Modular Homes for Under $50k • Hacker News Board

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#11

Post by hytdstd » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 3:59 AM UTC

01100011 wrote: post #5

Instant ADUs... Great, an easy way to increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it while enriching wealthy landowners and providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques? Would you live in a pre-fab town en…

>providing sub-standard housing to the lower class.

Can you elaborate on the problem with this? I don't see how adding an ADU to the market hurts the lower class.

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#12

Post by prepend » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:00 AM UTC

hytdstd wrote: post #10

thesausageking wrote: post #4

This house is 375 sq ft and uses low end materials, and it doesn't include setup, so it's going to cost ~$100k, or $266 / sq ft. Most new home construction is more like $150 / sq ft. And with this system, you're very limited in what you can build. Who's the target customer for this?

In the bay area, $250-300/sq ft is a more realistic low-end of the range.

So about the same as this.

I love the idea of modular houses, but they seem so expensive. Especially when factoring in the inability to sell the same as houses, etc etc.

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#13

Post by jcims » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:00 AM UTC

gurchik wrote: post #6

jhloa2 wrote: post #2

I really want one of these and I don't know why. I'm struggling to come up with uses for this other than for AirBNB style short term rental places or pre-planned communities for helping homeless people get back on their feet or something. Doesn't seem as portable as a mobile home, and doesn't really have enough of a rustic look for me to want to consider this as a cabin. I feel like I'm missing a big use case here, b…

In one of the videos on the site it is explained that they are currently targeting people who want to build "backyard houses" or "ADUs" that are popular in some places like in California. Family members can live in them or you can rent them out, provided it has a foundation, power, plumbing etc.

Probably a way to industrialize it a bit. Run a management company that leases these out, handles site prep and paperwork and offer the homeowner a buyout option after a few years.

Add an Airbnb service on top that markets, cleans and maintains it for those that want to dip their toes into it.

Then start stacking them on top of each other until something gives.

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#14

Post by atwebb » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:00 AM UTC

01100011 wrote: post #5

Instant ADUs... Great, an easy way to increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it while enriching wealthy landowners and providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques? Would you live in a pre-fab town en…

Amazon is building a bunch of workforce housing in some cities I believe (probably someone here knows a bit more).

Also, queue up Sixteen Tons and some mentions of company scrip.

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#15

Post by pacetherace » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:05 AM UTC

thesausageking wrote: post #4

This house is 375 sq ft and uses low end materials, and it doesn't include setup, so it's going to cost ~$100k, or $266 / sq ft. Most new home construction is more like $150 / sq ft. And with this system, you're very limited in what you can build. Who's the target customer for this?

The construction prices you quoted are not correct at least in the Bay Area. And I am guessing $150/sq ft achievable at scale.

Pricing ADUs is tricky because the some of things in a house cost same for a small to medium size home. For example, the costs of plumbing, electrical, kitchen, bathroom, etc are more of less the same between a 500 sq.ft. house and a 1000 sq. ft house.

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#16

Post by jfim » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:05 AM UTC

01100011 wrote: post #5

Instant ADUs... Great, an easy way to increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it while enriching wealthy landowners and providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques? Would you live in a pre-fab town en…

> Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques?

This was a thing a century ago: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sears_Modern_Homes

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#17

Post by readflaggedcomm » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:07 AM UTC

hitekker wrote: post #7

Edit: I stand corrected, see below. Sadly no in-unit washer/dryer. Interesting that their product is called "casita" since the company "Kasita", which also specialized in tiny homes, recently folded. https://www.kasita.com/

"Casita" simply means small house in Spanish. Also, the front page lists "washer/dryer" under "out of the box".

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#18

Post by musingsole » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:07 AM UTC

hytdstd wrote: post #11

01100011 wrote: post #5

Instant ADUs... Great, an easy way to increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it while enriching wealthy landowners and providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques? Would you live in a pre-fab town en…

>providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Can you elaborate on the problem with this? I don't see how adding an ADU to the market hurts the lower class.

> sub-standard housing

> increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it

GP's vision of how this hurts the lower class seems readily apparent.

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#19

Post by fighterpilot » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:12 AM UTC

01100011 wrote: post #5

Instant ADUs... Great, an easy way to increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it while enriching wealthy landowners and providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques? Would you live in a pre-fab town en…

> Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city

Hershey did that in 1903, although it was more a means to an end rather than a product in itself.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hershey,_Pennsylvania#History

Re: Modular Homes for Under $50k

#20

Post by JKCalhoun » Wed, Jun 30, 2021, 4:12 AM UTC

01100011 wrote: post #5

Instant ADUs... Great, an easy way to increase the density of suburban neighborhoods that weren't designed for it while enriching wealthy landowners and providing sub-standard housing to the lower class. Shower thought: when will we see a company like Amazon or Costco experiment with providing an entire city, leveraging their efficient production chains and cost-cutting techniques? Would you live in a pre-fab town en…

I thought I saw a lot of corporate-branded housing (skyscrapers) in Seoul years ago but I may have been mistaken about their function.