Reconstructing An Industry
OFFERING AFFORDABLE HOUSING WITH GREAT DESIGN
By Erin Kelly-Allshouse
The homebuilding industry is evolving fast with changes in technology, construction and how homes are built. Joy Line Homes –a new construction company that designs and builds contemporary homes –has rethought the whole process of how homes are designed, built and bought these days. From design to manufacture to installation, they do it all. They pride themselves on no delays, no headaches and no sticker shock. Their mission is to create affordable housing with great design for all, using higher quality building materials and creating more modern designs.
Joy Line Homes designs and builds modern “prefabricated” homes, built in sections in an off-site facility in Oregon, then shipped to the homebuyers’ site and assembled. Joy Line Homes are considered the same as homes that are built on site but their homes are built under Federal HUD regulation, and codes supersede county code requirements making the process more expedient.
Since selling their first model home last October and launching out of Watsonville in January, things have exploded quickly and business is booming according to Ben West, the company founder and lead designer of Joy Line Homes.
“There’s no one doing what we’re doing and we are super excited,” said West, the 39-year old Santa Cruz resident. “Where the big shift has come is how homes can be built in factories based on a custom order.”
Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, West came to Santa Cruz County in October of 2018 with intention after researching what he wanted to do behind closed doors, for two years. With 20 years in the building profession under his belt, and a desire to go beyond and give back to his community, he found there was a high demand with the housing crisis –Santa Cruz being one of the worst, and it was a crisis he wanted to combat, he said.
West didn’t waste time. Joy Line Homes was born out of a need for housing when he was looking to buy a house in Santa Cruz, but couldn’t find an affordable one or a design he liked. So he created a home line with customizable options and unique designs.
“Necessity is the mother of invention,” West said.
They designed, built, and then hosted an open house with their first “prefab” home last October in Aptos Pines Mobile Home Park. The 1,640 square foot, three bedroom, two bath home sold for $639,000 even though the home cost only $180,000 to build, West said. “It was built as a model for buyers to look at for ideas then it sold for a higher price because the land ended up costing so much along with development and construction costs,” West said. Known as the Aptos Pines Homeowners Association, Aptos Pines has 170 mobile/modular homes and is a deeded lot, and the homebuyers own the land, according to West.
“The Pines” model home in Aptos was designed and built by Joy Line Homes and had several modern features, including French doors opening to the courtyard, an electric fireplace and an office with a glass partition wall.
Joy Line Homes has four template models to date and offers unlimited custom options. By spring, West forecasts three more templates to choose from and by end of summer he said he hopes for more than a dozen models to be available online at joylinehomes.com including some accessory dwelling units, or smaller secondary units.
Until now, if you wanted to build or remodel a home, you had to: Manage the project yourself. Hire an architect. Make hundreds of design decisions. Spend countless hours in showrooms selecting finishes, fixtures and appliances. Search for trustworthy local builders and contractors. Go through a nontransparent bid process. Brace yourself when the bids come in higher than expected. Endure a year or more of construction, change orders, unexpected delays, and extra costs. Not know how much your home is going to cost until you move in. Joy Line Homes decided to find a better way.
Homes being built in a factory are the future, West says. He said he believes onsite construction will start to be something of the past. “There will always be the need to build on sight but with a higher density of people from local to state to advocate groups and builders alone, creating a cost effective, the only way to building a high quality home is in a controlled environment,” he said.
“We can produce a home that starts at $110 a square foot when the average a square foot in all of California right now is $424 a square foot. What we do and charge is untouchable,” West insists. Taking into account that every project is different, from the first phone consultation, to sitting down to dinner in your new home, West said the Joy Line process usually takes 12 to 24 weeks start to finish.
Construction costs, including prepping the lot, shipping, installing the home and utilities and paving driveways can bring the cost up, West said. The cost also changes based on the property value. A deeded lot may cost more because the homeowner owns the home, instead of a share of the park property or paying a lease, he said.
What is unique about Joy Line prefab homes West said, is they are built to meet federal (HUD) standards in addition to local city and IRC codes and standards. Under these strict building guidelines, these homes can be placed in virtually any location.
“What’s nice about that, all our homes are built, leave the factory permitted and pre-inspected to Federal (HUD) building codes and standards which supersede local county building regulations. Because of that, it saves the buyer a tremendous amount of money and time,” said West. “Our permits are issued same day, and clients are able to bypass permitting their home through the county. That’s a huge benefit to the client!” he said.
Joy Line Homes are built 80-100% before leaving the factory using the highest quality building materials and construction.
They are also leading in energy saving construction and technologies and are built to meet fire, snow and harsh weather regulations with excellent craftsmanship to withstand bumps and winds up to 55mph to get the home to its permanent destination. All the completed homes come with appliances needed to meet creature comforts and include but are not limited to include: a gas furnace; an electric water heater or optional tank-less gas water heater; a stainless steel range and refrigerator and an electric or gas fireplace.
Joy Line Homes also offers an in house realtor team that keeps up to date on local market trends and can relieve stress during the house hunt.
With new laws in place and all our homes being built to MH advantage, our factory built homes are valued and recorded on title the same as a site built home,” West said. “At the end of the day both homes are built the same with the exact same building materials except one is built onsite and the other in a factory.”
In Santa Cruz County currently, Joy Line Homes is producing four homes. “Realistically we have up to eight homes being built all over California and the numbers continue to grow,” said West. “We are in the middle of a boom and we are going to put a ton more homes on the ground.”
West said there are many people trying to solve the housing crisis. “We are all on the same mission but need product and all roads lead to Joy Line Homes.
People hold a lot of value and sentiment to their home and what we offer with the unlimited customization is appealing and something to be proud of,” he said.
West and his staff meet weekly and work closely with partners of different humanitarian organizations in the effort to help fire victims, veterans, the homeless and Habitat for Humanity.
Joy Line Homes are also getting ready to launch a fire relief organization out of Los Angeles and a non-profit in San Francisco where all the homes will be sold at cost. “For every 20 homes, we are giving one home away for free in that area, said West. We are trying to be proactive and Good Samaritans in our communities.”
From time frame to cost of square foot- Joy Line Homes checks all the boxes according to West.
Joy line Homes, 567 Auto Center Dr., Watsonville, CA 95076, info@joylinehomes.com, 831-246-3989
