\n<\/p>\n
Though U.S. mortgage rates are now at their lowest level in 15 months<\/a>, home prices are still high.<\/a><\/p>\n As the U.S. faces a shortage of 4.5 million homes<\/a>, construction company Icon is using 3D printing technology to mass-print houses \u2014 and it’s wrapping up the final properties in a 100-home, 3D-printed<\/a> community in Georgetown, Texas.<\/p>\n Icon uses a 45-foot-wide 3D printer and fills it with a combination of concrete powder, water, sand, and other materials. The printer then pipes the mixture, layering it until it stacks up to form a house.<\/p>\n Related: <\/b>I Designed My Dream Home For Free With an AI Architect \u2014 Here’s How It Works<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n The project to build 100 of these 3D-printed homes in Georgetown, Texas, started in November 2022 and is slated for completion by the end of the summer, according to a Reuters report<\/a>.<\/p>\n How it’s going….how it started. 95 homes printed & a few more to go at Wolf Ranch. https:\/\/t.co\/pX4iDWHXSB<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/6C3IeKgFOy<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 ICON (@ICON3DTech) May 31, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The homes are single-story, three to four-bedroom structures that take up 1,500 to 2,000 square feet.<\/p>\n Each one costs between $450,000 and $600,000. In comparison, the median listing home price<\/a> in the area was $499,900.<\/p>\n The exterior and interior walls of each home are made out of 3D-printed concrete, which Icon says can hold up in extreme weather.<\/p>\n Icon says that 3D-printed homes have several advantages over traditionally made ones. The company claims that the concrete materials make the home soundproof, energy-efficient, and carbon-friendly.<\/p>\n The homes also take less time and money to build\u2014one human crew and one robot could replace five different human crews, the company says<\/a>.<\/p>\n Icon has sold about 25 of the homes<\/a> in the community so far. One resident told Reuters that the house “feels like a fortress” capable of withstanding a tornado.<\/p>\n Besides 3D-printed homes, Icon is also testing an AI architecture bot<\/a> that can churn out floor plans for a dream home.<\/p>\n ‘A Brief History of the Future’ on @PBS<\/a> is a unique six-part documentary series about our futures and how we can reimagine them.<\/p>\n Hosted by @AriW<\/a>, directed by @Andrew_Morgan<\/a> \u2728 ICON on ep5 pic.twitter.com\/o6p8f9wmWx<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 ICON (@ICON3DTech) May 10, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n\n
\n