prefab homes?

[martman]

I work at Fort Meade and I want a simple house damnit!

So now I'm looking at prefab houses and land. Anyone have any experiences and advice for me? I have no idea what I'm trying to get myself into.

 

[slsc98]

Well, step one is check zoning and BE 100% SURE youre gonna be able to go pre-fab BEFORE you settle on any piece of land …

Some advantages to *modular* homes are the facts:

1) they are frequently built to the highest code requirements for the “region” the mod home Mfr sells in; and,

2) they often built inside (or at least under cover) and not subject to a lot of the environmental issues many homes constructed on site are (i.e., a member of the ARC for the HOA where we landed recently documented back mold growing on the framing studs in a under-construction home in our subdivision because the builder ran up against material / labor shortages before the house got wrapped +/or went under roof.)

 

[madmantrapper]

My sister has one in St Mary's county. I think it is built top notch. Hers is screwed where most times a nail would have done and it is also glued. Most solid house I have ever seen. I am a builder and I could not find one fault with it. Floors are flat, walls are plumb good house by far.

 

[slsc98]

No real asssit to you OP but, pre-built is the direction my #1 nephew is going on 17-acres he settled on 2 years ago, 1/2 hour south of us (Vale, NC).

#2 nephew is a NC licensed Gen’l Contractor and while in a Home Depot ran into a higher up from one of the modular home builders who told him the supply chain issues are killing them even more than other sectors. That was over half a year ago though …

A lot of hurricanes, tornados and other disasters have served to either force or convince pre-fab builders to really get their game on but like any sector, you got low end and then you have higher quality such as madmantrapper relates.

So, your REALLY a want to pick your Mfr carefully …. I’d try and find someone in my County permitting offices who would be willing to answer questions like “Where,” ”Who,” “How,” etc …

 

[willtill]

Well, step one is check zoning and BE 100% SURE youre gonna be able to go pre-fab BEFORE you settle on any piece of land …

Some advantages to *modular* homes are the facts:

1) they are frequently built to the highest code requirements for the “region” the mod home Mfr sells in; and,

2) they often built inside (or at least under cover) and not subject to a lot of the environmental issues many homes constructed on site are (i.e., a member of the ARC for the HOA where we landed recently documented back mold growing on the framing studs in a under-construction home in our subdivision because the builder ran up against material / labor shortages before the house got wrapped +/or went under roof.)

That has always bothered me. I have seen so many homes being built with OSB and seen that material getting soaked by inclement weather before it's sheathed with exterior protection and/or a shingled roof.

 

[slsc98]

That has always bothered me. I have seen so many homes being built with OSB and seen that material getting soaked by inclement weather before it's sheathed with exterior protection and/or a shingled roof.

Not to derail your thread OP (perhaps the following is a testament to pre-fab, over even”custom high end”?) but, this one would likely make any reader physically ill if you could see it up close, the photos simply DO NOT do it justice …

… so 2 or so years ago a single Mom announces to the ARC in our HOA that she has found a builder to, in her own words build her, “a million dollar home for 1/2 that price.” Raised eyebrows quickly went to shocked gasps when the builder (guy named Mint or Ments whom no one round here had ever heard of which should’ve been a big kuhloo - and he’s since been BANNED from building a chicken coop in this County) dug a massive crater on the lake shoreline - at the base of a cliff. Even a lay person could see disaster lay ahead and sure enough, when the seamless foundation panel tractor trailer driver arrive with a load of foundation panels something caused him to call back to the office in Statesville, over an hour away. Directions were, “Do NOT loosen one strap on that load, an exec is on the way.” 90-mins later a rep from the foundation panel company tells the driver, “GTF a outta here” and tells the builder, “there is NO WAY this site is ready for a home foundation and most certainly none of our product is going here.”

And, oh by the way, “What engineer or county official has signed off on any excavation you’ve done thus far?” Crickets. NOW the ARC is getting nervous. Too late, btw …

So, this massive crater sits and guess what?

ALL the lumber for half the house gets delivered on time!!!!! They dropped around $50,000 (probably more) right onto the ground (no pallets, nothing) and there it sat for a year, uncovered while the builder went belly up. By the time the lot owner found another contractor to repair and re-start the foundation the lumber was warped and covered in mud (you know, the good ol NC iron-filled rusty red stuff!).

Once the foundation panels were installed, sure enough, she pressed on and had some other contractor start using that lumber to start framing the first floor. You could see the black mold growing on the installed framing lumber, from the main road!

Which is as far as the site has ever gotten … it’s been 3 years now and the attached photos pretty much sum up the way the lot owner - who by the way has had to file for bankruptcy - is trying to pass this nightmare off onto some other unsuspecting poor sob … she even found a realtor unscrupulous enough to list it on the MLS “As Is” but,

NOW the ARC (and County, finally!) are all involved in full swing and iirc the property has been “condemned” as is ... word is it’ll probably have to be raised and the entire lot and site started all over. By whom is anyone’s guess. Gonna have to be someone at one end of the $avvy or bat-sh*t crazy scale though, that’s fer sure.

OP, all the forgoing is a testament to the wisdom of trying to, as you preface your first post, “keep it simple.”

Just also bear in mind, “If it seems too good to be true …”

2366 Paradise Harbor Dr, Connelly Springs, NC 28612 | realtor.com®

View detailed information about property 2366 Paradise Harbor Dr, Connelly Springs, NC 28612 including listing details, property photos, school and neighborhood data, and much more.

www.realtor.com

 

[RRomig]

There are different levels of modular just like anything else. 30 years ago one of the biggest was caulking all inner drywall corners rather than properly finishing them. I’m thinking that was North American but you’ll know when you check them out.
Formost was also big back then and they built the house correct.
Roof pitch is also something you want to check. A 6/12 looks way better than a 4/12. Some companies go shallow pitch for easier transporting. As others have pointed out they are mostly built inside so materials don’t get messed up. Also they are built in a jig the the house is perfectly square and plum. Back then they would send someone out to verify your foundation was square. There are many pros to modular and not many cons. The only con that comes to mind is they weren’t as flexible with floor plans. Good luck

 

[traveller]

Another 'pro' is that you are not as dependent on the quality of the local contractor workforce. The factory workforce is more stable and the guy who framed your wall on a jig has done this a hundred times. He is not some kid whose only qualification is that his cousin from Guatemala is the foreman.

 

[DanGuy48]

I work at Fort Meade and I want a simple house damnit!

So now I'm looking at prefab houses and land. Anyone have any experiences and advice for me? I have no idea what I'm trying to get myself into.

An acquaintance of ours that lives in PA has spoken favorably of this company a couple times. She knows of a few homes built by them and likes what they do.

Homes by Keystone

www.homesbykeystone.com

 

[GuitarmanNick]

Had the misfortune or taking the job of wiring a modular building to be used as a doctor's office for general practice.
The scope was to provide electrical service, grounding of the structure, and interconnect the sections together. The manufacturer claimed that everything would be clearly marked, all boxes and covers would be in place, and only wirenuts would be needed for the internal connections. The cables were supposed require only entry into the appropriate box and securing as required by code.
The building came in four, one-story sections and everything went together as it should have until it came time to connect the wiring between them.
Absolutely nothing was what it should have been! Markings were inconsistent at best, boxes were missing or inaccessible, and it took 4 days of tracing circuits to identify things and complete a job that should have been done in less than a day. It also required a lot of additional cable, boxes, connectors, etc adding to the final cost for the customer.
Luckily, the contract spelled out what was to be done, and that the owner would be liable for additional labor and material.
The electrical portion ended up costing more than 5 times the original contract amount, and the customer was not at all happy with the manufacturer.
While in the military years before, I did several modular buildings used for barracks and even a mess hall. They were the absolute worst projects I have ever done. They were clearly a demonstration of just how badly the government and it's contractors can screw something up.
Anyone choosing to go modular needs to do their homework. I would also suggest getting references from owners of recently completed homes.

 

[K31]

I'm with you. The houses I see with all the gingerbread, useless multiple roof peaks and accompanying joints that just add places to leak and trim to paint, are painful for me to look at. Of course, many prefab makers are adding some of those features in order to be competitive I guess. Still, the one I saw installed locally wasn't as bad as it's contemporaries.

By getting the land and building prefab you are hopefully avoiding HOA hell. I say hopefully because I've read of people having HOA communities move in next to established homes and then trying, sometimes successfully, to absorb them into the HOA.

Prefabs also have machine-cut joints and (I was told by a retired carpenter who still does HFH) more fasteners than a stick built home. They go up faster and you don't have construction people who can't read blueprints giving you the wrong layout. Yes, this happened to a neighbor of mine. He luckily paid a visit to his site before it was completed. The builder was still unhappy to have to rip out all that was done of one floor.

The downside is that there is bigotry over prefab housing, in people's minds it gets conflated with manufactured housing. Just something to think about for in the future when you want to resell.

 

[jcutonilli]

Had the misfortune or taking the job of wiring a modular building to be used as a doctor's office for general practice.
The scope was to provide electrical service, grounding of the structure, and interconnect the sections together. The manufacturer claimed that everything would be clearly marked, all boxes and covers would be in place, and only wirenuts would be needed for the internal connections. The cables were supposed require only entry into the appropriate box and securing as required by code.
The building came in four, one-story sections and everything went together as it should have until it came time to connect the wiring between them.
Absolutely nothing was what it should have been! Markings were inconsistent at best, boxes were missing or inaccessible, and it took 4 days of tracing circuits to identify things and complete a job that should have been done in less than a day. It also required a lot of additional cable, boxes, connectors, etc adding to the final cost for the customer.
Luckily, the contract spelled out what was to be done, and that the owner would be liable for additional labor and material.
The electrical portion ended up costing more than 5 times the original contract amount, and the customer was not at all happy with the manufacturer.
While in the military years before, I did several modular buildings used for barracks and even a mess hall. They were the absolute worst projects I have ever done. They were clearly a demonstration of just how badly the government and it's contractors can screw something up.
Anyone choosing to go modular needs to do their homework. I would also suggest getting references from owners of recently completed homes.

Are you sure they were really modular buildings and not mobile buildings? Modular and pre-fab typically refer to buildings built on permanent foundations. The only difference between site-built and modular/prefab is the location where it is built, as they are built to the same building code. Mobile buildings are trailers that are put on nonpermanent foundations and can be disassembled and moved to another location. They are built to a different code.

 

[tourrider]

^^^ good points from jcutonilli.

I had a modular built last summer. I visited a few dealers and quickly realized you will get what you pay for. Most dealers sell for multiple manufacturers. Some modulars felt like manufactured(mobile) units. I was told by several of my new neighbors about a local Modular builder that only sells direct. Turns out they were 22 miles from me. I was very impressed with their show units, so I gave them a sketch of the floorplan I wanted, and also told them I would do all the floors, Kitchen counter tops, and master shower build. They were fine with that. The company was a family owned and started 42 years ago. They were great, and their site crews were exceptional, from the site prep, to the finish carpenters.
I visited the factory a few times while it was being built. Everything is built in a jig. This thing built very well.

I blew out my original budget, but what the heck

I am very happy with the way it turned out. The only grip was delays due to CV19 supply disruptions.

Amateur Video

Home set - time lapse

 

[lowoncash]

There are a bunch of modular/prefab dealers in the area of Ronks, Pennsylvania.

 

[martman]

^^^ good points from jcutonilli.

I had a modular built last summer. I visited a few dealers and quickly realized you will get what you pay for. Most dealers sell for multiple manufacturers. Some modulars felt like manufactured(mobile) units. I was told by several of my new neighbors about a local Modular builder that only sells direct. Turns out they were 22 miles from me. I was very impressed with their show units, so I gave them a sketch of the floorplan I wanted, and also told them I would do all the floors, Kitchen counter tops, and master shower build. They were fine with that. The company was a family owned and started 42 years ago. They were great, and their site crews were exceptional, from the site prep, to the finish carpenters.
I visited the factory a few times while it was being built. Everything is built in a jig. This thing built very well.

I blew out my original budget, but what the heck

I am very happy with the way it turned out. The only grip was delays due to CV19 supply disruptions.

Amateur Video

Home set - time lapse

Who was the builder?

 

[slsc98]

…

I had a modular built last summer. I …

Amateur Video

Home set - time lapse

Bro, schuh-mokin’ - Congrats!

OP, you need to hook up with ^this^ dude for some beers!

 

[tourrider]

Who was the builder?

I’m in NW Pa. This builder is Lake City Homes in Lake City, Pa


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[GuitarmanNick]

Are you sure they were really modular buildings and not mobile buildings? Modular and pre-fab typically refer to buildings built on permanent foundations. The only difference between site-built and modular/prefab is the location where it is built, as they are built to the same building code. Mobile buildings are trailers that are put on nonpermanent foundations and can be disassembled and moved to another location. They are built to a different code.

Definitely modular on a permanent foundation. Having done both modular and mobile buildings in the past, I am well aware of what the differences are.
I have also seen mobile buildings(mostly double wide mobile homes) that have been set onto permanent foundations. It was a common practice in Pa. to place them on a permanent foundation if conditions of the mortgage would allow it. Made for a slightly safer structure in the event of severe weather and less likely to be lifted off of the ground.

 

[spoon059]

I became interested in modular when I saw This Old House build one a couple years back. They talked about the speed and quality of building in a factory and assembling on site, as opposed to building the entire thing on site. When I retire, one of the options we are strongly considering is buying some land and having a modular home built for us.

Another benefit is that you get to chose from lots of floorplans, and ideally all the kinks have been worked out by the time you buy it (stairs in the right place, doors opening the correct direction, light switches and power outlets in the right place, etc). You'd be amazed at the custom homes that I've seen that have things that weren't thought out... you open the front door and have to go up the steps to close the door, then come back down the steps to go up the hallway to the rest of the house... you enter the kitchen and the light switch is on the OTHER side of the room because you modified plans to have multiple entrances into the kitchen and forgot to move light switches... a living room without adequate power outlets for the tv on one side and for phones/computers on the other side.

 

[dannyp]

An acquaintance of ours that lives in PA has spoken favorably of this company a couple times. She knows of a few homes built by them and likes what they do.

Homes by Keystone

www.homesbykeystone.com

keystone builds a nice house , don't have a problem with it .