Modular Homes - Good/Bad experiences... I am considering this pretty seriously...

[p0opstlnksal0t]

I had gone down the rabbit hole of modulars here in Maine. I even found a similar floor plan and cad'd up a new one. It was roughly 4500-5000 sq ft with a 2 story entry and 9ft ceilings. I purposely went with high end windows and all the networking and home automation upgrades but cabinets, counters fixtures and floors was all builder grade ( let the kids destroy those) then we will upgrade to good finishes down the road.

 

[NorTracNY]

As with anything it appears there are a range of companies. We found that many places which deal in both manufactured and modular homes seemed to be the low quality places to avoid. We worked with a GC that dealt with two modular home manufacturers in PA and they didn't deal in manufactured homes. Their quality was a step up. Our home is a Ritz Craft and I couldn't be happier. The after installation support from Ritz Craft exceeded out expectations. They came out and fixed every issue we found and many that they noticed which we didn't! Definitely upgrade where it makes sense. We did Anderson 400 series windows and had a local flooring company put in the hardwoods.

Modular homes are built stronger than stick built because they need to handle the shipping. The downside is that you have some design restrictions. IF you can handle the design restrictions, it should be a no-brainer to go modular. Our GC pointed out the restrictions to us as we worked together on the design of the house. They constantly told us that they could do anything, but the more the GC did instead of the factory, the more costly it would be.

 

[wjmst]

Ours is a Ritz Craft as well, however, I will say that ours is a 4 box cape and it was the first year that model was produced, so that may account for some of the issues we have had.

 

[JM7500]

My wife and I are working on deal for a Deer Valley modular. They seem well built, a lot better than the spec houses thrown together by contractors. Like 2x6 exterior walls and more insulation. Contractors here might get started on a house by the end of this year at 50% more than the modular we are looking at. If things fall into place, we will be in our new home around the end of the year. It only has to last the rest of my life, not forever.

 

[Joel/ak]

Like NorTrac said. They are built to go down the road. Nailed, glued and screwed.

I don't think it would make me pass on a property.

 

[Mtsoxfan]

Moved to VT in 2020. Our home was trucked in and installed Dec 2019.
It is a two piece 1200 square foot home, walk out basement. After all the upgrades, it was still at least $25k less than stick built. There are no cost increases once you sign contract. I would assume that stick built has a clause for unforseen things.
There is pretty much no way you can tell it was a modular. EVERYTHING that was built in factory has been impecable. It was the local company that set it and put in finishing touches that made mistakes. Heard from several people that used to work for him that they would never work with him again. I would not hesitate to consider another modular. IIRC, it was CBS homes in PA. Great craftsmanship.

 

[Jstpssng]

I got about 1/2 way through this and kept wondering why it didn’t jive with what I remember about the OP’s most recent posts. ( see post #40) then realized the thread as well as most posts are 8 years old.

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

One aspect I truly dislike about modulars, is that after they arrive, they are busy repairing drywall cracks from transport. Our good friends just had one assembled this summer... And I cringed when they said the first week the builder was out repairing a the cracked walls.

 

[lilranch2001]

I was riding my Ranger through the new addition across the street, the stick built contractor was at a house sold in March repairing cracked drywall

 

[CloverKnollFarms]

Settling is one thing. Damage from transport on top of that is just additional repair