Evidently what you're seeing is a basic manufactured home. And I mean basic. HUD basic.
You don't have to take what's on the lot. You can sit down and order whatever you want in your home. Everything from granite counters and oak cabinets to a Jacuzzi in the bathroom.

Things you can't see? Walls. Exterior walls should be 2x6 inch and 16" on center. Lets the AC run less. HUD minimum is 2x4 inch and 24" on center. Name brand windows and doors throughout. Copper water lines. You want an 8 foot ceiling, not the standard 7 foot.

As the work is completed, you will be releasing funds. You will need someone who is on your side and your side only since you can't be there to make sure things are done properly. You should look into hiring a home inspector to sign off each stage of construction before you write a check.

When you decide on the home style you want, go over the entire specifications with someone who knows what he/she's looking at and can tell you in English what you're getting.

We have a low-end modular because when you look at it (28x60) and inside it looks like a manufactured home. The only wood I see are the window sills, everything else is plastic (faux) wood: doors, window frames, cabinets, also the entry doors aren't wood, non-porcelain sink, plus you need to be there when they set it up. Our heat ducts were connected so bad we had no heat/cooling on far end of home. Took 7 mos to get it corrected. We do have the 2x6 walls, lots of insulation in attic. Just be more conscientious when shopping for a new home. Our home cost $140,000. We are still struggling to get some issues taken care of, we are in our 11th month living here.

And I have a high end customized manufactured home. It has everything Christopherh recommends, except the copper plumbing. Copper is not the best choice in manufactured homes. I don't know about modulars, but even stick built is more pvc than copper today. But it has flat 8 foot wallboard ceilings throughout, wallboard walls throughout, real wood trim, 2x6 framing on 16 inch centers, a 5:1 roof pitch, additional insulation in attic space and under floor. I will say that the upgrades you don't see are more important than the ones you do see. I passed on a jetted tub because I have had one before, never used it, and hated having to run it with bleach for 30 minutes every month to prevent mildew in the jets. I passed on granite because I have had it before and it was not worth the expense. I may be reconsidering.

Whatever the OP does should be carefully considered, and the prospective dealer researched thoroughly.

plywood subfloor rather than chipboard, sheetrock walls and ceiling, real wood cabinets and doors on cabinets.

We have a Deer Valley and LOVE IT!...You don't want copper in a manufactured home...ours is PEX plumbed which is the most energy efficient

Why are copper water lines bad?
I'm not talking about waste lines, but water. Every home I lived in has copper water lines including my current modular.

Remember, Christopherh, that most manufactured homes go to lots in parks, not on permanent foundations, and the homes are manufactured so that they can be moved again. Pex lines have better flexibility for moving. Pex lines also can freeze without bursting, an issue when you only have skirting and the insulation above the belly panel protecting those pipes. I got the upgraded R22 insulation, and even with no power and heat for 3 days and 10 below outside temps my home never dropped below 45 degrees inside. I do not know what temperature it reached under the home. A more extended power outage could have resulted in frozen pipes with that kind of cold weather.

Cathyyg may I ask what brand of manufactured home you own?

Nicksations, I have a Hart home, but I cannot recommend that company. It was owned by Forest River when I bought my home in 2011. In 2012 the brand name Hart and the manufacturing facilities were sold to Clayton homes. My home is a very high quality home, but I cannot say what the quality of Hart homes are now. It was Forest River that had the awesome construction and quality. Ask a dealer who has sold that brand both before the sale and after to find out.

And what PVHIII says is excellent advice. We got the R-22 underfloor insulation, the R-19 in walls - there is only so much insulation that will fit in 6 inches - and R-33 in the ceiling, which was only an option with the 5:1 roof pitch. 2 by 4 trusses, etc, etc. Upgrade any part of the actual construction you can, even if it means getting not upgrading anything else. You can always replace the inside stuff, but reconstruction is a whole new ball game.

Correction.... Ours has 40-19-11

And we did away with a lot of the "eye candy" to be able to afford the "IMPORTANT" things that you can't see.

We have a "Design Homes out of Wisconsin" modular home which is like a stick-built in quality and materials. It has the vaulted ceiling with prow windows. It is 1465 sq. ft. and in 2005 we paid $95,000. Of course, we had to add the septic/well and the land. We built a basement with "Insulated Concrete Forms" because we could do all the work ourselves. That saved lots and we have a full walk-out (dry)basement with 9' ceilings that can easily be finished if we ever choose to do so.

This is the first home I have ever lived in (in my life I have lived in 12 homes - 6 new) where there was practically no settling. That is because the modular home was assembled in a temp. controlled factory setting.

I would take modular over site-built any day. I would not ever buy a manufactured or mobile home.

Ryse Ryse, other than to brag, what does your post have to do with the subject at hand?

What does my post have to do with the subject at hand????? "Modular vs Manufactured."

My thought exactly Christopher lol

Our MANUFACTURED home is made with same materials as your modular... Only difference is one has a steel frame under it and one don't... Now if want to get really technical there are some other minor differences but BASICALLY they are the same..we poured concrete to put ours on and we haven't had one crack appear in our sheetrock.. so I guess we just coincidentally haven't had a settling problem either... Go figure lol

When you have a home built on a steel frame, where do you put the stairs going down to the basement or up to the 2nd and 3rd floors?

I haven't seen the answer to this and wonder if this is why so many manufactured are only one story without basements.

I don't think this character is the sharpest knife in the drawer... went from talkin materials used to how many stories he has lol..any padded walls in your place by chance?

Manufactured are one story? Really? Then somebody had better tell the dealer where I purchased my modular that the manufactured cape with stairs to the upper level that's on his lot is an illusion.

Once this home is on a full foundation nobody will be able to tell what type of home it is.
2x6 exterior walls, hardwood flooring, granite countertops, etc.

LOL!

There are single story manufactured homes with a location for stairs to a basement as an option. Alternatively, you could place the stairs in the garage, going down into the basement through a door in a basement wall rather than down through the floor of the MH.