Development Status of Prefabricated Houses
Prefabricated houses, especially modular buildings, are currently developing rapidly, achieving significant progress in areas such as exports, market expansion, application scenarios, technology, industrial chains, policies, and market prospects.
Significant Export Growth: The recognition of Chinese prefabricated houses in overseas markets continues to rise, with a substantial increase in export volumes. In the first four months of 2026, the Guangzhou Customs district exported movable houses worth 1.4 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 38.1%. According to Shenzhen Customs data, in the first four months of this year, enterprises across the country exported movable houses worth 1.68 billion yuan through Shenzhen ports, a year-on-year increase of 19.6%, with exports to over 150 countries and regions.
Multiple Breakthroughs in Global Markets: Chinese prefabricated houses are making strides in global markets, with notable growth in the ASEAN region. Modular houses from Dongguan Port in Guangdong are being shipped to ASEAN markets such as Indonesia and Vietnam, with significantly shortened delivery cycles following the opening of the direct shipping route between Dongguan and Vietnam. Additionally, markets in the UK, Australia, Cameroon, Thailand, Malaysia, and others are also being actively expanded.
Wide Range of Application Scenarios: The application scenarios for prefabricated houses continue to expand, covering a diverse range of categories including high-end office buildings, hotels, schools, modular data centers, elderly care apartments, and employee dormitories. For example, a British merchant purchased Chinese-made modular elderly care apartments, with 63 modules arriving and being assembled on-site in just two weeks. Another example is a merchant from Papua New Guinea who transformed 84 modules into a fully functional hotel.
Outstanding Technological Advantages: Prefabricated houses adopt a factory-based production and on-site assembly model, offering advantages such as short construction periods, controllable quality, energy efficiency, environmental protection, and ease of maintenance. Compared to traditional buildings, modular buildings can reduce construction periods by over 60%, decrease on-site labor by approximately 50%, and significantly reduce noise and dust pollution.
Advantages of the Entire Industrial Chain: The Chinese prefabricated house industry has formed an advantage across the entire industrial chain, from design and research, intelligent production, to ocean logistics and overseas installation, driving the transformation of 'house building' into the export of standardized industrial products.
Policy Support and Industrial Upgrading: Some regions are establishing industrial bases through policy support to promote the development of the prefabricated house industry. Meanwhile, customs and other departments are reducing burdens and increasing efficiency for enterprises through measures such as optimizing regulatory processes and upgrading account modes, contributing to high-quality regional foreign trade development.
Broad Market Prospects: According to market research institution predictions, the global modular building market size will exceed $142.8 billion by 2030, indicating a vast market space for prefabricated houses.
