Modular Homes- Pros and Cons

Koheli

Many people think buying a new house is important to making their future stable and secure. So they go for real estate investments for the same. In this process, the whole process can prove futile for no fault of the parties involved. As a result, those who are interested and patient enough start to ponder the benefits of constructing their own houses from scratch. But this process is challenging as it has its complications. You have to buy a stable plot, decide on the features you want in your dream house, and the like. In this blog, we will introduce you to modular dwellings. For the ones who do not know what they are, modular homes mean that your house comes in already built parts which are then assembled on a location just like a toy is. These options need proper research and are only sometimes available, so you should be careful. The places are simple, which means that durability and stability are questioned. But over time, this option has developed over the stereotypical image of a 'cheap and low-quality housing option,' becoming accessible to the old choice of houses that were built using sticks or those made on site, which requires a lot of time and labour.

As the title says, modular homes have both advantages and disadvantages. Any homeowner must know these if he wants to make his own home. Let us start with the benefits that make them attractive and desirable.

Advantages of modular homes

Higher quality assurance

As mentioned above, modular ones are much better in terms of quality and sturdiness of construction. These improvements are so prominent that they can compete with the traditional building or the 'stick-built' method. There is no limit to the customization you can go for in the case of a stick-built home. Once you choose a home with proper skills and research can be better than the stick-built home in terms of quality and stability. Since they are built in a factory setting, they are made in precise and methodical ways in an assembly line; the whole series of building parts of the structure ensures that there is no compromise with the quantity. The process also has a good quality checking method at every stage of construction, which is an added benefit of planned construction. In the case of stick built, they are made from scratch on the plot of land where they will be located. You can never trust the precision of quality, especially since there is no realistic way of judging the builder apart from the ones who had their homes built before. For example, builders often need to remember to protect the materials of construction, such as lumber, from the elements, which delays the construction process by a significant time. If you fail to find out about this and the builder has o finish the task by a given deadline, you probably miss out on the compromise on the quality of the materials used in the structure until you find it after some years.

Speed of construction

An important factor of judgment between modular and stick-built homes should be the speed of the construction process. There is a setup of pre-built parts that were factory constructed correctly. It is based on mechanical methods, so there is no hiding that modular homes require less time to finish up. If you compare a house built traditionally to a modular one, you find that various segments are delayed. On coming to the materials used for making the house, if they are brought from different parts of the state, country, or world, there are many customs duties and boundaries, along with many suppliers involved in the delivery process. This complicates coordinating arrivals and ensuring that the consignments are correct for each delivery. If we are fully realistic or pessimistic today, various problems can occur during transportation.

In contrast, the modular home is one of the many built by the manufacturer, which means they would ensure adequate supplies to ensure that the construction process is done properly by the given deadline. Another important issue is the weather consideration. Rain, snow, thunderstorms, or even strong winds can destroy the construction process. People with less time to stick to while moving houses, like joining a new job, should go for the availability of modular homes to save time, effort, and penny. 

Less expensive

Modular homes have lesser costs involved in every aspect of the construction process. The reasons have already been discussed, but we will repeat them. Since modular homes are gaining immense popularity and our manufacturer might still be working on them, the items required for construction will be in abundant supply, costing you less. Research says modular homes' costs can be reduced by at least 15 % compared to stick-built homes, especially because they require less downtime. This is why they are so affordable if you are on a tight budget or you are building in a location that is very for the builders. They can easily reach your site from the various manufacturing centres. If we speak of finances, potential homeowners can also get financing options from the manufacturer apart from the regular options available to all. Sometimes, there is the possibility of getting better options from manufacturers than from the usual channels. This ensures you have a less expensive house and more flexible and preferable financing options. These options need proper research and are only sometimes available, so you should be careful. Now that we have discussed the benefits of modular homes let us also discuss some disadvantages.

Disadvantages of modular homes

Lack of social acceptance and customization possibilities

There is always the limiting of perception, perspective, ad stereotypes surrounding modular homes. Both the buyers and sellers must be aware of this. While buyers find it difficult to sell the house, especially if the areas where the traditional method is preferred, sellers have to face the social stigma and the stereotyping of their houses as being cheap and of low quality. Apart from this, a major issue is customization societies for modular homes. These houses pose a lot of configurations because they are manufactured in this way. But there is no flexibility in this case. There needs to be more customization and unique features. For a tick-built home, you can always make changes according to their dreams and goals, like different colours, patterns, and other aspects that make the structure unique. There is no limit to the customization you can go for in the case of a stick-built home. The only condition is that you are covered on the financing part- windows, a living room with a loft, and even circular flooring.

The elongated loan process

 Going on with the lack of familiarity and perceptions related to modular homes, another major problem is the loan process. Stick-built homes are an easy thing, which makes it easy to finance because banks lend loans easily. The payment process for modular homes can include more steps that can be difficult for those who need instant access to funds. The builder often wants to be paid in full before construction and regular payments during the building process for financing. If you spend on the builder, you will need a construction loan, which can be changed into a typical mortgage after completing the building process. This is also a very complex process, and you should ensure that you know all the necessary aspects, such as the best interest rates offered by the market. Not just this, you must also learn about repayment and the applicable EMI to understand if you can manage the financial burden.

Land restrictions and costs

 While modular homes cost less, there is a challenge of financial preparedness required for taking the loans. The land cost can cut the profit margin you made in the beginning. The charges concerning buying a suitable lot of land are a major figure for which you must prepare. Another added cost of the land development is enough to steal your funds. For example, if there are no sewer facilities nearby, you will have to build one, which can often be quite expensive. A small portion of land can significantly affect the money required for construction. Not just this, there are a few land restrictions that you must be careful of. While they are positively viewed in terms of manufacturing, some municipalities and towns might still be against constructing these. Therefore, ensure adequate permissions before proceeding with the building process.

Conclusion:

So these are some of the advantages and disadvantages of modular homes. These options need proper research and are only sometimes available, so you should be careful.  These are related to their manufacturer, construction, and quality ideas. It will be better to consider all these factors and the societal view on modular homes before proceeding with their construction. Along with your thoughts, it is important because you can face problems in the future when you are trying to make any changes or sell your house in the future.

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