I posted a reply for some folks on the Wyoming forum who wanted to know about modular home dealers in Billings. I thought I'd share it here in case some Montanans are looking into this type of home option.
We've been looking at modulars/dealers in Billings for the past year or so. There are a couple that we are really impressed with. The guys at Big Sky Homes are very knowledgeable and they carry quality homes (Dutch Homes brand)at good prices. They also carry others, including Champion. We've heard from several people, including dealers and others, that Champion homes are the ones to steer clear from.
A new place just opened in Billings a couple of weeks ago. We went last weekend and checked them out. They seem to have the best built homes we've seen, with nice prices. The dealership is called American Vision Homes. They carry Marshfield Homes, made in Wisconsin. The man who owns the dealership was a dealer for this company some years ago and decided to go with them again as they are superior homes.
We also found Montana Modular to be okay, but a bit more expensive. They carry Magnolia homes, which seem to be good ones.
Pierce Homes has the longest lasting reputation in Billings, but their homes (BonnaVilla) seem very pricey. The salespeople there are also much more "snooty" than those at the smaller dealerships. With Pierce you get good service, but you seem to be paying mostly for the name and for their fancy new building!
Centennial Homes guys are okay, but again, more pricey and not the homes we really liked or were impressed with. They carry Friendship Homes of Minnesota, which I had never heard of before.
There is a place called Homes of the Future just out of Billings and I would never recommend this place to anyone. They claim to be "builders" but are actually modular dealers. When we stopped there they were very rude. They claim to sell their homes for "X number of $$ per foot" but don't tell you about the hidden costs until later. They don't even let "browsers" look through their homes without help from a salesperson. They keep them locked.
Another option (and they have a deal in Sheridan) is Stratford Homes. They are super quality and like a "step above" modulars. My sister and her husband had one built in Western Montana and are very pleased. The only problem they ran into was that every little change they made to the house cost them big bucks. Their intented budget grew quite rapidly. But overall, they are very pleased.
Like I said, we've really been doing our shopping! I hope this helps out!
Georgia