Affordable housing for those living at or below the poverty line is a challenge in both city and rural areas. A progressive home design program from Auburn University has been building affordable homes for the low-income residents of Hale County, Alabama since 2005.
The Rural Studio is an off-campus undergraduate architectural program of Auburn University in Alabama. Established in 1993 by D.K.Ruth and Samuel Mockbee, the program gives students hands-on experience while providing fixed-income residents of Hale County affordable housing. The Rural Studio has built more than 150 projects and graduated more than 600 “Citizen Architects.”
Each 550 sq-ft house costs about $20,000 to build including materials and labor. The “20K house” was based on the maximum mortgage for someone living on Social Security could afford.
In 2001, Andrew Freear became director after the passing of Mockbee. Freear has introduced more community-centric projects along with residential housing. Freear’s vision is to turn the “$20K House Project” into the “$20K House Product.” Mass-marketing production of their designs could reach many more communities in need.
How would your community benefit from The Rural Studio “20K House Product?”
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Read more about The Rural Studio at Living Green Magazine.
