SYSTEM BASICS

Modular homes are offsite-built houses manufactured in a remote facility and delivered to their intended site of use.

The name "modular home" refers to a method of construction, rather than to an architectural style. Sections of a house, or modules, are completed in climate-controlled factories, and then transported to the building site on steel carriers. There, the modules are lifted by cranes and set onto a permanent foundation. Depending on its size, modular homes consist of 1 to many modules. The biggest, a 9,000 sq.ft. modular mansion consisting of 18 modules was assembled into a house within two weeks.

Modular homes are built to the same state and local building codes and are subject to the same zoning regulations as are site-built homes. They come in variety of architectural styles (Cape Cod, Victorian, Ranch, Raised Ranch, Traditional, Saltbox, Split-Level, Two-Story, etc.). Some homeowners opt for virtually everything to be done in the factory; others hire local tradesmen to customize portions of their house, like kitchens and bathrooms.