Tidewater Custom Modular Homes Blog

There are many homeowners who are contemplating downsizing their homes. There are many reasons for downsizing, the most common being the children have moved out. Perhaps you are looking to stay in the same town or remain near the community you have grown to love over the years, or perhaps you want to move to the waterfront.

Building a modular home may be a great choice for you. Thereare many styles and floor plans that will fit your needs. And building a modular home is cost effective, efficient. Also, downsizing can save you tax dollars.

A ranch style home, our favorite being the Austin, single story living at its best! This quaint three bedroom, two bath home offers a large master suite complete with a walk-in closet and a master bath featuring a garden tub. The foyer opens into a spacious living room/dining room combo, providing an abundance of space for entertaining or simply relaxing.

If it is the waterfront that draws you, we have vacation home floor plans to suit your needs as well. The Southport is one of our most popular vacation home floor plans. This quaint Cape Cod home with its charming front elevation features almost an entire wall of glass, bathing the great room in the front of the home in natural light, thanks to a towering vaulted ceiling. The large master suite is to the left rear of the home and offers privacy while an extremely open great room, dining room and kitchen area on the opposite side offers a gathering place for family and friends.

Then of course, we have the traditional cape. The Kingston, has a combination breakfast nook/kitchen design makes this area of The Kingston the gathering spot of the home. A bathroom, two bedrooms and an expansive living room complete the first floor. Two bedrooms and the home’s second bath complete the suggested second floor.

Feel free to ask us about any of these style homes or any other styles that we offer. And remember, at Tidewater Custom Modular Homes, we can create the home you are looking for within the price parameters you require.

Having a modular home built is one the most cost effective ways to build a new home. The floor plans are easy to view, and there are many options to choose from when it comes to picking the perfect floor plan. Whether you need a floor plan for a ranch, a vacation style home, or Cape Cod Style, modular homes can be built for your needs. Many people have a misconception that modular homes are cookie cutter in style. But, did you know that modular homes can be custom designed? Our floor plans are designed by builders and architects in order to maximize the space and practical use.

Often, when people think of modular homes they think simplistic, nothing special, and undersized. However, this is far from true today. Manufactured homes are well made, versatile and customization is available in the layout and design. Although we have floor plans for many “in-stock” homes, modular homes are not limited in design and can range from 1000 square feet to 4000 sq feet and up. Additionally, if you already have a floor plan but have opted against a traditional stick built home, or are investigating your options in modular homes, many floor plans can be modified to accommodate modular home construction.

Modular homes are for those who want a new, beautiful home with a controlled budget, and they want it in less time than it would take to build a traditional stick built home. When considering a new home keep in mind that manufactured or modular home plans are easily customized, with varying amounts of square footage and multiple bedrooms to meet your needs.

Architects, designers and home buyers are interested in creating and buying new, environmentally green homes. Green is chic, and modular homes are green. Their designs offer so much versatility and appeal that their popularity is on the rise. With new methods of construction and transportation, designers and builders are cutting waste and energy consumption, and cutting production costs while achieving greater methods of sustainability.

Modular Homes are built from modules that are assembled in a factory to exact specifications. Everything is cut with more exactness and everything is applied and assembled more accurately, saving time, materials and energy. These standards extend the life and cuts down on upkeep of the home over time. Modular home factories also produce less waste than onsite construction. Where modular home production generates around 2% waste, stick built homes generate 30-40%. Also, less time is spent constructing modular homes, so production costs are lower. Ultimately, modular homes allow eco-friendly construction at a fraction of the cost, to a larger consumer base.

Because modular homes are prefabricated, the modules allow you to design a home that will complement the space you are placing it on. You can change the design and make it fit the space rather than make the space fit the home; again saving energy and material costs.

For eco-friendly construction, and a customized, newly built home that is energy star qualified, contact Tidewater Modular Homes.

Modular construction is one of the fastest growing forms of home building in the market today. Increased efficiency and our ability to apply modern technology to the needs of the market place are what make it so desirable. Tidewater Custom Modular Homes offers designs that encompass the entire spectrum of the market; from affordable single-family designs to high end luxury homes to vacation getaways. The combination of reduced construction time, more efficient construction and unlimited customization are the primary reasons why many home buyers are switching from traditional stick-building to modular home construction.

One question always seems to come up in our conversation with people as they contemplate their choice between a stick built home and a modular home.  “Which type of home is stronger, modular or traditional?” The general consensus is that modular homes are stronger. They are built in a controlled environment where outside elements cannot add wear and tear. Modular home builders also use screws instead of nails and add glue to all the joints to increase the strength of the home.

Today’s modular homes rival any site-built home in design and functionality. Advancements in computer design and factory technology allows almost any custom home plan to be constructed as a modular home. For buyers interested in a fine-crafted home that can be built and completed in a fraction of the time of a conventional home, modular homes have become the preferred type of construction by many.

There are many different home styles and floor plans to consider when you are building a new modular home. You have the option of a standard floor plan or you can have your house customized however you would like, in the actual layout, or in the interior set up. Further customization can be done as well. In the kitchen an island or wine rack could be added, columns could be added to the living or dining area and transoms and side lights could be added to the front door. Perhaps you are interested in entertaining, a rock surround can be added to the fireplace and an opening for the television could be added to the wall above. There are so many special features to add to your new modular home, inside and out, we can’t even discuss them all here. But rest assured that your new home will be personal, and built just the way you dreamed it.

With Modular homes, the construction process is dramatically shortened. Your new home arrives to your property in the form of modules, which are then assembled on site. The on-site construction process itself is a wonder to watch as modules for your new home are removed from flat beds and erected with a crane. The process takes weeks instead of months, and sooner, rather than later, you are moving into your new home.
 
Prior to this process, you meet with Tidewater Custom Modular Homes and discuss floor plans and design. You have unlimited options, from colonials to cottages, and ranch homes to Cape Cod style, and each style home has their own individual flare. You get to decide everything you would with a traditionally built home such as cabinet styles and finishes, hard wood flooring and recessed lighting. In the end, you have a custom built, custom designed home of your dreams in much less time.

1. State-of-the-art home building– Modular home companies are able to produce custom modules for custom homes. They have the ability to take any design and build it in pieces in a factory, to be assembled into a custom home in the field. Look at a stick built job site in the rain and you will appreciate that modular homes are built in climate controlled plants monitored by quality control.

2. ENERGY STAR- This does not just mean appliances.  In order for a home to have the ENERGY STAR logo and certification, it has to pass a series of inspections to prove that it was built to certain tolerances, AND performs well. The certification ultimately tells you that the home consumes 15% less energy than a home built to today's building code. Tidewater Custom Modular Homes is energy star certified.

3. Shorter, more predictable time line-The modular process allows the home to go from foundation to 80% complete in one day. While a stick-built home might go through rain, snow, wind, and heat stages, a modular home is built in about 2 weeks in the factory, and you could be living in your new home in a couple of months.

4. Built stronger- Because modules are transported and placed by a crane onto the foundation, they are built as six-sided structures, 4 walls, 1 ceiling and 1 floor. The home is then made of all the stacked boxes, which is stronger and more stable than stick built house.

5. Reliable Quality Control-The only way homes are built to exacting standards is by having a QC system in place. Modular homes are built in factory settings with quality control checks. Each modular production plant is inspected by third party inspectors and  the modules are inspected in the field once they are set.

To show our gratitude and appreciation for our clients we are offering a 2011 winter stimulus package just for you. We have 6 incredible incentives for you to choose from, each having their own unique and person touch from TC Modular. But not only are we offering incentives for our clients but we are throwing in an added bonus: You are welcome to come to one of our Saturday morning factory tours and receive a $1,000 rebate! This is a limited time offer and will only be valid until 3/31/2011. Be sure to order your home today and get the dream home and deal of a lifetime!

Tidewater Modular Construction is safe and sturdy, and are more resistant to natural forces  because of precision cuts that are fit and fastened in the factory. The construction technology for modular homes calls for glue-nailed sheathing and decking plus additional framing members which makes modular homes most likely to endure nature's onslaughts. The structure has to withstand being hoisted by crane and hauled on carriers over roads. The motion and forces that the structure is put under during these processes exceeds that of healthy earthquakes.

We ensure that our modular homes are built with high safety standards in accordance with federal laws requiring smoke detectors, escape windows and incombustible materials around furnaces and kitchen ranges. Our modular homes assure the buyer that all electrical, plumbing, mechanical and structures are built to a HUD national code, which exceeds any local standards.

Stick- built homes are sometimes constructed in areas where local building codes may be less, and the safety of the homeowner and family may be compromised. We make sure our modular homes are built in a safe environment and according to HUD standards. We go above and beyond to make sure you have the home of your dreams. Tidewater Custom Modular Homes researched modular construction for several years to ensure we offered the highest quality homes from a manufacturer with a history of quality construction, experience, potential for growth and, most importantly, a solid reputation. Contact us today to learn more about modular homes and how you can get your custom built dream home today.

Today, the educated consumers that are seeking to have a new home built to their specifications are increasingly turning to modular construction to achieve a higher quality of construction without sacrificing architectural style, open floor planning and quality finishes. Invariably, when clients initially call us, one of their first questions is "how do I get started?"

If your interest is having your new dream home built with modern modular technology and you, too, want to know "how to get started", we offer here the most important element to insure a successful project: selecting the right manufacturer of the modular housing components.

The modular components of your new home will be manufactured in a factory and those components will be shipped to your home site and finished to turnkey by the builder. Be sure to check out our selection of custom floor plans here. In addition to having floors plan readily available to our customers you can specify which kind of additions you would like to have added on. In our design gallery we show some popular additions such as our kitchen and bathroom ideas. As you can see we are very committed to the modular home industry and to helping out our customers in any way possible, so if you have any other questions feel free to contact us.

Winter is here and you will be using a lot more energy in your modular home, from having lights on longer to a furnace working overtime.  Here is an easy check list to follow when you are trying to reduce your monthly energy bills. You should seek professional assistance in each of these areas to assure the proper corrections have been made.

• Have an energy audit- can be conducted by your local electric co-op or a private party.
• Seal air leaks- check around windows, doors, and any other seams/joints in your home.
• Check mechanical systems- change furnace filters regularly and systems for proper working order.
• Heat efficiently- replace old systems with new efficient ones.
• Use a programmable thermostat- this helps heat only when you need it.
• Control hot water use- change to a low flow shower head and lower the temperature on your water heater.
• Replace light bulbs-  use CFL’s (Compact Fluorescent Lights) as they will save you a considerable amount on your bills over time.
• Use outlet switches-  this is where you have a way of shutting power of to small appliances, televisions, etc.
• Install timers/motion light-  these work well for frequently used lights and others that are in hard to reach areas.
• Buy ENERGY STAR products- these products are there to save you money.