Making Net-Zero Homes Beautiful and Affordable
Module is redesigning what homeownership looks like and is making beautiful design more sustainable, accessible and affordable. They support their customers’ health and well-being by streamlining the creation of energy-efficient and highly functional homes. Module’s range of energy-efficient models built through their Last Mile Network, are optimized for infill development and offsite manufacturing. Their hub and spoke model, where the entire framework for a home is shipped on a standard truck to be assembled at a small factory near the home site, helps reduce the massive transportation costs that often eat into what should be saved through modular construction methods. This structure also provides job opportunities in the communities where Module builds. Each home is designed to not only be more durable and eco-friendly than standard code-built homes, but also to be aesthetically pleasing in a way that is often not valued in homes for low- and middle-income buyers.
Their hub and spoke model ... helps reduce the massive transportation costs that often eat into what should be saved through modular construction methods.
Module pairs its expediency and sustainability goals with a focus on equity and training. In 2022, when Module joined The Housing Venture Lab, they had just begun thinking about how to work with the Last Mile Lab. They have now completed their first Last Mile Lab project, an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) prototype displayed on the National Mall at HUD’s 2023 Innovative Housing Showcase. In 2022, Module also supported a cohort of five students who graduated from the Trade Institute of Pittsburgh’s carpentry program (TIP). During the program, Module provided modular-specific educational opportunities, including visits to a modular factory and completing the aforementioned net-zero-ready modular home. They have now worked with 10 TIP students and the ongoing partnership will enable TIP to scale its current workforce training programs and expand opportunities to the local community.
While in the Housing Venture Lab, Module’s second goal, in addition to expanding the Last Mile Lab, was to have a pipeline of 40 units through pre-construction agreements. Housing Venture Lab staff and advisors facilitated multiple introductions to potential clients and as of early 2024, Module had agreements for 48 new units and completed 6 units in 2023. They have also started to see results for their customers in long-term energy savings. To date, there have been savings of $22,000 on energy across Module homes compared to typical home energy costs.
In November 2023, Module won the Wells Fargo Affordable Housing Breakthrough Challenge and received a $3 million grant to support the expansion of their Last Mile Network.
In November 2023, Module won the Wells Fargo Affordable Housing Breakthrough Challenge and received a $3 million grant to support the expansion of their Last Mile Network over the next 3 years. This win significantly expanded Module’s ability to continue building more housing in the “missing middle”, the medium-density housing that is severely lacking across the United States, while also giving them the financial freedom to continue to innovate on new ways to create more diverse, equitable, and inclusive housing.
