The small cottages designed to replace FEMA trailers after Hurricane Katrina are popular, so popular that Lowe’s has decided to offer them in their stores.
“We had so many requests that the company decided to make them available nationwide,” said Chris Ahearn, spokeswoman for Lowe’s at the company’s Mooresville, N.C., corporate office, told the Contra Costa Times.
Katrina Cottage plans can be purchased from Lowe’s for $700, with the lowest priced “building kit” starting at $17,000. The kit includes all the materials needed for the construction of the cottage. More upscale customers can choose more upscale finishes.
The cottages are cute and come in a variety of styles and sizes from 1.5-5 bedrooms. Lowe’s says people have been using them as vacation homes, guest houses, and, yes regular homes, too.
The first step toward building a Katrina Cottage is to stop by Lowe’s Project Desk, Porterfield said. After selecting and purchasing a plan, customers are told to find their own contractor and submit blueprints for approval to their local building or planning departments. After they secure local permits, Lowe’s provides the customer with all building materials, from nails to the kitchen sink, which can be delivered to the job site.Although some say the plans can be made a reality in six weeks, waiting for permits and inspections usually increases the time to several months. Porterfield also made it clear that the homes are not weekend projects.
“These are not designed for a do-it-yourself-er,” he said. “These are made for a licensed contractor.”
Although the base materials packages cost from $17,000 to $36,000, they do not include the foundation, piers, heating and cooling systems, septic or sewer systems, cost of labor or permits.
Would you buy a Katrina Cottage? We have to admit they’re pretty cute… A lot cuter than a FEMA trailer. It’s kinda, you know, creepy though. A little.
Cottage industry: Lowe’s sells ‘Katrina’ home plans [Mercury News]
Lowe’s Katrina Cottages
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@creepshowbabe:
Yes, you can get one, but first you have to “blow” everyone at the store – in honor of the hurricane, of course.
I’d definitely get one. Looks like a great option for newly weds to.
The market for manufactured homes has really changed lately. Anymore, its not just the old aluminium sided trailers. My next door neighbors got one a year ago and it looks very nice (now they just need to destroy the old house which should have been destroyed years ago). The new house doesn’t look at all like the classic trailer and you wouldn’t know it was pre-built. This is always a way to go for if you’re looking for a new house. I have no clue though what the price range is.
I’ll take a two bedroom, two bathroom, no grown children allowed to move back home model, please. Thank you.
I think it looks fantastic.
This might be my first home.
In regards to the cost, as others have stated there are a few numbers missing:
These are based on costs for a 1400 sf house in south Louisiana
Lot – $25000 and up
Foundation – $12000
Framing labor – $7500
Exterior siding labor – $4000
Plumbing labor – $6000
Electrical labor – $6000
HVAC labor/matl – $7500
Roofing labor – $3000
Drywall install/finish – $6000
Thats another $77k, and we still haven’t put any finishes on the interior or painted the exterior. You’re also going to need sidewalks driveways, landscaping and sod. Still fairly cheap for home ownership, but not something that every evacuee can afford.
To borrow a phrase from our well-fed friends over at Eater, you do hate to see that. Photo via Flickr/heidiologies.
The one in the picture is rather cool. Would make an ideal lake house if I could still find lake land that is not more expensive than my existing house.
I love the classic architecture features.
It’s funny that Lowe’s has been able to get the same look and feel as Seaside, Florida for under $100K. Good for them.
@mopar_man: Frozen piping? Dunno, I’ve just never stayed in a place that gets snow and has not had one. I personally have never lived in a place with a basement, so I can’t say why there’s such an obsession with them. Hurricanes and tornadoes I suspect. And yes my house is preowned and wonderful (new costs a mil+ and no yards
, so perhaps you should try doing a little more homework before your next preowned home purchase. Have multiple inspections before putting any money down, and get the current owners to correct any problem areas.
The only change made to mine was to put in grass — the previous owner had this fugly desert landscaping.
I would still like to see a model that forgoes the paneling.
And the ones on the Lowe’s site all have a fairly cookie cutter look, just a step above a trailer. I think I’d go yurt before that! (thanks for the link, speedwell)
You could buy a few shipping containers and make some nice configurations. They had a display of artists creating housing based on shipping containers and it was sweet.
@Chicago7: I’ve been researching those, I really want to build one. On a side note, is lowes contributing any money to katrina repair efforts as part of this?
@mopar_man: Why do you have to have a basement for cold climates?
A slab house in a cold climate is a PITA to heat in the winter. A basement with as little exterior exposure as possible can slash winter heating requirements in a big way.
*shrug* I like the design. If I wasn’t reasonably happy with the house I’ve got I might buy the plans and slap it on a house with a full basement.
I daresay there’s any number of people living in double wides, single wides, trailers, et al. who’d love to have one of these.
If my house burned to the ground or got leveled by a Tornado….I’d buy one. It’d work great for me because my dad and I have a decent sized farm with a 10 acre tract that we can’t use (it’s not contiguous to the rest of the place). The bitch would be paying to drill a well. Power and telephone are a non-issue. Shoot, if we could keep the place occupied we’d probably put one up out there anyway.
ANYTHING to replace trailers (PC Term Mobile Homes) would be great. I live in the south and trailers are the biggest mistake to hit the housing market. They should be banned!
Maybe this little house could do it, and wouldn’t look so trashy.
Now this is a cool idea… buying homes in
Now this is a cool idea… buying homes in stores.. just shows how far the art of construction has come… I wonder what the sales numbers for these suckers are….
A link to these things on the lowes website:
[www.lowes.com]
Dude! Go Lowes! I’ve loved the design and concept of these since I first heard of them. More room than a FEMA trailer, More durable and permanent. Cat 5 hurricane resistance. And cheaper than a trailer.
I’ve been looking at buying a house, and haven’t found anything with the space I need in a price I can afford that wasn’t in terrible shape and/or in a terrible neighborhood.
Now I’m very VERY interested in seeing if I can find a plot of land and put one of these up. Even with land, basement, & contractor costs, I’d probably come out in the same price range (or possibly less) then the shacks I’ve been looking at. Possibly even by enough to put up a nice big garage for my toys…
Just a thought, if you stop selling trailers, who is going to buy all that Avon and Mary Kay?
I really like this. I’m assuming if it’s hurricane-resistant it might also be somewhat able to stand up to the tornadic activity we’re prone to around here. Of course you’ve got to be able to afford the land, but a parcel of land in a rural area is pretty durn cheap. Very cool.
Creepy? More creepy than, say, mobile homes? This is really an old idea. Sears Roebuck used to sell house kits [www.searsarchives.com] Thomas Edison tried to market prefab houses using formed concrete [www.americanheritage.com] Surviving examples of both Sears and Edison homes still look pretty good. Why would you think this creepy?
I totally disagree with this type of construction in a hurricane zone. All construction within 50 miles of the Gulf Coast and the Florida Atlantic coast should be concrete block. All roofs should be low pitch hip roof design. High pitch gable roofing provides large amounts of surface area that are exposed to winds. Also, the use of wood in general should be reduced or eliminated due to moisture and termites.
Since I’m living with a man dealing with Major Deppression, Anger Management problems, and Paranoid Personality Disorder, who has told me to “Find a new place to live”, I find the Katrina Houses great. Maybe I can afford one. 1000 square feet is sounding pretty good….and safe.
Does anyone living in Ms or La have any final numbers on putting up one of these, excluding landscaping?
i think all of this is great but i do have a fiew concerns that if not adressed will distroy someones idea of afordable houseing.the tumbleweed house is nice but i can gurente you that i can build one for far less then $46,000. just go to lowes or home depot and price sinks ,green bord, toylets excet-materiels that will work just fine ,,not the materiels there useing .and youl see how mutch youl save. then theres the issue for zoneing..in florida you need 5 acers for a mobil home .at the price of land thats not gonna cut it either..you need a place thats zoned for small houses,not trailers.and on property you can own ,a lot, not 5 acers.someting one person could pay off in a fiew years.so all your paying for is utilitys and taxes. OR DOES THAT MAKE TOO MUTCH SCENCE? and yes some ones not getting rich off of you, but thats how we arived at this problem to begin with..