The difficulties associated with building holiday homes, country residences or weekenders are being overcome by a Melbourne company, Prebuilt Housing Solutions, which can deliver a contemporary new home virtually anywhere in Victoria within eight weeks.
Prebuilt Housing Solutions uses patented technology that allows a factory-built home to literally fold in half so it can be transported on a crane truck. It can then be unfolded and installed in a day, even on remote sites. If the owner later wishes to move the house to another site, it can be refolded and efficiently transported to a new location.
Mr Rob Colquhoun, founder of Prebuilt Housing Solutions, said the major demand had so far come from prospective holiday home owners and from residents in regional towns in areas where it was very difficult to find tradesmen to complete a house in a reasonable time frame.
"A number of Melbourne clients have land in Gippsland or near the Great Ocean Road, and realised it was completely impractical for them to try to supervise the building of a new holiday home at weekends. There are up to 50 sequential steps in building a house, and if one tradesperson is unable to attend as planned, that throws out all the other tradespeople and the whole building schedule."
"Some owners also need a house in a hurry - we installed a Prebuilt home at Cobungra near Dinner Plain because the old property was destroyed by the bushfires and the family wanted a new home before the ski season. Another client purchased land at a seaside location in October and will have her house delivered and installed before Christmas," Mr Colquhoun said.
While this client was taking advantage of construction during the settlement period, another wanted to take an overseas trip and have a home built on her land near Clunes while she was away. She chose her house design, travelled for three months and arrived back with her new house ready to occupy.
Aside from the ease and speed offered by Prebuilt, the homes feature high quality design and construction including galvanised steel footings and framing, square set plasterboard walls and ceilings and attractive exterior finishes of Colorbond and Shadowclad.
Four home designs with flexible interior layouts are available, and each has clean, contemporary lines with light, spacious interiors.
Base prices range from $60,000 for the 1-bedroom, 5 square 'Escape' to $145,000 for the 4-bedroom, 13 square, architect-designed 'Freedom'. Decks or verandahs can be added, and layouts and fittings customised to meet the needs of clients wanting a more luxurious home.
Prices include installation , home owner's warranty and public liability insurances. The houses have been designed to have a low impact on the environment, and can be optioned to 5-star energy rating for environmentally conscious clients.
Deluxe and standard interior finishes are available, and include spa baths and showers in main bathrooms, showers in ensuite bathrooms, stainless steel under-bench electric oven, gas cooktop with wok burner, stainless steel bench with tiled or glass splashback, island bench with drawers, contemporary toilet and vanity suites and tapware.
Mr Colquhoun said building a home in a remote location such as the Victorian alps could cost up to four times the price of a Prebuilt home. There was also less environmental damage with Prebuilt, as trucks to the site were minimised and the foundations were a very low-impact design.
A mechanical engineer who has worked in commercial and housing construction with Civil and Civic and Lend Lease, Mr Colquhoun said he had engineered the Prebuilt designs to an a high extreme N4 wind rating and strength that ensur ed their suitability throughout Australia .
He said the company is currently talking with commercial accommodation operators who are installing multiple houses in popular holiday destinations.
"We're able to offer them the flexibility they want, along with the knowledge that their houses will be installed quickly with minimal impact on other residents and the environment."
FURTHER INFORMATION
Mr Rob Colquhoun, Prebuilt Housing Solutions, 03 9761 5544, 0439 350 011