Modular refers to a method of building a home, rather than a type of home. A modular home can be built in a factory from a stock modular home plan or from a customized plan, to the state, local or regional codes of where the home will be set up. They come in 1, 2 or more completed sections, and in different architectural styles (Cape Cod, Victorian, Ranch, Raised Ranch, Traditional, Saltbox, Split-Level, Two-Story, etc.). Modules are transported to the site on steel carriers, which are then removed, and reused for transporting other homes (some states allow for a State Code Modular home to retain an HUD-like steel frame). A modular home is set upon a permanent foundation.

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Advantages:

Suitability:

Delivery:

Delivery and setting is usually the responsibility of the manufacturer, while the builder provides final finishing. A modular home can be delivered within 6-8 weeks and assembled and ready for occupancy within 1-3 weeks after delivery to the site. The homes are usually delivered within a 300-mile radius of the factory.

Process:

When a home leaves the factory, the interior walls already have drywall, all fixtures are in place and the exterior cladding has already been mounted. Once modules arrive at the site, a crew of 4 to 6 can have the home completed in 1-3 weeks. Delivering and placing the home onto the foundation requires the use of a crane.

Limitations:

Systems-Built

What is a systems-built home? It is a method of building which uses a combination of building systems: component, panelized and stick. During this process the panels or whole sections of homes are built under quality controlled conditions at a factory and then assembled at the home site. Systems-built houses are not, strictly speaking, modular or panel homes, rather they are conventional homes, built with systems technology. Systems-built homes, like site-built structures, are built to meet or exceed the state, regional or local building codes, just like stick-built homes.

Publications:

Automated Builder Magazine
Building Systems Magazine
MHDHomes

Associations:

Related Websites:

Building Code List - (from the Modular Building Institute)