Manufactured Home Producer's Guide to the Site-Built Market

PATH - A Public Private Partnership for Advancing Housing Technology

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January 2000, 78 pages

The goal of this guidebook is to encourage partnerships between manufactured housing producers (MHPs) and site builder/developers to construct affordable homes that combine the best of both. The more immediate goal is to help manufacturers to work effectively with homebuilders and developers and to familiarized manufacturers with the market needs of the conventional residential site developer. The guide covers key negotiating points for collaboration between manufactured home producers and builder/developers, including design and construction issues, financing arrangements and dealer involvement. There is also a discussion of construction and production details unique to manufactured homes in residential developments. The guide closes with a series of case studies from around the country that feature manufactured homes for residential developments.

This guide includes projects that combine manufactured housing with site-built elements, as well as simple "land-home" deals. The projects that use manufactured and site-built elements range from simple single-story units with site-built decks to fairly complex two-story manufactured units with site-built garages and porches. To work in the marketplace, manufactured homes with site-built elements must be affordable relative to comparable homes built exclusively with modular or site-built technologies. Modifying typical manufactured homes to meet the needs of site builder/developers is desirable for a variety of reasons: to increase sales overcome consumer resistance to manufactured homes, meet local zoning or subdivision restrictions, fit onto small infill sites, or satisfy the finish and appearance standards in a market familiar with site-built amenities. Manufactured homes with site-built elements have been routine in California for many years. Today, there is intense interest all over the U.S. in "pushing the envelope" of manufactured homes, most recently in the eastern half of the country, where a great opportunity exists to provide infill housing in decaying older cities.

To request a copy, please call 1-800-245-2691.

Content updated on 12/10/2003

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