Decatur, Ind.-- More home. Impeccable quality. Fast construction. Those have always been the three fundamental building blocks of systems-built homes by All American Homes. A custom homebuilder with 35 years' experience, All American Homes has traditionally sold its ranch, two-story and Cape Cod homes to families that placed them in rural surroundings. Today, many buyers want homes that can fit on smaller lots in cities. Others simply want big homes with plenty of amenities for their large lots. Still others, especially members of the fabled Baby Boom generation, are looking to buy the perfect vacation home. In a move calculated to attract homebuyers in three distinct growing markets, All American Homes is now offering homes created to meet demands for urban lots, getaway retreats and upscale neighborhoods.
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"There was a void in the marketplace for homes that appealed to these market segments. Our new Narrow Lot, Vacation and Alpine series were all developed to satisfy the buying public," All American Homes President Steve Kerr said.
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All American's Narrow Lot series was created to fit urban lots for the revitalization of downtowns where space is at a premium. "More people today want to live in the city and they need a house to put in a narrow lot urban setting," Kerr said. "While designing and building a narrow lot home is a 180 degree departure from what All American has built in the past, we know there's a strong market out there for these floor plans."
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In addition to the demand for homes that can fit on a narrow city lot, many of today's suburban communities are growing more crowded and narrow lot designs are becoming more common there, too. A growing number of homebuyers want attractive, traditional looking smaller homes on small lots, with little or no upkeep responsibilities. They want to be near shopping and services and have walking trails and lots of maintained open space available, too. For these homebuyers, as well as urban dwellers, though lot spaces might be small, there is nothing skimpy about the ranch and two-story houses they can choose from All American's Narrow Lot series. The four ranch designs range from 1,016 to 1,474 square feet. The two-bedroom floor plan packs in a lot of amenities like a utility room and a front porch to enjoy the view and chat with neighbors. A three-bedroom ranch boasts a separate dining room and entryway foyer. The largest two-story offers 1,775 square feet of spacious living with a large owner's suite, double vanity and walk-in closet, plus there are two more big bedrooms upstairs. The kitchen abounds with cabinetry and has a breakfast nook.
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Buying a second home usually means a vacation home. At one time, most people considered this a luxury. Today it's a much more common practice. According to the National Association of Realtors, 15 percent of homeowners own a second home or are actively seeking to buy one. The market is hot, and Waterfront properties are especially popular. And now that the Baby Boom generation has come of age, many are at a point in their lives where they can afford a second home. To help meet demand in this burgeoning market segment, All American Homes has developed a Vacation Home series. "With the aging of Baby Boomers, there is a sizable demand for a getaway retreat," Kerr said. "This series of homes is intended to be a vacation or second home. We often place them on nice wooded lots, a lake or ski setting." Vacation home designs include open floor plans with lofts and great rooms in numerous ranch or Cape Cod styles from 774 to 1,482 square feet. Expansive decks increase living space outside while vast windows invite nature's amazing views inside.
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The third new home series, Alpine, offers upscale living on large lots and is intended for homebuyers with an acre or more. "It's an evolution of the Cape Cod series of homes, with more open looks, such as second floor lofts," Kerr said. "The Alpine Series offers fully customized homes with lots of attention to luxury." These homes feature large vaulted ceilings. There's sumptuous detailing, cabinets, trim, fixtures, and rich amenities, such as corner soaking tubs and freestanding showers, double vanities, open islands, or breakfast bars. "Our Alpine homes are usually 3,000 square feet or more and are really selling well for us."
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| All American's Narrow Lot, Vacation and Alpine series of homes, like every home the company builds, are all custom-built to meet or exceed building code standards. Every wall, window and floor board of the home is tested before leaving the plant. Systems-built homes by necessity are built stronger than most site-built homes because systems-built homes are transported to a job site in modules and lifted by crane onto the foundation. A finish crew on-site completes the home. Last year, the Florida hurricanes proved how well systems-built homes withstand the relentless forces of nature compared to site-built homes. All American's homes throughout the state lost a few shingles but stood tall with no structural damage, unlike many site-built homes in the same neighborhoods destroyed by the hurricanes. |
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Though All American Homes' new narrow lot homes were designed for small lots in urban settings, they're appearing more and more in suburban communities, too. Popular as well with lakefront property owners that have petite lots, these homes are available in both ranch and two-story designs. |
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| Every All American home is built inside a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility by skilled craftsmen who start each work day with advantages over site-built builders. With All American's off-site construction, tools are always in place. Climate is controlled. Vandalism is not a problem. "We control more of the variables than any other construction method," Kerr said. "The building materials remain dry during the in-plant construction process, everything is built with a high degree of precision, and the waste factor is low. It's a very efficient way to build." Deadlines are met without a hitch. Most homes can be built and delivered in as little as 8 to 12 weeks, considerably less than typical site-built homes. |
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| "Order a home from All American Homes and we'll tell you the week it will be delivered. We have that much control," Kerr said, noting that these new home series have already exceeded sales expectations. The popularity of the Narrow Lot designs even spread outside the city and the planned suburban communities into another niche market. "It's turned out to be the perfect house for lakefront property owners with small lots." |
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About All American Homes:
Homes built by All American Homes, LLC meet or exceed all national, state and local building codes. They are designed and constructed for placement on traditional site-built home foundations in residential neighborhoods or rural locations. Founded in 1970, All American Homes has production facilities in Decatur, Ind.; Dyersville, Iowa; Milliken, Colo.; Osage City, Kan.; Rutherfordton, N.C.; Springfield, Tenn. and Zanesville, Ohio. Mod-U-Kraf Homes, a division of All American Homes, is located in Rocky Mount, Va. All American Homes is a subsidiary of Elkhart, Ind.-based Coachmen Industries, Inc.
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About Coachmen Industries:
Coachmen Industries, Inc., founded in 1964, is one of America's leading manufacturers of recreational vehicles, systems-built homes and commercial buildings, with prominent subsidiaries in each industry. The Company's well-known RV brand names include COACHMEN® , GEORGIE BOY TM , SPORTSCOACH® and VIKING®. Through ALL AMERICAN HOMES®, Coachmen is one of the nation's largest producers of systems-built homes, and also a major builder of commercial structures with its ALL AMERICAN BUILDING SYSTEMS TM and MILLER BUILDING SYSTEMS TM products. Prodesign, LLC, produces custom thermoformed plastic parts for numerous industries under the PRODESIGN® brand. Coachmen Industries, Inc. is a publicly held company with stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker COA.
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Arcticle Released Thursday, May 12, 2005
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