Zamore Homes

Last week, The Houston Chronicle took an in-depth look at Zamore Homes.

When Sears started selling kit houses by mail in 1908, the company promised that a man of average abilities could assemble any of the models in the catalog — from a small gabled cottage to a roomy Dutch colonial....

Exactly one century later, Houston architect Brett Zamore is bringing kit homes back.

Zamore assumes that the average man or woman of today has neither the desire nor the ability to assemble a home. That's why Zamore Homes will gather the materials, coordinate delivery and manage the construction process....

Some homes are local:

Zamore is just finishing construction on three kit houses in Houston's West End, on Center near Thompson.

Some not:

Mississippi native Karen Parker ... mother of six lost her Biloxi home to Hurricane Katrina ... selected Zamore's design and finally moved into her 1,400-square-feet home this past January.

The article provides a good working definition of "prefab":

In the strictest terms, prefabricated homes are built and assembled in a factory and then shipped to the property. In a larger sense, the term could also apply to homes with prefabricated parts that are assembled on site.

Zamore Homes models fall into the latter category.

In all, there are seven designs, in sizes that reach 2,200 square feet. But the KIT05 can grow as large as the homeowner wants.

Here's the models and specs from the Zamore Homes site:

• KIT00: 400 sf, 1 bedroom ("little casita")
• KIT01: 992 sf, 2 bedrooms
• KIT02: 1,250 sf, 2 bedrooms
• KIT03: 2,000 sf, 2 bedrooms
• KIT04: 2,200 sf, 3 bedrooms
• KIT05: varies
• KIT06: 1,300 sf, 3 bedrooms
• KIT500: 504 sf, 1 bedroom

Compared to local costs in the Houston area:

... new construction going for $130 to $170 per square foot.

The pricing sounds quite competitive:

Zamore's kit homes cost between $110 and $150 per square foot, which includes hard and soft construction costs. [information on hard vs. soft construction costs]

Here's our quick comparison to other kit homes:

Company	Models	Materials supplied	Advises
Rocio Romero	LV Series	only the walls and roof framing	windows, finishes and other materials
kitHAUS	k3	everything except interior fixtures (plumbing, lighting)	None
Jeriko House	Jeriko House	all finishes	None

The materials and finishes page on the Zamore Homes site is worth a look.

Read the full article for more details.