Posts with tag: modular homes

Furnished holiday lets set to spearhead the UK’s ‘green revolution’ in 2020

Published On: January 8, 2020 at 9:21 am

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UK holiday lets are increasing in popularity for Brits, as climate change continues to be at the forefront of concerns in 2020.

With pressure on the world’s leading economies to reduce carbon emissions, agency Spot Blue International Property says the UK’s furnished holiday lets market has become an appealing investment option.

The agency highlights that in June last year the UK become the first first-world country to pass laws that should end its contribution to global warming by 2050. The new target is to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, compared with the previous target of at least 80% reduction from levels in 1990.

Part of this effort includes the Government’s initiative to improve the eco-friendliness of house-building through cleaner heating (the Future Homes Standard), which should come into force by 2025.

Julian Walker, director at Spot Blue International Property, says: “Undoubtedly, 2019 was a turning point in the global drive to raise awareness of climate change.

“This is thanks largely to the likes of David Attenborough, Greta Thunberg and Extinction Rebellion, who continue to keep the issue firmly on the agenda while forcing many of us ordinary people to ask questions about our own energy use and carbon footprint. 

“For anyone in the market for a holiday home in the new year, buying an eco-friendly property in the UK and letting it to the domestic market, so guests don’t need to travel far, makes a lot of sense.” 

One particular game-changing development in the UK’s furnished holiday lets market is the growth of modular construction methods. UK Housing Minister Esther McVey has recognised the benefits, commenting during the MIPIM London property event last October: “Industry has told us some homes built using modern methods can have 80% fewer defects and heating bills up to 70% lower. Homes built using modern methods can be of higher quality, greener and built to last. I want to see a housing green revolution.”

Mr Walker comments: “Modular homes’ green credentials start before they’re even built. And they continue for decades, even centuries, after they’re built. Not only through saving on energy bills, but by the fact they encourage UK tourists to travel less, thereby reducing not only the owners’ but the nation’s overall carbon footprint.”

The agency says that part of the eco-friendliness of modular holiday homes is down to construction. They are built according to specific measurements, significantly reducing the amount of waste during construction compared to traditional building methods. 

In addition, the speed and ease with which they are constructed means fewer man hours are required during the build process, resulting in a reduced carbon footprint from travelling to and from the site.

Finally, they highlight that, once built, innovative design and cutting-edge insulation materials mean homeowners can expect to pay much lower utility bills, typically around 60% less than traditionally built properties. It also means that the most modern modular homes are built to last longer than traditional homes, typically hundreds of years.

Do you own a furnished holiday let built using modular construction methods? If so, have you noticed a difference in utility bill costs?

‘Flat-pack’ homes the answer to housing crisis?

Published On: July 9, 2015 at 11:14 am

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Categories: Landlord News

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Engineering experts have suggested that ‘flat-pack’ homes could be the answer to the UK’s housing crisis. Prefabricated properties have advanced substantially during recent years and experts believe that they are greener and more cost-effective than houses built by conventional methods.

Solution

Using ‘flat pack’ homes will help properties become more affordable for first-time buyers, according to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IME). These types of property, also known as, ‘modular homes’ are manufactured primarily in factories, than transported on to building sites in order to be assembled.

A report from the organisation indicates that modular homes will assist in helping to provide the 250,000 new homes required per annum for the next twenty years. At present, the current rate is just 120,000.

Dr Tim Fox, author of the study, has called on the Government to provide support for off-site construction innovations with incentives. Fox argues that more streamlined and modern construction in factories means that modular homes will use less resources to build and will ultimately be more energy efficient.

'Flat-pack' homes the answer to housing crisis?

‘Flat-pack’ homes the answer to housing crisis?

Leadership

‘The UK is in the middle of an acute housing crisis,’ said Dr Fox. ‘The Government needs to demonstrate real ambition, leadership and innovation, not make small piecemeal changes, if it is going to solve the UK’s housing crisis. Overhauling the way the UK constructs homes could be the quickest and most effective way of doing this.’[1]

Mr Fox went on to say that modular construction has improved drastically since post-war prefabricated homes and controversial system built homes of the 60’s and 70’s.

IME’’s study has gained support from the Home Builders Federation, who also believe that the way Britain builds homes should be changed.

‘It is not just about making prefabs anymore,’ commented a HBF spokesman. ‘It’s manufacturing process that is very high quality and brings great advantages. Anything we can do to solve the housing crisis is needed and this is just one way of speeding up the construction process,’ they added.[1]

[1] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/11716733/Flat-pack-homes-could-help-solve-UKs-housing-crisis.html