Many of our clients coming to China to buy prefab houses. Over the past few months, we visited several prefab and mobile house manufacturers. Let’s explore these amazing houses with our sourcing agents.
Customizable Bubble Foam Houses
One of our clients from Finland was looking for a mobile house that could stay warm in cold weather. So our sourcing agent, Joe, helped him find a factory in Shandong, China, specializing in foam-built houses.
These houses are made using EPS foam modules, which makes the overall structure lighter. The material is enhanced with graphene and flame retardants, giving it thermal insulation and fire resistance, while releasing no harmful gases like formaldehyde.
The modules fit together like LEGO blocks, and four workers can complete the installation in two hours. After assembly, the house is typically reinforced with cement and painted, achieving wind resistance and pressure strength comparable to concrete houses.
It can be fully connected to water and electricity, and the factory offers a wide range of custom designs, including models with floor-to-ceiling windows, treehouse-style layouts, and combined multi-unit configurations. The smallest model is 28 square meters and costs around $1,500. In China, these foam houses are already widely used in many scenic areas, theme parks, and tourist destinations.
3D Printed Concrete Houses
Houses can now be 3D-printed with concrete. And yes, that’s real. One of our clients from New Zealand was very interested in a 3D printing machine capable of building houses, so we visited a Chinese factory specializing in 3D-printed houses and construction printers.
Their best-selling machine can build houses on complex terrains, which makes it suitable for challenging construction sites. Many cafes and hotels already use these machines to print walls on demand. On average, a single wall can be printed in just half a day. They can also produce other structures, such as artificial reefs. For example, the artificial reef shown below was 3D-printed by this factory for a client in Spain.
Clients only need to provide the design, and the engineers handle the rest. The printing cost is around $300 per square meter ($28 per sq ft), and operation typically requires one engineer and two workers to manage the materials and process.
Expandable Prefab Houses
This expandable tiny house may currently be one of the most space-efficient solutions for shipping. These units fold down to about one-third of their full size for transport, and once on site, they can be launched into a complete house in about two hours.
Our sourcing agent, Karen, visited a factory in Hangzhou that produces all kinds of expandable houses. During production, the structure, electrical wiring, plumbing, insulation, and walls are all pre-installed. When the units arrive, all you need to do is unfold them, secure them in place, and move in. The exterior is made from metal panels, which are fireproof and sound-insulating.
Their bestselling model includes two bedrooms, one bathroom, one kitchen, and a living room, and customers can customize the floorplan and pre-install furniture. One container can hold up to six units, with an average shipping cost to the U.S. around $300 per house.
The factory owner told us that many customers use these houses not only as homes, but also as hotel rooms, pop-up shops, cafes, or site offices. Even if the owner no longer needs the house, the factory can take it back and repurpose it.
Modular Van Systems
Besides the modular houses, some clients saw a modular van system online and asked us to help source similar products. Our sourcing agent Joe found a factory that specializes in modular RV kits, designed to fit into most cargo vans.
These modules include kitchen units, double beds, storage systems, and even shower facilities. The system works like building with LEGO. People can buy the pieces they need and rearrange them later. With this setup, the same van can be used for work, camping, or hauling, simply by changing or moving the modules. Even if the vehicle is replaced, the modules remain reusable, making it a flexible and repeatable solution.
Capsule Space Mobile Houses
One of our clients from Australia was very interested in the capsule-style mobile house and asked us to help find a suitable factory. This time, we located a factory that produces fully equipped units, already connected to water and electricity.
It come with smart home features, including smart locks and voice control systems. Prices start at around $20,000, and the units can be customized to serve as entertainment rooms, kitchens, or other functional spaces. The factory offers three main sizes: 18㎡, 28㎡, and 38㎡. Two people can set up a unit in just half a day.
From luxury glamping tents, container houses, capsule homes, A-frame cabins, on-site assembled steel structures, to fully modular houses, Chinese factories are now producing almost every type of mobile and prefab housing available on the market. Amazingly, customization is possible to meet specific needs, whether for flood resistance, heavy snow loads, or extreme temperature, with a supply chain capable of delivering it.
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