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There was a time when mobile and modular homes were considered substandard housing. Today, new advances and expectations have made them the standard by which some traditional site-built structures are measured.


Affordable Homes of Louisiana owner Brett Rutledge contends that price, quality, timely construction delivery, and convenient financing make manufactured structures an attractive alternative in the housing market.


Manufactured homes (formerly known as mobile homes) offered by this dealer withstand 120 mph wind speeds, and (prefabricated) modular homes are built to the same standard as site-built houses, in accordance with international registered codes, and are able to withstand 150 mph wind speeds.

Depending on the make and model, a home’s price can range between $30 and $70 per square foot. Floor plans vary, or customers can supply their own architectural design for a custom-built structure.


“The thing people care about in a hurricane region is if the strength is equal or greater than standard homes,” Rutledge said. “Also, the price is probably 30 to 50 percent cheaper [for comparable homes].”


More than 80 percent of contemporary manufactured homes have walls built with 2-by-6-feet studs. Floors joists are two-by-eight and 2-by-10-feet with three-quarter-inch tongue-and-groove plywood, and insulation is measured at a zone three level. “You can keep it 60 degrees all day and still maintain a $100 utility bill,” the manufactured home dealer said.

Rutledge explained that once a customer selects a model, the timeline from factory manufacturing to delivery and installation can range from 30 to 90 days, depending on specifics with each situation. His company also handles securing permits and works with local utilities for hook-ups.


As with standard real estate purchases, customers can finance with their own lenders, or may apply through one of several institutions connected with the dealer. Current lending rates are 2 and 4 percent fixed depending on terms, and insurance costs range on average between $1,100 and $1,300 annually.


Affordable Homes of Louisiana offers four different brands of houses representing a wide range of prices and features from companies including Cavco and Cappaert to Champion and Franklin.

Manufactured homes are factory built in pieces, shipped to a building site, craned and bolted in place. Rutledge said that producing an elevated structure is a reasonable option to slab-foundation homes.


Along with selling both mobile and modular homes, Rutledge develops subdivisions with the intention of placing complimentary structures together that will increase value. Land purchases for home placement – normally left to individual buyers – is included in this dealer’s purchase package with corresponding costs.


Rutledge is known within the Manufactured Housing Association as the first dealer along the Gulf Coast to develop a manufactured home subdivision and simultaneously offer houses to go with real estate lots. This represents one of many changes in the housing industry.

“I think the McMansion period is over [for most homeowners],” Manufactured Homes Institute spokesman Bruce Savage said. “People are finding that the cost of buying and maintaining [larger homes] is not appropriate for their lifestyles.”

According to the MHI the first six months of 2012 saw 27,682 homes shipped and delivered. This represented a 20 percent net increase from the 23,149 units sold and shipped during the same period one year earlier.

“Most people in our market want to [spend] between $500 and $1,500 per month [on a house payment],” Rutledge said. “It doesn’t matter if it is a $180,000 home or $90,000. Instead of paying $1,400 for a three-bedroom apartment, I can get them 3,000 square feet of their own place [at a payment of $1,400 per month].”

Rutledge noted that utility bills and maintenance of manufactured homes are significantly less than comparable site-built homes. “People that have not seen [manufactured homes] in 20 years need to see how they have changed,” he said. “[Our] houses have 10-year warranties on the entire structure and a seven-year mechanical warranty.”

Rutledge said the most challenging part of this business, like any real estate agent, involves financing for customers. “It is the length of time that loans take,” he said. “I have a method where I can get somebody pre-approved within a day, get the conditions approved in two days and order an appraisal in four days, but their interest rate is going to be 6 or 7 percent when the land and home is a package. Since I am selling them quality, I prefer getting them a 2 or 3 or 4 percent interest rate. Government programs can take up to 60 days.”

Rutledge said that he in the past sold 150 units per year, but that number has dropped to approximately 100 per year since 2008 because of tightened financing regulations. He also noted that since 2004, approximately 70 percent of dealers went out of business due to economic changes.

By contrast, according to Manufactured Home Manufacturing, the industry is expected to see steady gains through 2016.

Rutledge identified investor Warren Buffet as having said prefabricated homes represent the way of the future. “They can be built in a controlled environment with controlled costs,” Rutledge said. “The process is streamlined and you can get them in any variety of square footage, or multiple stories. I even know hotel chains that are converting system-built homes because they can get them for 30 to 40 percent less than what it would be to build them on-site, and do it in half the time.”

Today’s manufactured homes have come a long way from the rectangular box buildings they once were. Many standard elements now include granite counters, top-of-the-line fixtures, brand-name air conditioning and appliances, porches, decks, garages and additional elements that make these homes comparable to traditional structures with higher price tags.

According to Rutledge, the construction, installation, features and technology involved make manufactured homes ready to meet consumer demand while offering more than expected.

Kitchens are often the ultimate selling point of traditional housing, and Brett Rutledge says the same is true for manufactured homes like the 1,800-square-foot Champion model. Rutledge says a large part of his market has become aging Baby Boomers ready to downsize to more affordable living.

MIKE NIXON | TRI-PARISH TIMES