National home builder highlights recent projects in suburban and urban markets to help democratize attainable homeownership at scale
Clayton, a leading national builder of single-family attainable housing, showcased its innovative portfolio of homes at the annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Meeting in Omaha, NE. The dynamic exhibit featured a display home and highlighted a range of recent housing solutions that combine off-site and site-built construction practices to meet the diverse needs of buyers across markets and lifestyles.
The centerpiece of the Clayton exhibit was a striking, front-loaded CrossMod® home, spanning 1,065 square feet. An ideal urban infill solution, the size and design of this particular CrossMod home allows it to integrate seamlessly into established city lots. By developing previously vacant or underutilized land, Clayton can partner with developers to build move-in ready neighborhoods at scale and create more attainable housing opportunities in densely populated cities, without putting a burden on existing infrastructure.
Like all CrossMod homes, the home is designed to complement the scale and aesthetics of traditional neighborhoods with features like a covered porch and permanent foundation, while addressing restrictive zoning requirements that have historically limited the acceptance of manufactured homes.
CrossMod homes must now appraise alongside site-built homes and other CrossMod homes, providing homeowners the opportunity to build equity over time. According to a 2024 FHFA study, modern manufactured home properties are proven to gain in value year over year and since 2020, have appreciated at a rate on par with site-built homes – further highlighting the wealth-building opportunities these homes offer.
“CrossMod is just one example of how Clayton is redefining attainable homeownership,” said Kevin Clayton, CEO. “By blurring the lines of construction, we are able to find innovative ways to meet the needs of today’s homebuyers while helping address the housing shortage in our country. We continue to push the boundaries to create housing solutions that offer a chance of homeownership for families from rural towns to cities.”
Clayton featured several other innovative housing solutions currently located in various markets, including:
- HybridMod homes in Denver, CO: Marketed locally as ON2 Homes, HybridMod homes utilize off-site panelization and modular components combined with site-built construction to efficiently build urban townhomes tailored for the Denver metro housing market.
- CrossMod neighborhoods in London, KY and Knoxville, TN: In London, KY, Clayton, alongside Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, broke ground on Redbud Estates, which boasts 51 CrossMod homes and will feature some properties with solar roof shingles. Next month, Clayton plans to celebrate the largest CrossMod neighborhood built to date, which will bring more attainable housing to Knoxville, Tennessee.
- CrossMod urban-infill homes in Atlanta, GA: Two CrossMod homes in Atlanta showcased how inclusive zoning policies can create more opportunities for attainable homeownership in urban areas through an infill development project.
- Single-Section CrossMod homes in future cities: When adopted by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into existing CrossMod financing programs, single-section CrossMod homes will offer a layout and smaller footprint ideal for city lots for $190,000 – $225,000 (including land) in most markets.
Clayton modern manufactured homes, including CrossMod, are eBuilt®, which are homes designed to meet the U.S. Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home™ Manufactured Home requirements. With energy-efficient features like a Rheem® hybrid water heater, Lux® low-E windows, ENERGY STAR® appliances and an ecobee® smart thermostat, the homes can save homeowners up to 50% on annual energy costs1 compared to traditional manufactured homes. In Omaha alone, these electric utility savings could amount to approximately $8322 each year, helping homeowners significantly reduce annual energy costs and achieve greater affordability over the life of their home. When combined with a renewable energy system, like solar, the home also has the potential to be net-zero3. In 2024, over 95% of Clayton modern manufactured homes were eBuilt®.
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