What types of prefabricated houses can you buy in Spain?
Prefabricated houses are a good alternative to acquire a property, since as a general rule they are cheaper than houses from conventional construction. In addition, the manufacturing time is much less and there is no single manufacturing system, which makes customization possible.
It is no secret to anyone that different types of houses are appearing in Spain. Currently, there are different housing construction systems that have emerged as alternatives to the traditional way of making homes, buildings and commercial premises. In this sense, we can say that the concepts of modular and prefabricated houses are the best known, however, they are not synonymous, since they have different characteristics.
What is a prefabricated house?
In the case of prefabricated houses, they are made up of panels, which are structural elements in two dimensions (2D) with which the house is subsequently assembled on the ground, depending on the design of the project. Therefore, to achieve the final result, the prefabricated house requires construction work similar to that of traditional construction.
Also, not all prefabricated houses are made of the same material, and this depends on the construction company. For example, in Spain we can mention Hormipresa Living, which uses structural concrete panels with Arctic Wall technology, which in addition to being resistant, help maintain the temperature inside the home , thus reducing air conditioning costs, either through of a system with a heat pump or electric radiators. This company builds the shell and finishes directly on site, to prevent some materials such as ceramics and glass from being damaged in transit.
For its part, the company Modular Home offers several options with the finish and equipment at different levels, one of its outstanding proposals being the so-called “gray work”, which is made up of vertical and horizontal panels that form a shell made of gray concrete. The good thing about this option is that it allows the house to be built at a variable pace, in phases, and even with different suppliers, which provides the possibility of adjusting the budget during construction .
What characteristics does a modular house have?
A modular home is one that has been built by closed volumes or cubes, which already have the interior spaces practically ready to be inhabited. Thus, the union of several modules allows the creation of the property. This type of construction is called 3D prefabrication, due to the three-dimensional shape of the cubes.
As for the material, some companies such as Homm or InHAUS make the modules with steel, concrete and stone, while other companies such as Mojuru use ISO shipping containers, however, there are also other construction companies such as Arquima, which makes the cubes with fir framework of resistance class C2, as well as pine wood and natural insulators of cork, cellulose and wood fiber.
One of the advantages of modular prefabricated houses is that they allow the largest number of final elements to be incorporated into the cubes, including cladding, electrical installations, equipment and, in some cases, also furniture. Therefore, we could say that these houses are already manufactured when they are placed on the plots.
The Atlántida Homes company delivers the modular houses completely ready to be inhabited. In this case, the modules already have a completion level of 95%, including the water, electricity and air conditioning installations, which are checked before the housing is transported. This means that on the installation site this company only performs the joining of the modules and the urbanization work on the plot, as well as sanitation and water, electricity and telecommunications connections.
For its part, the company Grupo Eurocasa offers the user the possibility of seeing the house with more than 90% of the finish before assembly, therefore, they can be given the go-ahead to move it to the land. In this case, the final installation takes only 4 days.
Is it worth buying a prefabricated house?
It is increasingly common to find these houses built in an unconventional way in different regions of the country. However, there are still doubts about whether it is really profitable to acquire one of these homes . Although it is true that there are cheap prefabricated houses, the truth is that the price can vary a lot from one model to another, depending on many variables, such as the manufacturing materials, the level of interior and exterior finish, the size in square meters, the type of furniture included, etc. It is worth mentioning that there are manufactured home designs with lots of luxuries that add to the price.
We can say that all houses, both modular and prefabricated, offer a series of benefits compared to conventional construction. First of all, the budget is closed, which means that there are no surprises during construction. In addition, the completion time is shorter, so you don’t have to wait too long to occupy the house. As if that were not enough, although there are basic standards, companies allow these houses to be customized according to the tastes of the users.
In terms of price, cheap prefabricated houses have generally been made with PVC or wood, while those made of concrete and stone have a slightly higher cost. However, it is possible to find a pine house with a large number of details that make it very expensive, while there are cheap prefabricated concrete houses, which are resistant and functional even if they have a simple finish.
Are there legal restrictions in Spain for prefabricated houses?
To date there is no legal obstacle to acquiring a prefabricated house in Spain, as long as it is placed on developable land. A modular house that is anchored to the ground has no difference compared to a traditional house, therefore, it needs the licenses and permits of any other house. In this sense, it must comply with the provisions of the Building Regulation Law (LOE) and the Technical Building Code (CTE).
