A solution to the housing shortage?

2024-12-24 21:50:10 source: category:Stocks

The mechanics of the homebuilding industry haven't changed much since the middle of the last century. What has changed, though, is its labor productivity — and not for the better. These days, building a home takes almost twice as long as it did just a few decades ago. Those slowdowns are only adding to the nationwide affordable housing crisis.

Modular housing, or the process of manufacturing the components of a home in a factory and then assembling it onsite in as little as a few hours, could possibly solve the homebuilding industry's productivity problem. The idea's been around for decades, but as firms look to minimize their labor costs and carbon footprints, it's catching on for good. Today, TIME Senior Economics Correspondent Alana Semuels joins us to talk about how modular housing is shaping up to be the future of the residential construction industry.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: Twitter / Facebook / Newsletter.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, PocketCasts and NPR One.

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

More:Stocks

Recommend

Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul stirs debate: Is this a legitimate fight?

The power looks real.The speed looks real.The sweat, the grunts, the groans – it all looks real in t

Alexis Lafreniere own goal lowlight of Rangers' shutout loss to Panthers in Game 1

The New York Rangers won their first seven games of the 2024 NHL playoffs on their way to the Easter

Rolling Stones to swing through new Thunder Ridge Nature Arena in the Ozarks

The Rolling Stones and the Ozarks don’t seem like the most natural pairing. But nature itself, and o