These won't be replacing stick-built houses. Seems like an alternative to "prefab" buildings.

A city floods or burns, or a nasty earthquake takes down most of a town or a tornado levels a town. Bring in a fleet of bulldozers and flat-scrape the lots. Bring in these machines and erect these at the back of the lot (if possible); connect their service lines (if possible) with temp connects. Then people get to spend the reconstruction time in their own neighborhoods, in their own communities, without the disruption of place and networks that we have seen. Sure, they're small. So were the FEMA trailers that were toxic, badly made, and about 10 times more expensive.

Once the house is rebuilt, the resident has a shed, neighborhood office, granny cottage or an accessory dwelling, meaning that we've increased the density of the neighborhood, thus improving its walkability, and making the whole community stronger.

except for corner cases. They are pretty ugly, and very small. No doubt they will have their uses, but...

I can't see these horseless carriages being real popular....

They are pretty ugly, and very small. No doubt they will have their uses, but...

These new houses don't really add any utility for the user. Cars did.

There are other companies that 3d print modular pieces that are transported, delivered and assembled. The design and size possibilities are virtually unlimited.

Pre-fabbed housing components are nothing new really. If they are just pre-fabbing them in a new way, that's not a huge paradigm shift.

Printing-in-place IS, though, since if vastly reduces the costs associated with transportation of materials to the site.

I am intrigued by the technology, but this is a technology that will have to mature before it can really go mainstream.

But I am a big fan of pre-fab housing and such. My grandmother's home was built from a kit that her children modified and constructed themselves. I once lived in an apartment complex that was made from oil tanks, shoved into earth and plastered over with concrete.

Of course, in my perfect world I would live in a cob house.

The first thing I thought was "oh god, in a tornado..." but it's made out of concrete.

These would be excellent guest homes in a large enough back yard, or vacation cabins taking up a small footprint in the woods. Heck, I'd live in one of those if I found the right place to put it.

Also, in the video they showed the same machine printing a more conventional house. I'm guessing the unique design chosen was for speed of printing to be able to claim bragging rights.

Well, I hope to live in such house.

Seems like this is a fast, efficient, more renewable/green way to build a shell.

Maybe it will put some framing crews and framing carpenters out of work. But location and land seem to be the drivers in pricing in all the expensive areas.

Framing and shelling out a building is one small piece of the puzzle.

I'm in the Chicago north side. It's all land, land, land and location, location, location.

If some builder finds a way to cut construction costs it won't affect me much. They've already cheapened the fuck out of construction as it is. Prices still keep going up up up.

I have friends who have owned in the far southwest suburbs. They've seen depressed pricing because as soon as their subdivision gets built, there are 500 new homes on the next formerly farmer's field. And the next. And the next.

give or take, depending on variables.

I see it could be a boon to people who otherwise could not afford higher prices.
a lot of people here in the South are land rich and income poor. They own quite a few acres, free and clear, passed down in the family, but have to bust their butts to make a decent income in the rural areas.
This could be better than the ubiquitous trailers, and much cheaper, and if concrete, good to have in our hurricane/tornado seasons.

You can frame a 400-square-foot wooden shed in about the same time frame.

That's why the shipping container thing drives me up a wall.

I can stick build a tiny box just as cheap. And you would be able to insulate mine and run power/plumbing.

Fabricate them with doors and windows, and put them in a storage lot. When a tornado or something hits, put as many as you think you'll need on a train or ship and haul 'em in.

Permanent housing? No.

It is pretty costly to pay workers to do it. And all you are doing is making a concrete block. Great movie called "Locke" featuring the making of a concrete block.

If your subsurface pipes go bad, a slab turns a reasonably simple project into a major one.

For small houses like this one, you're better off with a pier foundation.

There is no doubt this is amazing.

Well, machines and robots are a game changer.

We better have free college available soon to educate the populous in various fields. The hands-on labor field is changing.

Lost all of investment.

but very few are ever on the market, Why do people think we need such big, expensive homes just to eat and sleep in?

Then, we could get a robot to build our house for us. Then we could send visitors to that planet. Isn't space exploration wonderful?!

He may decide to 3D print a giant wall if we're not careful.

LOL