Homeownership is still the great American dream. It's also one of the biggest investments you'll ever make. In many respects, buying a factory-built home is no different than buying a site-built one. Except for one important factor: Searching for a factory-built home can be a whole lot easier than the more traditional method of buying a home.

Unlike searching for a site-built home, you can find a wide range of homes - in many different styles and floor plans - at Tom Raper Homes Inc. Here's what you can expect in your search.

Plenty of homes to choose from. As many as 75 model homes in stock at Tom Raper Homes. It would take a lot of driving around to look at that many site-built homes, Tom Raper Homes represent many different manufacturers, that gives you even more styles and models to choose from.

All-in-one home buying. You can choose a home and the interior features you want - like carpet grade and color, window treatments and certain appliances -before you move in. With a site-built home, it's someone else's taste you're buying. Therein lies the rub. You've just spent your life's savings on the down payment of your site-built home; so guess what? No decorating money.

Designer-decorated model homes. Tom Raper Homes work with factory-built for custom feature models that are fixed up just the way you might dream your own home would look.

No one stealing the home you've set your heart on, out from under you. You've heard your friends' stories. They spend weeks, sometimes months, looking for the house of their dreams. Finally they find it - it has everything they've been looking for in one charming, cozy little house. But before they can even make an offer, someone else comes up behind them and makes the owner an offer they can't refuse. Gone is the house, and their home-buying endurance test begins all over again.

Short delivery time. Shorter delivery time equals less hassle, more convenience and it is certainly a lot more enjoyable process than taking up to a year to build with a site builder.

#1 In Indiana

Tom Raper Homes is the #1 homes dealer in Indiana. We offer some of the finest manufactured homes in the Midwest. If you are planning to build a new home in Indiana, Ohio, or Northern Kentucky be sure to visit our huge selection of display homes.

Tom Raper is proud to present only the top manufactured homes in the Midwest. We have already shopped for you. We have studied all the products and narrowed the field down to only the top quality homes. Construction and Customer Satisfaction are our top priorities.

More Options

These are options not offered by the manufacturer, but which can be negotiated with a retailer if you're buying a land-home package. The following represents only a partial list of what some of those options are. Additions and Alterations

• awnings, enclosures around the crawl space (skirting is required in most land-lease communities)
   

• patio covers
   

• decks
   

• steps (steps with handrails are required in most land-leased communities)
   

• garages
   

• outdoor storage cabinets
   

• cabanas
   

• bay windows
   

What will it cost?

Depending upon what styles, sizes, and floor plans you choose, prices range from about $15,000 to more than $100,000, without land. Factory-built homes can be installed on your own land, in a rental community or in a planned subdivision.

While your mortgage payment may be your biggest expense, you'll have other regular and periodic payments. They may include utilities, property taxes, land rental fees, insurance, routine maintenance, and other service fees such as water and sewer. Today's manufactured homes are built to meet new national energy standards set by HUD. The energy-conserving features found in manufactured homes help reduce your monthly energy costs.

Quality Standards

Factory-built homes haven't just grown up and become respectable; in some ways they've actually surpassed their site-built home counterparts with a combination of tough construction standards and affordability.

Factory-built homes are built to meet the federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards, also known as the HUD Code. They're now constructed with the same materials and similar or higher standards as site-built homes. This HUD code regulates the home's design and construction, strength and durability, transportability, fire resistance and energy efficiency. It also sets performance standards for heating, air conditioning, plumbing, thermal and electrical systems.