Our Experience With Steel Homes Modular: A Cautionary Tale

2018 — Buying the Property

We found a vacant lot in Delray Beach with plans to build.

In 2018, my wife and I bought a quarter-acre lot in Delray Beach, Florida. The property had an old house that had been demolished, and the land had been vacant for some time.

For a few years, we left it untouched. Eventually, we decided to build a new home — something we could rent out, either as an Airbnb or for long-term lease. It would be our first experience building a house, and we knew there would be a lot to learn along the way.

October 2020 — Our First Steps Toward Building

We discovered modular homes and found Steel Homes Modular.

By October 2020, we were ready to move forward. While researching construction options, my wife discovered modular homes — factory-built homes that could be installed on-site much faster than traditional construction.

After researching several companies, we found Steel Homes Modular based in Opa-locka, Florida. Their website looked professional, their Instagram showcased beautiful homes, and the customer reviews were overwhelmingly positive.

We called them, discussed the project, and found the pricing very reasonable. Encouraged, we scheduled a visit.

Visiting Steel Homes

We toured their factory and chose Steel Homes for our project.

When we visited their facility in Opa-locka, we were warmly received by a woman named Jenny. She gave us a tour of the factory and showed us different models under construction.

One model in particular stood out: a beautiful, steel-framed home that felt solid and well-designed. An important advantage was that their homes were already pre-engineered to meet Florida building codes, including our specific city and county. This meant that much of the engineering and permitting work was already taken care of, which would save time and effort.

We left the visit feeling confident that Steel Homes was the right choice. They even offered to connect us with a contractor to handle the installation process.

June 2021 — The First Contractor: Custom Homes Staug

We hired a contractor referred by Steel Homes, but problems arose.

Steel Homes referred us to a contractor named Custom Homes Stog (customhomesstaug.com), run by Alan Register. We paid them approximately $10,000 to start the permit application process for our lot in Delray Beach.

Unfortunately, things soon became complicated. Custom Homes Stog was not familiar with Delray Beach's permitting process, and delays started piling up. Progress stalled, and eventually, Alan Register demanded more money to continue — something not agreed upon in our original arrangement. It felt like our project was being held hostage.

Early 2022 — Collapse of the First Contract

Our contractor disappeared, and we decided to walk away.

After weeks of frustration, Alan Register became unreachable. When we finally contacted him, he informed us that he had sold his company and that a new individual would be taking over.

This new person repeatedly called us asking for more money. We did our own research and found that he had multiple DUIs and appeared to be unreliable.

Given the circumstances, we decided the risk was too great. We cut ties with Custom Homes Stog and started looking for another contractor.

Mid 2022 — A New Builder: JOURNEY CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT, INC.

We met a new, professional builder and moved forward.

We explained the situation to Steel Homes, and they quickly recommended another builder: JOURNEY CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT, INC. They had reportedly completed successful projects with him before.

We met Clifford at the property and immediately saw a difference. He was professional, knowledgeable, and gave us confidence that he could handle the project properly.

We decided to move forward with Journey handling the next stages.

Late 2022 — Progress and Another Unexpected Change

Permitting was completed, but Jared Wall left the company.

Clifford and his team completed the permitting and documentation process successfully. We were finally seeing real progress.

However, just after the permits were finalized, Clifford Wall left the company. We were assured that the contractor organization would continue the project without disruption, even though Clifford was no longer involved. While we would have preferred to continue working directly with Clifford, we accepted the transition based on their reassurances.

2023 — Foundation and Earthwork Completed

We completed the foundation and prepared the lot for the home.

Throughout 2023, the foundation and earthworks were completed. The site was fully prepared for the arrival of the home.

We maintained constant communication with both the new contractor team and Steel Homes, ensuring that everyone stayed on track. By the end of the year, everything was ready.

January 1, 2025 — Lot Fully Prepared for Installation

Our lot was ready, but the home had not yet entered production.

As of January 1, 2025, all earthwork and foundation work were completed. The lot was 100% ready for the modular home to be delivered and installed.

Under our original agreement with Steel Homes:

• We had already paid a 20% deposit when placing the order for the home.
• The remaining 80% was to be paid in installments, with the final installment due when the home left the factory.

However, at this point, production had not yet begun.

Early 2025 — Escalation Costs and New Payment Demands

Steel Homes introduced unexpected escalation fees.

At the beginning of 2025, Steel Homes introduced something not explicitly stated in the original contract: \"escalation costs.\" They claimed that due to rising material prices, we would have to pay additional amounts beyond the contracted price.

We agreed that it was reasonable to adjust the price of the home to reflect inflation. However, the price correction they calculated was based on 100% of the new home value, instead of the 80% that we still owed. This miscalculation meant we were being asked to pay about $10,000 more than we should have.

This unexpected demand added stress and uncertainty to a process that had already taken far longer than we ever anticipated.

April 28, 2025 — A New Email, and More Uncertainty

We received a vague production estimate with new paperwork.

On April 28, 2025, we received an email from Yeny Camacho at Steel Homes Client Services.

In the email, Yeny stated that:

• An updated payment schedule had been sent via DocuSign.
• After signing, an invoice for a second deposit would be sent.
• The production of our home was now estimated to fall within the third quarter of 2025.

While we were relieved to finally hear something, an estimated production quarter is not sufficient for planning purposes. Given that our site has been fully ready since January 1st, we have respectfully requested that Steel Homes provide a specific production start date, not just a broad estimate.

The delays, shifting costs, and lack of clear timelines have turned what was once an exciting project into an increasingly uncertain and frustrating experience.