Modular homes are quickly becoming one of the tools developers are using to confront the housing crisis in New York City.<\/p>\n
The homes are built in one area and then transported to permanent locations across the city.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, housing officials toured sites on Staten Island where workers are building the homes.<\/p>\n
The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development teamed up with real estate development company Urban Ecospaces on the project aimed at chipping away at the housing shortage.<\/p>\n
“It typically takes about 7 to 8 days to build one of these homes in a factory. Once they’re trucked to the site, they’re about 70% complete,” Urban Ecospaces’ CEO Tamia Perry said.<\/p>\n
Bringing houses to market much faster than traditional stick-built homes often saves about 10 to 20 percent on construction costs due to reduced waste.<\/p>\n
The city’s open door program funds the new construction for moderate and middle-income households.<\/p>\n
“They’ll be priced between $300,000 and 500,000. And that’s for one and two-family homes. And I think anyone who lives in New York City, if you can get a two-family house and a $500,000 range, that is very affordable for the New York City market,” President Everett Perry said.<\/p>\n
The project was a $16 million investment with the city contributing roughly $9 million.<\/p>\n
The hope is also to build more resilient homes in light of recent catastrophic weather events.<\/p>\n
“These homes are elevated. So if you can imagine if the water were to come through again, if there’s another storm, the water goes basically right underneath,” Perry said.<\/p>\n
The 15 homes currently in progress are expected to be completed in 2026.<\/p>\n
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