Manufactured Homes

Often called mobile homes, "doublewides" or sectional homes, manufactured homes are built in one piece or as two "halves" on a metal chassis with wheels so they can be moved at any time. They carry a title and typically are manufactured to be the lowest cost housing option available. In the industry, these homes are commonly referred to as HUD Housing.

Modular Homes

The term modular refers to the assembly of a home in "room modules" or boxes in a factory. These highly engineered modules are then trucked to a building site and joined together on a permanent foundation using a crane and an assembly crew. Modular homes are often economical but not as "customizable" as other building methods may be.

Stick Built Homes

This is the most conventional method of construction. Most of the home is built onsite by carpenters and framers one stick of lumber at a time. This building method is excellent for custom designed, complex buildings because it allows for changes "on site". Stick builder contractors are often small, local companies doing just a few homes a year.

Panelized Homes

"Panelized" refers to a more recent method of home construction in which a home is built in wall sections, or panels, under ideal, climate-controlled factory conditions. Floor systems, or "decks," are built the same way.

Outside walls typically have windows, siding and wiring pre-installed. Decks and interior walls are engineered and constructed to accommodate plumbing and heat runs.

Roof trusses, gable ends and all other components needed to make a complete home are then loaded onto specially-designed flatbed trailers, wrapped with tarps for moisture protection and trucked to a customer's home site.

Panelized homes are customizable, second only to stick building for flexibility. The panelized home has the added benefit of quick, on-site completion, often finishing weeks ahead of comparable stick-built projects. Hundreds of floor plans and interior trim options are often available in a panelized home.