Manufactured Housing

A Popular Response

It seems like everywhere we go to discuss the need for affordable housing in Minnesota, at least one person at the table brings up manufactured housing as a viable solution to the statewide shortage of affordable homes.

Our experience in helping to finance housing projects across the state has shed some light on the pros and cons of using manufactured housing units. This page summarizes what we have learned from our experience of working with folks across the state. The issues are framed by statements we frequently hear at community meetings.

Statement I: Manufactured Housing costs less than traditional site-built homes.

False. Manufactured housing will not cost less per unit if built to the same Uniform Building Code (UBC) standards as stick-built homes.

In 1995, The McKnight Foundation demonstration project tested manufactured homes and stick-built homes. Units were built of comparable quality, size, design and amenities. The result: manufactured homes, were at best, equal in cost to the stick-built homes. In another study, the Greater Minneapolis Metropolitan Housing Corporation (GMMHC) installed scores of manufactured homes between 1997-2000 and found costs comparable to stick-built housing.

The illusion that manufactured homes cost less than stick-built homes results from a distorted sense that HUD codes are the same as UBC codes. Compared to the UBC, the HUD Code allows for fewer windows, lower amp electrical service, fewer outlets, fewer smoke detectors, lighter duty plumbing, lighter roof and floor load requirements, lower ceilings, smaller doors, and thinner wall board. Thus, the cost reduction in HUD code homes is a result of using an alternative standard, that sets lower benchmarks. View a comparison of HUD codes to UBC codes.

Display units are shown to potential
buyers before purchase.

Most units are shipped and mounted
on-site to footings. Basements are an
option for some homebuyers, but excavation
adds a great deal to the per unit cost.

The interior of this manufactured home
built to HUD code standards shows that
finished materials and wall thickness
are less than they would be in
under UBC specifications.

 

 


Innovative
Construction Techniques

Manufactured Housing
Stress Panel Housing
Straw Bale Housing

Statement II: Manufactured Housing is an important part of a communities affordable housing supply.

True. Manufactured housing makes up nearly one-third of all housing starts on a national basis each year. Although these units are more popular in southern states, Minnesotan's buy over 2,800 new manufactured units each year.

However, providing housing units is only one of the benefits that affordable housing efforts can bring to a rural community. The positive impact of housing construction on the local economy must also be noted. Because manufactured housing units are shipped to a community from assembly plants that are often in other towns, the number of local jobs created by manufactured housing development is limited. Good paying construction jobs are important to Minnesota's rural communities and remain an important reason that site-built houses are preferred over those that are manufactured elsewhere.

In spite of these concerns, manufactured housing may be a useful affordable housing option under the following conditions:

  • Local construction labor is short.
  • Resources for development funding are limited.
  • Housing is needed immediately.

Links

For more information on the range of manufactured housing options, visit the Manufactured Housing Institute’s Web site.

Read "The Manufactured Home Parks Handbook" from the Office of Minnesota Attorney General, Mike Hatch. This handbook explains the Minnesota laws concerning manufactured home park residents and park owners.

Get information on the Federal Manufactured Housing Program from Housing and Urban Development (HUD) .

University of Illinois study of CABO versus MHCSS, 1998 (pdf)

For a complete list of manufacture home parks in Minnesota follow this link.