Learn how manufactured homes have improved
Tuesday, September 30th, 2008The manufactured home of today is an evolution of design and amenities that has its beginnings in a history of exceeding the American homebuyer’s desire for impressive housing at an exceptional value.
In the 1920s, “trailer coaches” were built to serve the American adventurer who wanted the ability, when on the go, of having a ready-made place to sleep at a campsite. During Word War II, these temporary dwellings were used to house factory employees who came from great distances to aid in the war effort.
After the war, soldiers got home to find affordable housing difficult to find. The manufactured home companies answered this demand by building houses that were big enough to house a person and his buyers. However, these structures could still be moved from one place to another to provide the mobility that the owners desired.
In the 1960s, Discerning families wanted even more out of housing manufacturers. The request was for more spacious units with more benefits and the new fixtures that were rapidly coming on the scene. But, it had to be mobile. History students may remember Lucille Ball in the movie, “The Long, Long Trailer.”
From this requirement was born the mobile home. Trailer homes were more spacious in size, better in appearance and met the longings of prospective young Discerning homeowners.
In 1974, The government passed the National Mobile Home Construction and Safety Standards Act, also known as the HUD Code. This ecompassing legislation made trailer houses the only form of private and single-families building governed by federal regulation. Even tranditional buildings did not enjoy such stern regulation. These regulations, which became effective in June of 1976, preempted any existing state or local construction and safety codes applying to the product.
The effect of federal regulation was to more clearly define trailer houses as buildings, rather than vehicles. The Houses Act of 1980 adopted this change officially, mandating the use of “manufactured houses” (factory-built dwellings) to replace “trailers” in all federal law and literature for buildings built since 1976.
The mobile home one see today is truly a home and it bears little resemblance to its ‘tin-box’ predecessor, the trailer. Perhaps, one may not even recognize a fabricated home - so close is it in design and form to its stick-built counterpart. Thanks to sophisticated production processes and the demands of the home owner, fabricated homes have become a model of efficiency, affordability, and innovative design options.
For more information on single wide manufactured dwellings please visit www.2homeinfo.com
