In today’s housing market, there really are no better options than modular homes, pre-built homes, pre-fab homes, or tiny homes—they’re all turnkey and affordable.
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If saving money and a timely home construction process aren’t enough to convince you, there are also custom options and amenities, warranty options, craftsmanship, and add-ons to consider.
Turnkey, modular homes built by trusted local businesses like Pratt Homes in Tyler, Texas, are an ideal option for anyone looking to own, design, and build their own home.
When you’ve made the decision to build your own modular home, it’s important to avoid certain pitfalls.
Here’s a list of 5 common mistakes to avoid when choosing a modular home:
1. Don’t Choose the Wrong Design or Size
Once you’ve decided to purchase a pre-built home and start designing, make sure you plan carefully. Designing a new home can be very exciting, but make sure things don’t get ahead of themselves. It’s all too easy to get caught up in the moment and make decisions that aren’t what you want or need in the long run.
Plan carefully. What size house do you need? You don’t want to choose something too big, but you also don’t want to choose something too small.
What are your goals for your home? Are you going to host often? Do you plan on expanding your family? Do you have an elderly relative who might need to move in? Make sure you consider all the angles before deciding on what size home you want.
The same goes for the design. There are a great many details that should be factored in when it comes to design.
One of the main things is profitability. While designing your home with your own aesthetic is important, it’s also important to think down the road if you ever need to sell the home for profit. You don’t want the home’s design to be something that ends up taking away from what it’s worth because it doesn’t meet the buyer’s wants or needs.
When you design your turnkey home, make sure you factor in both your wants and needs while keeping an eye on the future.
2. Don’t Go Over Budget
Unfortunately, going over budget is far too easy to do. Especially if you don’t take the time to create an accurate and detailed budget ahead of time.
When creating your budget for designing and building your pre-fab home, make sure you factor in all the details.
This includes any custom craftsmanship and amenities you might want to include. It’s easy to want to change these details as you go along, but that can also mean that you end up going over budget at the completion of your home.
While planning, try to find a balance between looking ahead at what you might need from your tiny home or modular home in the future and what you need from it in the present. This balance can help you measure what’s necessary right away and what you can wait and save up for later so that you don’t go over budget.
3. Don’t Choose a Builder That Doesn’t Fit
Once you’ve made the decision to build a custom pre-built home, you need to find a builder to help make your home dreams a reality. Not just any builder: the right builder. Finding the right builder for your modular home is important on many levels.
First, you need someone who is an expert in the modular home construction process. Make sure they’re experienced and properly licensed. Luckily in today’s internet world, it’s easier than ever to check up on a business’ credentials. Look up reviews on your prospective modular home builder. See what other customers have to say about working with them. Are they easy to work with? Are there any red flags?
Take time to speak with your builder about your design ideas and needs. Are they someone you feel like you can work with? Do they hear you out? Do they answer your questions?
Being able to work well with your builder is one of the most important parts of the building process. Make sure you take the time to choose someone who’s a good fit.
4. Don’t Go in Blind—Look at Examples
Another helpful thing about the internet world is transparency. When choosing the right builder for your turnkey home, it’s important to see examples of their work.
Before you decide on your builder, look up photos and, if possible, videos of their past work. Seeing their work will give you a good idea if they’re the right fit for you.
If you’re able, request to do a walk-through of a home they designed. This will give you an even better, in-person idea of who and what you’ll be working with.
5. Don’t Forget to Check out Money-Saving Sustainable Options
Sustainable building options aren’t just beneficial for the environment. They can also be a great way to save money on your utility bills.
Talk to your custom modular home builder about their sustainable building options and how they might work within your home design.
When it comes to choosing a modular home, there are a lot of details to consider. However, avoiding these mistakes can make a big difference in building your dream turnkey modular home.
With housing shortages on the rise and more people looking for sustainable building methods, it’s no wonder prefab (short for pre-fabricated) homes are becoming more popular than ever.
Prefab homes are nothing new. But with modern technologies, they’re more of an attractive option than ever.
In this 5-minute read, learn…
Let’s start with the first question. You might be surprised by the answer!
What do you think of when you hear the term “prefab home”? You might first think of a mobile home or “trailer” as they’re sometimes called. And it is true that technically a mobile home is a type of prefabricated home. But modern prefab homes are so much more!
So what exactly is a prefab home?
A prefab home is a home that is — entirely or in part — manufactured off-site and then transported to a property and assembled. Sometimes the entire home may be built in one piece in a factory. And other times, parts of the home — like wall panels or bathroom pods — are built in a factory and then assembled on-site.
Here are 3 common types of prefab houses:
So is a prefab home the right option for you and your clients? Keep going to learn more.
Here are some pros and cons of prefab homes. This will help you decide if a prefab home project is the best option for you and your clients. Let’s start with the pros.
So those are some of the advantages and challenges of buying prefab homes. Let’s expand on those a little more in the next section.
Let’s dive a little deeper into several factors you should keep in mind when looking at prefab homes for you or your clients.
So how long does it take to go from purchase to moving in? There are a lot of factors to consider.
If you…
…then you can expect it to take anywhere from a few weeks to several months.
If you’re content with a standard floor plan package, some manufacturers may even have mobile or modular homes built and waiting to be transported to a property.
But in most cases, you’ll have to wait 3-4 months for it to be built. If you plan well, while the home is being built at the factory, you can be doing the site works at the property.
Then, it will take anywhere from several days to a month or two to assemble the home on the property.
It’s easy to get enamored with the low prices some prefab home companies offer. It’s common to see simple 1 and 2-bedroom prefab homes as low as $60-70,000. So make sure you read the fine print and know exactly what you’re getting.
First, understand exactly what the prefab home manufacturer is offering.
Next, get some quotes for foundations and utility hookups. Even a simple concrete foundation without a basement will likely cost $10-15,000 or more.
And if your home isn’t connected to the city sewer lines, don’t forget to calculate the price of your home’s septic system. That could easily cost $5-10,000 or more depending on which type is required in your area.
Try not to have any preconceived ideas about prefab homes. As you start looking at different options, you’ll see that the possibilities are endless and you’ll likely be able to find an option that suits you or your clients.
*Are you looking for a way to showcase your prefab home designs? Cedreo home design software lets you create an entire set of 2D and 3D plans in as little as two hours. Create realistic 3D visualizations that impress clients and help you sell more homes!
If you or your clients want to customize a prefab home, don’t wait until after it’s built to start remodeling it. Check with the manufacturer to see what customization options are available during the building process.
More and more people want to express their personalities through their homes and prefab home manufacturers are stepping up to the challenge by offering more customization options than ever.
While the customizations do add an extra expense to the initial cost of the home, it’s cheaper than remodeling it later to fit your needs.
Although modern modular homes can be just as well-built and durable as regular homes, keep in mind that some people still think of “modular” homes as “mobile” homes.
So if you plan on selling your modular home in the future, be prepared to explain to some buyers how your house was built and why it’s just as good as a regular home.