Modular Prefab

The $85K off-grid tiny home on wheels Gonçalo Marrote designed in Mafra, Portugal, looks to views of rolling hills and wide-open sky.

The tiny home on wheels that Tru Form Tiny designed and built for Judy and Dean Anderson is wrapped in white-painted pine and accented with ebony-stained cedar around the door.

There is even the possibility to create single, independent units as cabin-like retreats.

“Where we let loose was on the window,” Matt says. “It’s an aluminium window frame, which is bushfire compliant and easy to install, but the way that we detailed it was about hiding the frame so that the eye is drawn into the space.”

Upon his first visit to Tasmania, an island south of the Australian mainland, resident David Burns was immediately smitten with its varied, pristine landscape. Working with architecture firm Misho+Associates, he built a self-sustaining, 818-square-foot retreat that would allow him to completely unplug from urban life.

Architect Jesse Garlick’s rural Washington vacation home references its rugged surroundings. The steel cladding has developed a patina similar to the ochre-red color of bedrock found in the area.

Architect Gabriele Mary Ann Schicketanz designed a modular compound in Carmel-by-the-Sea to house her son’s family and her own, offering a cost-effective alternative to the area’s $2–3 million homes. Placed on a nearly five-acre lot beneath old oaks, the project includes a three-bedroom main house, a freestanding ADU, and a site-built garage, all oriented for views and privacy.

Completed in 2008, the rectilinear home features a roofline with a dramatic parabolic curve that creates two bulbous volumes inside the home, one of which houses a curved skylit shower.

Intrigued by the "smart, simple things" being done with modular housing, Will Arnett tapped architect Suchi Reddy and prefab company LivingHomes to design a house that merges the best of on-site and factory construction. The "Arrested Development" and "LEGO Movie" actor’s new home, completed in 2017, faces down a verdant canyon in Beverly Hills.

In addition to a top-down remodel inside, the Airstream's exterior has been polished to display its iconic mirrored finish.

The company's base model comes with a custom Murphy bed and a Kohler bathtub for $64,955. It is technically a studio, and the company is working on its first one-bedroom model for ordering in March.

Having bought and restored several quirky properties in Washington over the years, including a five-story tree house and a 100-year-old barracks, architect Jason F. McLennan and his wife, artist Tracy McLennan, bought the camp-like retreat in 2020—even though it had no power or running water at the time and is on a secluded island with no ferry service.

Looking like a jewel box at dusk, Scott Stafne’s Canti-lever House rests easy in the middle of the Washington woods. With miles of hiking trails, lakes, and waterfalls to explore, Stafne’s property provides almost unlimited opportunity for outdoor adventures. The strong and sturdy house acts as a warm respite from the elements when the weather won’t cooperate, which is often—horizontal rain and whipping winds can be the norm.

Pearl Block by D’Arcy Jones Architects in Victoria, British Columbia

Owners and tenants of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) share key insights about how to navigate the unique living experience.

Stillwater Dwellings believes that contemporary, architect-designed prefab homes should be more accessible, sustainable, and affordable. The firm has developed a prefabricated building system that streamlines the design and building process, shortens project timelines, and saves clients money.