Hunley Waters Blog
Milken Institute Rates North Charleston 11th in National Growth
December 20th, 2011
The Milken Institute, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit, independent think tank, has rated the Charleston/North Charleston, SC SMSA the 11th fastest growing metro region in the US.
Milken focuses on economic issues and entrepreneurship, with offices in Santa Monica, CA, and Washington, DC. The rankings and reports are online at http://bestcities.milkeninstitute.org/. This report bodes well for residential homebuyers in North Charleston and Hunley Waters, as the housing market begins to make gains in the Lowcountry.
Lowcountry Innovation Center Driving New Tech Jobs in North Charleston
November 15th, 2011
Charleston Post & Courier, “Incubators stimulate startups: Centers offer space, assistance to grow business,” by Brendan Kearney, November 7, 2011, www.postandcourier.com/News/2011/nov/07/incubators-stimulate-centers-offer-2/
Re-elected Mayor Summey looking to major tech cluster, economic development
November 15th, 2011
Charleston City Paper, “Summey plans for casino boats, aeronautics cluster,” by Paul Bowers, November 14, 2011, http://charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/summey-plans-for-casino-boats-aeronautics-cluster/Content?oid=3642448
New Ashepoo Extended Model
October 7th, 2011
Hunley Waters new Ashepoo Extended Model boasts 1,825 square feet of living space, as an enhanced version of the popular Ashepoo floor plan.HunleyWaters-Ashepoo_ext[1]
Hunley Waters New Ashepoo Model
October 7th, 2011
The attached file contains the exciting new Ashepoo model, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms in 1,506-square-foot home, on Noisette Creek, part of Hunley Waters The River Collection. For more information on this NAHB-certified home, contact Gary Bissett or email gary.bissett@agentownedrealty.com. HunleyWaters-Ashepoo FINAL 10.3.2011 (1)
Post & Courier Article
September 8th, 2011
Check out the article “Modular housing construction still a niche market” by David Slade, August 22, 2011 at www.postandcourier.com or on www.google.com
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Modular housing construction still a niche market
Factory-built homes arrive in sections to Lowcountry, are assembled on site
By David Slade
Even supporters of modular construction will tell you that in South Carolina, there’s a negative perception attached to homes that arrive on a truck.
Lee Cave, the town of Mount Pleasant’s top building official, said he gets phone calls from concerned neighbors whenever one arrives at a site.
“People see the pieces come in on a truck and my phone starts ringing,” he said. “I think there’s kind of a stigma to them. People associate them with mobile homes.”
No mystery there. South Carolina has the nation’s highest percentage of mobile homes, about 18 percent of all homes in the state, so people tend to picture mobile homes when they think of a house built in a factory.
But with factory-built homes popping up in high-end subdivisions and neighborhoods across the greater Charleston area, sometimes priced at more than $300,000, it’s clear that they are gaining acceptance here.
These are homes that arrive in factory-built sections and are assembled on site, on foundations. Examples can be found at Folly Beach, in Mount Pleasant’s Old Village and I’on development, in downtown Charleston and in North Charleston.
Now if only people could agree on what to call them. Manufactured? Modular? Pre-fabricated?
Converts
At the Hunley Waters development in North Charleston, the area’s largest subdivision comprised entirely of modular homes, they call them “custom built”.
“It wouldn’t have been on the top of my list to look at one, but I don’t think I’d look at anything else, now,” said Boeing employee Joe McKillip, who moved from Indianapolis to a house in Hunley Waters in June.
McKillip said he was impressed by the thoughtful use of space in the two-story house, which he did not realize was modular construction the first time he saw it.
“They went overboard on insulation, hurricane straps, and bolts attaching roof to frame,” he said.
Those who build, sell, and buy modular homes often say they are as good or better than homes stick-built on site. They’re often more energy-efficient and wind-resistant because they’re better insulated. Also, they are built using more wood, and are foam-sealed in the factory, measures taken partially to keep them sound while being transported to the home site.
Local builder Lee Moulton of Old Man Construction said the first time a client asked his firm to handle a modular home project several years ago, “I told him, I don’t build trailers.”
But Moulton has become a convert and today promotes and completes the construction of modular homes for Nationwide Homes, which builds them in Virginia (and Georgia).
On August 9, Moulton was at Hunley Waters handling the arrival and set-up of the latest house there, as guests including North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey and Charleston County Council Chairman Teddy Pryor looked on.
Easy Assembly
That house, a two-story unit on piers not far from the gated marshfront development’s kayak dock, will list for about $219,000. It arrived in two pieces, and by mid-morning had been lifted into place by a large crane.
“We are projecting that in the next 20 years, 40 percent of home construction will be modular,” Moulton said. “If you look at the fact that we can build you a home in a factory in three months or less…it’s the wave of the future.”
For now, though, it’s a house here and a house there. Cave said Mount Pleasant sees maybe four or five modular homes in a year.
“I’m surprised it hasn’t caught on more because it’s a lot less expensive to build that way,” he said. “If you stick-build a house on site, think of all the (building) trades that have to come through there.”
Costs are lower because the homes are assembled in factory conditions. They typically arrive on-site with everything down to the flooring and kitchen cabinets already in place and take a few weeks to finish.
“You couldn’t buy a Ford Mustang for $30,000 if they built them one at a time,” said Moulton.
Nationwide Homes built the first ever modular home for ABC’s Emmy-Winning TV Show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
January 28th, 2011
When Nationwide Homes built the first ever modular home for ABC’s Emmy-Winning TV Show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, we obviously made an impression. Extreme Makeover is featuring he benefits of modular building to more episodes. Our Parent Company – Palm Harbor Homes – was invited to be featured on yet another episode this Sunday Night on ABC 8/7 central. If you are interested in learning about the family before the airing Sunday night, visit their extreme website here.
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