New Modular Houses from just £65,000!

I came across an interesting article in The Guardian recently concerning

a development of prefabricated or modular two and three bedroomed, fully fitted houses that are available from a Yorkshire factory for between £65,000 and £79,000 each.

The factory in Knaresborough expects to produce eight houses with fitted kitchens and bathrooms every day. They are then loaded onto lorries to be delivered across the UK. This construction revolution cuts traditional house building time from 40 weeks to an average of just 10 days.

Although the factory cost is from £65,000, there are other essential costs which will have to be met by would-be purchasers. Cost of the land, on-site assembly and connection to services could see the price double or triple.

The factory is owned by UK company Ilke Homes and they aim to initially produce 2,000 homes a year, rising eventually to 5,000. The first buyers of these new modular homes are housing associations and councils which are able to order in bulk.

It should not be thought that these homes will be indenti-kit rabbit hutches as the company are dedicated to traditional housebuilding techniques. They are built with slated roofs and can have brick facades added on site, if required. The two-bedroomed houses are some 80sq metres with living rooms measuring 4.5 metres by 3.2 metres and a minimum ceiling height of 2.5 metres.

This may not be the complete answer to the UK house building crisis, but it is a fine example of the sort of innovative thinking that is needed.