Baltic vs Irish modular homes: how much can you actually save?

The Irish housing crisis has made modular and tiny homes a serious option for granny flats, downsizers, and family-land starter homes. We've built a database of 35 in-band models from 21 verified-delivery providers. The cheapest 30m² unit on the table is 66% less than the most expensive 32m². But list-price isn't the whole story — here's what the numbers really mean.

The headline number

For a 1-bedroom modular home in the 30–40m² range, the price spread among providers that ship to Ireland is enormous:

That's not a misprint. MobilBau in Bulgaria lists their MK840 A-Frame Loft (30m², 2 bed) at €15,635. Berko Pod Systems in Ireland lists their 1-bed 40m² at €64,000. Both ship to Ireland. Both are real.

But the headline number always lies. Let's pull it apart.

What's actually in the price?

Modular pricing has four big variables that turn a "from" number into a real all-in cost:

1. Ex-works vs landed. Most Baltic and Eastern European providers quote ex-works — the price is at their factory gate. You pay separately for transport, customs, and on-site assembly. Many Irish-domestic providers quote delivered to your site, which already bakes those numbers in.
2. VAT. Irish VAT on a residential build is 13.5% on labour and 23% on materials, depending on how the contract is structured. Some providers quote ex-VAT (especially Berko, Loghouse and most Irish manufacturers); others include it. A €46,000 ex-VAT base can land at €52,000+ inclusive.
3. Foundations and connections. Almost no quoted price includes the foundation slab or screw piles, the water, sewer, and electrical hook-ups, or the road access work if you don't have it. Budget €5,000–€15,000 on top depending on site.
4. Fit-out level. Some "from" prices are shell only (no kitchen, no bathroom fitted). Others are turnkey with appliances. Read the spec sheet line-by-line.

The like-for-like comparison

Here's the cleanest small-1-bed comparison we can make from verified 2026 list prices for a roughly 30m² model:

The €15,635 → €35,685 → €46,000 ladder is the real story. Bulgaria-direct is dramatically cheaper; Northern Ireland is dramatically cheaper than the Republic (Quinn Offsite delivers across the border with no extra import work for the buyer); Estonia ex-works isn't actually cheap when compared like-for-like to Berko once you adjust for what's included.

Greencube and Berko are essentially the same price for a 32m² 1-bed once you compare apples to apples. The "Baltic-direct savings" assumption breaks down at the higher end of the Baltic premium-design spectrum (Estonia and Latvia at scale produce some of Europe's best-engineered timber homes — they don't compete on price alone).

The Loghouse exception

One Irish provider stands out: Loghouse, based in Galway, lists a 53m² log cabin at €23,285 ex VAT. That's the second-cheapest entry in our entire database, beaten only by MobilBau ex-works.

Loghouse's secret is that they're effectively a hybrid: a Lithuanian factory partnership with an Irish installation arm. The cabins are built in Lithuania to Irish-climate spec, shipped, and installed by an Irish team. The buyer gets Baltic factory pricing without managing the import themselves — a model that closes most of the price gap in the database.

Brette Haus operates similarly from Latvia (Urban 25m² €30,000, Rustic 48m² €30,000) but ships ex-works, putting more management work on the buyer's side.

What Irish providers add for the markup

The €30k delta between MobilBau-direct and Berko-domestic isn't pure markup. Domestic providers do real work:

• Planning permission help. Irish providers typically prepare drawings and submit Section 5 declarations or full applications for the customer. Several handle the local-authority pre-app meeting too.
• Local install crew. A Bulgarian team won't cross Europe to lift your unit onto a screw-pile foundation in Mayo. Irish providers either own the install or have local subcontractors in every county.
• Snagging and warranty enforcement. If a window arrives broken or a tap leaks six months in, an Irish-domiciled supplier is much easier to chase than a Latvian one.
• BER cert for the right A2 nZEB rating. Required for any new dwelling since November 2019 (see our planning notes). A familiar Irish assessor + provider combination is faster than coordinating across borders.
• Mortgage compatibility. Some lenders want a recognisable structural guarantee. Big Red Barn's 25-year, Tinyhomes.ie's 20-year, and Loghouse's 10-year warranties register more cleanly with PTSB / AIB / BOI than a Bulgarian factory's standard warranty.

The 40m² and 50m² bands

The price gap narrows as the size goes up — bigger units are more spec-sensitive, so the gap between budget Baltic and premium European narrows:

The decision matrix

Based on the database, here's our best-effort guide for choosing a route:

Choose Baltic-direct (MobilBau, Brette Haus, Greencube ex-works) if…

• You're buying a holiday cabin, glamping unit, or studio that doesn't need planning permission complexity.
• You can manage container shipping, customs, and a foundation crew yourself (or have a builder friend who can).
• Your priority is hitting a budget under €30k all-in for a small unit.
• You're not relying on the unit for a mortgage application.

Choose a hybrid Baltic-Irish (Loghouse, possibly Brette Haus via UK distributor) if…

• You want Baltic factory pricing without the customs/install hassle.
• You need an Irish point of contact for warranty and service.
• You want a 25-60m² spec at the lower end of the Irish-domestic price range.

Choose a Northern Ireland builder (Quinn Offsite, Project One) if…

• You want delivery and install across the Republic with no import paperwork.
• You want full price-table transparency (Quinn Offsite publishes 12+ size variants).
• You're closer to the border (saves transport on cross-country builds in Ulster, Connacht and northern Leinster).

Choose a Republic-based provider (Berko, Big Red Barn, Pod Factory, Heritage Homes, Rayco) if…

• You need full planning + BER + mortgage compatibility handled by one party.
• You want a local install team and short-distance servicing/warranty.
• You're prepared to pay €40k+ for the convenience and the 25-year structural guarantee that a few of them offer.

Risks to be aware of

The bottom line

The "save 60% by going Baltic-direct" framing is misleading at the headline level. After shipping, VAT, foundation, install, and the value of having someone on Irish soil to chase when something goes wrong, the realistic saving on a 30m² 1-bed is closer to €10,000–€15,000 versus a Republic-of-Ireland provider — meaningful but not transformational.

The bigger savings come from the hybrid model (Loghouse) and from Northern Ireland providers (Quinn Offsite and Project One), both of which handle the import complexity for you while keeping list prices well under typical Republic equivalents.

For the lower 25-30m² band where you're effectively building a glamping unit, garden office or weekend cabin, Baltic-direct is hard to beat. For a permanent Irish dwelling that needs planning permission and a mortgage, a hybrid or Republic-domestic provider usually pays back the markup in problems-not-had.