mcdavis

Searching this forum I can't find anything negative about modular homes, however whenever I ask a Canadian they seem to have a real downer on them. Has anyone who built / lived in a modular home found a problem when they came to sell please?

Thanks,

ExKiwilass

why a modular home?

I think a lot of people associate them with trailer parks, y'know "trailer trash" and all that.

It might depend on where you are and what the deal is with the land it's on. Like, for instance, there are modular homes in the Gulf Islands but they seem to sell ok because there's so much demand for housing and land values are high/the land is freehold. Might be different if it's being sold in a trailer park though with pad rental and all that.

mcdavis

The reason for a modular home is that they take less time to put up and are constructed in a factory so are not exposed to the elements. Also the need to employ lots of individuals is hopefully reduced....

ExKiwilass

makes sense

I guess it depends on the kind you get...I know there are some now that are archecturally designed and good to look at.

The mod homes I've seen tended to look, well, like mod homes. Utilitarian and trailer park-ish.

I think they're a good idea and cheaper.

But, yeah, there is/can be a stigma.

HPJOS

My father-in-law lives in one of these in the UK, it is on a private site and by all means very nice for him as it is low maintenance and he is very happy there.

Having said that he had real problems trying to insure it as not many insurance companies will touch them due to increased fire and burglary risk (apparently). In fact I think there are only one or two that will (again this was a while ago).

I am not sure I would want to be in one in Alberta, they are not very economical to run heat wise as there is very little in the way of loft insulation and they get incredibly hot in the summer. Might be ok for a vacation home if you had a nice spot of land.

I don't know anyone that owns one here although I have driven past a business that sells them, they looked ok and a pretty decent size but I am not sure it would be for me at this moment in time.

pennyhp

I think when a lot of canadians think of modular homes, they are thinking of the long thin static caravan sort of thing that you get in the trailer parks and on plots of land here too.
Those do not hold their value according to real estate agents I habe talked to.
Buit you can get any size or style of house built "modular" and they bring it in sections to your plot or acreage.
these types seem to be no different to other site built houses in depreciation as far as I have been told.

The advantage I can see is that they usually have a guarenteed price (usually cheaper) than site built and a guarenteed finish date with many companies.

glenndon

Hey there,

As said previously, a modular home is no problem, and maintains it's value like any other house. In fact, if I were to build a new house, I would most likely get a modular one. I like the fact they are built in the factory, and only take a little bit of time to actually put on site.

Not to be confused with mobile homes. Two different things.

cov-canuck

Unless I am misunderstanding (since it seems like you aren't referring to the caravan-type modular homes, but instead homes that are fully or partially built indoors, then moved to the site), Mattamy used to have a Stelco factory in Milton that did just that. They built the house in a factory, loaded it on to a truck, then dumped it on the pre-dug foundation. Thousands of people bought new homes built this way.

Unfortunately, although it didn't have problems with exposure to the weather, these types of houses have all kinds of other problems - houses that aren't put on the foundation straight, leaking between the house and the foundation - flooding your basement, shifting of the house during its travels cracking flooring, countertops, etc.

Personally I wouldn't want a house built this way - I've heard too many horror stories.

Piff Poff

Talking to our Realtor recently, the subject of modular homes came up. There are homes about that you wouldn't believe they were modular as they look like regular homes. There is one apparently in one of the more expensive subdivisions around here that wasn't discovered to be modular until the inspection. The inspector discovered it when he went into the attic and found that the reinforced areas that modulars have were still reinforced.

R I C H

You mean this particular development, or all modular homes?

I've several friends that have built modular homes over the past 10 years and not experienced any of the above. I'd suggest the quality of construction is down to the builder/contractor rather than being an inherent issue with them.

snowdogs

I have worked on 4 storey apartment blocks built in factory put together on site then finished off with a brick skin in uk. I find it amazing that these are structurally sound but they must be. The only problem I come across with them is the timber frame shrinks but the brick skin doesn't so when the windows are sealed to the outer skin the window stays put but the inside cill settles with the inner frame. I cant see it being a problem with a house though.

Atlantic Xpat

Modular homes are not Mobile homes. We're talking prefabrication, not trailer parks! I have no particular knowledge either way as to whether they are a good thing or not, but yesterday did drive past a factory where they make them. Perhaps this website might provide some info. (Albeit positive spin, being from a manufacturer as it is.)

http://www.buildersedge.ca/

Steve_P

I think that "most" Canadians don't know very much if anything about modular homes.

A lot will mistake them for mobile homes when asked about them.

So it's not really a case of being negative toward them, but more about ignorance as to what a modular home is.

pennyhp

Obviously it differs from company to company, but there are guarentees with this type of build as well as with the traditionally built homes.

I would be looking for one that covers the kind of problems that might arise with an off site built home, before I comitted to anything, but I think modular built has coma a long way in recent years.

Lord Vader

Yes I was going to comment on this. A mobile home is a trailer and often times trailers are keep together in a trailer park on leased land. Some parks are ok if they are meant for seniors or for young people to get started in, but in many cases the worst part about a mobile home will be the neighboorhood it's located in. location, location, location.

Modular homes are something totally different and are usually more cost effective and quicker than building a "regular home".