.
Most garages are on a slab, there's no floor framing. How would you put it on a trailer?

 

I can see why. I nice home but way more square footage than I could afford. I can only imagine the property taxes on a 3500 foot home. With a 10 acre lot I pay $6,000 a year.

The stick built home includes the garage. All the modulars are options. All have fire rated sheet rock in the garage. All of the companies that I have talked with refered me to a local dealer/builder. I have been buy a few homes that they have built.

 

HUH??? here's a modular / panalized one my buddy built

 

That's what I'm talking about. Not only do you buy American but you got to buy Iowian.

 

Saw a cool thing on either the Discovery Channel or Modern Marvels on the History channel a while back about making modular homes-wait, it was this old house!
Anyway, I was really impressed with their techniques and the apparent quality.
I'm not sure about the value of being able to change things in the process of building. Seems like change orders cost an arm and a leg, most times. But that depends on the builder, I guess. My neighbor put up a modular and it looks great inside and out. Feels plenty sturdy to me, too.

 

I'm sitting here at my laptop, reading all these replies. Got a nice fire going in the fireplace, and even though I live on a major highway, I can't hear any traffic because of the 6-inch sidewalls and extra insulation, along with the triple-glazed windows. I look up at my smooth, finished drywall ceilings, and realize that they would have had a heck of a time putting up all that crown molding if they would have had to work around textured drywall compound or popcorn textures. The oak hardwood floors are mellowing really nice, and look better every day. Just paid the gas bill for March: the furnace, dryer, hot water heater and range all use gas, and once again the total bill was under $100. The Lincoln and Corvair are still under wraps out in the three-car garage, but they'll be back on the road any day now.

Oh- did I mention this is a modular house, built in 1985? The neighbors were concerned when they saw all the sections roll in 23 years ago, but I'm now appraised at the same rate as the rest of the stick-built houses on my road (so much for modulars not holding their value, to whomever here made that ignorant statement). If you have any questions drop me a private message with your e-mail address, and I'll send you photos. I defy anyone to tell me that my house looks like it was made in a factory. It's a Medallion model from Ritz-Craft, built in Mifflinburg, PA. That's over 200 hundred miles from where I'm sitting right now, and the house arrived with one small crack in the drywall. How many stick-built houses could claim that after a 200-mile trek?

 

23 years?? its pronbaly time for a resand, or at least a screen and coat on your hardwood

 

I'm sorry to say that around here, framers have already gone the way of the cowboys...but the viquero is still here!

 

This has been interesting reading. In the end, you get what you pay for. There are high and low ends in both products.

But I know from recent experience, I built my own (as GC) custom home in 2001. Top end. I built it "with a little help from my friends" for about $60/sf. (I'm a GC in the multifamily industry). BUT...my brother in LA(Louisiana) just bought a modular home for $36/sf not counting his cost on the home site. He's putting it on his 20 acres and I think it is the smartest thing he could have done.

I wouldn't be scared of either product as long as you are happy with the purchase!

 

Forgot to mention in my first thread:

I grew up in a mobile home, and worked in the mobile/ modular industry during my student and young-adult years. The definitions in the industry are:

-sectional (or doublewide) home: built to a federal HUD standard, and permanently attached to a metal I-beam frame which rests on concrete-block piers (although it is possible to place it on a basement, with a lot of work and extra steel I-beams). Though not intended for constant movement like an RV, from a code and construction standpoint it's basically a mobile home. Rarely meets local building codes.

- modular home: built to the same state and local building codes as a stick-built house, but transported to the site and permanently installed on a perimeter foundation, such as a basement or crawl space. The frame it travels on is removed and sent back to the plant, as where a sectional home relies on the metal undercarriage for lifetime support. The only thing a modular has in common with a sectional is that they're both made in a factory. Some large cities bar their placement by requiring union labor to have installed the plumbing, wiring, etc... 99% of modular factories are in rural areas, where unions have little or no influence.

My modular is assessed just like every other stick-built house on my street, so I have no idea why someone would state that modulars don't hold their value. If someone could prove that, I wish they'd provide me the info so I could take it to my town assessor and demand they lower my taxes!

 

Those are some good definitions, thanks. I said what I did because around here, probably 99% of the modulars are glorified sectionals--they're placed on a permanent foundation, and the delivery trailer is removed, but the walls are 2x2 or 2x3 and covered with pressboard, not drywall. Also, the side walls have an interior ceiling height of around 7', so the doors aren't even the standard 6'8" tall. They're probably assessed similarly to a stick-built home as Indiana has an incredibly screwed-up property tax system, but I guarantee that their appraisal/resale value is far less than a comparable stick-built.

Apparently the OP is looking at modular homes of a higher caliber than the typical one in my area.

Jason

 

Thanks for the responses. I have a few issues to get settled like sub-dividing, civil engineer, perk test, driveway estimate (400ft), and below ground utility (400ft) installation before I can move forward on deciding what is best for me. It will come down to the quality of home for the money. Price matters. With 10 acres of land I get slammed in property taxes. I am trying to keep my mortgage payment with escrow of property taxes and insurace to under $2300/month.