The Modular Addition: A Solution for Multigenerational Families

It is a fact that after the 2007-2009 economic recession the percentage of young adults aged 25-34 living with their parents has surpassed the number of elderly ones, aged 85 or more living with their children, according to a recent study published in PEW Social Trends. Compared to the ’80’s, the number of multigenerational households in the USA has now doubled. But how does this impact the real estate industry?

With increasingly more extended families living together under the same roof, for reasons such as but not limited to cost reduction in all housing areas, the modern home scenario needs to adjust and expand, in order to meet the growing and diverse needs of the average homeowner.

If the thought of moving into a new house makes you cringe without actually solving the extra space demands of household members of the same family, what else could be done?

The solution lies in the evolution of construction materials and the development of technologies in assembling them, which now grants you accessing into adding an extra “modular” option to the current home design. All in less time and on a budget.

Does this sound interesting enough? If so, keep reading what modular additions are and how they can make your life easier.

Modular Addition: Why Choose One

The first and foremost important advantage of a modular addition lies in simple details: the construction of the parts takes place off-site. This reduces the time of having workers around your house, from 4 months in the case of a classical addition, to only 3 weeks in the case of a modular one.

How It Is Made

For enlightening purposes, the experts at Nexus Home Improvements explain how they do it in 3 simple ways.

The Way of Mobility: The entire renovation, the construction of house parts takes place off site, thus reducing the time spent on-site considerably.

The Way of Efficiency: After creating the parts, a short amount of time is actually required for final preparations. The time spent at a client’s house, on-site, to crane the modules into place is significantly reduced thanks to the efficiency principle.

The Way of the Deliverable: All that remains is to add the staircase and the finishing touches. The result? Happy homeowners and more space for the entire family, enough to fit three generations.

A Look at the Entire Process

The same experts share the process of adding a modular part to your home, from day one to moving in.
Briefly, here are the steps.

1. Initial inspection is performed onsite, at the client’s residence.
2. The modular plans are developed according to client requirements.  
3. The client agrees on the plans with the construction company.
4. Company proceeds with construction and fitting of the parts. This happens off-site, of course.
5. When the modules are almost ready, a second onsite visit is performed, in order to make adjustments and preparations for the roof or other rooms.
6. Once the modules are ready, the arrival and lowering of the parts with a crane takes place.
7. The final step takes place: adding the staircase and the finishing touches.
8. Total time of construction in the case of a modular add-on is 3 weeks instead of 4 months, in the case of traditional home extensions.

Types of Modular Additions

The first one is the ground floor modular addition. Depending on personal choice, there are endless possibilities to extend the ground floor with an extra bedroom, a bathroom or another room for general purposes. The second one is the second storey modular addition. As the name suggests, you can add an entire new storey to your existing house. Again, it all depends on personal choice and real needs of the entire family.  

Regardless of the type of modular addition, keep in mind the main advantage, among many others, which is that after the initial planning and starting of the project, you can continue your life while the parts of your new extension are built on the company’s site. There will not be a construction site in your garden, no dust and no environmental damage, except the minimum necessities to fit in the parts and make the finishing touches.