Manufactured housing

Manufactured housing is a term used to define housing units that are assembled in factories and then transported to their sites of use. Its colloquial use includes both mobile homes and modular homes, but its technical use is restricted to a class of homes regulated by the Federal National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974. These homes are regulated by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and as such avoid the jurisdiction of local building authorities.

Because of their lower cost and the fact that they are perceived to depreciate in value much more quickly than site-built homes, manufactured housing is traditionally, although certainly not always, used by lower-income people. This has led to prejudice and negative zoning restrictions, built around the stereotypical concept of a trailer park.

Modern units, especially modular homes, often belie this image and can be identical in appearance to site-built homes.