This beautiful 1915, Spanish style home in Santa Monica, California, had beautiful bones but was woefully underbuilt – especially by today’s standards. Watch as the entire house is gutted to the studs – and even half of those were rotten – and built into a fabulous new home.
This project actually includes new construction – a pool house – as well as the gut remodel of the main house.
Skinny, Tiny, Pre-Fab, Eco House
The “Skinny House” is an idea taken from looking at various pre-fab homes, in particular the high concept, prefabricated Glide House, designed by Michelle Kaufmann. Working with clients over the years, many had seen interesting prefabricated homes in Dwell Magazine and other online architectural place. The idea of having a home built in a factory – better working conditions – better quality – cheaper prices etc – is a hot appeal.
The Glide House
The plan below is an idea that uses many of the concepts of a prefabricated home but a bit bigger and using the garage as a “flex space.” Many people prefer using their garage as a studio, office or other use.
One of the ideas of the “Skinny House” is to incorporate outdoors living space.
Keep construction simple to keep costs down … simple but elegant!
Incorporate solar power …
Often times, after researching the true costs with infrastructure, foundations etc, the actual costs of prefabricated homes are the same or more than building the home on site. A site built home design has much more freedom to be “tweaked” to fit the site. Many options, levels of quality and design exist, but most prefabricated homes are based on components – usually 16 feet wide – that can be transported by truck.
Below – some additional ideas for floor plans.
Prefabricated home companies have been around for years. You mostly know them as trailer park homes. Many of these companies have not evolved past the ugly boxy designs you have seen. A bunch of new companies have come and gone such as Michelle Kaufmann’s Glidehouse. It seems to be – so far – a serious challenge to create the “iHouse” design for homes. A design that works everywhere – works well – is priced well and deliverable everywhere.
A bold objective …
Hygge – a friend of mine recently built this home in Long Island, New York
https://hyggesupply.com/supply/models/
Method Homes
https://methodhomes.net/homes/
Stillwater – in the state of Washington is an interesting company
https://www.stillwaterdwellings.com/designs
35 Questions to Ask Before Buying Vacant Land ?
Are you interested in buying your own piece of earth? There’s nothing more fabulous than having a few acres of your own, and building your own place from the ground up. But, buying land, especially in highly regulated areas like California, can be a lot more risky than buying a home. These days of real estate disclosure for a home buyer have come a long way from the traditional law of “Caveat Emptor” (meaning buyer beware)! Land, however, does not have the same rules. I constantly hear stories like:
“I thought we were buying 80 acres, it turned out we got 65!”
“We had no idea this area was in an ancient landslide. Its almost impossible to build here.”
“We thought we got an amazing deal, $1m for 120 acres, but it turns out its going to cost another $1m to get to the pad before we can even think of starting the house.”
“We bought a small lot in town and it turns out we can’t get water service so we can’t build!”
Unfortunately there isn’t one place to get answers. Many local departments are involved and sometimes have conflicting information.
Here are 35 questions you can ask
Or you can get professional help – call me 310 963 7900.
Planning and Zoning
- Is it a legal lot? If not, how do I make it legal?
- What is the zoning classification of this lot?
- Does the Zoning on the property permit my project?
- Does the County General Plan permit what I wish to do?
- Are any planning permits required prior to building on the lot?
- Are there any zoning violations on the lot?
- Are there any special building restrictions in this area?
- Are there any cultural heritage sites on the property?
Ventana Magazine Features Ojai Custom Home Builder – Green Home
Contemporary Cool
The Ojai abode of green builder Otis Bradley.
By Andrea Kitay—Photography by Gaszton Gal
Casa Verde, the two-acre Ojai spread that Otis Bradley and his family call home, is more than a play on words. Its name is a nod to the custom homebuilder’s passion for efficiency. The 3400-square-foot contemporary completed in 2008 is a result of Bradley’s determination to build an ecologically sound home, in keeping with his family’s laidback lifestyle.
Continue reading “Ventana Magazine Features Ojai Custom Home Builder – Green Home”Building a New House in Ojai and Ventura County
Building in the City of Ojai is a fairly straightforward process. The town itself is quite small, only 4.4 miles, beyond those boundaries you are in the unincorporated area of Ventura County – a bit more challenging building process. Call us to help you navigate the building process.
Geography
Ojai is located at 34°26′57″N 119°14′48″W
The city is generally at 745 feet (227 m) above sea level.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.4 square miles (11 km2), of which only 0.35% is water, and the rest is land.
Ojai is situated in a small east-west valley, north of Ventura and east of Santa Barbara. It is approximately 15 miles (24 km) inland from the Pacific Ocean coast.
Since Ojai is lined up with an east-west mountain range, it is one of few towns in the world to have a “Pink Moment” occur as the sun is setting. The fading sunlight creates a brilliant shade of pink for several minutes on the Topatopa Bluffs, over 6,000 feet (1,800 m) above sea level at the east end of the Ojai Valley. Nordhoff Ridge, the western extension of the Topatopa Mountains, towers over the north side of the town and valley at more than 5,000 feet (1,500 m). Sulphur Mountain creates the southern ranges bounding the Ojai Valley, a little under 3,000 feet (910 m) in elevation. The Sulphur and Topatopa Mountains are part of the Transverse Ranges system.
The Ventura River flows through the Ventura River Valley, draining the mountains surrounding Ojai to the north and east and emptying into the Pacific Ocean at the city of Ventura. The Ventura River was once known for its steelhead fishing before Matilija Dam and Lake Casitas were constructed, eliminating habitat for this trout species.
The climate of Ojai is Mediterranean, characterized by hot, dry summers, sometimes exceeding 100 °F (38 °C), and mild winters, with lows at night sometimes below freezing. As is typical for much of coastal southern California, most precipitation falls in the form of rain between the months of October and April, with intervening dry summers.