Once a buyer receives a mortgage commitment, the modular house can be ready for occupancy in six weeks, he noted.

Homeworks has been assembling modular houses on Long Island since 1985.

"Time was running short, and our realtor said, 'I know a company that can build you a modular house.' "

Most modular houses are simple, predesigned stuctures kept under 2,500 square feet for easy shipment and assembly.

And some consumers still equate modular houses with mobile homes, in part because they are sold by many of the same manufacturers.

We can produce a modular house in three months, which means they don't have to rent a house in the interim.

Pioneering American builders have long been fascinated by flexible modular houses.

Today, she said, with even a small modular house costing $200,000, "the monetary demographic is rising."

Can centres learn from the experience of others and check that their modular house is in order?

Many people seeking a new home wonder how good modular houses are and how carefully they are inspected.