Manufactured Housing Resource Center
What is "Manufactured Housing"?
Manufactured housing refers to homes and dwellings which aren't 'stick-built' (constructed at the site), but which are built off-site (usually in a factory) and trucked to the building lot where they are installed or assembled. Manufactured housing includes modular, panelized, pre-cut, and mobile homes.
Manufactured homes are built in accordance with Federal standards known as the HUD Code, which regulates manufactured home design and construction, strength and durability, fire resistance, and energy efficiency. The code also mandates wind resistance of manufactured homes in areas prone to hurricane-force winds.
The Manufactured Housing Institute is a nonprofit trade group which represents MH builders, retailers, lenders, site developers, and others. Their Web site offers a variety of resources for those who want to learn about factory-built housing. You can use the MHI Membership Directory to find a manufacturer, retailer, financial service, community, or state association in your area. There are also online articles on understanding and buying a manufactured (or "factory-built") home.
Some manufactured housing Fast Facts:
- In 2018, one out of 10% new single-family housing starts were manufactured homes.
- In 2018, 22 million Americans lived full-time in manufactured homes.
- The average sales price of a manufactured home was $70,600 in 2018. (in 2016, single-section homes averaged $46,700, while multi-section homes average $89,500.)
- All manufactured homes are built to the 43-year-old federal HUD Code, with each home going through a rigorous inspection process before being certified and sold.
More Information
- Start your education with "How to Buy a Manufactured Home," written by the MHI in cooperation with the Federal Trade Commission. It's an older publication but still solid on the basics.
- The Mobilehome.co , (formerly the Manufactured Housing Global Network) bills itself as "the central location for the manufactured housing industry." It offers consumer tips, publications, and lots of links to other sites of interest.
- From HUD: Learn about HUD Title 1 loans, one of the ways that lots of manufactured houses get financed.
- Learn just about everything you'll ever want to know about Titling Manufactured Homes as Real Property, courtesy of the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC).
- If you've got a manufactured home, you may also be able to refinance your manufactured home.
- Many states have trade organizations to educate and assist you.
- Ohio buyers can visit the Ohio Manufactured Housing Association.
- The Michigan Manufactured Housing Association has a very comprehensive searchable data base of manufacturers, retailers, lenders, and support industries in Michigan and the upper midwest.
- The New York Housing Association's website can help you find retailers, manufacturers and communities in the Empire State.
- Your can locate your state's manufactured housing trade associations here.