A housing non-profit honored these companies for their cutting-edge thinking, creative breakthroughs and industry transformations.
8 Innovative Solutions To the Housing Affordability Crisis
Updated on Jan. 24, 2024
The housing market is facing some unique challenges. The cost of the homes on the market is high, while the number of new homes being built is slowing down. And with a shortage of labor compounding issues, solving the housing affordability issue may take some outside-the-box thinking.
To recognize those trying to solve these problems, the non-profit organization Ivory Innovations created the Ivory Prize, an annual award given to companies working in this area. Out of 203 entries, Ivory honored 25 finalists in three categories — construction and design, finance, and public policy and regulatory reform. All created “ambitious, feasible and scalable solutions to the housing affordability crisis,” according to Ivory.
Here are the eight finalists in construction and design:
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House-Building Robots
BotBuilt, a home manufacturer based in Durham, North Carolina, creates prefabricated housing components with robots.
BotBuilt’s systems use cutting-edge software to convert plans into a building directive for a robot, which then selects lumber, assembles the framing and fastens everything together. The components are then shipped to the building site where a human crew assembles them, cutting production time considerably.
How this helps
BotBuilt’s robot technology removes a huge portion of the labor. Contractors can then do more with fewer employees, lowering the overall cost of building the home.
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Printed Homes for First-Time Buyers
Diamond Age, a homebuilder based in Phoenix, Arizona, utilizes 3D-printed homes. Huge machines can print buildings from concrete material faster than a crew can build them, allowing homeowners to move in faster while potentially requiring fewer human contractors.
How this helps
It lowers the cost of construction. Diamond Age’s focus on first-time homeowners helps a subset of the market hit the hardest by today’s prices.
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A Home for the Working Class
Inherent L3C’s approach to affordable housing relief means building homes specifically for the working class. This potentially allows homeowners to live in the areas where they work, investing in local communities and benefit the economy.
The all-electric, solar-ready smart homes come with five years of maintenance and other needs to make homeownership less intimidating.
How this helps
Allowing working-class folks to live where they work enriches the area, but these homes must be affordable. Inherent L3C’s devotion to this subset of home shoppers could help more people struggling to find affordable homes where they want to be.
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A New Approach to Infill Housing
Madelon created a whole business around maximizing unused or underutilized spaces within a city by building in-fill homes in their place. The company offers pre-designed products that work with industrialized housing manufacturers. These help developers, non-profits and community trusts identify potential housing solutions and build them at scale.
How this helps
Making the most of unused spaces can do wonders for housing affordability. Providing more places for folks to live increases supply, helping the market keep up with demand and stabilizing prices.
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Carbon-Negative Building Materials
Sustainable building materials have been a hot commodity over the last few years. Rather than using standard lumber which can negatively impact ecosystems and sustainability, Plantd creates alternative materials from fast-growing perennial grasses. These new products provide supply chain relief while outperforming standard materials.
How this helps
Supply chain shortages the last few years sent prices through the roof on even the most basic building materials. Adding more materials to those supply chains, particularly with affordable price tags, can stabilize pricing, meet demand and keep housing construction more affordable. That these materials are more sustainable is a bonus.
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Insulation Made from Recycled Wood
TimberHP creates fill, batt and continuous board insulation from wood chips. This Madison, Maine-based company uses chips left over from lumber production and construction sites to fashion an insulation product with a price competitive with traditional insulation. It uses a readily available resource and instead of petroleum or other potentially harmful materials.
How this helps
Any time a product is effective, eco-friendly and competitively priced, it’s going to make waves. TimberHP’s continuous board insulation is faster and easier to install in new construction settings than batts, which could cut down labor costs. With an R-value of 3.8 per inch, it can reduce energy costs in many sections of the U.S.
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Connecting Minority-, Women-, and Veteran-Owned Businesses
New York City-based Tough Leaf created a software program for certified minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses. Tough Leaf connects these diverse firms with general contractors and developers, enabling both parties to grow their businesses while working on projects like affordable housing.
How this helps
Historically, minority businesses are underserved. By connecting these businesses with contractors and developers, Tough Leaf removes a hurdle that hinders them from finding top-quality, affordable labor. Projects can then finish faster while remaining more affordable overall.
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Prefab Buildings Made from Structural Insulated Panels
Vantem’s fresh take on structurally insulated panels allows this Greensboro, North Carolina company to create affordable and energy-efficient housing. By building off-site entirely with panels — no post-and-beam or standard framing — Vantem can quickly assemble prefab structures that are durable and energy-efficient.
How this helps
Prefab construction has been a popular option for saving money for years. (Think modular.) These panels reduce time on-site and reliance on typical materials like lumber and plywood. Both can lead to more cost-effective projects and savings for home shoppers.
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The Affordable Housing Crisis Requires an Innovative Solution
Solving the affordable housing crisis will require innovative solutions and forward-thinking companies. These Ivory Prize finalists may inspire more creative thinking. It will be exciting to see what the future may bring.
