When it comes time to buy or lease a modular building, you can turn to modular building dealers or manufacturers.

Modular building dealers broker most of the buildings sold and leased today. These companies do not build the buildings themselves, but instead lease already-constructed buildings that they hold in inventory or turn to modular builders for their construction.

Building manufacturers known as "integrated dealer manufacturers" also sell directly to end-users. While many building manufacturers previously relied on modular building dealers to sell their construction services to end users, some have recently turned to selling to customers directly in an effort to better control their revenues.

It can be difficult to determine whether a company that sells modular buildings is a dealer or a manufacturer. Modular building dealers do not readily disclose this information because of the perception that potential customers would prefer working directly with the manufacturer. This concern should not be relevant as long as the dealer works with a reputable manufacturer and can properly manage your project.

Both dealers and manufacturers will cite reasons why they are a better fit for end-users. Dealers assert that it is more effective to work with them as they can wield more clout with a manufacturer. Since a dealer will purchase many more buildings from the company than a typical end customer, if a problem were to arise, you would have better representation. In turn, manufacturers claim that working directly with them can reduce the risk of miscommunication, gives you increased control over quality and cuts out the middleman dealer, leading to reduced pricing.

In the end, your decision about which type of company you turn to should be based on finding a company that can provide a quality building at a fair price and offer a high level of customer service throughout the buying process.