The Prefab Pod

In this episode, Michael Frank of Prefab Review chats with Alexis Rivas, co-founder of Cover. They delve into the innovative prefab construction processes at Cover, including their all-steel, panelized building systems and their expansion into single-family homes and ADUs in Southern California. Learn about the benefits of vertical integration, improvements in manufacturing and assembly, and the nuances of getting homes permitted in the region. Alexis also discusses the unique features that make Cover homes energy-efficient, fire-safe, and highly customizable. Don't miss this engaging conversation full of insights into the future of prefab housing.

In this episode, we speak with Toby Long, architect at Clever Homes, about the complexities and considerations of building prefab homes in mountain areas, specifically ski towns. Topics discussed include site diligence, the rising difficulty and costs of mountain construction, the benefits of prefab and modular construction in these environments, and practical advice for managing snow loads, landscaping, off-grid solutions, and material choices. Toby also shares insights into specific project examples and key differences between modular and traditional site construction in these unique settings.

In this episode, host Michael Frank is joined by Toby Long, architect at Clever Homes, to discuss the intricacies of prefabricated construction and fire rebuilds. The discussion aims to demystify the prefab industry, address common questions, and provide valuable insights for those affected by recent fires in California. They delve into Toby's extensive experience, touching on site preparation, permitting, design, construction timelines, and cost considerations. The episode also provides actionable advice for homeowners navigating the rebuilding process, emphasizing the importance of choosing the right construction method—whether stick-built, modular, or panelized.

Prefab Review's Michael Frank talks with Cole Painter of New Primitive, regarding their modular wellness suites. In addition to talking about the evolution of New Primitive as a company, they also discuss how prefab construction is being used to deliver high-end home saunas and cold plunge units to customers across the United States.

Prefab Review's Michael Frank talks with Herb Rogove & Wayne Norbeck of Liv-Connected about their unique, small square footage homes. They discuss Liv-Connected's unique value offering for emergency relief and health-centered housing as well as their unique design and architectural systems.

Jordan Easterling, the Founder of Building Swell, a technology company that helps prefab home builders track and manage their operations, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review. Their conversation covers a range of prefab housing topics including construction timelines, manufacturing technology, and measuring construction quality.

Toby Long, architect at Clever Homes, and Prefab Review's Michael Frank discuss evaluating potential building sites and selecting a parcel of land. Within that, they cover things like necessary site requirements, questions to ask, and other points of diligence potential buyers should consider when buying land with the purpose of building a prefab or modular home.

Mike Wneck, VP of Business Development at Jacobsen Homes, and Michael Frank of Prefab Review discuss the products and operations of a large prefab home company like Jacobsen Homes. Additionally, they discuss the difference between modular homes and manufactured homes and how those differences can affect buyers.

David Latimer, founder and CEO of New Frontier Design speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about the birth and growth of New Frontier Design. They cover multiple stages of the company's evolution including custom tiny homes, affordable luxury tiny homes, interior design, and even their role in reality television.

Galiano Tiramani, founder of Boxabl, and Michael Frank of Prefab Review talk about Boxabl, their unique housing product, and their rapid growth. Together, they discuss Boxabl's folding housing system which aims to be more affordable, easier to ship, and quicker to set up than traditional modular and stick-built housing options.

Jason Webster, the owner of Huntington Homes, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about the growth and evolution of Huntington Homes: from their start as part of a home dealer network to their evolution as both a pre-designed and custom home builder. They also talk about the logistics of building in the Northeastern U.S. from designing homes that can handle cold winters with lots of snow to shipping prefabricated homes to Nantucket.

Chris Jaussi, owner of Zip Kit Homes and Michael Frank of Prefab Review discuss kit homes and their benefits. Additionally, they cover Zip Kit Homes' operations and product offerings, ranging from their small-footprint Zip Pods to their larger, single-family homes, and even multi-family offerings.

Jake Knoth, CEO of BarnPros and Michael Frank from Prefa Review discuss the intricacies of building barn kits and barn kit homes, including timeline, cost, and key things to consider. Additionally, Jake explains the evolution of BarnPros and their operations from a small company at the start of the .com era to a large, national building kit provider.

Ryan Abernathy, the founder of DROP Structures, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about DROP Structures' evolution from an idea to enter a small, prefabricated home in a contest just to producing up to 180 homes a year, all in just 5 years. Additionally, they discuss what goes into building an off-grid home including engineering considerations and the logistics of delivery.

Steve Weissmann, CEO of Tumbleweed Tiny House and Michael Frank of Prefab Review discuss all things "tiny house". From Steve's interest in the tiny house movement first as a customer and then as the CEO of Tumbleweed to the operations of Tumbleweed Tiny Homes and even the specifics of using a tiny home for off-grid living, they talk about a range of subjects relating to tiny houses.

Paul Buraczynski and Michael Hawkes, the general manager and design manager respectively, of Acorn Deck House speak with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about the history of Acorn Deck House Comany. They discuss the evolution of Acorn House and Deck House as well as answer common questions about building a prefab home.

Marc Bovet, founder of BONE Structure speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about the origins of BONE Structure and their tech-forward building system and process. They speak about how BONE Structure is uniquely positioned in the prefab market and what makes their offering unique.

Joseph Tanney, a founding partner and architect at Resolution: 4 Architecture speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about RES4's operations as an architect of high-end, custom prefab and modular homes. From their start working on New York apartment and loft renovations to developing strategies and processes to efficiently build modular homes, they discuss the evolution of Resolution: 4 Architecture.

Alexander Kolbe, co-Founder and lead designer of evoDOMUS speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about evoDOMUS' fully custom design-build process. From the company's background in European architecture to their current operations, where they offer sustainable, custom modular homes for buyers largely based in the Eastern U.S., Alexander shares the story of evoDOMUS.

John Geary, co-Founder of Abodu - a West Coast-based builder of ADUs speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Abodu's full-service ADU offerings. From their sales process, to site preparation, manufacturing, and even installation, Abodu has designed their operations to address the biggest pain points associated with building an ADU. They also discuss the differences of building ADUs in Washington State versus California, Abodu's two biggest markets, and what the future of ADUs & operations at Abodu may look like.

Jordan Bem, co-Founder of Moliving - a high-end hospitality group that uses prefab construction to enable logistical flexibility, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Moliving's unique approach to hotel construction and hospitality. They discuss Moliving's business plan and how modular construction has allowed them to pursue their plan for a group of high-end, seasonally focused hotels.

Jeremy Nova, CSO and co-Founder of Mighty Buildings, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Mighty Buildings' unique, 3D printing approach to the prefab housing industry as well as their current ADU offerings . They discuss the process behind 3D printing an ADU how they forsee this technology changing the housing sector. Additionally, they go over the current abilities of Mighty Buildings in offering customers unique, energy efficient ADUs.

Jeremy Nova, creative director and co-Founder of Studio Shed, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Studio Shed's past and present trajectory. They discuss the history of Studio Shed and how they have evolved into offering innovative backyard spaces that can range in purpose from studio to office to ADU. Jeremy also answers questions regarding pricing, customization, and the scope of work necessary for a project.

Parlin Meyer, architect and director of BrightBuilt Home, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about BrightBuilt's prefab and modular home offerings. They discuss BrightBuilt's net-zero, high preformance home designs and the future of the modular housing industry.

Patrick Quinton, the Co-Founder and CEO of Dweller, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Dweller's ADU offerings and their ground lease financing product. They discuss Dweller's turn-key ADU offerings which allow buyers to not be overly-involved in the process. Patrick and Michael also discuss Dweller's ground lease financing product which is designed to help buyers build an ADU using alternative funding methods.

Lauren Tucker and Or Michaelo, Co-Founders of Orbit Homes, speak with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Orbit Homes' prefab home and ADU offerings. In addition to covering Orbit Homes' assistance with wildfire rebuilds, Lauren and Or also address Orbit Homes' service area, cost, and product offerings.

Kol Peterson, a blogger, teacher, and expert on all things relating to accessory dwelling units (ADUs), speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about the process of building an ADU. Michael and Kol cover topics including local regulations, the design process, and financing an ADU.

Toby Long of Clever Homes and tobylongdesign speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review to help buyers better understand the prefab home building process, specifically as it relates to custom projects. In our interview, Michael talks with Toby Long who has over 20 years of experience in the Prefab industry. We cover questions specific to Clever Homes, such as what does a typical single-family, prefab house cost and how can buyers better understand the cost breakdown. We also discuss Toby's past projects to give potential buyers a better understanding of the process of building a prefab home including building on tricky lots or in areas with unique climate or building code requirements.

Frank Vafaee, CEO and chairman of Proto Homes and Zach Toering, director of business development speak with Michael Frank of Prefab Review to help potential buyers better understand the prefab home building process. We cover questions specific to Proto Homes, such as what makes their design and manufacturing process unique as well as what does a typical prefab home from Proto Homes cost. We also learn more about Proto Homes' past projects throughout California to give potential buyers a better understanding of the process of building a prefab home.

Alan Gibson, founder of GO Logic and the GO Home, and Lily Keel, project manager and a GO Home owner, speak with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about GO Logic's design and manufacturing offerings in addition to their Passive House offerings They cover pricing, cost, and the service area of GO Logic as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Chris Krager, founder of KRDB and the founding principle of Ma Modular, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Ma Modular's design and manufacturing offerings as well as their commitment to offering affordable and accessible architecture. They cover pricing, cost, and the service area of Ma Modular as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Steve Glenn, founder of Plant Prefab and Living Homes and the current CEO of Plant Prefab, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Plant Prefab's design and manufacturing offerings. They cover pricing, cost, and the service area of Plant Prefab as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Geoffrey Warner, principal architect and owner of Alchemy, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Alchemy's unique prefab home offerings. They cover pricing, cost, and the service area of Alchemy as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Jim Russell, owner and principal of Ideabox, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Ideabox's prefab manufactured and modular home offerings. They cover pricing, cost, and the service area of Ideabox as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Steve Linton, President of Deltec Homes, speaks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Deltec Homes' prefab home offerings as well as the future of the prefab home industry. They cover the pricing, cost, and the service area of Deltec Homes as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Paul Nyulassie, Principal at DIGZPrefab and NYUDesigns, talks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about DIGZPrefab's home offerings as well as prefab construction and ADUs in the U.S. and the Bay Area, specifically. They cover the pricing, cost, and the service area of DIGZPrefab as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Brian Gaudio, CEO and Founder of Module, talks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about Module's unique home offerings as well as modular and panelized construction. They cover the pricing, cost, and service area of Module as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Steve Vallejos, CEO of PrefabADU, talks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in California and PrefabADU. They cover the pricing, cost, and service area of PrefabADU as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Brian Kuzdas, CEO of S2A Modular talks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about his career and S2A Modular They cover the pricing, cost, and service area of S2A as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Tedd Benson of Bensonwood and Unity Homes talks with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about his career and Bensonwood. They cover the pricing, cost, and service area of Bensonwood and Unity Homes as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Toby Long of Clever Homes with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about his career and Clever Homes They cover the pricing, cost, and service area of Clever Homes as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.

Kaveh Khatibloo, CEO of Stillwater Dwellings chats with Michael Frank of Prefab Review about his career and Stillwater Dwellings. They cover the pricing, cost, and service area of Stillwater Dwellings as well as a variety of questions relevant to potential prefab buyers.