Modular garden homes and granny pods: what to check before you buy

What a modular garden home is

A modular home is built off-site, either as complete modules lifted into place or as factory-made panels assembled on site. It's quicker and often cheaper than building on site, and it can be a Class 3A garden home if it meets every condition.

Checks before you buy

• NSAI Agrément certificate for the building system, or evidence of compliance with an Irish Standard. Check the certificate number and that it covers the product you're buying.
• Designed as a home, meeting Building Regulations for fire safety, energy, ventilation, access and drainage, not just "suitable for year-round use".
• Size: 32 to 45 m², including any sheds or garden rooms you keep.
• Paperwork: whether the supplier provides the design certifier, assigned certifier and builder's documents for the commencement notice and completion certificate. See how to build a garden home.
• Track record: homes they've installed in Ireland that you can see, and how long they've been trading.
• Guarantee: what it covers and for how long, and who stands behind it if the company stops trading.

What the price includes

See garden home costs and the garden home estimator.

Delivery and installation

• Complete modules arrive on a lorry and are lifted in by crane. Fast, but needs space on the road and sometimes a council permit.
• Panel systems come in pieces small enough to carry through a side passage.
• The base and service connections are usually done first, so the home can be connected soon after it's placed.

"Granny pods" and cabins

"Granny pod" is a marketing name, not a legal category. Some pods are homes built to the Building Regulations; others are insulated cabins or garden rooms. A cabin sold for occasional use isn't a home, and living in one isn't covered by Class 3A. See mobile homes, log cabins and pods.