apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

This stuff absolutely fascinates me. Such a small footprint. I'd need nothing more, plus I can see it on a city lot as well.

The outdoor-comes-in aesthetic is wonderful.

This is the first time I've heard about a modular house being constructed out of SIPs. I guess nobody had thought of putting 2 and 2 together before...

Anybody got any info about pricing on this thing? The solar photovoltaic, green roof, gray water system, etc. makes it sound like it's going to be seriously expensive. Considering that MK's "standard" Empyrean houses are in the $300/sf range, I would imagine something like this going for a lot higher, especially considering the modest size.

I'm kind of in the middle of those two responses. I've seen prefab done really beautifully- not knocking prefab houses at all. It's just this particular domicile bears a not-so-subtle resemblance to a souped-up double-wide.

Like her, but the prefabs she makes are very expensive from what I remember. The best prefab I've seen is Rocio Romero's at www.rocioromero.com. The total cost is about $200k for a 2-3 BR that is properly oriented to the sun and can be built green. The cost of the package is, I believe, about $45k.

I don't hate prefab housing, but I do hate housing that looks like, or is reminiscent of, a 1950's era mobile home.

Terry, I know Rocio Romero calls her LV house "prefab," but I think that is a bit of a stretch. Yes, the LV is a "prefabbed" kit of parts, but it still requires assembly on site, just like any other stick-built house. I mean, if you really think about it, just about any house can be called "prefab" because there are many components of a standard house that are always prefabbed- windows, doors, pipes, light fixtures, etc.

In any case, the LV is definitely not "modular" like the MK houses and any comparisons would be like apples and oranges. I personally don't care for MK's designs in general; and I was appalled by her initial assertions that building "green" simply meant using bamboo flooring, e.g., the Slide House. With this latest prototype, I think MK is finally attempting to do something that is legitimately worthy of the "green" appellation.

They had one of these on display at the home show here in Vancouver & it was actually a very cool space. It felt very European - clean lines and unique fixtures.

What's wrong with a double-wide or a single-wide for that matter? Never been to New Orleans?