Need Opinions of Modular Homes

[vader]

Hey boys and girls,

[Stingray]

The nearest neighbors to me have a modular house. I would never have known that's what it is until they told me. Nice looking place IMO.

-S

[ChadTower]

Can't talk about having one there, but I know someone who bought one in NH and it had little chance of surviving many NH winters.

[vader]

Didn't relealize they were that suseptible to winter.  Do you mean that it couldn't handle the blizzards or the cold winter in general, of course NH and NC are like opposite ends of the globe in relation to winter tempartures and such, btw...their seem to be quite a bit of the modulars already there.

TIm

[ChadTower]

Don't know which it was, but they were at the base of a mountain and got an awful lot of both.

[Stingray]

FWIW, I think Oklahoma and North Carolina have similar winter conditions. The house I mentioned was about ten years old when I moved where I live now. I've been here for ten years plus and it still looks good to me, at least on the outside. I know it's never had to have a new roof or any other major external repair work.

Edit, for the math challenged : I've been here for ten years, the house was here for ten years before me. Which would put the house at twenty (20) years old. Also I like bacon.

-S

[ChadTower]

Ten years isn't much time for a house, though.  Find one that is 30 years old and let us know.

[Stingray]

Ten plus ten is twenty.

-S

[SirPoonga]

Ask the manufacturer about how the homes handle seasons and weather.

Modular homes are popular in my hometown.  There are two companies in the are that make modular homes.  And being Wisconsin they better handle winter otherwise no one would buy them.

[SirPoonga]

Oh yeah, if you put the home on a basement a good idea is to have outside access with a 4ft or double 3ft doors. 

[AC.]

Consider also a basement and the resale value / depreciation rate.

[vader]

The major manufacturing facility where I will be moving happens to be in the same area that I will be moving.  I'm ASSUMING ( big word ) that they are built to standards for that area, granted most houses that I have seen look to be no older than 5 years and I did seem some older one's possibly 20+, but did not get a up close look.  The basement is a idea I'm kicking around, I am sure I could finds some usefullness for it, possibly my woodshop 

[ChadTower]

There are always people willing to buy things if they are told it will work and is cheaper.

That does not mean it will work.

There are also a lot of people who only want a house for ten years and will buy the less persevering house to save money.

[ClubNinja]

My folks built a modular home in 1980.  It arrived in pieces one morning and was built before the end of the afternoon.  The house is solid, in fantastic shape, and (at least in my opinion) a better structure than traditional wood frame houses.  Of course, it has to be maintained just like any house if you want to keep it from falling apart.  It is located in MA.

I can't comment on the particular homes shown in the above link, but I can say that if I decide upon building my next house, I will very likely go modular.

[Stingray]

It arrived in pieces one morning and was built before the end of the afternoon. 

Wow, I knew they go together quickly, but I had no idea it was a matter of one day.

-S

[vader]

Yikes.....a day....I can't build a puzzle in a day, lol.  My sales rep said my home from start to finish, foundation, electrical and things would be 60 days, actual home build time, about 30 days.

Tim

[ClubNinja]

That evening, a woman crashed her car into a tree just past the house.  My father went outside to check on her and she stared at him saying "there wasn't a house here when I drove by on my way to work this morning... where did it come from?"  There's a mind-fudge for ya.

[ChadTower]

"But ma'am, that house has been there for 10 years."

[SirPoonga]

Wow, I knew they go together quickly, but I had no idea it was a matter of one day.

That's because before they leave the factory they are finished.  Carpet, siding, wiring, plumbing, everything.  Just the parts at the joints need to be finished (like siding, shingles, etc..)

Two of my uncles work at the modular home factory.  I got to see how they are put together.  Just like any other home, but in pieces.  They are up to code.  So I don't see why one wouldn't last like any other house.  They have to follow the same code as any other house.  And, most likely, they will have easy to maintain parts like vinyl siding.

[Stingray]

Wow, I knew they go together quickly, but I had no idea it was a matter of one day.

That's because before they leave the factory they are finished.  Carpet, siding, wiring, plumbing, everything.  Just the parts at the joints need to be finished (like siding, shingles, etc..)

Granted, but that's still a pretty impressive build time.

-S

[vader]

SirPoonga,

    What company does your uncle's build for and who do they consider the best, non-biased of course 


Thanks

Tim

[Zakk]

We've got some that are about 30 years old here in the city. They stand up to winters just fine, but they were made for the canuk winters.  Plus I do not think that these ones went together in a day.  They are still in one piece (most of them), and there doesn't seem to be a problem selling them.  I will note that the extrerior on almost all of them have been either replaced or sided.

We call them slab houses.  (no basements, built on slabs)

Only thing I can say about the floorplan in that picture is a lot of people don't like the master bedroom being under the other bedrooms.  Kids make a hella lotta noise on a floor.  Little tougher to resell that way.

[SirPoonga]

    What company does your uncle's build for and who do they consider the best, non-biased of course 

http://www.wickmarshfield.com/
http://www.stratfordhomes.com/

[vader]

Thanks for the links SirPoonga....as far as the master......the beauty is, NO KIDS, lol.....I will actually give my father the Master Bedroom and I'll take the top, he is living with me now. or I'm living with him..sounds sad...lol.  Either way, I'll be up top and that Family room will be the game room...hehe...another room...computer...figures things out the rest of the way

Thanks

Tim

[DrewKaree]

When I lived in NC, one of the main features of modular housing was the ease of getting land.  Oftentimes a trailer (what others might think of as a semi on wheels, but actually REALLY nice if you get a new double or triple-wide) would have problems in finding a site. 

The wife and I looked into buying a modular house, but at the time, getting a lot and house built wasn't extravagantly more than a modular house.  Resale values for modular houses at that time weren't as good as a "regular" house, but that may have changed.  The resale value negated any savings, so we stopped looking at 'em.  Nice area you're moving to as well.   I've got friends who live about 15 minutes from where you're moving to.  We went to visit 'em when a hurricane was gonna blow right through our town.  Don't think you won't have to worry about hurricanes.  You just won't have to worry as OFTEN about them.  There ARE all kinds of things they manufacture into homes there to help with stuff like that though.

I think you'll like your new modular home very much

[vader]

[Stingray]

I know I can't run from those things, but like you said, I sure would like to get away from the frequency they threaten me.

Sure you can. You just aren't running far enough. 35 years in Oklahoma, total number of hurricanes: 0.

Now tornados on the other hand...

-S

[vader]

LMAO Stingray,

I'm not sure which I want, widespread destruction, or massive like nuclear destruction confined to a small radius.  Only time we get tornadoes is when we have hurricanes, best of both worlds.  I went to Canada one year to get away from a hurricane and for a rushed vacations and got stuck in a 3 day blizzard, oh joy.

Tim

[str1der]

Looked at modulars years ago before we built ours. The only reason we didn't go modular was they were more expensive. I'm not sure why anyone would think they are inferior when it's really the opposite. None of the framing structure is ever exposed to the elements. You'd be suprised at the damage just a few days of bad weather can do to a framed house before it's under roof. It can later cause warped floor boards and underlayment. The only issue I had with them, though it might be different now, was they hadn't licked the duct work issues. All the ones we looked at had base board heating.

[vader]

I can't comment on the duct work on the particular modular I was looking at since it was two story, but the single story home had standard AC, duct work was routed throught attic and had ceiling vents.

Tim

[Stingray]

The only issue I had with them, though it might be different now, was they hadn't licked the duct work issues. All the ones we looked at had base board heating.

Good point that I hadn't thought of. The one near me has window unit A/C and the only time I was ever inside it, I noticed that it had baseboard heat.

-S

[DrewKaree]

I think they don't do HVAC simply because it adds to the already complex process, although routing it through the attic with the newer smaller units they've got now wouldn't be too hard.  The one downside I can see to that is I'd bet there's zones where they get very little airflow.  Of course, that's also a problem with standard homes, so I guess that's a wash.

I'd bet radiant heating would be sweet, but I dunno enough about it yet to know if you can eliminate a standard furnace with only radiant heating (probably a few ceiling fans too for circulation).  If you could, that'd be the way to go.  A/C...you're on your own there.  Window units all around the house causing your own little brownout!

[duffjr]

"But ma'am, that house has been there for 10 years."

"honey, you've lived here with me almost your whole life.  now come inside for some  lovin'."

[duffjr]

does it get visits from the cat in the hat?

[missioncontrol]

I live in a double wide and it survives the North Carolina winters just fine.

[RetroJames]

free house


http://atlanta.craigslist.org/zip/114634523.html

[Stingray]

free house


http://atlanta.craigslist.org/zip/114634523.html

I have an older home that I will give away or donate to anyone who will remove it from my property

Does it count as removing it from the property if I fill the basement with explosives and blast it into orbit?

-S