FAQ
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Why Choose a Manufactured Home? Oak Creek Factory Direct Homes are cost-effective, built for quality, have a wide arrange of ammenites and among the safest housing choices available today. Cost-Effective:
Built for Quality:
Amenities:
Safety:
Do You Have Lenders? We refer lender question to American Homestar Mortgage LLP.
Are Manufactured Homes More Vulnerable to Fires? The fact is that manufactured homes are no more prone to fire than homes built on site, according to an annual repot released by the Oklahoma State Fires Marshall's Office. Similar studies have echoed the above statement made by the Foremost Insurance Company. A national fire safety study conducted showed that site-built homes are more than twice as likely to experience a fire than manufactured homes. According to this study, the number of home fires is 17 per 1,000 for site-built homes, while only eight per 1,000 for manufactured homes.
That is because manufactured homes adhere to strict construction standards. Manufactured homes are the only homes with a national building code.
Are Manufactured Homes Prone to Strong Wind Damage and Tornadoes? In areas prone to hurricane-force winds (known as Wind Zones II and III, according to the HUD's new Basic Wind Zone Map) the wind safety standards taht manufactured homes be resistant to winds up to 100 miles-per-hour in Wind Zone II and 110 miles-per-hour in Wind Zone III. In both these zones, the standard for manufactured homes is now more stringent than the current regional and national building codes for site-built homes located in these wind zones. An important element in the adequate wind safety of a manufactured home is the proper installation and anchoring of the home according to the manufacturer's instructions. Installation standards are regulated on a state-by-state basis. When properly installed and anchored, the manufactured home's wind resistance is significantly improved. Furthermore, there is no meteorological or scientific basis to think that manufactued homes attract tornadoes. A tornado's deadly force does not selectively discriminate between the site-built and manufactured home or "mobile home" (those built prior to the HUD Code's implementation in 1976.) In most of the country (non-hurricane-prone areas), manufactured homes are built to withstand sustained winds in the range of 70 miles-per-hour. Above this range, a manufactured home will experience some form of damage. Only in the case of severe weather, such as a tornado, are these areas likely to experience winds in excess of 70 miles-per-hour.
Are Manufactured Homes Energy Efficient? On October 24, 1994 a new minimum energy conservation standard became effective. The new energy standards are resulting in lower monthly energy bills, a factor industry officials say will enhance the affordability of manufactured housing and, perhaps, improve mortgage underwriting terms. Improved home ventilation standards have also been adopted in conjunction with the energy standards, a step that will improve indoor air quality and condensation control in manufactured homes. HUD's new standards require that manufactured homes comply with one of the three alternative options: design the home's overall thermal efficiency to account for heat loss through the insulated surfaces of the thermal envelope for three thermal zones (better known as Uo-values); adjust Uo values with credits for high efficiency heating and cooling equipment; or by totally redesigning the home with new innovative technologies that use no more energy than published Uo values. Zone II, including Oklahoma, requires a Uo of 0.096. These efforts are ensuring that manufactured homes remain affordable, not only in start-up costs, but for the life of the home.
Do Manufactured Homes Hold their Value? Studies examine manufactured homes’ value
By John Sweeney | Editor: The Weekly Observer JOHNSONVILLE— Multiple studies over the last thirty years have shown manufactured homes adjacent to and among site-built structures have had neither a positive nor negative effect on the property values in a surrounding area. Separate research done by the University of Michigan, East Carolina University and Consumers Union each reported that manufactured homes not only had the potential to increase in value over time but that, if properly maintained, can match the performance of a site-built home. “Much…discussion has centered on the potential negative effects manufactured homes might have on the value of adjacent properties,” one study’s conclusion read. “However, our research has shown that this concern about property values is not justified.” “…average appreciation rates of manufactured homes packaged with owned land are statistically in line with the site built market,” another said. “There are few inherent reasons that a home built in a factory should perform differently than on built on site.” But even the Consumers Union concluded that no concrete evidence could be found to suggest that property values of site built homes surrounding even rented manufactured homes were affected one way or another.
Some studies have even concluded that site-built homes near communities of manufactured ones—in some cases even those used as rental properties—had even increased significantly in value over time. In other words, if a manufactured home was properly maintained, there were not many factors that existed to prevent it from appreciating over time in a similar manner as a site-built home. According to the Manufactured Housing Institute of South Carolina, if a manufactured home is properly maintained, the value of that home has the potential to appreciate “as much if not more than site-built homes.” On average, manufactured housing has appreciated anywhere from four to five-percent in South Carolina for the last 20-plus years.
Are Manufactured Homes Really Built as Well as Other Forms of Housing? Manufactured homes are built with virtually the same construction materials and techniques as site-built homes. The only differnece is that manufactured homes are built in a factory environment, where building materials are protected from weather damage and vandalism. Manufactured homes are built to the federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards, better known as the HUD Code, which is administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The HUD Code is unique since it is specifically designed for compatability with the factory production process. Performance standards for heating, plumbing, air conditioning, thermal, and electrical systems are set in the code. In addition, performance requirements are established for structural design, construction, fire safety, energy efficiency, and transportation from the factory to the customer's home site. To ensure quality, the design and construction of the home is monitored by both HUD and its monitoring contractor, the National Conference of States on Building Codes and Standards (NCS/BCS). The familiar red seal (the certification label) attached to the exterior of a manufactured home indicates that it has passed perhaps the most thorough inspection process in the homebuilding industry.
Do Modular Homes meet Building Codes?
Excerpts From The Top 10 Reasons Why Factory Built Are Better Than Site-Built? For centuries people have built homes one board at a time. This is slow. It’s also expensive. Now, using the latest technology and construction materials, you can combine your spirit of individuality with breakthrough building methods like Factory built Home Building that save time and money. 10. State-of-the-art quality is built in – in half the time For centuries people have built homes one board at a time. This is slow. It’s also expensive. Now, using the latest technology and construction materials, you can combine your spirit of individuality with breakthrough building methods that save time and money. Taking virtually any home design you can dream up and building it in a clean, modern factory means we can finish your very own custom home on just about any lot, anywhere. Quickly. 9. Your materials and workers aren’t stuck outside in all sorts of weather Check out a stick-built job site--in the heat, snow or rain. Yep, that’s mud on the sub-floor. Yep, that’s wet lumber, dead bugs, and mouse droppings. Factory built homes are built in clean, climate-controlled plants where workers are comfortable and they’re supervised daily by quality control managers from the company they work for and by third-party inspectors. This isn’t typically the case with workers in the field. (Anybody see the builder today? This week?) And really, how can one builder single-handedly oversee every phase of construction? Factory built builders have supervisors and inspectors that specialize in each area of building your new home, so your home gets a great deal more attention during construction. 8. Shorter, more predictable time line The factory built process eliminates most of the uncontrollable forces like bad weather, the infamous “family emergency” worker and equally clever material delays because your home goes from foundation to 80% complete in one day. Alternatively, a stick-built home might drag through two or three stormy, snowy, or sweltering seasons – don’t forget about all your materials sitting out there in the muck - your factory built home is built in about 2 weeks in the clean, dry factory, where the production schedule is virtually unalterable. 7. Built stronger !Because modules are transported and placed by a crane onto the foundation, they are built as tough, six-sided structures. That’s a couple more sides than a stick-built home. The results are stronger and more stable than with platform-style structures. This also explains how factory built homes come from the factory with plumbing, electrical, drywall, and even cabinets and tile complete! And remember, every step of the way, every component of your home has been inspected and re-inspected. 6. Reliable Quality Control Speaking of Quality Control (QC), factory built home builders undergo frequent inspections of stringent quality building standards. Factory built homes are built in factory settings by skilled workers who have the same managers overseeing them every day. Each factory built plant is also inspected by third party inspectors regularly. Modules undergo strict inspections in the field once they are set to ensure the connections are made correctly between modules and to the foundation. Remember, local home inspectors are not inspecting for quality, they’re merely looking for building code compliance. Quality versus compliance. Big difference. 5. More pre-construction planning, fewer surprises Stick-builders admit that time and time again some details of the plan end up “not working” in the field. That’s because the person who draws the plans is not a builder and vice-versa. The design world collides with the practical world. Often. With the factory built process, your home plans are examined before construction begins by both the builder and the factory built plant managers. Builders who use the factory built process study plans much more closely than they would in a stick-build process because their crutch of “figuring it out in the field” is not available. 4. The environmentally-friendly choice Worried about the planet your children and grandchildren will inherit? Us too. Factory built construction creates far less landfill trash that stick-building. Waste from old construction methods can fill up dumpster after dumpster. Take a look next time you drive by a home under construction. See all that good, unused wood thrown out by framers? What a waste. The environmentally-friendly factory built construction process generates minimal waste; it also reduces the disturbance to your site’s natural resources. This keeps costs down and helps save the planet. 3. ENERGY STAR® – it’s not just for appliances anymoreENERGY STAR ratings can be applied to your whole house! But it will have to pass some pretty tough inspections. Many, if not most, factory built homes consume 15% less energy than homes built to typical building codes. With ENERGY STAR and many other “green” certifications, you can be sure your new factory built home will outperform the energy savings of typical stick-built homes. That saves you on your utility bills year after year! 2. More bang for your buck Because factory built homes are produced in state-of-the-art facilities that buy materials in mass quantities and benefit from lower rural labor rates, they tend to be less expensive as comparable stick-built homes built to the same specifications. A factory built home will typically give you high build quality, 15% energy savings over a stick-built home of the same price, in less time, with less hassle! 1. It just makes sense All things considered, the factory built process just makes sense. Custom factory built homes provide far better quality, speed, performance, and overall cost savings. Just ask your bank. It doesn’t differentiate between factory built or stick-built for financing construction loans. Factory built homes make sense for banks, builders, the environment – and most importantly - you! About the author - Matt Morse is the President and Co-founder of Dovetail USA, A Boutique Factory Homebuilder based in Vienna, Virginia. |
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