what is the different between manufactured home and regular house?

Question

How is it build? How does heating cost compar?

Answer 1

Manufactured home or "Mobile Home" has a steel frame unlike a stickbuilt house that has a concrete foundation.
As of 1977, Manufactured homes were supposed to be built to HUD standards, the same as a stickbuilt.
Manufactured homes can be every bit as good as a stickbuilt depending on the manufacturer and especially the setup crew.
Both have unlimited floor plans and layouts available.
The manufactured home should be built to more precise tollerances than a stickbuilt being built in a factory using jiggs and more precise alignment capabilities, then it has to be transportable and re-assembled unlike the stickbuilt that is built in place with standards and tollerances dependant on the skill of the carpenters on site.
Here in Washington the resale value of sticks vs, manufacutred is virtually the same.
Heating and efficiency in a manufactured is typically better but again, it all depends on you in the end and how much homework you have done, be sure to watch This Old House and Hometime for starters.

Answer 2

Manufactured is built in a factory and trucked to your location in sections. The manufactured home is set on a semi foundation, no basements.

A modular home is also built in a factory but arrives as panels (walls & floors for example) and assembled on site...on a foundation.

Regular home is built on site on a foundation.

Price per square foot is higher with regular home but you can design, modifiy to heart's content. Manufactured say they can be modified but just try.....most companies won't let you enlarge doors for wheelchairs for example. Modulars are somewhere in between here.

If you are looking for a home with a basement, go modular (panels) or built on site. Manufactured homes are sometimes called "trailers" but not true. Once a manufactured home is set, the wheels come off and it can not be moved.

Resale, site built are still better investments but manufactured is better than it used to be. My neighbor will test this though. He's on his second house after his single wide trailer became a dump in 10 years. This manufactured is not aging gracefully either due to exterior materials not suited to this climate.

Little things, no roof overhang with manufactured so water stains down sides. No attached garage, house still sits up off the ground requiring some type of porch on the front, deck on the back.