Prefabricated / Kit House Manufacturers That Will Build in Ireland?

blobert · 04-11-2018 1:05pm #1

Hi Guys,

I'm interested in building a prefabricated house in Ireland (in Dublin specifically)

I've been to see some show home parks of them in Germany and was very impressed with the quality, I also like the fact a lot of them provide fully bespoke houses, ie you choose all options (floors, bathrooms, kitchens, appliances, solar system etc) from one place and they then just build it. This would appeal to me a lot vs having to be heavily involved in the process myself.

The problem as I see it is that potentially very few of these companies will build in Ireland, I'm guessing it's as its a very small market and people here probably prefer traditional builds.

I'm guessing there might also be issues to do with meeting Irish building regs, though I'm assuming a high end house built to passive house standards for Germany with solar etc should surely be pretty close to requirements here?

Anyway thus far the only guys I've found that are happy to build are Baufritz. They have lovely houses but they/Huf Haus seem to be by far the most expensive.
I liked the look of Kampa in that they provide an all in one solution and are quite a bit cheaper than the Baufritz guys. They are German but I contacted their UK office who seemed not that keen on the idea of building in Ireland.

I also found Hebrideanhomes in Scotland who I think will build deliver here though I think they seem to offer a less comprehensive service vs the German guys/their houses look a bit too spartan for my liking. Likewise with Scanhomes (who are Irish) I think their houses look more suitable for one off homes in a rural setting, I think they'd look out of place where I'm looking to build (in Dublin)

My, perhaps wrong theory would be the best value would probably be offered by someone who is doing their manufacturing in eastern Europe (I think Kampa do this despite being German themselves) and who can then provide guys that are used to assembling the houses. I'm thinking vs a traditional build it's only likey to take a few days to erect the house so it is probably more feasible to have a German/Polish crew show up for a week to build it vs months for traditional build.

Does anyone know of any other companies that will build here or any other information about it? It seems a very niche market here so I'm having trouble finding much detail about it.

Thanks in advance!

BryanF · 04-11-2018 1:16pm

as per forum charter, Recommendations on specific companies by PM

blobert · 04-11-2018 1:49pm

Thanks Bryan,
I'm not looking per recommendations per say just the names of any companies that will build in Ireland.

I suspect by getting PMs only I'll get few/no responses

babybuilder · 04-11-2018 1:59pm

Are Hanse Haus still operating in Ireland? When I was looking to build 10 years ago I checked them out. Was working out at €170/sq ft at the time. That was for a house without an outer masonry leaf. However every thing inside was finished other than furniture. in the end I didn't go with them.

wellwhynot · 04-11-2018 2:02pm

I was at the ideal homes show a few years ago and there was an Irish company showcasing a modern kit home for €150k. I can’t remember their name but it wasn’t scanhome.

BryanF · 04-11-2018 2:09pm

blobert wrote: »

Thanks Bryan,
I'm not looking per recommendations per say just the names of any companies that will build in Ireland.

I suspect by getting PMs only I'll get few/no responses

Please read the forum charter. Thanks

blobert · 04-11-2018 4:10pm

Thanks, I found an interesting article about them here: https://www.ft.com/content/0b18a5b8-381b-11e8-b161-65936015ebc3

One of the comments says:

SIPs (Structured Insulated Panels) are certainly valid way to build houses, part of the reason they are not so popular in the UK and Ireland is that of the cool, damp climate - unless ventilation is up to scratch (with MHRV - Mechanical Heat Recovery or Positive Input Ventilation) then damp and mould are a serious issue.

I'd be building the house in Dublin which is not the worst when it comes damp as far as I know? Certainly vs my experiences holidaying in West Cork where it seems to very damp/rain a lot for a decent chunk of the year

mike_2009 · 04-11-2018 4:39pm

What's your budget?!
That ft link is behind a paywall
There's certainly a need to ensure European suppliers meet Irish regs and the materials suit our particular climate. The method of building is going to be set by the company so unless you're going to rule out certain build approaches I'd not worry yet about which they use. You may not be able to afford any of the good German companies anyway and most as you say don't supply to Ireland.
Anyway, PM'd you some details based on my own research earlier this year....

blobert · 04-11-2018 9:19pm

Thanks, found another good list at the bottom here so I guess I can contact a bunch and will see who builds in Ireland:

https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/the-package-route/

Budgeting up to €800,000+ which is a lot but we're looking to build a big (circa 350-400m2) very high end house and it probably will have to be a bungalow which will be more pricey than a 2 story building.

My gut feeling from looking at Baufritz is you're probably paying a 20-30% premium for glossy site/fancy factory you visit etc. They are talking up the marvelous eco credentials (strikes me as marketing guff) but it seems to me that they are all pretty much built the same way (SIPS). I get the feeling you could probably get somthing pretty similar for quite a bit less without sacrificing too much quality.

In saying that I would like to go somewhere that would take care of everything all in one so get us to the point of needing nothing but furniture.

Thanks again for the replies.

blobert · 04-11-2018 9:20pm

sorry, double post

dkeany · 26-11-2019 12:08am

blobert wrote: »

Thanks, found another good list at the bottom here so I guess I can contact a bunch and will see who builds in Ireland:

In saying that I would like to go somewhere that would take care of everything all in one so get us to the point of needing nothing but furniture.

.

Hey, did you end up contacting that list and come to any conclusion about the best options. Any details over PM would be much appreciated. Ireland seems to be limited in options in this area from some cursory research. Looking into alternative build options at the moment and in the modern climate prefabricated is definitely the most appealing.

edanto · 07-05-2021 7:06pm

I’d be grateful for any info about prefab companies constructing in Ireland sent to me by PM.

We’re daydreaming about buying a site and trying to compare build costs.

Seems to be unpopular in Ireland, but I’m reading about price shocks on current local builds so maybe an EU team is the way to go?

Prefabricated / Kit House Manufacturers That Will Build in Ireland?

Comments