I grew up in the Washington D.C. area, went to college in Montana and migrated west to settle in the Seattle area. I did not always know I wanted to build houses – but always gravitated toward entrepreneurial ventures and have had a passion for architecture and good design. I have been building homes for 15 years.
How did you decide to build prefab homes?
We decided to build prefab homes out of a desire to add innovation to how homes are built, sold and delivered and to attempt to streamline a process that can often not be very streamlined.
A lot of people hear “prefab” and think “trailer.” That’s obviously not true of Method Homes beautiful houses. How long do you think it will take for prefab homes like yours to reach mainstream consumers?
The tide is turning. Homeowners are interested in smaller, smarter, more efficient homes. Means and methods of delivery are being reassessed. That said, it will still be a decade or more before offsite construction becomes more mainstream.
Prefab house by Method Homes
On our visit to your shop, we were struck by your unique approach to design and material pairing. How does that set you apart from other prefab companies?
Method Homes is a privately-owned custom shop and not a traditional large-scale, automated modular factory. That means we can focus on quality, craftsmanship and detailing. We can build anything from large custom 10-module homes to affordable housing – and apply the same approach and values to both of them.
We’ve known you guys for while but Fort Peck is our first project together. What have you learned from this process? How can prefab help communities in need?
For remote areas with short building seasons and limited labor, prefab can make a lot of sense. Our goal is to not only inspire the community and also to teach them trades and construction practices with the on-site completion of the homes. We value the collaborative process and have learned other approaches to some construction detailing from Make It Right’s construction and LEED teams.
How did meeting with the Fort Peck community influence your home design?
We came away with meeting with the meetings inspired to deliver homes that would be functional for the community. We added woodstoves at the community’s request and focused on single story design.
What is your favorite thing about Method Homes’ Fort Peck house?
The amount of natural light and windows in the correct locations. These affordable homes have more and higher quality windows than a standard market rate production home.