Posts Tagged ‘Elements’

The housing industry has grown exponentially in step with our country’s population growth, and these days there are plenty of options for the type of home you can build. You hear terms like mobile and manufactured, modular, panelized, and stick-built. What’s the difference in the way these houses are built and their costs?

We’ll start with an easy one, Stick-Built Homes. These are your traditional homes. They are built on site, piece by piece, stick by stick. They are highly customizable, versatile, and the most common type of home built. They also take the longest time to build, and are typically more expensive per square foot. As a result of being built on the site and the time it takes, the home is open to the elements and is subject to delays. Anyone who has passed a construction site in the middle of the winter, with a half built home on it, realizes the problems this may pose. Now, imagine that home was yours. Not too pretty, huh? When you build in the Carolinas, weather plays less of a role, as winter isn’t as severe and many building crews work late into the year. However, even in North and South Carolina you’ll have to worry about rain, especially near the coast. When building materials get wet, they start to warp and develop mold. Concerns about weather damage, innovations in factory-line production, better availability of materials, and a greater desire to control costs have led to the growing popularity of the building systems described below. All the remaining types of housing are constructed indoors, and shipped to your building site in one way or another. Most present some type of cost or time savings over traditional stick-built homes, but may have other drawbacks.

The term pre-fabricated came into use in London after World War Two, as a housing solution for displaced families. Pre-fabrication is a term used to refer to all the types of housing that follows, as all are pre-fabricated, in a factory, off-site and put together on-site. The most important thing to remember is these styles of homes are built inside, with climate control and levels of quality control in place. This style of home building is starting to be referred to as “systems built homes” by the National Association of Home Builders. Building systems are used to save time, achieve more consistent quality, and decrease the need for specialized labor. The company, Carolina System-Built Home, builds All American Homes (which has a plant in Rutherfordton, North Carolina), and is based out of Lexington, South Carolina. You can find them at carolinasystem dot com.

Mobile homes and Manufactured homes are married in history. When a person says mobile, typically negative connotations are thought of: hurricanes destroying large tracts of homes, value depreciation, and poorly built homes. The term mobile home actually refers to homes, built on a chassis with wheels for transportation, prior to 1976, when US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) regulations were put in place. After 1976, this type of home, one with a chassis, has been referred to as manufactured homes. So, you wonder, even with the fancier name and regulations, will these homes still blow away in a heavy storm? These days, with the regulations set upon them, manufactured homes are of much greater quality. There are still concerns regarding stability under high wind, and value depreciation. But overall, manufactured homes are of better quality, safer, and more accepted than they used to be. Nowadays there are double-wides and triple-wides, further enhancing the livability of manufactured housing. In addition, as manufactured homes are subject to Federal regulations, they are exempt from local building regulations. This may make getting the home on the ground easier and faster, but can enable people to sacrifice quality. Local building regulations are good because they make sure homes are built to withstand regional influences of weather and other variables. Manufactured homes are subject to local zoning regulations. Some properties are restricted from putting manufactured homes on them. If you are looking for a first home in North Carolina or South Carolina, buying a manufactured home is a great way to get your foot in the door. You can live in the area for a while, get to know it and then move to a different location you like, without the full investment a traditional home would entail. If you have the money to spare and the inclination, you might consider renting the manufactured home after you move.

Modular Homes, which are often confused with manufactured homes, are quite close to stick-built homes. These types of homes are now being widely accepted throughout North and South Carolina. The sections of the home, referred to as modules, are constructed in a factory, and assembled on site, with the help of a crane and construction crew. Because the home is transported via highway in set pieces, there are limits to the design configurations the home may take. Some people are adverse to the idea of their home being subjected to the bumps and bruises of hundreds of miles of highway travel. In the past, securing loans for modular homes was difficult, but that problem has been largely reduced, as banks are becoming more familiar with the process. Typically with modular homes, all of the finishes are included in the factory construction. Some home owners object to this practice, as there may be a high mark-up and a limit on the options available. Modular homes must adhere to the local building regulations where they will be sited. Overall, modular homes are of good quality, and very similar to stick-built homes. A North Carolina based modular home builder is Professional Building Systems, based out of Mount Gilead. You can visit their website at http://www.pbsnc.com.

Panelized homes are another higher quality option for factory built homes. Panelized homes differ from modular homes in that the walls, roofing, and flooring are all assembled in a factory and then put together on the site. Greater options exist for flexibility of design, and less stress is placed on the home during transit. Finishes and appliances are selected, purchased, and installed by the owner/buyer on site. Panelized homes take longer to finish on the site than modular homes. Some people like panelized homes because of the sweat equity they can put into them, and therefore save some construction costs. Panelized homes are also attractive to green minded people, as they eliminate a large amount of the typical waste associated with building a home. Typically, the panels contain high quality insulation comparative to stick-built or modular homes, although attention must be paid to the joining of the sections to limit leakage. Panelized homes must adhere to the local building regulations where they will be sited. Visit http://www.valubuild.com to learn more about panel built homes.

Costs:

General estimates regarding pre-fabricated homes figure a 20 to 40 percent savings over traditional stick-built homes. However, this figure can be highly misleading. With modular homes, increased size also means increased costs, as more trucks are required to transport the homes and more cranes and men are required to construct them. Panelized homes face the same challenges in regards to transport, and depending on your leg work in your local area, the cost of your finishes and labor can vary highly. Manufactured homes are by far the cheapest up-front, but decrease in value over time. This is changing, but be aware of it. Since they are built to HUD standards established in the 1970′s, manufactured homes are typically not as well insulated as modular, panel, and stick-built homes. Because they are built in all types of weather, stick-built homes often require more maintenance during construction than factory-built homes. The quality of stick-built homes also varies, even within the same builder, as weather conditions affect the home.

Overall, stick-built homes are the most time consuming and expensive, but they are also the most customizable and easiest to acquire financing for. Panel built homes are the second easiest to acquire financing for, as some of the actual building occurs on site. Panel built homes are often considered the best insulated, and have a bit of a savings advantage over modular homes. Modular homes are quicker than panel homes to move into, and provide the greatest ease of construction, while maintaining high quality in structural quality and insulation. Manufactured homes are by far lightest on the pocket on the outset, although future depreciation skews this figure. They are also the quickest to move into, once you’ve found a suitable site.

No matter which way you go, homes where some or all of the components are factory built have clear advantages. It’s a growing market, and you’ll do well to be familiar with it. Save yourself time, money, and wind up with a home that you love, quicker than you thought possible.

Visit www.PlacesOfValue.com for more articles on best places in North Carolina and South Carolina, relocation made easy, top retirement communities, cost of living, and designing and building your Dream Home.

I’ve spent over 30 years finding the best real estate locations for major corporations. These companies have made hundreds of millions of dollars based on the locations I’ve selected.

I’m a professional real estate site locator and location analyst. During the last 5 years, I’ve been researching the growth of towns in North and South Carolina, for the relocation of my family.

I’ve studied hundreds of towns to find those areas which are still affordable, have a high quality lifestyle, and the potential for future growth.

My purpose is to share what I’ve found with you and help you find your Dream Place in the Carolinas.

Author: Bob Bencivenga
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Hybrid and Electric Cars

If you are seriously in the market for buying a home – congratulations! If this is your first time home buying journey, let me offer up three key elements you must know before you sign that contract. I would call these very important “Must do’s” for you:

1) You must know “how much” home you can afford to buy.

Whether you are buying a new home or existing one – it really does not matter in this area – you must know how much home you can buy. Remember this – the biggest mistake first time home buyers make is looking at, or worse, purchasing too much home. Therefore, I highly recommend you get yourself “pre-qualified” with a mortgage professional first. If you are already looking at homes – that’s o.k. – just meet with a lender at your next earliest convenience.

Since this is your first time looking for a house, you probably don’t have a mortgage person selected. I highly recommend networking with your local friends who have bought a home recently. Personal referrals in a local market are the best method to select a loan officer.

2) You must not let your realtor control you.

If you’re buying a home, chances are you’re using a realtor. I’ve worked with hundreds and hundreds of realtors over the past 20+ years.

Let me make two points about realtors:

• The majority of all realtors I’ve ever worked with have been professional and ethical.
• Realtors make a living by selling homes. What separates the pros from the amateur realtors is their ability to get you to buy a home quickly.

The rub here for you making your first time home buying trip is you must stay in control of the situation with the realtor – whatever that situation is. If you need to look at more homes – let the realtor know that. If you can’t stand a home – speak up and let them know. The realtor’s motivation is to sell you a home – the quicker the better. If they can control the situation – they can more easily sell you a home. I’m not saying the realtor is not there to help, but I am saying they want to get you in a home quickly.

Don’t be bashful about asking the realtor for first time home buying tips. See what they know – pick their brain. If you get the feeling they really have no clue about the market – move on to another realtor – and quickly!

3) Get yourself a home buying checklist.

The No. 1 first time home buying tip I can give you after knowing how much home you can buy, and making sure you are in control of your home-buying experience – is to get organized with a checklist. The checklist I recommend on my home-buying blog is actually a freebie produced by the Department of Housing and Urban Development – or HUD. Get one and use it.

Buying a home is an exciting time, and buying a first home is not only exciting, but new (and stressful). The more you can control your elements, learn as you go and not get in a hurry – the greater your odds that the home buying experience will be a great – and financially smart one – for your family.

Kent Faver is a certified real estate appraiser and has been helping people buy homes for over 22 years. He provides critical home buying tips daily at http://www.buyhomeblog.com

Author: Kent Faver
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Pressure cooker

The present global economic situation has made it harder for homeowners to sell their homes as quickly as they would like to or need to and doubly more difficult to sell their homes as private owners. There are, however, free or low priced alternatives to selling your home by an agent if you want to sell your home yourself. One of the best ways to get your house in the public eye is to use several of the best online methods to list your house. Posting your house online will instantly allow possibly millions of viewers to see your listing and make it statistically more possible to sell your home quickly by yourself.

Here are a few techniques used by many people to successfully sell their homes online by owner.

1. eBay – eBay is a huge marketplace that allows the typical person to list just about anything online for the world to see. Selling a house on eBay is no different than selling a car, piece of furniture or jewelry. Just set up an account on eBay, take some great pics of your home, upload them to your account, decide on how you will sell your home and activate your listing! Of course, there are several elements to take into consideration before listing, such as whether or not you will sell by auction or fixed price, whether you will offer other options such as offer closing costs paid by owner, and if you will offer any other bonuses to buyers. There is much success in selling on eBay and while it is not free, it is very inexpensive to list and sell a home by owner on ebay. eBay usually charges a small fee for listing and a percentage fee for sales. Sometimes the company offers deals that are special at certain times of the year for sellers, so be on the look out for these specials. If you want a worldwide selling audience, there is no better way to get your house listed fast than through eBay.

2. YouTube – YouTube? Yes, YouTube! If you’ve ever surfed through the YouTube site, you can find various homeowners who have uploaded great video tours of their homes for sale complete with purchase information. There is no charge for using YouTube and you never know who will actually look at your listing, but the more appealing and creative you are in your listing, the better chance you have for receiving interested contacts. If you have a moderately decent quality video cam and common sense, you can produce a fun and informative selling video of your home.

3. Craigslist and other free listing sites – Craigslist is one of the most well known free listing sites available today, but of course there are several others you can use. The online and hard copy listing company, IWANA, also offers limited free listings for anyone. If you want to get your house listed online for free and fast, go to Craigslist, choose a city to list it in and upload as much information including pictures, that you wish. You will be surprised at how many contacts you may receive who are interested in your home simply by using this listing site.

These are just some of the available online sources that allow you to list homes for sale either free or with minimal cost. If you want to sell your house online, be sure to be as creative as possible in your listing, offer minor bonuses that interest buyers and think outside the box!

P.S. Orr has been writing articles for 6 years on a variety of topics of interest. Come visit the latest website at http://www.latexmattresstoppershop.com/ which helps people find the best deals on latex foam pillows and more information about natural latex bedding essentials.

Author: P.S. Orr
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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