The honest end-to-end version. From spec sheet to delivered, connected, occupied — eight stages, three to twelve months, with the Baltic-vs-Irish decision points marked.
Three categories of "modular" get conflated in Irish search results, and the buyer journey is meaningfully different for each:
Be clear which you're buying before you start price-comparing. The price-per-m² varies by category, and a "tiny home" priced like a "garden room" is usually under-spec'd somewhere (insulation, glazing, plumbing).
The 45 m² planning exemption only applies if your site meets specific conditions. The dwelling must be located behind the principal house. The owner of the principal house must be the same person letting (or occupying) the new dwelling. Building regulations still apply: disability access, fire safety, ventilation, insulation. The €14,000 rental income is tax-free under a licence arrangement, not a tenancy. Read the full planning explainer →
Don't skip this step. The most common late-stage mistake we see is a buyer who has paid a deposit on a 38 m² unit before they've confirmed their site has the rear-of-dwelling configuration the exemption requires. Pre-clearance from a planning consultant is €200–€500 and worth every cent.
Use our comparison engine to filter by size, price, country, and Ireland-delivery confidence. Aim for a shortlist of three to five providers. The shortlist should mix domestic and Baltic options unless you've already decided to constrain yourself to one.
Contact each shortlisted provider directly. Ask specifically:
Ask all five providers the same questions in the same email. The variance in answers tells you a lot.
The factory builds the unit. You build the site. In parallel, get quotes for:
Most providers ask for 10–30% deposit on signing, with milestone payments tied to factory completion and delivery. Read the contract carefully:
Have a solicitor review any contract over €40,000. €300 of legal review is cheap insurance against a misunderstood payment trigger or warranty exclusion.
You'll get progress photos from the factory if the manufacturer is good (the best ones email you weekly). Shipping from a Baltic factory to a typical Irish county takes 4–10 days door-to-door, including the ferry crossing. Customs paperwork is usually handled by the manufacturer's freight forwarder; for a small unit on a single trailer this is mostly a formality, but it's worth confirming who's named on the import declaration and who's liable if customs holds the unit.
The lift itself is typically a half-day on site. Most modular units arrive in one piece on a low-loader; larger units may arrive as two or three modules and be assembled on the foundation. Plan to be present for the lift; small dimensional surprises are easier to resolve in person.
After the lift, the remaining work is on-site:
From order to occupiable dwelling is typically 14–28 weeks for a Baltic unit with a clean site, longer for a domestic build with bespoke specification. Plan accordingly.
Phase 2 of ourhouse.ie is a brokerage offer for Baltic-sourced sales — we project-manage the spec, quote, delivery, planning, and setup for a 5% commission. Live for selected providers from late 2026.
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