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I am wondering why everybody hates Manufactured House? They do not look like wrecked trains any more. What is the difference between a Modular House and a Prefab House? Why is the zoning strict for a Manufactured House? Can the Modular House and the Prefab House sneak near traditional houses? They should let that happen, because they are indistinguishable from each other! And Manufactured Houses don't look much different either.
Also is the financing difficult for manufactured houses? Such as ones that have not been installed onto land yet?
I am wondering why everybody hates Manufactured House?
Typically people refer to mobile homes or trailers as manufactured housing. They have an axel for wheels underneath and they go down in value each year, just like a car.
A real house typically goes up in value each year. That is a HUGE difference.
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Originally Posted by In_Correct
What is the difference between a Modular House and a Prefab House?
Modular and prefab are basically the same. Some use quality building materials, some dont.
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Originally Posted by In_Correct
Why is the zoning strict for a Manufactured House?
Most house people dont want to live next to trailer people and have created zoning laws to accomplish that.
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Originally Posted by In_Correct
Can the Modular House and the Prefab House sneak near traditional houses?
Typically, yes.
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Originally Posted by In_Correct
They should let that happen, because they are indistinguishable from each other! And Manufactured Houses don't look much different either.
Even if they look identical, they are built completely different. Modular uses quality building materials that meet or exceed local code, mobile homes use terrible, cheap building materials that do not meet building codes to be classified as a home.
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Originally Posted by In_Correct
Also is the financing difficult for manufactured houses? Such as ones that have not been installed onto land yet?
Yes, because its a construction loan. Few people who are interested in mobiles have the down payment or can qualify for getting raw land ready for a manufactured or mobile home. People who buy them are typically poor so they rent a spot in a mobile home park.
Modular homes are often quite nice and even have some superior qualities since they are built indoors by experienced carpenters etc. They are set on a prepared foundation just like stick built houses. They are taxed as houses.
Manufactured homes = house trailers and are simple living spaces on wheels, no taller than 8 ft so they can be driven down a public street. These have a relatively short lifetime and a re taxed as vehicles. There is a crossover situation where the chassis is later placed on a permanent foundation. The axels are removed and the unit is unable to be moved on wheels ever again. At this point it will be treated as a house.
Manufactured homes can be nice for the first few years of their lives. As time goes on, however, they show signs of obsolescence. After 25 yrs they generally have lost any charm they ever had, and interiors are stained by smoke, steam, unvented cooking smells, etc. Whereas houses have at least 2 x 4 framing, manufactured often have 1 x 2s which warp and lose their crispness with time. The trailer walls look wavy and insubstantial as time goes by.
The problem is that many people think "trailer" when they hear manufactured home. Adding to the confusion is different jurisdictions use manufactured home to describe any off site factory build structure.
To help municipalities and AHJ's deal with this, the MHINCC has refered to "manufactured homes" as current HUD code structures. They kept modular homes and penalized homes as their own definition. All these homes, manufactured, modular, penalized, and precuts are all Factory Built homes. However, the industry and government definitions and specifications has done little to educate the public who still can't tell you what a manufactured, mobile or modular is and what makes each their own category. Even local jurisdictions have banned modular homes thinking they are mobile homes. Others allow modular but get upset if a particular one resembles a 'double wide' and not a house. You have to explain to people that each of these could look like a old style mobile home or they can look like a 3 story McMansion; the type has little to do anymore with the exterior look.
There may be different quality levels for some manufactured homes, but from my experiance with one belonging to a close relative, they can honestly advertise things like high insulation levels and 2x6 wall construction while using substandard materials, thin wall boards. They might be allowed because the meet some manufactured home building code, while they might not meet local codes for a site built home. The house I'm familiar with used non standard snap together electrical outlets and switches that seemed less reliable and were not available at the local hardware store.
There may be different quality levels for some manufactured homes, but from my experiance with one belonging to a close relative, they can honestly advertise things like high insulation levels and 2x6 wall construction while using substandard materials, thin wall boards. They might be allowed because the meet some manufactured home building code, while they might not meet local codes for a site built home. The house I'm familiar with used non standard snap together electrical outlets and switches that seemed less reliable and were not available at the local hardware store.
The quality of a manufactured home is in the hands of the buyer. Most buy manufactured because they are going after the cheap factor. If you buy cheap, you get cheap. There are many manufactured homes that a person will visit and never know it was a manufactured home because of the design and quality. If you are only seeing the traditional rectangle single double wides, you are missing a whole world of manufactured homes. I;m not talking modular or prefabs; i'm talking the HUD code metal frame over the road manufactured homes.
I agree the majority of manufactured homes are sold based on the low price, but when you speak to the factory reps, you will see that there are many models (even custom) that look nothing like what you see in the lots, including systems that are every bit as good (if not better) as a on-site stick built home. Money is the driving factor.
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