Modern factory-built homes UK - alternative housing solutions

Successive Governments have tried to get a handle on the shortage of homes in the UK housing market, with strategies and ideas for dealing with the shortfall promised in election manifestos and then coming up short with meeting those promises.

When Labour took power in July 2024, one of their key promises was to build 1.5m new houses across the five-year duration of the Parliament, which, almost a year later, looks like an impossible target to achieve.

In part, it's about the necessary planning controls and consents resulting in a reluctance to allow building on greenfield sites and other areas that might be considered contentious. But there is also a shortage of building skills, not helped by some of the governmental decisions that have made in the past couple of decades. And, even if the workforce were available to build, there is a shortage of building materials, which, in turn, makes what is available subject to market forces and increasing prices.

The paucity of building skills and the inevitable costs associated with making such an ambitious desire to build 1.5m homes in five years means that, were that to be achieved, the costs would be passed on to the homebuyer, making the purchase of these new-builds increasingly expensive.

The other side of that particular coin is that the demand for the costly houses will be driven down, which, in turn, makes it economically inviable for building firms to take on vast building projects - at least, not without an injection of money from an already cash-starved government.

But could the answer to the problems faced in the cost and desired speed of the house-building crisis be fixed by factory-built homes and modern construction methods?

As the name suggests, factory-built homes differ from the more traditional bricks-and-mortar that we are more familiar with in the UK, because the structure of the home is designed and developed off-site within a factory setting through modular construction techniques.

Although many of the tasks on the modern building site have not changed for decades (or even centuries in some cases), there is already some move towards elements of home construction being performed off-site, such as the windows and external doors, or the roof trusses. These are built within a factory and shipped to the site ready-made for installation.

In recent years, property programmes have touched on the possibilities of modular construction, focusing on the speed at which, once made in the factory and transported to the location, the home is built.

Of course, the site needs to be prepared with access to utilities and the foundations being in place before the delivery, but this is no different from the more traditional approach to house-building.

The factory-built construction process

The architect and designers work with the client to draw up the best way of realising the dream for the house. The precise measurements for each module are then dispatched to the factory, where use of computers, robot technology and manual experts construct the modules and shapes for shipment.

Such is the lack of interest, though, in this style of building that, quite often, the companies that do respond to the challenge are often based in Scandinavia, Germany and other countries - which, post-Brexit, opens up concerns about the increased cost and in-built delays with the despatch.

There are three distinct types of factory-built homes available in today's UK housing market:

• Permanent "trailer" - these are the caravan-style modules, which are brought on site already constructed, placed where it will permanently reside, and then fitted out to the customer's specifications.
• Panels - each of the walls, interior and exterior, are constructed in their entirety, replete with holes for the windows and doors, as well as the ceilings and floors, which are brought to the site on the trailers of lorries, and physically lifted (often by cranes) and slotted into place.
• Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs) - prepared panels are built with a void in between strengthened by steel, which is then filled with concrete.

Energy-efficient modular homes can offer many advantages as sustainable housing options:

• Being constructed in a controlled environment materials are not exposed to rain, sun or other weather conditions as they are on an open building site.
• They can also incorporate very high levels of energy efficiency and comply with zero-carbon standards for environmentally conscious homebuyers.
• Factory-built houses can be supplied as a ready to live in integrated package, pre-wired and pre-plumbed and with kitchen appliances and bathroom fixtures already installed. Therefore, the minimum of on-site work is required before the house is ready for occupation.
• Homes do not have to be uniform in appearance, as computer-controlled machinery can easily produce a wide range of finished designs to suit individual preferences.
  If you are thinking of building your own home, it might be a good idea to consider the various construction methods available to you, including a factory-built option that could save time and reduce overall costs.

If you are thinking of building your own home, it might be a good idea to consider the various construction methods available to you, including a factory-built option that could save time and reduce overall costs.

If you are looking for a detailed structural survey on the home you are planning on buying by an experienced and conscientious chartered surveyor, so that you know what you need to budget for remedial projects and maintenance, then look no further than Surveyor Local.

At Surveyor Local, we only work with chartered surveyors who are members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, ensuring the survey you get is always professionally delivered.

They will work hard to identify all kinds of problems, including the impact of prior flooding on the structure of the property.
Call to get your no-obligation survey quote started, or to discuss your concerns with the acquisition of your planned property.
Or you can get a quick quote, using Surveyor Local's easy-to-use quote generator. Simply input your name, postcode, email address, phone number and an approximate value of the property (usually the agreed price), and we'll give you an instant quote for the work (with an email copy).

We'll do the rest once you confirm your acceptance of the quote.