Manufacturers’ Homes

Houses manufactured in factories are one of the options to be considered by a buyers considering a new home ownership. The developments in the offsite-built home industry created significant improvements to the safety and comfort of manufacturers’ homes. As a result, all other segments of home industry, including skeptical insurance and financial services, have created programs enabling new home buyers to use these homes as collaterals.

Initially, houses manufactured in factories were cheap alternative to a site-built residence. Their practicality, low price and maintenance were the factors which caused their popularity. People with dynamic lifestyles saw the manufacturers’ homes as the right choice.

As time passed, the factory-built homes became bigger and bigger. Single-wide mobile homes were replaced by double-wide and triple-wide manufactured homes. As a result, the transportation of these homes became more and more complicated and costly. The easy-to-relocate concept of mobile homes era became an obsolete idea. Nowadays, manufacturers’ homes undergo a lot less transportation than in the past.

Houses manufactured from materials conforming to HUD-code were not as resistant as traditional on-site built home. The news reports revealed to the nation that hurricanes and tornadoes can easily damage the integrity of houses manufactured to HUD-code. This led to improvements in the anchoring systems, and to placing manufacturers’ homes on a permanent foundation. Anchoring homes to the ground significantly reduces the damages caused by wind storm and floods. It is a good idea to invest in good anchoring system if you do not plan to settle permanently in high-wind or flood climate zone.

Manufactured homes are delivered to building site 99% complete. The cost of homes built to HUD code is significantly lower that the cost of on-site built homes, or the cost of modular homes. There is no difference in a comfort of a home built to HUD code in comparison to a home built to a standard building code. The heating and cooling of HUD home might cost up to 60% more that heating and cooling of a traditional home as a result of lesser thermal insulation in walls and floors. This factor makes manufactured homes popular in the areas of mild climate (Florida, for an example). Living space is no problem because home buyer can choose from various sizes of houses manufactured in factories.

Manufactured homes can be placed in manufactured homes park or manufactured homes communities, or set at owner's lot if the local zoning regulations permits HUD building in the zone. The manufactured home can be set on a pier-type foundation, concrete pad, or a permanent foundation. Mobile home parks mostly offer concrete pads, while manufactured home communities might require permanent foundation to be built at owner's expense.

The improvements in the manufacturers’ homes have led to a wider acceptance of these homes. The latest techniques makes it difficult to tell them apart from on-site-built homes. The quality standards have increased considerably. Houses manufactured represent an important, constantly growing segment of a home market in USA.

As a result of a progress in manufacturers’ houses, it is not a surprise if people would prefer to buy houses manufactured instead of financing an onsite construction. The result of these progress is the beautiful appearance of manufacturers’ homes.

If you think that houses manufactured in factories are not as safe or as beautiful as on-site-built ones, you had take another look. You will be surprised at the progress of the manufacturers’ homes on the housing market.