For many, the idea of prefab may bring to mind trailers and other less desirable images of housing.Instead, the new prefab is becoming the inevitable next step to "cool" housing as home buyers look for distinctive yet reasonably priced first and second homes. One in six new houses today is a prefab and 400,000 units are now produced in the U.S. each year. More than 50% of all homes are constructed in whole or in part by using building systems — modular, panelized components produced in quality controlled environments. This exploration of the best prefabricated houses on the market today, from all over the world, along with a resource directory on how you can purchase them, is an invaluable reference for those interested in this alternative.

"Who says dream houses are only for the rich? The ongoing revolution in prefabricated homes brings innovative, contemporary design to the masses, transforming 'trailer trash to trailer chic,' declares architectural writer Herbers. These diverse projects by 15 firms — from Michael Graves's Pavilions (designed for Target as freestanding structures or home additions) to Rocio Romero's LV Home building kit — are not only inexpensive, they're also sturdy, transportable, adaptable and, most revolutionary of all, purchasable online. Much of the secret to cutting costs is using readily available materials such as steel, glass and aluminum, and cutting the building process down to a few days. As a result, several bargain homes featured sell for well under $100,000 and can be assembled by the owner — like Romero's rustic Fish Camp House for $30,000, including furnishings, or Adam Kalkin's Quik Build House for $50,000. Glossy photographs highlight these sleek, functional spaces, and pages are enriched by detailed house plans and Herbers' anecdotal narration of their genesis. The blond wood floors and window-lined bookshelves in Oskar Leo Kaufman's signature SU-SI House, for example, were originally designed for his sister Suzy and offer a clean, minimalist feel along with plenty of light and storage. Herbers situates the projects within a brief history of modern prefab and muses on the future of the movement. Most important, she aims to make this architectural spectacle as functional as the designs it features by including a final section on 'Constructing Prefab,' with advice on new materials and processes, building guidelines and a list of material sources. Like prefab modern itself, this book successfully combines both style and practicality. 100 color photographs." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Featuring the work of award-winning firms (primarily from the US, but also from England, Finland, Austria, and Australia), this book demonstrates how design innovators and savvy homeowners have transformed modular housing from its boxy, boring past into a whole hip new movement. The profiles range from affordable homebuilding systems designed for consumers (e.g., the "Fred" from Oskar Leo Kaufmann and Rocio Romero's LV Home) to showcase projects such as Adam Kalkin's Collector's House (which encases an 1800's cottage in a steel shipping container) and a composite housing project from SU11 in New York.
Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Profiles of the best prefabricated houses on the market today.

Jill Herbers has written various articles on architecture and interior design for dozens of publications, including House Beautiful, Home, Metropolis, The New Yorker,and ID.She also writes a Universal Press Syndicate column appearing in over 200 newspapers, and is the author of several previous books, including the best-seller TileJill lives in Princeton, NJ.