Affordable Housing Now: The Industry’s Best Bring New Solutions to World of Modular
In the US there is a shortage of more than 7 million affordable homes for the 10.8 million plus extremely low-income families, and there is no state or county where a renter working full-time at minimum wage can afford a two-bedroom apartment. The situation isn’t much better in Canada, where a 2023 report showed a need for 4.4 million affordable homes.
While modular building insiders have known for years that it can be an effective solution to address both the quantity and speed of development that’s needed, the word is slowly spreading to more mainstream audiences. Three presentations at this year’s World of Modular in Las Vegas hope to provide insight and direction for those seeking a real solution to the crisis.
Unlocking the Potential of Pocket Neighborhoods
Eisa Lee, Partner Architect at xL Architecture & Modular Design in Toronto, Canada, says a pocket neighborhood, a small community within the larger community that takes advantage of smaller infill land areas, can help fill some of the housing shortage. Her presentation will look at a current pocket project, which is being built by a church community and involves filling an unused parking lot with tiny homes, as a showcase for what communities can do to help.
Her design company serves as a go-between for project designers and modular factories, providing guidance with factory set-up and design, process improvement, and production design. “We've worked closely with and understand the entire process of designing for manufacturing and assembly and how to get them into the initial schematic design stage,” said Lee.
Modular construction plays a key role in developing these communities because of the repetitious nature of the tiny homes. Lee compares it to buying a pre-built shed at a big box retailer, where manufacturers have several models to choose from and residents or developers can select which ones they want. Since structural building codes are similar across all locations, it streamlines development because the only design required is a community or site plan and utilities. “Essentially you complete the site work, deliver the tiny homes, and then connect the services, and there you go.”
Site selection is key as the community must blend into its surroundings. “You don't want to build a tiny home pocket neighborhood in the middle of 30- to 40-story condo buildings. And then again, you don't want to be building a 30- to 40-story condo in a neighborhood where it's all single-family or two-story homes.”
Eisa Lee, Partner Architect at xL Architecture & Modular Design in Toronto, Canada, says a pocket neighborhood, a small community within the larger community that takes advantage of smaller infill land areas, can help fill some of the housing shortage.
Lee said developers of potential pocket neighborhoods should research them before determining if they make sense for their specific project. They’ll need to know why they’re a good idea and why people would choose to live there. The focus should be on the quality of living and building relationships with the residents. The next step is to engage with a designer who can help them see how to develop a sense of community for the owners because otherwise, it’s just a bunch of people living in a dense area.
Her presentation at WOM will help developers, landowners, and modular manufacturers understand the benefits of pocket neighborhoods and how to implement them in their areas. Lee hopes the session creates connections for attendees to collaborate and create more great communities.
Collaboration Strategies in Affordable Housing Project Delivery
Rhys Kane, Director of Business Development for ROC Modular, and Jerry Rynda, Director of Business Development and Marketing for Buttcon Holdings, will be presenting a case study that highlights the importance of bringing a project team together early and working collaboratively to meet the stated goals. The Steveston Highway Turning Point Housing Society project is currently under construction in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. It will be a three-story wood-framed modular multi-family building, consisting of 25 units. ROC is the unit manufacturer, Buttcon serves as the general contractor, and TASU Construction is installing the modular units.
Collaboration is key to any modular project. “There's so much upfront design and planning that has to be done and so many decisions that need to be made prior to fabrication, that if you don't have transparent collaboration with the client, architect, consultants, fabricator, and the builder, it almost always leads to problems,” said Rynda. “Because if the architect doesn't understand that they need to have as-built drawings completed before procurement, that causes a train wreck. Also, the client needs to understand that they can't make any changes to the modules once fabrication starts. You need seamless coordination, streamlined processes, problem-solving, change management, and quality assurance.”
Buttcon starts each project with a responsibility matrix, outlining responsibilities for all the primary stakeholders, including trade contractors. When key responsibilities are clearly identified, said Rynda, it frees the team up to focus on getting the project completed on time for the right price, which is the client’s main objective.
The Steveston Hwy Turning Point Housing Society project in Richmond BC is a 3-storey wood frame modular multi-family building, consisting of 25 units with a minimum of 60% of the units to include the City of Richmond’s Basic Universal Housing (BUH) features. The project is being funded through the Rapid Housing Initiative.
Kane said it’s important to get the modular factory engaged as soon as possible so he design can be tailored to fit modular construction from the beginning. He encourages clients and designers to commit to modular as early as possible and then engage the factory. “We can then provide all the rules around modular design, what's most efficient for the factory, and what's going to help the project end with a good result,” Kane said.
Collaboration can also help with funding and cost management. With public funding sources there can be numerous requirements that need to be met to qualify, so working together on those from the beginning can help smooth out the process. Rynda said, “I think it is critical to have stakeholder alignment, ensuring that everybody has a clear understanding of the project goals, priorities, and timelines.” This includes details like sustainability targets and the design specifications required to meet the project budget.
Of course, conflict can occur on any project, so having a conflict resolution process is necessary to address changes and prevent delays. Rynda said, “It’s easy to butt heads or be negative. Collaboration is like a marriage; you must work together. If not, you’re going to kill each other.”
Kane hopes their presentation provides a realistic view of a factory and general contractor working together, both the good and the bad. Rynda hopes to attract more general contractors to embrace modular construction and provide some tools for them to use on current or future projects.
Modular Affordable Housing Case Studies
Adam Berger, owner of Adam Berger Development, and Christopher Herr, Design Director, will be offering a case study on their West Holden Place project: a six-story, 77-unit, multi-family development in Denver, Colorado. The project will be finished in March and is a showcase for modular in the affordable housing sector, as it’s expected to come in 20-25% less expensive than a typical site-built building of the same size and at a pace that’s about 40% faster.
Berger provides a unique business model, as the company serves as owner, developer, architect, and general contractor, improving efficiency and reducing overhead and mark-ups. “There are not all these different parties trying to take their slice of profit. We can be way more efficient from a cost standpoint because we're vertically integrated,” said Berger. “We have the knowledge in-house to execute for third-party nonprofits, where they may not have any resources other than the land. We are committed to becoming experts in every facet of delivering modular housing. We can come in and do everything for them, help finance it, and complete design entitlement and construction.”
West Holden Place is a six-story, 77-unit mixed-income (80%-120% AMI) workforce housing project taking shape in Denver’s Sun Valley neighborhood through a unique funding partnership with the City and County of Denver, Colorado Department of Housing (CDOH), and Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA).
They have built a power team that works on all their developments, from trade contractors to financing, and have refined their design, making it easy to replicate it over several projects. Because of this, they can provide high-quality construction at an economical price. And their trade partners appreciate the ease of replicating a design. “They're like, great, I can come into this project and do the same work every time. I know exactly what to expect, and there are a lot fewer or no surprises. It's going to be an easier job for me to complete and I'll probably make more money.”
Berger works with the Colorado Housing Finance Authority and other non-profits to gain funding, then supplements that funding with private sources. In addition, Colorado has bought into modular building, offering financing to modular factories and projects. Berger attributes this support to the value and benefits modular provides, as well as the short construction season and a shortage of labor. “I think it represents a geographic area where modular is being accepted and well-received, maybe more so than other areas because of those factors. Out of necessity, Colorado's had to be more creative to find ways to construct housing.”
“The north star for us, whether a project is modular or site-built, is that people are going to want to live there and have a good quality living experience. The fact that it's modular, from their perspective, they could care less. We care, but they could care less. They just want a quality living environment.”
In addition to assembling a great team and refining their design, Berger maximizes offsite construction as much as possible, with everything but the corridors, utility connections, and exterior façade built in the factory. Another key point to their success is handling the logistics effectively. Their team delivered and set 50 boxes in seven days using a team that had worked together previously.
“In advance of the actual construction, we spent a lot of time putting a plan set together that was very well delineated between what was offsite and what's onsite, not just for the subcontractors to review and price, but also for the permitting and building inspectors. So, the building inspectors understand what their purview is and what their scope of work is.” Working with different jurisdictions can be complicated since site requirements are often dictated by local jurisdictions, while the modular units themselves are covered by state regulations. “Building the necessary relationships with the local authority, which in this project was the City of Denver, and the state authority, which is the Division of Housing for the modular component, and coordinating all those efforts is an area of expertise that's evolving.”
Berger’s presentation is set to show project teams exactly how modular construction can be used to create high-quality affordable housing with a strong model that is easily replicated. “Our project demonstrates that you can build it faster, and you can build it more cost-effectively. We want to present the results of this work and what you need to do to generate those results.”
All three of these presentations will appeal to many in the industry, whether new to modular or well-seasoned. All offer real-world examples of successful projects that attendees can take back and implement in their markets. The overall goal is to help push the needle and encourage the adoption of modular construction for affordable housing, a critical mission in both the US and Canada.
Learn more at the 2025 World of Modular
"My hope is for attendees to leave [World of Modular] with a clearer understanding of...the enormous potential modular systems have to deliver impactful housing projects," said Lee.
See all speakers and presentations from the 2025 World of Modular.
About the Author: Dawn Killough is a freelance construction writer with over 25 years of experience working with construction companies, subcontractors and general contractors. Her published work can be found at dkilloughwriter.com.
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