NAHANT — When Joe Moccia walked up the steps of Andrea Gogolos’ seaside modular home, she came out, smiled, and they hugged. It wasn’t obvious that the only way they knew each other was because Moccia built Gogolos’ house. They seemed more like close relatives or friends.
“Look at that. It’s not often you see someone hug their builder,” said Moccia, 72, of Nahant. “It’s usually more like, ‘I’ll see you in court.'”
As a modular home builder, Moccia has been running his Advanced Building Concepts for the last 30 years. He’s built strong relationships with clients who share his belief that society is — and should be — trending toward energy efficiency and environmental friendliness. An increase in modular homes, Moccia said, is part of that trend.
“We’ve seen changes with automobiles. We’ve seen changes with cell phones,” Moccia said. “We’re seeing change with how people build their homes and the way they live in their homes.
“The industry push is toward energy efficiency.”
Moccia has won awards from Professional Building Systems Inc., and Apex Homes Inc., for his building of modular homes, of which he’s built 25 in Nahant and nearly 100 in total. Modular homes are made in a factory setting, then delivered and installed on site, unlike traditional “stick-built” homes constructed from the ground up. They have become popular with Moccia’s clients because of their quick build time, customizability, affordability, and energy efficiency, Moccia said.
The majority of the modular homes he builds are designed with electric car charging stations, solar panels, and other energy efficient features, such as separate HVAC systems for different sections of each home.
But most of all, Moccia said, modular homes are energy efficient by nature, not just because his customers order energy efficient features. Each modular home is air-tight and sealed to the point no gaps — even exceptionally small gaps — are visible along the edges of floors and walls, Moccia said, because each modular home is built with “exact” dimensions.
“With a stick-built home, a carpenter draws a line, and maybe he cuts right along the line, or slightly to the left or on the right,” Moccia said. “Then, you have six different guys all working on the home, and maybe they’re using six different saws, and maybe a saw is bent.”
The air-tightness saves clients money when cooling and heating their houses, he said, and contributes less to pollution.
Gogolos’ home at 53 Castle Road is an example of a completely air-tight modular home. After she stepped into her living room Wednesday, she closed the door behind her and the howling Nahant wind was replaced with utter silence.
“This is my fifth year in this home and I am enjoying it very much,” Gogolos said.
Gogolos said she grew up visiting relatives on the islands of Greece, and also spent time on Nahant. She is concerned about climate change, and said she has noticed rising sea levels herself. When she contacted Moccia to build the home, she wanted it to be energy efficient and have as little impact on the environment as possible.
“We got off to a great start, and first and foremost on my mind was climate change.”
Gogolos said her home was designed to explicitly use as little energy as possible. Even the windows of the home were placed strategically to have the sun light significant portions of the house throughout the day.
The homes Moccia provides are built indoors at Professional Building Systems Inc., in Middleburg, Pa. He said the homes are typically designed in two to three weeks, then built and shipped in six to eight weeks. Final, on-site work, including plumbing and electric work, takes four to eight weeks. The client is living in their new modular home less than six months after design begins, Moccia said, whereas on-site home construction typically takes between 12 to 18 months.
Moccia is right about modular homes becoming more popular. Several market studies, including reports from industry research company MarketsandMarkets, estimate the value of the modular construction market will grow to $157 billion by 2023, due to the increased demand for building complex, yet affordable, structures. The studies estimate the industry’s value in 2017 was around $106 billion.
The MarketsandMarkets report concludes that housing is expected to be the fastest growing end-use for modular construction. A challenge for the modular home market is the public’s general unawareness about modular homes compared to traditional “stick-built” homes erected on site.
“The cost-effectiveness and time-saving characteristics of this technology have contributed toward its use for developing buildings. Furthermore, it offers numerous benefits in terms of quality control, faster build times, greater flexibility and reuse, cost savings, and environmental benefits,” the study reads. “Countries are turning toward the adoption of modular construction methods to meet the rising demand for housing that is eco-friendly and cost-effective due to efficient in-factory processes and reduced waste.”
Modular homes are also hurricane-resistant and sturdy, Moccia said. According to the MarketsandMarkets study, Japan is one of the largest and fastest-growing markets for modular homes, specifically because of the high-demand there for homes resistant to strong winds.
From colonial-style houses to homes with more modern aesthetics, Moccia says modular homes can be built according to each client’s desires. The homes can also vary in size, from small homes, comparable to a single-section mobile home, that are built with a single “module” and transported to the site, to multiple-story homes constructed from many modules. Companies that build modular homes typically use a standard width, usually between 12 and 15 feet, and lengths up to 60 feet for each module.
It is possible to move modular homes to another site. They also are built with materials typical in site-constructed homes, but in a closed setting to prevent exposure to the elements.
In Moccia’s case, his homes are typically steel-beam-supported, wood homes.
“Modular homes are a method of building, not a style of building,” Moccia said.
Moccia said he currently has five modular homes being built, and his past clients often call or write to him to tell him they are pleased with his work. Clients like Gogolos, who become friends with Moccia, are not infrequent. Moccia saves many of the letters he gets from clients, and said the clients’ views on energy efficiency and eco-friendliness are part of what keeps them close.
Carol LaRosa, of Groton, replaced a “1926 ramshackle house” with a home she calls “graceful, energy efficient” and “snug.”
“We wholeheartedly decided to have him construct our new home,” said Mark Lettich, of Danvers, whose old house was destroyed in the 2006 chemical factory explosion in Danvers.
Lettich said his family spent time living in an “unattractive apartment” while looking for a competent builder to replace their home, which had to be torn down, before meeting Moccia and ordering the new modular home on Riverside Street in Danvers. Constructed on the same plot of land as the ruined home, Lettich said he was impressed the modular home was able to be built for a “unique” location with 20 other homes under construction at the time.
“We are very happy with both the quality and energy efficiency of our new home,” Lettich said.
To talk with Moccia at Advanced Building Concepts, call 781-581-8888.