Deciding to buy a factory-built home
Factory-Built Homes-As Good As It Gets
Factory-built homes have come a long way over the past several years-bearing little
resemblance to the "mobile home" of yesteryear. Thanks to sophisticated production
processes, factory-built housing is as good as it gets when it comes to efficiency,
affordability, and innovative design options.
You probably wouldn't recognize a factory-built home if you saw one, so close are
they in design and structure to their site-built counterparts. But as a home shopper,
you do know a bargain when you see one. That's why in 1998 homebuyers like you bought
336,981 new factory-built homes in the United States. Nationwide, approximately 18
million people -- more than 7 percent of the U.S. population -- live in factory-built
homes. Factory-built homes represent a whopping 28 percent of all new single-family
homes in this country.
Thinking of buying a factory-built home? Here's what you need to know.
What is a factory-built home?
Factory-built housing covers any type of housing constructed in a factory and
transported to a residential site. Manufactured, modular, and panelized housing are
examples of factory-built homes.
- Manufactured Homes:
These are homes built entirely in the factory under a
federal building code administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD). The Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards
(commonly known as the HUD Code) went into effect June 15, 1976. It's the only
federally regulated national building code.
Built entirely in a factory, manufactured homes are transported to the site and
installed. Federal standards, established in 1976, regulate manufactured housing
design and construction, strength and durability, transportability, fire resistance,
energy efficiency and quality. The government also sets standards for heating,
plumbing, air conditioning, thermal and electrical systems. On-site additions,
such as garages, decks, and porches, must be built to local, state or regional
building codes.
- Modular Homes:
These factory-built homes are built to the codes of the
state, locality or region where they will be located. The modular home is built in
sections, then transported to the home site where it is lifted onto foundations and
permanently anchored.
- Panelized Homes:
These are factory-built homes in which panels - whole
walls with windows, doors, wiring and outside siding - are transported to the site
and assembled. The homes must meet state or local building codes where they are sited.
- Pre-Cut Homes:
This is the name for factory-built housing in which
building materials are factory-cut to design specifications, transported to the
site and assembled. Pre-cut homes include kit, log, and dome homes. These homes must
meet local, state or regional building codes.
- Mobile Homes:
This is the term used for factory-built homes produced prior
to 1976, when the national building code went into effect.
More Bang for Your Buck
Factory-built homes cost, on average, about half of the price of a site-built house.
The average site-built home costs an average of $70 per square foot, while a
factory-built home costs $35 to $40 per square foot, mostly because they are more
efficient to produce.
New factory-built homes may cost anywhere from $20,000 for a small, simple model to
$100,000 or more for a multi-section unit with upgrades. You can customize your
factory-built home with skylights, picture windows, fireplaces, whirlpools, built-in
bookcases, and entertainment units - virtually any feature available in a custom
site-built home.
Most people can't tell the difference between a factory-built home and its
traditionally built neighbor. Their roofs have the same height and pitch, and you
can select such design features as a bay window, gable front, or pitched roof with
shingles. Awnings, enclosures around the crawl space, patio covers, decks and steps
are also available.
Factory-Hatched Is Better
"By not being exposed to the whims of Mother Nature, factory-builders can shorten
the production schedule required to get a house from the drawing board to a lot.
They can also monitor waste better, reduce theft and more accurately maintain
inventories-all of which are very difficult to do when you are building out in the
middle of an open field."-Popular Mechanics
Here are just some of the benefits of buying a factory-built home:
- You get more bang for your buck. You get a quality product at a lower cost than a
site-built home because the bulk purchase of materials, standardized factory production
and design ingenuity all work to keep structural costs low.
- You have flexible financing terms. Mortgages are available with 30-year and
15-year terms. You can also get into a factory-built home with a lower down payment.
- Your home will appreciate in value - comparable to appreciation of site-built
homes (if your factory-built home is well maintained).
- You can place your home just about anywhere. Regulations are now being passed that
would no longer allow counties and cities to zone out factory-built houses. Instead,
municipalities must set out specific size, design and appearance criteria that
apply to both factory-built and site-built homes to regulate where they can be
located. Some communities do have restrictive covenants that prohibit manufactured
homes, but that, too, is changing.
- You'll spend less on utilities. On average, you'll spend 25 percent less on your
utilities than with a site-built home. Manufacturers are offering homeowners a variety
of energy-saving options, including better insulation to lower heating and cooling
costs, energy-efficient windows, and the choice of a home-energy fuel.
Whether you're looking for a manufactured mansion or the ultimate ranch house,
chances are you can find a factory-built home that will fit your dreams. Maybe
you're a retired couple wanting a 1,200-square-foot, one-story house-complete
with wood decks, fireplace, skylights, and Jacuzzi in a socially active community.
Or you might be a swinging single who prefers a cozy Cape-Cod-style cottage in a
community that features a slip for your boat and a sizzling local nightlife to boot.
What if you're a young family wanting to establish a homestead, but you just can't
afford to plunk down $150,000 or more on two-story site-built house? Well, now you
don't have to. Instead, you can spend your money on more land for your kids to roam,
and maybe even some new furniture to place in that 1,600-square-foot factory-built
home of your dreams. Whatever your scenario, there's a factory-built home out there
for you.
Size Matters
How big of a home do you want? You'd be surprised how large factory-built homes can be.
You can find 14-, 16-, and 18-foot-wide models, as well as multi-sections (20 to 28
feet). More than 50 percent of manufactured homes sold are now multi-sections.
Although a typical model has 24 feet by 60 feet, or 1,440 square feet, of living area,
some are considerably bigger.
Homebuyers at higher and higher income levels appreciate the sophisticated manufacturing
process that makes a house a valued home. Recently, a San Francisco factory-built home
provider sold a 4,000-square-foot, four-car garage factory-built home on a lot with a
Pacific Ocean view to a Woodside, Calif. customer.
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Equal Housing Opportunity.