[Edaily Reporter Choi Oh-hyun ] Home appliance manufacturers such as SamsungElectronics and LGELECTRONICS are entering the modular housing market, where homes are “manufactured” in factories rather than “built” on-site. As profit margins in the traditional home appliance market—including TVs, refrigerators, and washing machines—continue to decline, the industry is turning its attention to this new market, where homes are sold bundled with home appliances and artificial intelligence (AI) home solutions.

According to industry sources on the 17th, LGELECTRONICS received over 1,000 purchase inquiries during the one-hour “LG Smart Cottage” launch broadcast held on CJ Corp. OnStyle on the 2nd. That’s roughly one inquiry every three seconds. This marks the first time a domestic home shopping channel has featured modular homes. A subsequent live broadcast on the 5th also drew significant interest, with concurrent viewers reaching 50,000.

Consumer interest in modular homes is also evident on YouTube. Several specialized channels dedicated to introducing small and modular homes are active, each with around 200,000 subscribers. A video posted last month by the YouTube channel “Jipdaejang” introducing the 22-pyeong LG Corp. Smart Cottage has surpassed 2.5 million views. Interest is growing particularly among people in their 50s and 60s who are considering a rural lifestyle after retirement or a second home for weekends. Key advantages include relatively lower concerns about potential cost overruns or quality inconsistencies that can occur when building a house from scratch, as well as the ability to confirm prices and specifications in advance. Expectations regarding quality control and after-sales service (AS) from major corporations are also factors that boost consumer confidence.

The market for these homes extends beyond individual consumers to include businesses, public buildings such as schools and military facilities, and apartment-style rental housing. In fact, LGELECTRONICS supplied smart cottages to SM Entertainment’s training center in Gangwon Province in 2024.

Modular housing employs the Off-Site Construction (OSC) method, in which key structural components—such as walls, ceilings, and floors—are manufactured in a factory and then transported to the site for assembly. This effectively integrates the manufacturing industry’s factory production methods into the construction sector, which was traditionally site-centric. Since more than 70–80% of the main components can be prefabricated, this approach reduces variables related to weather and on-site labor and shortens construction time.

According to the Korea Construction Policy Research Institute, the domestic modular construction and housing market is projected to grow from 607.4 billion won last year to between 1 trillion and 4 trillion won by 2030. Market research firm MarketandMarket forecasts that the global modular construction market will grow from $109.6 billion (156.0652 trillion won) last year to $142.9 billion (203.481 trillion won) by 2030. The average annual growth rate is 5.4%.

From the perspective of the home appliance industry, modular housing represents a new growth opportunity. This is because it allows for the bundled supply of home appliances, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), the Internet of Things (IoT), and energy management systems right from the construction phase. Given that both homes and appliances have long replacement cycles, equipping homes with the companies’ products and platforms from the move-in stage can help lock customers into their ecosystems for the long term.

However, the two companies have different strategies regarding modular housing. SamsungElectronics is utilizing it as a new “distribution channel” to expand its AI home appliances, HVAC, and SmartThings ecosystems, while LGELECTRONICS is broadening its scope into a comprehensive residential solutions business that goes beyond home appliances to provide the living space itself.

Last June, SamsungElectronics launched the “Samsung AI Modular Home” in partnership with Gongan Production, a company specializing in wooden modular homes. During the manufacturing process—in which more than 80% of the home is built in a factory—AI appliances such as air conditioners, heat pumps, refrigerators, and TVs, as well as devices compatible with SmartThings, are pre-installed. The price per pyeong starts at around 5 million won, though it varies depending on factors such as the selection of higher-end models. SamsungElectronics plans to expand the application scope to mid-rise buildings in the future.

LGELECTRONICS sells the homes themselves as products. This decision is based on the belief that selling homes and appliances together is the best way to increase profitability. On June 22, the company added 22-pyeong and 24-pyeong models, expanding its lineup to eight types, ranging from studio apartments to duplexes. Prices range from approximately 100 million to 390 million won, depending on specifications. While collaborating with modular housing specialists, LGELECTRONICS oversees the entire process—from design and planning to manufacturing, installation, and quality verification. In particular, for customers without land, the company connects them with consultants for land purchases and even assists with on-site inspections of the intended installation location.

Seo Jin-hyung, a professor in the Department of Real Estate and Legal Studies at Kwangwoon University, said, “Since modular homes have built-in appliances installed from the construction stage, they serve as a sales channel for home appliances from the company’s perspective.” He added, “If technology advances and construction costs decrease, the commercialization of modular homes will become an inevitable trend of the times.”