The all-American, all-inspiring home

Nearly two years ago, Bozeman, Mont., builder Anders Lewendal made national headlines for building a house made entirely of Made-in-USA products and materials.

While the mainstream media may have moved on from the Made-in-USA builder story, Lewendal’s effort has spawned a mini-movement among builders to do similar Made-in-USA projects.

“I know of 12 builders in 10 states who are building homes with Made-in-USA products,” Lewendal said. “There may be more, but this is what I have heard about.”

Indeed, the Made-in-USA home-building story is part of a broader push among domestic companies to promote the use of American-made goods as a way to help the economy grow and to hire or retain more U.S. workers.

“It’s exploded,” Lewendal said of the movement.

One builder who was inspired by Lewendal is Corey Condron, a Spokane, Wash., builder who has committed to using all Made-in-USA materials in his new homes, where possible.

Watching Lewendal profiled on a television news show “got the patriot juices flowing,” Condron said. “It got me thinking: It’s just a simple concept, yet all you have to do is do it, and it will create American jobs and it just makes sense.”

Condron chronicled his Made-in-USA home on the company’s Facebook page. When completed, the 2,100-sq.-ft. home will list for $243,000.

He estimates that buying solely U.S. products will increase his building costs by 1%, or $2,500, for the home. Condron said he is absorbing the extra cost.

“This concept has gained a lot of traction in a short amount of time,” he said.

In addition to Washington State, Made-in-USA homes are being built, or have been completed, in Montana, Oregon, Texas, Florida and Virginia.

We Build America

Nearly 200 companies in more than 40 states have joined a We Build America initiative, which is intended to spread the word that homes that are built with approximately 95% American-made materials and products can be cost-competitive with homes built using foreign lumber; nails; fasteners; or other building materials and supplies, such as adhesives and caulking.

Marnie Oursler, a Bethany Beach, Del., builder is credited with creating the We Build America initiative. Oursler approached 84 Lumber with the idea of sharing her experiences and recruiting other builders.

It is estimated that current American homes contain approximately 65% American-made and sourced products. With up to nearly 40% of the $295 billion American home-building industry relating to product costs, a small percentage increase in American-made products could create hundreds of thousands of jobs nationwide in the years to come, according to some builders.

Materials suppliers are also getting into the game. As one of the last remaining nail manufacturers in the United States, Maze Nails supports the “Buy America Challenge,” which states that if builders, contractors and remodel-ers purchase 5% more American-made building products, 220,000 jobs would be created in the United States.

“People are delighted to hear they can still buy nails Made in the USA,” said Maze general manager Roelif Loveland, who added that if every lumberyard across the United States would order two additional boxes (100 pounds) of Maze Nails, the company could hire another 20 workers in its Peru, Ill., factory.

There’s an emotional and economic story, as well as practical story to tell, according to Oursler. She says she found that higher quality, American-made nails have a great impact during the framing process. With fewer jammed nail guns and less waste, Oursler estimated she saved about two and a half hours each week during the framing process. Another discovery: While overall lumber costs were approximately 1.5% higher using American-made lumber, there was nearly 15% less waste, which led to less culling of lumber to ensure boards are straight and structurally sound.

GAF Materials Corp., an American-owned company with American-made products and a self-described focus on creating jobs domestically, has partnered with The All American Home project. As part of the project, GAF directs contractors to the website TheAllAmericanHome.org to locate manufacturers that make American-made products and to encourage all to take the 5% pledge to use more materials that are made in America.

“Surveys consistently show that homeowners prefer American-made products,” said Ted Marcopolus, VP marketing services for GAF. “In fact, a recent study showed that more than eight out of 10 homeowners favor or would pay more for American-made products from a company that’s American-owned.

“Builders might be surprised at how many people would be willing to pay a small premium to support American manufacturing and American jobs,” he said. “Builders who are committed to supporting American jobs have an opportunity to differentiate themselves from their competitors in this area.”

Since his initial Made-in-USA project, Lewendal said he has consciously tried to use as many American-sourced products as possible in his projects.

“I think it’s unnecessary to try and use every product from America,” he said. “Sometimes it just doesn’t make sense. But I try to use 95% or as close to 100% as possible. Most people think it is so hard to find American products, which simply is not true.”

Looking back at the project that created such a media frenzy and reignited the Made-in-USA building fury, Lewendal said he didn’t do it for the publicity. “I was curious myself: Could this be done?” he told HCN. “What I found out? Yes, it can be done, and it really caught people’s attention.” 

“This concept has gained a lot of traction in a short amount of time.”— Corey Condron