Panel Homes

Panel homes, like modular homes, come in a wide variety of styles, sizes, and plans and are built in factory conditions similar to modular homes. The biggest difference is that panel homes are shipped in panels typically 8 feet high and up to 40 feet long. Doors, windows, and wiring can be factory installed into the wall panels. The panels are shipped to the home site and connected on site. The house can be erected and enclosed in a day or two. The interior finish work is then completed, and the home is ready to move into within a week or so. The advantages of panelized homes are similar to modular homes. Quality control is usually high because the homes are built in a con-trolled environment, and they meet or exceed federal and state build-ing codes.
You can also order the kit and finish the interior yourself. If you or Uncle Joe is a finish carpenter, you can save some bucks and time by going this route. Otherwise, you can have factory site crews com-plete the interior as part of the package.
Panel homes come in many varieties from a bare bones structure for the do-it-yourselfer to a complete package with everything included to finish the home.
The main advantages of panel homes are:

• The structure can be up and weather tight in a day or two.
• You can get a package that allows you to do as much work as you want to take on.
• In areas where contractors or good subcontractors are hard to find, panel homes can give you a quality home for less money and a lot less construction time than a stick-built one.

Panel homes are built to federal and state building codes, so they qualify for FHA/VA and conventional 30-year financing.

Modular Homes

Sometimes called sectional houses, they are almost completely built in the factory.With construction done on an assembly line in a controlled environment, completion times are fast and quality control is high. Each step of the process is inspected, and the final sections are tagged certifying that the home complies with all state and federal building codes. They are a far cry from the double-wide trailers most homebuy-ers think of when modular homes are mentioned.Unlike mobile and manufactured homes, modular homes do not have a permanent steel undercarriage. As the home sections come off the assembly line, they are loaded onto carriers for a ride to the home site. Because of federal and/or state highway ‘‘wide-load’’ size restrictions, sections will typically be 12 or 14 feet wide and up to 60 feet in length.
At the site a crane lifts the sections onto the foundation, where they’re connected and permanently anchored. Utilities are connected, and the home is usually ready to move into within a week or two. This is a big plus when you consider the months that would be needed to stick build the same size house. It’s a big advantage knowing up front exactly how much the home will cost, when it’ll be done, and when it’ll be delivered.
Home style options are limited only by your imagination. Several sections can be stacked to create a Cape Cod, modern two-story, multi-level, or connected horizontally for an L-shaped ranch style home. There are even condominium projects and duplexes made from modular sections.
Most manufacturers have design departments that can help you customize a floor plan to fit your dream. Popular options are vaulted ceilings, upgraded kitchen cabinets, countertops, and steeper roof pitches.

The Different Kinds of Manufactured Homes

There are basically four types of manufactured houses: modular, panel, precut or kit, and mobile homes. The first three vary by how much of the home is done at the factory and how much site work is needed. Mobile homes are typically completely finished at the factory and shipped to the site in two or more sections. The sections are joined and anchored permanently on a concrete foundation.
Manufactured homes are built to a federal building code called the Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards (HUD code) and will display a red certification label on each section. While this is a federal building code, each state has its own building code that usually follows the Uniform Building Code (UBC) or the newer International Building Code (IBC). These local building codes can exceed the federal code.