November, 2006
There are many definitions that define what Affordable Housing is. For example:
The Federal Government defines housing affordability as housing costs that do not exceed 30 percent of household income.
Or…
The housing must be of market-competitive quality that can blend in to a neighborhood. Thus we are explicitly excluding substandard locations, configurations, constructions and maintenance.
Is this the kind of home that fit this definition?
Or this…
While the definitions may be vast, the design component is not. The design of any home should be based on the area that the home is to reside in. While the homes above are extreme, some organizations gravitate to those designs in the hopes of solving the affordable housing problem in that area.
PPT has a different approach.
Today’s building technology has made the possibility of making affordable housing something more – a community. For a few dollars more, you can add value to the homes you build. For example, using new building techniques such as the ones listed below, can add long-term value to the community that you build in.
All of these things that are in this feature are things that other firms know about but you would not see in these types of homes due to cost, however when used wisely, this technology will add a long term value to the community – long term home ownership. Let us show you.
Affordable Housing Design
With organizations like Habitat for Humanity, Non-Profit org. and other groups, the demand for affordable housing is as great as ever but with sky rocketing material cost, low tech design and conventional builders practices the price for getting affordable housing built is getting prohibitive. This page is design for a new way of thinking. In order to get affordable housing, you must start with design. Professional Building Designers are at the cutting edge in new technology and practice, so it is possible to create a superior plan, get it built and sell it affordably. This quarter is dedicated to the types of construction methods and materials.
Types of construction
In conventional building techniques, the framer of a stick-built home will measure and cut studs to produce interior and exterior walls. After the walls are built they are connected to the structure and sheathing (OSB or plywood) is cut and applied.are the industry standard, but because of sky rocketing building cost getting a affordable house built these days is getting almost impossible. Here are some other options:
Manufactured Home: Built entirely in the factory under federal code administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which went into effect June 15, 1976, has been upgraded numerous times. Covers single- or multi-section homes and includes transport to the site and installation. Regulations include: design & construction, strength & durability, transportability, fire resistance, energy efficiency & quality.
Mobile Home: The term used for homes built prior to June 15, 1976, when HUD code went into effect. Voluntary standards were previously in effect.
Modular Home: Built to state, local or regional code where home will be located. Multi-section units are transported to sites and installed.
Panelized Home: Built in factory, where panels that include windows, doors, wiring & siding, are transported to site and assembled. Codes are set by state or locality where sited.
Insulating Concrete Forms: Insulating Concrete Forms (ICFs) give you all the benefits that have made concrete the material of choice for home building worldwide: Solid, lasting construction that resists the ravages of fire, wind, and Father Time. ICFs do plain concrete one better – or rather, two better – by giving you two built-in layers of foam insulation. This gives an ICF home some sizable advantages over an ordinary stick-built home.
Precast Concrete:
In Europe, homes with precast concrete walls have been built for over two decades. That system is now available to residential builders in North America. Concrete plants take the house plans from the builder. They produce all exterior walls, complete with embedded steel reinforcing, electrical wiring and rough openings, and foam insulation. Trucks carry the panels to the home site and cranes lift them into position where workers connect them to the foundation and each other. Typically, construction time can be reduced up to 30% with this method.
Steel Frame: The Steel Framed Home Industry is becoming the "New Technological Era" for Home construction today. According to the American Iron and Steel Institute, approximately 25% of all Homes in the next five years will be built with steel framing. This is due to the tremendous success of the already existing thousands of steel frame Homes around the U.S.A. and overseas. Steel is a Superior Construction Material because of highest strength-to-weight ratio of any building material, 100% recyclable, non-combustible - does not burn nor contribute fuel to the spread of a fire, inorganic - will not rot, warp, split, crack or creep, dimensionally stable - does not expand or contract with moisture content, consistent material quality - produced in strict accordance with national standards, no regional variations
