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Pre-Fab Homes?
itwerx asks: "I am considering purchasing a pre-fabricated home to put on an empty lot in an urban area. I have researched hither and yon and Googled to my heart's content and found great gobs of information online. The question here is what the SlashDot community's own experience has been with this type of technology? Anybody purchase a pre-fab home recently? What was your experience like?"
pre-fabs are cheaper than a 'properly' built home but offer a way for someone with a limited budget to have something of their own.
I purchased one back in may (2003) and over all have been very happy with it. All of the problems that I have had have been from installation of the home and not construction of it in the factory.
Its solid, roomie and costs as much as renting an apartment but without the landlord hassels.
I'm sorry, a prefab home may be cheaper, but you cannot put a price on work done by true craftsmen. There's nothing like a nice house with done by hand trim and bricks that have each been touched by someone's hands. Of course, if you don't know any real craftsmen and cannot do it yourself, then a prefab is probably a safer bet. A factory built house that's true is better than a hand built one thats crooked.
"Nature doesn't care how smart you are. You can still be wrong." - Richard Feynman
Check with the manufacturer, ask for details on how it's constructed. They've been required since the mid-80s to build them to at least HUD code and since they're generally shipped down the road in pieces, each piece is usually sturdier than many "stick-built" homes (in order to survive the trip).
:D Also, prices vary from dealer to dealer (even with the same manufacturer), so you may be able to drive an extra hour or two and save yourself a few thousand bucks.
Even with these requirements, there's still a _very_ wide range of construction quality, both exterior and interior. Shop around, walk through a few lots physically. Beware, we work on commission. Don't seem too interested or you may find yourself sitting at a table with a pen
As for the houses themselves, there are several different types (manufactured, modular, etc.) each with their own features and price ranges. I sell manufactured homes. They have their own shipping frame built into the bottom of the house. The structural benefits make construction less expensive for the manufacturer, but as a result they're built less like a stick-built home than a modular is (where rooms are preconstructed, minus foundation, and shipped to the site). Also, much of the construction contains OSB (oriented strand board) which can cause problems for severe asthmatics due to possible low-level formaldehyde release from the bonding adhesives. Most modern homes actually use this material in one place or another, it's just more prevalent in a manufactured home. If you're worried, look for adequate ventilation in the construction. As a side note, I've worked 8 hours a day (sometimes more), 5 days a week in one (for an office) for a few years and feel fine.
I actually got into the business when my wife and I moved and were looking for a new home. We considered a manufactured home, but eventually settled for stick-built. Here's why: the house was already built, all we had to do was pay a price. With paperwork, site-work and build-time, a manufactured home can go up in as short as 2 months. This is _extremely_ fast in comparison to constructing a stick-built home, plus you have a considerable amount of 'customization' available (at roughly half the cost per square foot). However, it _is_ a construction site and will probably end up being a construction loan. Be prepared for it to take time and you'll need to be in constant contact with your salesman and bank.
As for the prior poster who wrote: "If the soil is clay or too rocky, you could spend as much as 50-75k putting in a septic system!", I can honestly say I've _never_ seen a system cost that much. Maybe it's just where we live, but high end systems here run just under $20k, while the average is $12k. You will need to be sure of: Electrical access, septic rated for the house you order, site-work for the foundation, garage (?), access for getting the pieces of house on-site, etc. There are a lot of costs that aren't included in the house, _make sure you get it all up front before you sign_.
All said and done, manufactured homes are a great way to go for a semi-customizable home at about half the cost of building your own. You'll probably be limited to a single floor (2 story homes are still a rarity, but they exist), but we've got some that are in excess of 2700 sqft. I really like the product and may end up living in one at some point in the future. Good luck in your research.
Suggestion: go to real estate school and get your real estate license.
It's kind of like a law degree. You don't have to be a practicing lawyer for it to help.
A real estate license will teach you the great unknowns about the laws and pitfalls of the business.
Unlike law, the real estate license takes about a month (around here, at least) and is subsidized by the real estate brokerage firms. They don't care to make money by tuition, they just charge enough to make sure that the prospective students are serious, not timewasters.
Around here it's $500 dollars, and that more than covers the savings you'll make on every house you buy or sell. It's a month, but the hours are extremely flexible at most of the schools, and your real savings will probably be closer to $3-5000 on each house you buy. More than enough to pay back your time invested.
Earning a real estate license will also let you forgo the need to hire your own agent. You'll be able to split the fee with the selling agent, and pocket about 3%. Yes, it's legal in most, if not all places, to act as your own agent when purchasing on your own, but there are some thing you really need to know. Accordingly, this paragraph starts with the word "Earning" rather than "Having"
Also, there are a great many people who don't like realators for various reasons, and prefer to keep the comissions for themselves. Hence "For Sale by Owner". It is very helpful to know what you're doing in this circumstance because both of you might very well be clueless to the laws and ordinances and local "gotcha's".
Another worry is that "For Sale by Owner" might be because the current owner is attempting something that no realator would risk their license by being a party to.
Caveat emptor. Knowlege can keep you from getting burned.
Good luck.
********* sig: If you don't like the law, get filthy stinking rich, and buy a better one.
Lol, this is why you research your builder. All you have to do is contact their previous buyers (you can get a list of homes built from the permit office), and look at their constrution in progress to get an idea (if you don't know what to look for, ask someone for help). If you think you can get a prefab up and built in a few days you obviously have never had one built, seen one built, or compared to a true on site built home. Most premanufactured homes simply have the frame built with the necessary holes drilled for the installation of hvac, electric & plumbing. It only cuts about 10-15% of the time of construction off the house. This is also completely avoiding the market appreciation of the home he/she is purchasing as well. Most areas that include prefab homes do not appreciate at the same rate as more upscale (and expensive) custom homes. Not to mention that these areas in 10-15 years generally become mostly rent homes due to their cheap prices. Hell there are areas I've seen people depreciate their home. There is more to buying/building a home than just walls & concrete.
There are several levels of builders where I build (I am the construction manager, my father is the builder and architect). We consider ourselves to be in the upper range.
The levels of homes I see built are:
Prefab (900 to 1500 sq ft) - quick & dirty but well built in general, especially for the price.
Small contracted (1300 to 2000 sq ft) - these are usually the worst quality because the builders are in waiter mode (turn and burn), they hire the cheapest contractors possible and have the worst quality control (they make their money on volume and development of the land).
Mid-Sized contracted (1800 to 2500 sq ft) - these vary, we generally build some that fall in this range but we focus on building in more established neighborhoods where there are significant restrictions, convenants, etc to protect all they buyers/builders in an area.
Medium/Larger contracted (2300 to 5000 sq ft) - these are the easiest to build well because you have a good amount of cash to work with and they can still be built in a 6-9 month timeframe.
Large contracted - (5000+ sq ft) Depending on the customer these can get very difficult to build and can take up to 2 years (8000 sq ft, very ornate, etc).
Our competitive advantages are significant in building in Oklahoma. 1) there aren't any big chain homebuilders kicking out developments (for the most part). 2) Brick is almost free here (it's where most of it is made) so homes look very nice. 3) We use the same subcontractors on all our homes, most our people have worked with us for over 10 years. 4) We pay our subs, so when there is a problem they come back. 5) We do acutal custom architecture for free (we make our profit off the sale of the home). 6) We don't borrow to build (so we can charge less since we don't have to carry construction loans).
All in all I'd say look at more factors than just price and quality. You have to look at the economic impact of your purchase on your net worth and the ability to get a return on your investment. Sometimes a little planning goes a long way. A home is the #1 asset for most families and as such should be treated with the same care and consideration as buying stocks or investing in any other appreciable asset.
Just ask a realestate agent if they think it will be a good place to sell in 10 years. That can give you a decent idea.
1. Saying that factories can cut as many corners as on site builders ... how is that any more a specious attack than your initial assertion that onsite workers are terrible and factories are perfect? You need to look up the definition of specious.
2. I don't have to know builders now. I only have to investigate builders when I get ready to build, and find a single builder I can rely on, from friends' experiences and local reputations. Someone who has lived in thearea for a long time and been building reputable homes for a long time is a fine bet. They are not hard to find.
3. As for my design skills, they are non-existent as an architect, but I know what I want in general, and that is enough to guide an architect. I don't have to know everything, just enough.
4. Factories are better to work for who? I notice your background is finance. Whoopee. Let's ask factory workers themselves, let's ask outside workers. Plenty of outside workers wouldn't be caught dead inside on a good day. Perhaps you ought to get out of the factory once in a while and visit the real world. Where I live for instance, it doesn't rain during the building season, and plenty of people would rather be outside working than inside. Further, once the framing is up, most of the work is inside, within walls with a roof overhead, and lockable doors and windows. A little onsite factory, if you will. Factory walls also exist to keep workers inside in addition to keeping weather outside.
5. Very little of a house is boring drywall. Most of the people who work in the construction industry enjoy it and take pride in doing a quality job, because it is their individual part, not some factory of cookie cutter projects. It's called pride in craftsmanship. Perhaps you ought to ask some of them, or even try a little manual labor yourself before condemning all of them as soulless sourpusses.
6. Yes, greedy bastard factory owners like job safety, but greedy bastard onsite workers hate it. See if you can spot the difference. See if you can spot who has a silly rosy picture of his own industry and a lousy view of the competition. See if you can spot the unbalanced view.
7. My neighbors and friends who are contractors of course don't want to be in business next year or ten years from now. Yes, factory pencil pushers like yourself can go get a job in some other different kind of office at any time. Contractors who want to build up a reputation so they can keep on building homes have nothing but their name and reputation. So we can all guess who is more dedicated to doing a quality job.
It is not worth going on. What is obvious by now is that you are a pencil pusher who has way too rosy a picture of your own work environment and company, and a very distorted view of the competition. One of the secrets to winning is knowing the competition. You don't.
Infuriate left and right