A modular home is a prefabricated (also known as prefab) structure that is built off site and assembled on site. They don’t move: They remain on the slab or foundation they’re pieced together on. Modular homes are very similar to manufactured homes, except (among other differences) they are built to different codes.

Modular homes are built in sections in a climate-controlled factory and transported to your land, where a builder assembles the home like building blocks on top of a permanent foundation. Modular homes are one form of prefab home, but their key differentiator is that, unlike manufactured and mobile homes, modular homes are built on foundations.

Modular homes are different than RVs and mobile homes, too. RVs are mobile, meaning they aren’t constructed on a foundation like a modular home. RVs are meant to move around. Some people live in them full time while others use them for recreational, short-term use. If you’re living in an RV full time, you typically purchase an RV and rent a space in an RV or trailer park, but you don’t need to own the land where it’s parked.

With a modular home, you own the land it is built on the way you would own the land a typical single-family home sits on. And like single-family homes, modular homes appreciate in value over time.

You might hear modular homes compared to stick-built homes, which are homes built on site. This is a fair comparison, because modular homes are assembled on site, but the actual construction of the structure itself takes place off site. Another feature that sets modular homes apart is building codes. Modular homes follow local, state, and regional building codes that apply to stick built homes.

Deciding whether to buy a modular home is up to you: There are pros and cons to these structures, as there are with any type of housing.

Because modular homes are affordable and quick to build, many first-time home buyers find they can get into a brand new home quickly and affordably when they choose this option. A fully customized home takes six to eight months to build, while a modular home usually takes half the time, even as little as three to four months.

If a fast timeline makes you wonder about the quality of these homes, We suggests looking into the builder—something you should do if you’re looking to buy in any new development.

You just have to make sure that you’re checking the materials and seeing the quality of workmanship. And that’s just going to vary from builder to builder.

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