Housing

Each year, the American Institute of Architectsdeclares the best new American homes. The awards provide a good opportunity to check out the current state of residential architecture by US-based firms ​and 2018's selection ranges from enviable luxury pads to housing for homeless war veterans.

Shipping container-based architecture seems like a bad idea. They'e cramped, offer no insulation, and often require heavy modification. That said, limitation occasionally proves fertile ground for innovation, as evidenced by the imaginative shipping container projects that we're highlighting here.

​They say constraint breeds creativity, and anybody looking to get into home ownership will be well familiar with the constraints that go with it. Here we take a look at some clever solutions to low-cost housing, including a few whose appearance far outstrips their price tag.

With concerns about rising sea levels and attractive land always in demand, there's something to be said for a house that floats on water. With this in mind, we highlight the best examples of floating homes we've seen so far – from classic prefabricated houseboat to luxury models for the ultra-rich.

Like many major cities, London can be a very expensive place to live. However, PUP Architects has a novel idea for low-cost housing in the form of a micro-house disguised as an air duct unit. The project, called H-VAC, skirts planning laws and could be installed atop existing rooftops.

UK-based company Ten Fold Engineering has developed a series of modular, self-deploying structures that can be instantly unfolded in under ten minutes without the need for builders, cranes or foundations.

MVRDV has plenty of form for coming up with unusual building designs and its latest project is no exception. Planned to sit between Rotterdam's New Luxor Theater and Boston and Seattle residential areas, The Sax consists of two novel Jenga-like mixed-use towers joined by a skybridge.

Architects of Invention has drawn inspiration from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, for its latest project. Garden Hill consists of two wooden residential towers with an interesting stepped design and some sustainable features.

ODA New York has designed an unusual apartment building in Long Island City, Queens, NYC. Named 2222 Jackson, its brutalist-like pixelated design isn't purely aesthetic, but serves a practical purpose too, providing generous outdoor living space for residents in the form of terraces. 

The American Institute of Architects has selected the winners of its 2017 Housing Awards. Whether a luxury lake house for the well-heeled or rehabilitative housing for disabled veterans, each project represents the best residential architecture the USA currently has to offer.

Stéphane Malka has unveiled a novel project that involves renovating an aging Paris apartment building by attaching wooden boxes to the facade. The "guerrilla architect" says that the boxes will increase living space for the residents and improve energy-efficiency.

Panoramic Interests has designed a self-contained stackable tiny apartment that it it feels could be a viable home for the homeless. MicroPAD modular dwellings comprise a floorspace of just 160 sq ft (14 sq m), but include a kitchenette, sleeping area, and bathroom.