Case prefabbricate: scelta e costruzione

Prefabricated houses

Prefabricated homes represent the latest frontier for the construction and real estate markets. They are no longer synonymous with instability and insecurity; on the contrary, the new generation ensures high performance, guaranteed quality materials, earthquake-proofing, stability, durability, cost savings, and superior design.

Today, you can choose from a wide range of products, highly customizable and built in record time. A prefabricated house, as the name suggests, is constructed from prefabricated elements.

Windows and doors are included, but the customer can choose the materials used. The parts, including the prefabricated ceiling, are brought to the construction site and assembled on-site. The buyer can choose from several available house types, but can also have their own ideas built.

Individual workmanship is also often possible. As with all things, when you want quality, you have to consider your budget. Quality obviously costs more, and prefabricated homes can achieve high levels of quality, contrary to popular belief.

The lifespan of prefabricated homes is generally comparable to that of conventional homes. Furthermore, a minimum lifespan of 80 years is usually guaranteed, although this depends on how well the occupants maintain the structure.

When it comes to technological applications, the prefabrication sector in Italy has drawn inspiration from overseas. Indeed, the US offers a wealth of catalogs and magazines, complete with photographic and descriptive documentation, offering options for every budget and taste.

Italian companies add a few extra touches and touches suited to the local market, combining the traditional local architecture with the practicality of prefabrication. Therefore, the quality/price ratio of prefabricated homes —that is, the value of the property you’re purchasing (house plus land)—is very advantageous compared to the cost involved.

Choosing the land for a prefabricated house

In some cases, the chosen builder takes care of this, but few do. In most cases, however, it’s up to the buyer to identify the right land for their future prefabricated home . The advantage of choosing the land is that you can find it wherever and however you like. But there are some things you need to pay close attention to; in particular, the land must be:

• buildable
• equipped with Single License
• free from physical, environmental and legal constraints

To verify that all these characteristics are present simultaneously for the same piece of land, you must go to the Technical Office of the Municipality where the land belongs and request the certificate of urban planning destination for that lot.

This document outlines the land’s buildability indexes, the achievable volume with the minimum and maximum ceiling heights of the building, and presents the constraints imposed by the Master Plan.

Laws to be respected in construction

Article 873 of the Civil Code requires minimum distances to be respected when building adjacent buildings, so as not to deprive them of air and light and to ensure hygiene, safety, and privacy. The certificate of intended use must include all the distances required in the house design, which may vary from municipality to municipality; the distance between adjacent homes is approximately 10-12 meters, and that between the house under construction and the property line of the lot is approximately 5-8 meters.

Checks to be carried out on the ground

Before purchasing the land, a geological analysis must be carried out to assess:

• slope
• presence of waterways
• possible risk of landslide
• urbanization, that is, that water, electricity and gas reach the edge of the lot, so that they can be connected

Construction permits and bureaucracy

Before starting, and immediately after choosing the land, a plan must be drawn up by a registered architect, surveyor, or engineer. This plan is then submitted to the Technical Office of the relevant Municipality. Finally, the Municipality will issue the building permit. 80% of construction companies take care of the paperwork, relieving the buyer of the burden. At this point, the production and assembly process begins.

Materials and structure of a prefabricated house

Prefabricated houses can be:

• in masonry
• in reinforced concrete
• in wood

Depending on where, how, and how long the prefabricated house will be occupied , you can choose different construction techniques for the prefinished structures and customize the choice of materials. Prefabricated buildings, consisting of insulated reinforced concrete floors and load-bearing walls, are certified by the Ministry of Public Works as earthquake-proof, 100% safe against earthquakes and the settlement of the foundation soil. This type of prefabricated building is therefore the best choice if you will be living in an earthquake-prone area.

For wooden houses you can choose between two types:

• 1) structure with load-bearing frame in solid wood, filled with insulated panels and finished with plaster or beading
• 2) structure composed of pre-assembled and insulated laminated wood panels

Construction methods and times

The production and assembly line for a prefabricated home takes much less time than that of a traditional home. The prefabricated structure is manufactured and then assembled on site on the foundation.

From ordering a home to delivery, it takes 60 to 90 days, generally without delay. Prefabricated homes can be built relatively quickly because all their individual components are prepared in advance, thus requiring less labor than traditional construction.

Every aspect of the house is therefore defined before construction begins, down to the last detail, including construction times, thus avoiding the risk of delays and cost increases. Thanks to the rapidity with which prefabricated houses can be built, costs are 25-30% lower than those of traditional homes.

Generally a distinction is made between:

• to be finished
• turnkey

A finished home is a well-defined structure that, however, does not include bathroom fixtures, heating, tiles, and flooring. These are the buyer’s responsibility to install them themselves at a later date, according to their own personal preferences. A turnkey home is a fully finished structure that includes bathroom fixtures, heating, flooring, and tiles.

Charges and expenses

Purchasing a prefabricated home generally saves between 15% and 35% compared to traditional construction. Furthermore, the agreed-upon price is guaranteed to remain unchanged for approximately 18 months from the offer date: this means you can plan your expenses with certainty, since once the work is completed, the amount you pay will be exactly the same as estimated.

For practical reasons, the price of a prefabricated building is calculated based on the quantity of materials used and the complexity of the project, rather than the square footage.

Typically, the list price of prefabricated houses includes:

• walls, floors and roof, with roof covering and gutters
• external and internal cladding
• windows, external and internal doors
• sanitary ware, taps and bathroom accessories
• ceramic coverings for bathrooms and kitchens
• window shutters
• heating system with boiler
• transport of the house up to 400 km away
• assembly of the house, with usually food and lodging for the staff

The following expenses are excluded from the prefabricated building estimate, but must be included in the final bill:

• land development costs, which must be paid immediately in order to be able to connect to the electricity, water and sewer networks
• fees related to the application for a building permit
• VAT taxes
  , equal to 4% for the first home, 10% for the second home
• excavation and foundation costs, which must be carried out by a traditional company
• expenditure relating to the safety plan on the construction site, which is mandatory and borne by the buyer

Savings compared to a traditional home

European Directive 9102 of 2002 requires that a document certifying the building’s low energy requirements be included with the purchase of a house. This requirement is especially true for prefabricated homes, built with methods and materials that are ideal for energy saving and respecting the environment.

Prefabricated houses are designed as highly energy-efficient homes, feature heat recovery, and meet all family needs, cutting energy bills by 45%. Many prefabricated houses carry the Casa Clima A label , a certification established in South Tyrol to distinguish eco-friendly homes with very low annual heating needs, less than 30 kilowatt hours per square meter of living space.

Some of these homes, characterized by a perfect synergy between hyper-insulated structural elements and a low-temperature heating system, with radiant panels connected to a solar system for zero-cost heating, consume only 3 liters of diesel or 3 cubic meters of methane gas per square meter per year: heating a traditional home built around the 1980s requires 14 liters per square meter per year.

Advantages of prefabricated houses

With the latest generation systems, the advantages are several:

• savings on home purchases
• much shorter construction times than traditional houses
• minimum energy consumption
• very high thermal and acoustic insulation
• healthy and natural environment
• no humidity and little dust
• earthquake-proof structure
• at least 30 year warranty
• maximum customization possibilities
• It is possible to have a house built with every comfort, including home automation options.

Types of prefabricated houses

The most important feature of prefabricated houses is that they can correspond exactly to our needs, to the desires we have regarding our ideal home and, finally, also to the needs of the environment in which we live, something that should not be underestimated.

For this reason, companies that specialize in this sector offer customers a full range of products that can be modified to suit their needs, even during construction.

Prefabricated homes can be chosen in the style that best suits us, so classic, where we find elegance, tradition (especially with wooden houses), linearity, or modern, with surprising lines, bright colors, and near-future comfort.

You can also include cellars, garages, furnished gardens, swimming pools, and balconies, whatever you desire, perfectly complementing the rest of the home. Finally, you can customize every detail: from the internal or external staircases, to the windows and fixtures, to the door handles and wall colors.

Partitioning your home’s interior before tidying it up: practical tips

First, it’s a good idea to make a list of the rooms we want to have in our home, including their dimensions. To do this, simply consider whether the dimensions of the rooms in your current home are satisfactory or not. When making this list, always keep in mind the various areas the home must necessarily have:

• day rooms , which include the dining room, the living room, the hobby room, the study or work room, the relaxation space, the gym
• kitchen , for preparing meals
• bathroom , which also includes relaxation areas such as whirlpool tubs or Turkish baths
• bedrooms , therefore bedrooms with wardrobes or walk-in closets for dressing
• service areas , such as closets, cellars, attics, mezzanines, which are used to store things that we don’t usually use

Next, for each room we’ve listed, we’ll add a series of images, taken from magazines, the internet, or books, that approximate the look we want the various rooms to have. Finally, we need to check whether what we’ve designed on paper can be achieved without blowing our entire budget; in other words, keep an eye on your budget!

Prices of prefabricated houses

Websites about prefabricated houses

• Wolf Haus – http://www.wolfhaus.it/
  The site features various types of prefabricated structures, not just for residential purposes, complete with all the necessary features.
• Eri Srl – http://www.eri.it/ita/frame.html
  On the site you can see different types of prefabricated houses for residential use.