Juice Blog
Central Austin Real EstateArchive for February, 2011
Go Mod
In previous blog posts we’ve shared with our readers some information on the growing trend in modular buildings that homeowners can utilize to add living space. We were very excited when Amy Bernhard, the Sales Manager with ma Modular, www.mamodular.com , (a local Austin-based design firm specializing in modular design), spoke with us about their business and product. They recently worked on a project in the Crestview neighborhood, a typical Central Austin neighborhood. We asked her to talk about this project to highlight how many Juice clients could incorporate this type of add-on given the constraints of living within an urban neighborhood.
What got you started in this type of business? Was there a clear need in the market for a product like this?
ma modular is the ambitious offspring of KRDB Architects. Chris Krager, Principal of KRDB and ma modular, has been designing/building modern homes in Austin for the past 10 years. Six years ago, he started researching ways to make his designs more affordable and available to a larger audience. Chris’ father worked for a modular company and exposed his son to the modular method of construction at an early age. In late 2008, Chris built the Luna house, a prototype modular home that helped launch ma modular. I joined Chris in early 2010 to officially “launch” ma modular and manage marketing and sales.
Who is your typical client, if you have one?
Our clients are Dwell Magazine subscribers. They are environmentally conscious, style savvy and have a range of backgrounds and interests. They have a “less is more” mentality.
Do you sense a shift in how people live and how has this influenced your business?
People’s priorities are changing and ma modular fits the new demands for higher design, lower environmental impact, smaller footprint homes suitable for sites ranging from city infill lots to new urban communities to rural landscapes.
Speaking about the project on Ruth, what was unique about this project? What were the challenges?
The Ruth house is a 2 bedroom, 2 bath 850 sq ft guest house. Two modules will be joined by a large screen porch which will increase the living space by 1/3. The guest house will be set in the backyard of an existing ranch home in NW Austin. The biggest challenge to this project was designing a very livable, open floor plan within the boundaries of 850 sq ft, which is the max size of “Mother-in-law” houses in Austin. The addition of the screen porch increases living space and the separation of the two mods by the screen porch and the two bedrooms by the bathrooms increases privacy. These two mods have also been designed so that they can be pushed together, without a screened porch in the middle, for installation on narrower lots. This is a very flexible, streamlined design.
I think many people in Central Austin would like more space in their small, Mid-century homes. Why should they consider a MA Modular house vs. adding on or remodeling?
The best thing about the KRDB/ma modular partnership is that we have the ability and experience to help clients in a variety of ways. We can:
- Design/build a new custom home from scratch
- Design/build a ma modular home for less since we’re starting with basic building blocks (pre-designed modules) versus starting from scratch
- Design/build additions to existing homes
- Design/ build “mother in law” units or garage apartments
- Remodel existing homes
So we can assess each person’s needs and determine which route is best to add additional space to or spruce up existing homes. Going the ma modular route is appealing to a lot of people because of the cost savings in design fees and because of the streamlined process and shorter turn-time from design through completion.
Anything else you would like to add?
Chris Krager is doing three unique things in the modular industry: his homes are simple, modern, and affordable. There are other modular options out there, but they are often large, elaborate, and expensive. ma modular is making modular homes a better avenue for more people. Using modular technology, and simple, streamlined designs and building products, ma modular is able to build and deliver high quality modern homes between $125-$150 per sq foot.
The standard ma homes include green features like tight insulation, high quality energy efficient windows, metal roofs, bamboo floors, tankless hot water heaters, etc. Other sustainable features like no VOC finishes, solar panels, stormwater management systems, and rainwater collection systems, are optional. KRDB is no stranger to green building: the company is halfway through completion of an Austin neighborhood of zero net energy homes (www.solaustin.com).
Click here to view ma’s current projects:
