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 For Your Money

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.

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.