I for one am excited to see latest versions of modern prefabs emerging globally. They're well thought out, beautiful, and energy-efficient.

And to anyone who has any doubts about quality of today's prefab homes, I'd ask, would you rather buy a house whose parts have all been crafted outdoors exposed to elements -- by hand. Or, would you rather buy a house built in a factory setting to tight specs exceeding that of site-built homes. I say exceeding, because a normal site-built home doesn't have to endure rigors of transportation.

For your review, here are quick descriptions of 10 of many categories of prefab homes available for exploring at http://PrefabExpo.com - in no particular order:

1. Manufactured

Single-family residential dwellings consisting of one, two or more sectional units and constructed to Federal HUD code. Zoning regulations and ordinances of local Municipality or County might not permit use of mobile and manufactured homes in all areas of their jurisdiction.

2. Modular

Modular refers to a method of building a home, rather than a type of home. A modular home can be built in a factory from a stock modular home plan or from a customized plan, to state, local or regional codes of where home will be set up. Modular homes have not typically experienced zoning restrictions and discriminative ordinances applicable to manufactured and mobile homes.

3. Panelized

Panelized homes are factory-built homes in which panels — whole walls with windows, doors, wiring, and outside siding — are transported to site and assembled. Panels are made from insulating foam sandwiched between two layers of structural material. The panels are lightweight and might already be filled with insulation when they arrive on site. The homes must meet state or local building codes of where they are sited.

4. Steel-frame

Steel framing is an equivalent to conventional stick frame or post & beam home design where structural lumber is replaced by steel studs and trusses or steel posts and beams. Light-Gauge Framing System features screw-together, galvanized stud-and-truss, grid-type construction system built on 4-foot center.Red-Iron Metal Post & Beam Systems features bolt-together, pre-engineered post-and-beam-type framing system that uses red-iron steel "C" beams on 8-foot center. The prefabricated home built with this method can be single-story, two-story, and even tri-level home.

Unlike conventional wood framed home that requires interior walls to support roof, higher strength-to-weight ratio of steel house allows to span greater distances with less material and fewer supports. The result is higher floor layout and interior design flexibility.

Unlike wood, steel won't shrink, rot, warp, buckle, split, or be attacked by insects. This results in greater durability, lower long-term maintenance, higher energy efficiency and overall greater quality of this prefabricated home.

5. Precut

This category includes wood-framed factory-built houses or cabins where building materials are factory-cut to design specifications and transported to site to be assembled. PrefabExpo.com presents prefab building kits designed as wood-framed (also known as balloon-frame, 2 x 4, 2 x 6 or stick-built construction) as well as prefabricated home kit/cabin kit using post-frame method. The homes or cabins must meet local or state building codes of area where they will be sited.

6. Cedar

According to Katahdin Cedar Log Homes, “Cedar is aromatic to people, and problematic to insects: The heartwood of northern white cedar produces organic compounds called thujaplicins – which create that fresh, pleasant cedar aroma. But to insect pests, such as moths and termites, cedar just plain stinks. They’ll avoid cedar homes and instead search out inviting, tasty pine structures.“

Most of these simple deferred maintenance problems, when discovered during home inspection, cause majority of headaches when trying to bring a contract to close. With five quick checks described below it is probable that 90% or more of minor maintained items typically discovered in home inspection could be eliminated, and with them a great portion of time and stress associated with their correction:

Dirty Filter and Coils in Heat Pump. The clean and efficient flow of conditioned air as well as longevity of this very expensive system is dependant on proper airflow. A professional cleaning is most always well under $100. Routine filter replacement can be done by a homeowner for about a dollar.

Poor Caulking of Ceramic Tile in Tub and Shower Area. The cost to repair or replace a rotted shower wall often exceeds thousands of dollars. This is an avoidable event! A homeowner can accomplish caulking of tiled areas easily for under $20. If a crack in caulk or grout is visible, you can believe it's large enough for water to pass!