You could receive delivery of your brand new home on the back of a truck, watch as they plop it down on the building site, press a button and allow it to self-deploy within minutes. That kind of instantaneous residential building process is now a reality thanks to a recent proliferation of pop-up prefab housing, built off-site and then assembled in a tiny fraction of the time it takes to build a conventional structure. Energy-efficient, modern and often surprisingly stylish, some of these homes are even designed specifically for cash-strapped millennials who can’t afford market-rate apartments.

LaunchPod Solar-Powered Prefabs for Millennials

The idea of the LauchPod is to fill the gap between people with low enough income to quality for social housing in the United Kingdom and people who can afford standard housing. In fact, it was designed with millennials in mind. Each 280-square-foot modular home rents for less than the average cost of a one-bedroom apartment (which is $1,300) and can be set up in a single day. They’re energy efficient, made of cross-laminated timber and can be stacked into apartments 20 stories high. Each one includes a kitchen and lounge, bedroom, bathroom and verandah with higher than average ceilings and storage under the built-in beds. Since they have underfloor heating and are solar-powered, residents pay just about $13 a year in electricity. The first houses were installed at a site in Richmond, a town southwest of London by housing association RHP and law firm Legal & General.

M.A.Di: Folding Modular Living Unit by Renato Vidal

Ever heard of a folding house before? The M.A.Di House by Renato Vidal features an A-frame envelope that can pop up from its flat, folded shipping configuration with help from a crane, taking less than a day to install. It doesn’t need a foundation and its modular form makes it possible to expand it from its individual 290-square-foot size all the way up to 904 square feet. Its signature opening and closing movement is enabled by massive steel hinges on the inside. And if you ever need to, you can literally pack up the home and store it for a while before assembling it in a new place.

Wikkelhouse: Cardboard Home Can Be Built in One Day

The Wikkelhouse is made of 24 layers of pressed cardboard finished in waterproof foil and wood paneling, with individual 54-square-foot segments snapping together on the building site. Construction for the standard-sized Wikkelhouse, which is finished with plywood on the inside, can be completed in just one day, and the individual modules are customizable, so you can add interior walls, built-in counters and various other elements. The company has assembled the Wikkelhouse in all sorts of environments, including on a floating platform in Rotterdam’s Red Apple Marina.

Ten Fold Engineering House Self-Deploys in Mere Minutes

Press a button, and these structures by Ten Fold Engineering will self-assemble from a portable container to a standard house within just eight minutes. The process is pretty fun to watch, too; the company just released footage of ‘the real thing’ in action on April 22nd, 2018. The only requirement to install one of these structures is stable ground. The units can be stacked for more space, and all of the partitions, doors and windows are modular, and can be arranged according to the user’s preference. They can be connected to the grid or equipped with clean energy tech like solar power and self-contained water treatment.

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Drag And Drop Housing 12 Prefab Designs With Chic Modern Style

You know those glass tubes at the bank drive-through that shoot your deposits and withdrawals back and forth between you and the tellers? This house is like living in a cluster of them. Sadly, they’re not full of money, but it’s still pretty cool. ‘Cylinder House’ by lead architect Cyril Lancelin of the firm Town and Concrete is a modular glass residence in Lyon, France that can easily be expanded and rearranged without disturbing the trees around it by adding or subtracting one glass tube at a time.

Set on plinths, the tubes are narrow enough to allow for optimal malleability, conforming to the site. Some are taller than others, and some seem to hover above the landscape. The tubes can be fully open to each other, partially open or closed off altogether for smaller spaces. There are no walls or hallways inside other than the curving glass.

“The furniture marks space, but its movement can reinvent the house,” say the architects. “The plan is not fixed, to follow the evolution of the lives of these occupants. From the outside, the facades undulate… this system of cylinder juxtaposition allows to enlarge the house but also to have a blurred outer delimitation of the house with its context.”

The effect is definitely unusual when viewing the house from outside. As modular designs become more popular, their inventiveness only increases. It’ll be interesting to see how architecture as a whole is affected by the trend in the coming years.

Modular living units in a range of sizes can be stacked, spun and cantilevered over each other to create unique custom dwellings with views in every direction. The Tetris House makes it possible for homeowners to design their homes to their own specifications, from the size of each room to the orientation of the windows, and enables developers to create apartment complexes that can be easily expanded or reduced in size.

Dutch design studio Universe Architecture offers three basic sizes of steel units that can be enhanced with balconies, shutters, glazing and rooftop terraces. Plug three or more units together in pretty much any configuration you can think of, orient some of them to face the sun or your desired view, and stick on some pop-up decks with glass railings to take it all in.

The company teamed up with interior design firm i29 to create minimalist, compact and efficient interiors that can adapt to all the different possibilities in each building’s individual floorpan, adding interior walls, staircases, fireplaces and other basic elements. The prototype will soon be completed in the Netherlands, with plans to expand availability to other countries in the future.

New York City residents could have a stylish and safe place to live in less than 15 hours after a catastrophic natural or manmade disaster with these modular ‘pop-up’ apartments. Developed by Garrison Architects for the NYC Office of Emergency Management, the Urban Post Disaster Housing Prototype makes it easy to create compact multi-story, multi-family dwellings on demand.

Each individual unit is self-contained and can host families of various sizes, expanding from a one bedroom up to a three bedroom. Prefabricated in Indiana, the units also feature a living room, bathroom, fully-equipped kitchen, storage space and balcony. Multiple units can be stacked vertically or set side-by-side in a variety of urban settings, from vacant lots to public spaces.

The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy made it clear that fast, safe, durable housing is critical once the immediate danger of a disaster has passed. The result of over 6 years of research into emergency housing by by the City of New York, this design allows residents to remain in their communities instead of being whisked away to shelters for months at a time.

The units were designed to meet the strictest zoning requirements in the United States so they can be quickly deployed to any location in the country within hours. A total of 5 modules were created for the prototype, which will remain on the corner of Cadman Plaza East and Red Cross Place for up to two years. Guests will be invited to stay in the units for five-day intervals to see just how comfortable these housing units can be.

Forget the stereotypes – prefabricated homes can not only be ultra-portable and easy to assemble, but also sleek and modern, aesthetically rivaling the best of modern architecture. From rooftop lofts that can be dropped on site with a crane to tiny residences with insect-like legs that allow them to perch practically anywhere, these incredibly versatile, mobile dwellings represent the best of what prefabricated architecture has to offer.

Off-the-Grid Modular Steel House

Green architect Michael Jantzen has transformed the standard rural steel building into a pre-fabricated, modular modern wonder that can be reconfigured as desired. Energy-independent and made from recycled commercial steel of the sort often used for agricultural applications, this concept is a sustainable – and affordable – option for rural residents.

“Homestead House is a conceptual design for alternative housing that explores the potential use of a commercially available steel, prefabricated, modular, high strength, low cost, arch building system normally used for agricultural purposes,” said Jantzen.

Recycled Cargo Container Made into Portable Home

The Illy Push-Button House is about as portable and compact as modern prefabricated homes get. What began as a somewhat worse-for-the-wear cargo container was transformed into a tiny home that unfolds to reveal a kitchen, dining space and even a restroom. A later version takes the concept even further with a more complex design that retains the cargo container shell, but provides more space and privacy including a bedroom and a living room.

Modernist Glass-and-Wood Drop House

If the idea of living in a steel crate isn’t appealing, but you still find the portability attractive, the Drop House may be more your cup of tea. Though it collapses into a cargo-container sized unit for shipping, once it’s assembled this prefabricated home blossoms into a surprisingly roomy living space that offers a warm, cozy layout similar in feel to homes manufactured on-site.

Rooftop Prefab Living with the LoftCube

High rooftops have the best views in practically any city, but more often than not, they’re just wasted space. Not only does the LoftCube take advantage of that space, giving rooftop dwellers access to sweeping vistas, but it’s so compact, it can be transferred whole to the top of a building with a crane. Segmented into living and sleeping areas with partitioning panels, it offers compact rooftop living and plenty of windows from which to enjoy the view.

Metal-Clad Prefabricated Box Home

This metal-clad prefabricated box home may have an ultra-modern exterior, but it doesn’t come with a sky-high price tag. Tall and thin, this home has a tiny footprint but manages to fit several rooms into its wood-clad interior including loft spaces with built-in bed platforms.

All-in-One Prefabricated Portable Home

Promising “a headache-free process with cutting edge design”, the Zenkaya all-in-one prefabricated home can be shipped to your choice of location on the back of a truck. Nearly all of the setup takes place at the factory, so once it’s delivered, moving in is a snap. Available in studio, one bedroom and two bedroom models, the Zenkaya is designed to bring the outdoors in, with floor-to-ceiling glass windows that provide panoramic views of the scenery.

Sleek Prefabricated Homes on Wheels

Having a home on wheels doesn’t mean sacrificing aesthetics. These compact prefabs were built for a specific site, but they hint at the heights that portable home design could reach in the future. The simple wood and metal structures gain a sense of airiness and space through high ceilings and plenty of glass, and in a group they prove that trailer parks can be attractive and desirable.

Portable Prefab Log Cabin

This modernized prefab log cabin isn’t just a residence – it’s a work of art. From the back side, the two units look like a big pile of logs that has been broken in half, while the front is all glass. Olgga Architects explains, “The flake house, a nomadic, road-gauged dwelling, has been conceived to clad the places wherever it lands, as to transpose them in an unusual vision. A poetic shelter, a “folie”, that merges low-tech and hi-tech. The interior finish is smooth and stripped down as to contrast with the traditional look of the external log cladding.”

Location-Independent Modular Homes

No architecture firm has stretched the limits of cargo containers as portable residences more than Lab Zero, which creates homes that can be delivered by cargo ship and are location-independent. Each unit is based on single storage container dimensions, but can expand and contract based on weather and site conditions. Some designs even mimic insects, with expandable legs that allow them to perch nearly anywhere.

Huge Concrete Home Assembled in Days

Living in a prefabricated home doesn’t always mean sacrificing space. The Hemeroscopium House by Anton Garcia looks like it took months or years to complete, but this massive concrete-and-glass prefab was assembled in just seven days. It has just a few major structural elements that were constructed off-site, and then put together so that the weight was balanced just right.