My modular house buying checklist

A checklist for buying your modular home and taking delivery of your modular home.  I'll keep appending items to this list as I discover new positive and negative quality aspects of our modular home.  Please also see our modular home quality,  our modular home loan, our modular home delivery, pages.

High this is a work in progress, I'll be adding more pages and photo's to document aspects of quality.  Hope to finish it soon,
Bob

My modular home buying and site specifications

• Did you know you can add 2 feet here and 2 feet there to the model?  Don't forget to ask.  We added 4 feet to our home and we're glad we did.
• For a full basement, get a steal beam, we almost didn't and would have had 7 Lally columns in our basement, it would have been awful.  With the beam, there are only 2 columns.
• We said "build us the model", add 2 feet here and 2 feet there.  The problem with that is, the home supplier may not know exactly what's in the model!
• Marking your home site.  The foundation contractor will use your marks exactly as is.  We hoped they, with their precise measuring tools, would check our alignment effort, but due to past problems your contractor will probably put the foundation exactly on your marks!

Checklist

• Foundation backfill should partially be stone.
• Front steps bolted to house, will this overload the foundation wall.  They will say it shouldn't.
• Backfill under steps that are attached to foundation?  It's very difficult.  Can become a drainage and wet basement problem source.

Consider adding terms to the home purchase agreement for clarification

Home acceptance

• Is it in the model?  That's sort of a joke for my wife and I, it seemed to be a recurring question between us and our home supplier.
•  
• Do all closets have lights?  And if so, globes as well.
• Is there carpet everywhere there should be.
• Check the moldings and trim.  Is there any sign of paint chipping.
• I don't know why but typically cleanup of the finished home is your responsibility, this is a major quality pitfall in my opinion.  Regardless, is there paint spatter (overspray) all over the place.  This is above and beyond cleanup.
• Bathroom and kitchen exhaust fans should be vented to the exterior of the house.  Check for vents on your roof matching exhaust fans.  Check in the attic that they are actually connected.

The home suppliers inspection and your signoff

• Make sure you look at both sides of any document you sign!