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Love this new resource. I've been geeking out over what seems to be some near term changes on what it means to build a home. For the longest time it seemed to

Love this new resource. I've been geeking out over what seems to be some near term changes on what it means to build a home. For the longest time it seemed to mean (in the US at least): - wood - waste - lifelong high expense - manual and with the sudden explosion of - 3D printed houses (https://communityimpact.com/austin/georgetown/housing-real-estate/2022/11/17/3d-printed-homes-in-georgetown-offer-new-approach-to-building-communities/)(https://www.3dwasp.com/en/3d-printer-house-crane-wasp/) - revival of the modular home (really to many to list https://www.dwell.com/article/prefab-homes-austin-texas-f734ce25) - prevalent home centered tech - open source communities (https://www.opensourceecology.org) - remote work - decreasing solar cost - increasing last mile internet access I wonder how what will change in how we perceive the value of a home. If I had a lot of money I think I'd just buy a lot of land and see what sticks.

langsoul-com 4y ago
In Australia, homes tend to be more an investment. The home part just needs to be good enough, the land is the real value. A shit rundown place can be worth millions, just because of the land. The house itself gets knocked down for an apartment complex.
- masklinn 4y ago
  The US is the same, except for the part where you replace the house by an apartment complex because US zoning is fucked.
  - hiAndrewQuinn 4y ago
    It's the same everywhere that doesn't implement a robust land tax. Which is to say, everywhere.
    - masklinn 4y ago
      Nonsense. In most of the world you can tear down a bunch of houses, merge the parcels, and build an apartment building. It might require permitting, but zoning is not an issue, because outside the US zoning tends to be based on activity nuisance levels. In the US however zoning tends to be exclusive and a lot more specific, so you can (and cities do) zone large areas as single-family residential meaning you can not replace single family houses by MUAs without rezoning the area, a much more complicated, expensive, and lengthy proposition. Not to mention US-style exclusive zoning also by definition precludes mixed-use developments.
topkai22 4y ago
I was talking to a (housing) developer friend who is also into many of these technologies last year. In short, 3d printing and modularization can reduce cost, but not as much as I would have thought 10 years ago. Framing is only 1/6 of the construction code of the average house, with another 1/6 going to roofing and siding. The other 2/3 of constriction costs are things like design, permitting, dirt work, plumbing, electrical, insulation, finishes, paint, landscaping, etc, most of which aren’t substantially moved by the new techniques.
- alanwreath 4y ago
  That is interesting, I was predisposed on thinking about the cost of labor. I wonder beyond price what it means for the longevity (or persisting value) of a 3D printed home vs one that - is made of wood - is made by humans (and so possibly deviating from approved spec)
  - topkai22 4y ago
    Wood has really good longevity- in the US it’s not hard to find 100+ year old houses all over the place in older settled areas. In Buffalo, NY about half the single family homes for sale are over 100 years old, and they mostly appear wood built. My unscientific observation is that buildings are more often replaced due to changes in land use and taste than structural failure, and the structural failure modes include foundation issues, earthquakes, fire (far more common in the past), water infiltration, or can be the results of complete neglect. Anyways, plenty of regions use concrete (what most 3d printed houses are made of) heavily in residential construction. You can look to them to compare and contrast.
    - rascul 4y ago
      > Anyways, plenty of regions use concrete (what most 3d printed houses are made of) heavily in residential construction. Outside of apartment buildings, concrete isn't used much for residential that I've seen, except for the foundation. Not sure what you mean by "heavily" though.
skybrian 4y ago
Have you read the construction physics blog? It covers a lot of this.
hasbot 4y ago
As someone that has been interested in houses and housing construction for 25 years, the biggest change is on making a house air tight. Specific levels are now called for in the building code. The construction industry is still trying to work out the kinks though and unfortunately fixing the kinks requires ever more equipment, complexity, and cost.

langsoul-com 4y ago

In Australia, homes tend to be more an investment. The home part just needs to be good enough, the land is the real value. A shit rundown place can be worth millions, just because of the land. The house itself gets knocked down for an apartment complex.

masklinn 4y ago
The US is the same, except for the part where you replace the house by an apartment complex because US zoning is fucked.
- hiAndrewQuinn 4y ago
  It's the same everywhere that doesn't implement a robust land tax. Which is to say, everywhere.
  - masklinn 4y ago
    Nonsense. In most of the world you can tear down a bunch of houses, merge the parcels, and build an apartment building. It might require permitting, but zoning is not an issue, because outside the US zoning tends to be based on activity nuisance levels. In the US however zoning tends to be exclusive and a lot more specific, so you can (and cities do) zone large areas as single-family residential meaning you can not replace single family houses by MUAs without rezoning the area, a much more complicated, expensive, and lengthy proposition. Not to mention US-style exclusive zoning also by definition precludes mixed-use developments.

topkai22 4y ago

I was talking to a (housing) developer friend who is also into many of these technologies last year. In short, 3d printing and modularization can reduce cost, but not as much as I would have thought 10 years ago. Framing is only 1/6 of the construction code of the average house, with another 1/6 going to roofing and siding. The other 2/3 of constriction costs are things like design, permitting, dirt work, plumbing, electrical, insulation, finishes, paint, landscaping, etc, most of which aren’t substantially moved by the new techniques.

alanwreath 4y ago
That is interesting, I was predisposed on thinking about the cost of labor. I wonder beyond price what it means for the longevity (or persisting value) of a 3D printed home vs one that - is made of wood - is made by humans (and so possibly deviating from approved spec)
- topkai22 4y ago
  Wood has really good longevity- in the US it’s not hard to find 100+ year old houses all over the place in older settled areas. In Buffalo, NY about half the single family homes for sale are over 100 years old, and they mostly appear wood built. My unscientific observation is that buildings are more often replaced due to changes in land use and taste than structural failure, and the structural failure modes include foundation issues, earthquakes, fire (far more common in the past), water infiltration, or can be the results of complete neglect. Anyways, plenty of regions use concrete (what most 3d printed houses are made of) heavily in residential construction. You can look to them to compare and contrast.
  - rascul 4y ago
    > Anyways, plenty of regions use concrete (what most 3d printed houses are made of) heavily in residential construction. Outside of apartment buildings, concrete isn't used much for residential that I've seen, except for the foundation. Not sure what you mean by "heavily" though.

skybrian 4y ago

Have you read the construction physics blog? It covers a lot of this.

hasbot 4y ago

As someone that has been interested in houses and housing construction for 25 years, the biggest change is on making a house air tight. Specific levels are now called for in the building code. The construction industry is still trying to work out the kinks though and unfortunately fixing the kinks requires ever more equipment, complexity, and cost.