Barndominiums
What is a Barndominium?
Pole buildings, pole barns, post-frame homes or “bardominiums” all have gained a lot of popularity in recent years. You can do an internet search and find all shapes and sizes.
Many barndominiums are actual barn to home conversions, but an increasing number are ground up construction of brand-new homes. The sleek farmhouse design style has exploded in popularity, and the barndominium helps you get that farmhouse look on the exterior, not just the interior. Most feature an expansive, open-concept living room with high vaulted ceilings. Almost all barndominiums have a rectangle configuration, allowing the barndominium floor plan to be customized to your exact liking.
- Flexibility in space management
- Lower maintenance requirements
The barndominium has a faster construction time-frame.
The number one reason folks are attracted to the barndominium is so they can have a shop/house combination. This is really attractive for people who work in the trades and need a covered area to work during the day. It also has the added benefit of making your commute pretty easy!
The myth about a pole building home is that they are way cheaper than traditional “stick built”” homes. Although cost difference can sometimes be a factor it is often, not the case.
So, is a pole building house cheaper?
Sometimes! Since there is no clear answer, we want to make sure that you are well informed in order to better equip you to make a decision that is right for you. As far as cost is concerned, the savings are mostly in the building of the frame (shell) of the house. There is less lumber used and normally a faster build time for the shell which means lower labor costs. However, from this point there really isn’t much difference because you will still use stud framing, drywall and the same materials and building methods as traditional houses. To be safe in your estimations, you should be prepared to pay $150-$175 per sq/ft. for the structure. In addition to that, you will need to consider land cost and septic system costs. Delmarva Buildings builds on your lot.
There are many factors to consider when deciding to build a post-frame house instead of a traditional house.
Here are a few more things to consider:
- Much less framing material needed due to post frame design
- Free-span structure facilitates open interior spaces, cathedral ceilings, and stylish lofts. Since roof trusses span across the width of the house, you don’t have load bearing walls. This means that you have a lot more freedom and flexibility to design a very practical and more useful floor plan, only limited by your budget.
- More insulation is needed because of the large wall cavities (between the posts)
- Radiant flooring can be economically installed if you choose a concrete slab for your floor.
- Faster build time.
- Exterior is 100% maintenance free and will last for decades.
- Structure design has very high resistance to damage from wind, seismic, and snow loads (superior to stick-built)
- Exterior can be accented with stone, brick, and other materials.
- We recommend for you to call your local municipality first to make sure of your county/town restrictions when it comes to permitting the construction of the house.
