Residents of a Hermitage neighborhood worried about a modular home lowering the value of their homes shouldn't fret, according to those who sell what they call factory-built homes.

Last week, Greenwood Drive resident Dennis Proctor presented a petition with 28 names to city commissioners against variances allowing a modular home in the neighborhood.

The protest came after the city approved a building permit for Brad and Cheryl Cardinal of Mercer, who plan to build a modular home on a Trace Street lot off of Greenwood Avenue.

Proctor expressed concern that the home, which he said was no different from a mobile home, would lower property values.

That may not be the case, according to Larry Warner, owner of Warner's Homes and Improvements, Mercer, and Irvin R. Greenlee, owner of Irvin R. Greenlee, Inc., Hempfield Township.

Both men sell modular homes that cost on average between $70,000 to $200,000, they said. Warner said the most expensive modular home he has sold is in the $300,000 range. Factory-built homes are just as good as traditional stick-built homes, they argue.

"A modular home is built in a factory where you have a controlled environment. It is actually stronger than a stick-built home," Warner said. "The same code that all stick-built homes are built to, is the same code that modular homes are built to," he said, referring to the Building Officials and Code Administrators code, also known as BOCA.

"If I sell a more expensive home than conventional homes in a neighborhood, then I'm actually bringing the value of theirs up because it's a more expensive home," Warner said.

The sale price of five homes that were recently sold on Greenwood Drive in Hermitage, from records in the tax assessment office at the Mercer County Courthouse, are: $85,000 in 1999, $100,000 in 1999, $76,900 in 2000, $68,900 in 2001, and a home that sold for $88,600 this year.

Warner said Proctor's description of a modular home as "a trailer" isn't accurate.

"What this gentleman is talking about is a sectional home built to (Department of Housing and Urban Development) code and he's right, all they do is cut the tongue off," he said. "But these homes are not the same as a mobile home."

"In many cases you can't tell a modular home from a stick-built home," Greenlee said. "They are put onto a foundation in many cases."

He said factory-built homes have the same floor systems as conventional homes, though he said that some modular homes come with a trailer frame.

In an interview Tuesday, Proctor said that neighbors are now more concerned with already-set standards in the area. "I have nothing against them personally. It's just not made for this neighborhood. I'm going to try to stick with the practicality and normality of the area," he said.

Proctor also said that he and his neighbors are in the process of filing an appeal to overturn the building permit issued to the Cardinals. They have until Nov. 18. City Manager Gary Hinkson said last week that the Cardinals met all the city's requirements for a permit.

The Cardinals had no comment.