patrick.net

You still have to deal with contractor to build a foundation and set the place up. I saw a show on the teevee about a company that builds modulars that are made to withstand hurricanes and (mild) tornados. Can't remember the name of it, tho.

Maybe, but it could beat having to deal with a contractors, plumbers, electricians, carpenters etc...

I think they can do the foundation/set up (total package) for a flat fee. Not sure if it's that simple.

A modular home is not a "stick built" home. No one with any experience in homes and building would agree with that statement. It's a trailer that is dolled up with some wood siding and sheet rock. You can't make a silk purse from a sows ear as the saying goes. It got to the site on wheels so it's a fancy trailer. It's a depreciating asset just like a mobile home is and will never go up. Sure, the land underneath it will appreciate, but not the modular home. No matter what you do to those things you can always tell they are modular homes. The eves, foundation and other things that cities now require don't hide that it's a modular. Don't waste your hard earned money. If you want to build on that free land buy yourself a used camp trailer and live on the property for 6 months while you have a real "stick built" home put up and then drag the camp trailer to the dump. There is not much of a market for modular homes unless you're in the middle of the desert in NV or AZ.

I remember sitting in the upper deck of an SF Giants' game one afternoon, spectacular view of the ballpark and also of the shipping traffic going to/from the Oakland Port.
I saw a big container ship go by in the Bay that had among all the other freight that was mostly containers, stacked as high as a downtown office building, half of a modular home.

elliemae, You may have been thinking of Deltec homes. Their round houses do well in high winds.
lurking, You wouldn't be, uh, threatened by modular homes? Off the top of my head --
Modular homes are constructed out of the weather, in a factory, so there is a lot less waste. Tolerances for a home built in a factory are much tighter than site built. Foundations now required? They have always been required as a modular MUST meet the same building codes as a home that is constructed on site from raw materials.

lurking says

A modular home is not a “stick built” home. No one with any experience in homes and building would agree with that statement. It’s a trailer that is dolled up with some wood siding and sheet rock. You can’t make a silk purse from a sows ear as the saying goes. It got to the site on wheels so it’s a fancy trailer. It’s a depreciating asset just like a mobile home is and will never go up. Sure, the land underneath it will appreciate, but not the modular home. No matter what you do to those things you can always tell they are modular homes. The eves, foundation and other things that cities now require don’t hide that it’s a modular. Don’t waste your hard earned money. If you want to build on that free land buy yourself a used camp trailer and live on the property for 6 months while you have a real “stick built” home put up and then drag the camp trailer to the dump. There is not much of a market for modular homes unless you’re in the middle of the desert in NV or AZ.

You have no clue what you are talking about. Modular is usually when the components are fabbed in a factory rather than on site then shipped to the site. How exactly do you tell if the walls were made on site or at a factory? You must have better eyes than me. They don't assemble the building and ship it on a trailer. Here is a pretty good selection of fabs that go from one room to mansion. http://www.scrapbookscrapbook.com/DAC-ART/modular-kit-houses.html

I looked into these a while back. I dedcided to wait and save, so I only got so far. My next thought was to find one built in my area to visit wo that I could make a more informed decision. Dealer could never point me to one within 100 miles of my home. I think I would need to see an example.

Wholeheartedly agree with bob2356. Modular or pre-fab is usually better quality than stick built... The best architects in California are jumping into modular big time because its incredibly more eco-friendly and the construction standards are higher. I've seen several (more upscale) lines ($150/sq. ft) and the work is amazing!

"Lurking": Please stop spreading the misconception that modular is just like a double wide - there is huge difference between manufactured and modular (and actually the quality of manufactured isn't as bad as you seem to imply)

I also looked into buying a modular home. I found they were about 30% more expensive for a finished product than having a custom home built on site. Many of the builders were jumping on the "green" wagon and using all sorts of exotic and unproven materials that had a high cost. I never did find a modular builder that offered just a plain simple house. In the end, it would have been alot more headache as well as cost so I bought a fixer upper tract house 6 months ago.

Regarding unimproved land, what the general feeling about lots and their place in the housing crash? I had the feeling that people were buying them up and holding them. Didn't the Rich Dad Poor Dad guy recommend doing that?
Sorry if this is a hijack but it seems like it might be somewhat along the same lines...

Landru3000 says

Regarding unimproved land, what the general feeling about lots and their place in the housing crash? I had the feeling that people were buying them up and holding them. Didn’t the Rich Dad Poor Dad guy recommend doing that?
Sorry if this is a hijack but it seems like it might be somewhat along the same lines…

I am pretty sure that the Rich Dad, Poor Dad guy is an idiot. FWIW.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rich_Dad_Poor_Dad

For the cheap mobile home double-wide look, I think that clayton has houses for $40 or so per SF.
For a cheaper upscale option, look at clayton's i-house. $100/Sf or so or up to $130 with bamboo floors, upgraded appliances, 4kW solar panels, water collecting roof, rooftop deck, etc.
For an upscale home delivered on a trailer and set up to be livable in a week, look at bluhomes. These are steel framed houses built in a factory, and then partially folded on heavy duty hinges for transport. They go for $200/SF and are very nice looking to me. They go for $150K to $500K for the building alone.
I think that there are some really cool things being done with used shipping containers. If you google container home you will find all sorts of examples. The basic idea, is that you use 8x8x40 foot containers to build up structures. They are only a couple of thousand dollars each, because it takes too much fuel to ship empty boxes back to China. So this is a cheap way of getting a strong steel structure. Lots of architects seem to be getting in on this trend. They can do big cantilevers, and lots of glass. To fit in with your fast build requirement, you could look at the quik-house, which is about $180K for a 2000 SF house. I get the impression that it would be faster than a traditional house, but not super-fast like the other options.
I think prefab, trailer, and container homes can be done super cheap or super nice. The same can be said for a stick-house. Traditionally, prefab has been done on the cheap.

elliemae says

You still have to deal with contractor to build a foundation and set the place up. I saw a show on the teevee about a company that builds modulars that are made to withstand hurricanes and (mild) tornados. Can’t remember the name of it, tho.

I saw an episode on that on mythbusters. They covered a house entirely with carbon fiber (pretty expensive), and it did very well against a hurricane... although still looked very trashed.

http://www.excelhomes.com/Default.aspx

This is what I saw on the history channel - modern marvels.

http://www.allamericanhomes.com/fema.php
Built to withstand hurricane-force winds.

lurking says

A modular home is not a “stick built” home. No one with any experience in homes and building would agree with that statement. It’s a trailer that is dolled up with some wood siding and sheet rock.

I don't think you know what a modular home is. It's not a mobile home. It's a stick built home, in a factory - built in rectangles and assembled on site. Some say that construction is far superior because it's in a climate controlled environment, and built stronger to withstand being towed to it's final destination.

Here's an example:

Nomograph says

One less kook in the lineup. . .

You always know how to bring out the best in people don't you?

If you surf, and enjoy a friendly crowd - come on up to Moss Landing sometime :)

Landru3000 says

Regarding unimproved land, what the general feeling about lots and their place in the housing crash? I had the feeling that people were buying them up and holding them. Didn’t the Rich Dad Poor Dad guy recommend doing that?

I'm not sure - my dad bought a bunch of property about 30 years ago, and offered me 3 acres to build on if I wanted it. He's held onto it for a long time and leased it to farmers.

EBGuy says

Modular homes are constructed out of the weather, in a factory, so there is a lot less waste. Tolerances for a home built in a factory are much tighter than site built. Foundations now required? They have always been required as a modular MUST meet the same building codes as a home that is constructed on site from raw materials.

Exactly.

Would still like to tour some in my area. Would like to walk through one that is ten years old. Does it get creaky like a car?

http://www.modulartoday.com/gallery.html

Interesting topic and a very good idea.

Here is the video. Certainly not a mobilehomes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6vF2dl3iO4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCvhhnZZ7vI

There are modular homes that are essentially two trailer homes stuck together. In fact you can see the steel carriage they were brought to the site on in the crawl space. These are junk. There are also very good quality modulars. Its a very broad genre that needs investigating to see if its worth considering. I personally dont think they are worth it but I was in the construction biz and somewhat prejudiced towards a well crafted site built house. There can be a fair amount of on site work involved (beyond the foundation and utilities) unless you accept what the manufacture offers. I know someone who wanted an attached garage with a breeze way and with the manufacturer they choose these "amenities" had to be site built under a separate contract from the basic house.

rdm says

There are modular homes that are essentially two trailer homes stuck together. In fact you can see the steel carriage they were brought to the site on in the crawl space. These are junk. There are also very good quality modulars. Its a very broad genre that needs investigating to see if its worth considering. I personally dont think they are worth it but I was in the construction biz and somewhat prejudiced towards a well crafted site built house. There can be a fair amount of on site work involved (beyond the foundation and utilities) unless you accept what the manufacture offers. I know someone who wanted an attached garage with a breeze way and with the manufacturer they choose these “amenities” had to be site built under a separate contract from the basic house.

Once again, confusing mobile with modular. Modular homes don't sit on a steel frame - mobile homes do.

Mr.Fantastic says

I’ve seen a few modular home builders advertise on late TV, but to be honest, they don’t seem much cheaper (if at all) than actually constructing your own box.

They aren't necessarily cheaper. They are (or should be, there's always outliers) built in controlled conditions using jigs and tight quality control not in some muddy building site with a chop saw balanced on the back of a pickup. I wouldn't buy one without walking through the factory first.