Today's down-to-earth young families, when they set out to buy a house, may prefer to shop for one that is already built, and with good reason. They will have the whole real estate market to choose from, and they will be able to see what they're getting without having to try to visualize a finished house from bewildering blueprints. Once they move in, the house will serve as a good proving ground for ideas of their own which they may someday ask an architect to incorporate in a house designed just for them. Many of the new ready-built houses are the joint product of a national house manufacturer and a local builder-dealer-so they offer an added, twofold advantage.
Buyers not only reap the savings brought about by the manufacturer's large-scale buying of materials and equipment, but they can also exercise personal choice in the design and the details, since so much of the finishing is done by the local builder.
An example of this new kind of ready-built is the French Provincial house, by Scholz Homes, Inc. It offers the look of substance and the traditional detailing of a custom-built house while its plan is well worked out for up-to-date living. The house has two full living areas (one, a paneled family room) which share a dramatic fireplace. There are three bedrooms, a full kitchen and two bathrooms. And the master bedroom suite boasts a storage-lined dressing room such as you would expect to find only in a custom-built house. The manufacturer provides the basic structure of the house-all of the framework, the interior walls, the roof shingles, all the doors and windows (including garage door and sliding windows) and the hardware. Important bonuses such as paneling for the family room, six prefabricated storage walls, all the kitchen cabinets, even a handsome new range are included in the manufacturer's package. The local builder supplies the rest: foundation, brickwork for outside walls and chimney, plumbing, heating, wiring and bathroom, kitchen and laundry fixtures.
